Last month, I decided to make a trip to Miami using Amtrak. Usually, I’ll make the four hour drive from Orlando to Miami, but this time I decided to use Amtrak due to the round trip price.
I tend to spend about $60 driving from Orlando to Miami, but Amtrak was having a deal of $50 round trip. I have never been on an Amtrak before, so I decided to book the trip and hoped for the best.
Orlando to Miami on Amtrak
Last year wasn’t the best time for travel and with COVID still at large, it’s been kind of hard to travel. However, many trains, airplanes, boats and so forth have been implementing regulations to keep people safe.
So while I was a bit worried about traveling on Amtrak, I received plenty of reassurance from their website, which provides a lot of information on how they are doing things to keep people safe.
Another thing to keep in mind is that traveling by train will take a little longer to get to the destination.
Safety on Amtrak
Amtrak has made our health a top priority. While on the train, they were strict about keeping 6 feet apart from other people (if you are traveling alone, they ask that you keep an empty seat next to you). They were also very strict on keeping the masks at all times on the train unless you were eating or drinking. One of the employee’s woke a passenger up because he did not have his mask on.
Amtrak employee’s follow the regulations and they make sure we are following them as well.
Although they do a great job with the COVID regulations, I do feel that they need to improve their security. It’s easy to walk on to the train with anything in your carry on, especially since they did not check my carry on in Orlando or in Miami.
I also witnessed a fight on the train I was on. It didn’t get physical, but the screaming was sure to scare any one and even then there was no one to stop the fighting.
Now I’m not saying all Amtrak trips are like this, but this is what I dealt with on my trip from Orlando to Miami.
Food on Amtrak
The train I was on was the Silver Meteor, which does have food. However, unlike the food I would get on the trains in Europe, the food on this train was mediocre.
I may have chosen the wrong thing to eat on this train, but I decided to go with a burger. The burger itself smelled funky and the taste wasn’t right at all. I really do not recommend the burger. However, they do have other things on the menu. So while I may have not enjoyed the burger, I did enjoy the blueberry muffin.
Amenities on Amtrak
I will admit that I can be easily impressed. So when I got on the train, I was impressed to see outlets, big reclining seats, leg space and WiFi.
It was so easy for me to blog on the train, especially with all the space I had around me.
I had a ticket for coach, but honestly I felt like I was in business because of the seats. The seats are way better than the coach seats on airplanes and the leg space was great!
You also get to pick your own seat, which is a plus for me. I was able to pick my own seat and got a nice view outside.
Parking
Rather than going to the Orlando station, I took the train from the Winter Park station. There weren’t a lot of people there and there t was easy to find parking. You can leave your car at the station, but you will need to ask for a parking permit from the front desk.
Trip to Miami
Taking Amtrak to Miami was a great experience and I absolutely enjoyed the ride. Even though my trip was for 6 hours rather than the four hours I tend to drive, the trip gave me the opportunity to work on my blog and catch up on shows!
There were a few things I didn’t enjoy such as the crazy people around me (the ones who were fighting) and the food, but aside from that it was a good experience and I will definitely plan another trip using Amtrak.
Things to know
- You can take two carry on bags and two personal items.
- They do have bathrooms and they are mostly clean (I noticed the handicapped bathrooms are not very clean).
- The train employees will pass by checking tickets.
- They have an app with a lot of information and access to your tickets.
- Some people may be on the train longer than you and may be cranky, take your headphones with you!
- If you have garbage, wait until the employee passes around with the garbage bag. Keep the train clean!
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