Home » Hints and Tips

Using the Amtrak Web Site Trip Planner

I recently received an email from a reader who was planning a trip from Memphis to Orlando, and queried the Amtrak Web Site about possible itineraries. Unfortunately, web sites are not thinking beings, and the utility of the information we get from them is usually dependent on asking the right questions.

The suggested itinerary that the web site produced for this traveler was going from Memphis to Chicago and then from Chicago to Washington, D.C. and then from D.C. to Orlando. Three and a half days! When the reader emailed me about a better way of setting up the trip, I immediately wondered why the itinerary did not suggest going through New Orleans rather than Chicago and D.C. However, when I went to the site and broke the trip up into parts, using the Multi City planner, rather than the planner that pops up when you come to the page, I was able to create an itinerary leaving Memphis around 6:30 am, arriving New Orleans at 3:30 pm, the same day, leaving New Orleans at 10:30 pm, arriving Orlando at 8:45 pm the next day - three and half days cut in half.

The reason that the web site created the Memphis/Chicago/DC/Orlando itinerary rather than the Memphis/New Orleans/Orlando is due to the preference for relatively short layovers. The Memphis/New Orleans option includes a 7 hour layover, and Amtrak assumes that travelers would not want that. However, as I wrote to the reader who queried me about this issue, layovers can give the opportunity to visit a city or town without staying overnight, and are particularly good in those cities where the train station is downtown or a short distance from other attractions. In my booklet, Train Travel Self Help Guide, I have a listing entitled "What To Do During a Four Hour Layover," and give ideas for various cities.

This example points out a few things you must remember when using the Amtrak web site to plan your trip. First, unless you are planning a trip that has only one possible route, use the Multi City trip planner. Review your Amtrak map, online or in an Amtrak Travel Planner booklet, and identify all possible routes. Then, request itineraries using the Multi City planner, and see what works for you.

Remember, a layover does not have to mean a long, boring wait in the train station. Depending on the city, there are often many things to do that are within walking distance of the train station. In New Orleans, the French Quarter is a short cab ride from the station. In Los Angeles, right across the street from the station is Olivera Street, with its 27 historic buildings and traditional Mexican style plaza. Right outside Chicago's Union Station you can catch the River Taxi and take it to Sears Tower, Navy Pier and the various museums. And Washington, D.C. has turned its Union Station into a destination itself, with restaurants, bars, seasonal displays, and stores of all types.