I’ve booked my first Amtrak long-distance trip today, Sacramento to Naperville (Illinois) mid June. Traveling alone, I have a private bedroom. My e-ticket says car 631 room D. Anything I should know? The only other Amtrak I have ever been on was a Wolverine Chicago to Detroit a couple of years ago, and numerous Capital Corridors to the Bay Area, so I am treating myself to a whole new experience this trip. I hope it goes well. They did try to put me in a family bedroom at first, but I insisted on the private bedroom. They don’t make booking easy for the inexperienced rail traveler.
Not sure both stations handle luggage. If not then you will have to handle your own. I think the family bedroom is on the lower level. As I remember the standard bedrooms are on the upper level, so you would then be getting your luggage up a narrow twisting stairway, but maybe the car attendant could handle it.
Wave when you go by my backyard in New London, Iowa.
The private bedroom is the only way to go. SAC does have checked baggage however NPV does not have checked baggage, so you will have to carry on your baggage. Beautiful scenery especially in Colorado. Keep in mind long distance trains can run late. Enjoy your trip. I was a ticket agent for Amtrak for 17 years. I love the long distance trains and the food on board is good and is included.
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The Family bedroom and the Handicap room on are the lower level. All the bedrooms A, B, C, D, E are on the upper level as are roomettes 1 through 10.
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Thanks guys. Yes I found the schematic and room D is indeed upstairs on this Superliner sleeper. Not a problem as I travel light, am a healthy 78, and want to finally experience in 1:1 scale what I have modeled in 1:160. Since this is June, lots of daylight, so I get the Sierras on day 1 and most of the best parts of Utah and Colorado on day 2. I don’t mind if we run late, this is a pleasure trip to see family in Chicago and a welcome alternative to flying. I WILL wave Ken, and Tony, thank you for your service.
I just deleted my “advice,” since I see you’re heading east and not west.
You’re in for a great ride!
Be prepared to be late arriving Naperville. In FY25 the California Zephyr’s on-time percentage at all stations was 50.8%. The average on-time percentage for customers was 53.2%. The average number of minutes late per rider was 117 minutes or nearly two hours.
I have ridden the California Zephyr between Emeryville and Denver or vice versa three times. It is a great ride. Whenever I go by Amtrak, which is two or three times a year, I take both Kindles. Just in case one breaks down.
My experience, with lots of short AMTRAK trips here in the NE, is that the middle of the car always rides better than the ends.
Yes, you will need to carry your luggage onboard since your destination does not have checked baggage service. There is space on the lower level of Superliner sleeping cars, at the bottom of the stairs near the door, for storing luggage. Just take what you will need (a small overnight bag) for 2 days and 2 nights upstairs to your bedroom.
Are you only traveling East by train? One way trip? Perhaps when you return home you could post a ‘trip report’ to this forum.
As others have mentioned, expect the train to be late! I hope you have a wonderful trip and a positive experience on Amtrak.
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“Just take what you will need (a small overnight bag) for 2 days and 2 nights upstairs to your bedroom.”
I have ridden every one of Amtrak’s long-distance trains except the City of New Orleans
Leaving baggage in the luggage racks on the lower level is reasonably safe. However, I recommend taking high value items, i.e. jewelry, computer, smart phone, etc. to your room. On one trip a fellow passenger had his small suitcase taken. I never learned whether it was stolen or taken by mistake.
Its summer, nothing special happening on day of arrival, my sister lives in the western suburbs, so a late arrival of even 2-4 hours will not affect my trip. I’m bringing a good book, I can use my phone’s hotspot to connect to the web on my laptop so I can avoid WiFi, or just enjoy the scenery or conversation in the lounge. This is planned to be the relaxing part of the trip. Yes, I plan to fly home after 4 days in Chicago celebrating my sister’s birthday 72 and hugging my grandkids 5 and 2. I will post my post trip thoughts here.
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I rode the Zephyr eastbound out of Sacramento three years ago. By far the best scenery is when you pass through the Colorado Rockies. The Sierras were interesting from a historical perspective, but I don’t recall any spectacular views. Hopefully your train maintains some semblance of schedule so you pass through Colorado during daylight.
Something truly amazing happened just now. I got an email from Amtrak - typical marketing stuff I thought - about spring break price deals. I just happened to check my fare, even though it is just technically in spring. Waddya know! The fare dropped nearly a grand. Misprint? Scam? Will I make things worse by contacting Amtrak? Anyway, got on a chat line with a live agent, identified myself and my booking info, and15 minutes later I am in room C in car 632 and a credit of $975 has been applied to my credit card. Wow! Sometimes good things do happen. Thanks Amtrak and chat agent Essence.
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