Amtrak Auto Train

Craig Yarrish

Great way to travel from the Va area to Fl. Much better than driving! Accommodate included the bedroom that included a private toilet area! Rooms are small, but adequate. I did try the top bunk bed on our way to Fl. Tough getting in and out of. Ok sleeping, but night time toilet trips down the ladder proved interesting. At 6' tall you become a contortionist. Food was good. Dining area was still closed due to covid, so room service was the only option. Dinner was Flank steak potatoe, vegetables and a roll. Good except for what I think was canned vegetables. Breakfast was served in a bag... with a choice of a sausage, egg, cheese sandwich, cereal, banana, orange juice.

Chet Rhodes

Very easy check in and process but you do have to wait in the lobby to get on the train until 2:30 and the train doesn't physically leave until 4:00. But you have to have your car checked in by 2:30 or they won't let you on I still suggest getting here early they open the gates at 11:30. The little shop here has great sandwiches drinks and anything you need for the trip if you're hungry.

millie rod

We went from Virginia to Florida. Got to Virginia at 1:30pm and checked in, boarded at 2:30pm and started rolling out at 4pm. 17hrs later we arrived in Florida. Then you wait for your car to be unloaded from the Autotrain. That could be another hour or two. (Priority unloading was full) Sounds like alot right. Well, here is the thing, if you have the right state of mind...its not bad at all. Bring snacks, good music, download movies on a device and enjoy the view. People on the train were quiet and respectful. Breakfast was free. Staff was pleasant and helpful. And the best thing is that everything is organized. We had domestic seating. Sat on top deck for a better view. Oh and seating is first come first serve basis.

Just a Countertenor

I would give one star, but because of the nice lady at the service desk I’ll give two. We booked our trip a few months ago and expected to take the train to Florida for winter break. The cost was a few hundred dollars less than a plane and rental car so we thought we would try it out. On the day of departure we were notified that there would be a modified dinner service. Our train kept getting delayed and it was not clear when it would depart. It was supposed to depart at 4pm. We tried contacting customer service to figure out the situation or to ask for a refund. That was not possible as we couldn’t get through. We tried cancelling the trip online but we would have only received 75% back on an eVoucher. We drove 45 minutes to Lorton and waited on line in our car. When we got to the front we were told that the train wouldn’t depart until 1am, 9 hours late. We went inside and got a full refund. We managed to find a flight that would get us into Florida early the next day. The flights+rental car ended up being $500 more than the train. We then drove two hours to get back to Maryland in the rush hour. Our train did not even leave until 3:30am, nearly 12 hours late. Luckily we flew instead. I plan on contacting Amtrak to let them know about our experience. I take Amtrak usually once a month or more and have never had this type of experience.