I’ve always fantasized about taking a long train trip in a sleeper car but the closest I’ve ever been has been coach seats on a way too long train ride. Back when I was in my early 20’s I took a train from Detroit to New York and what should have been a 15 or so hour train ride turned into 20 something. It sounds fun but after that many hours sitting up right it got a lot less fun. It was an adventure anyhow and I think I was more tolerant when I was younger. I also rode a few fast (and efficient) trains when I was in Japan but that’s a whole other story.
So recently when my dad talked about taking a train from Michigan to Seattle for a visit I was interested. He planned on getting a sleeper car and it would only cost the train ticket if I were to join. [Disclaimer: Traveling by train in a sleeper car is not cheap-this must be something you have always wanted to do and don’t mind the extra cost-although occasional deals may be found. Also it takes a really long time.]
I got on a red eye from Seattle and flew to Chicago to meet my dad. I had just a few hours in Chicago so there wasn’t time for much but I did visit a local donut shop before hopping on the train for next few days. I was so excited to see the little room that would be ours for the next couple of days. It was all so new and therefore extremely exciting. They had a couple little bottles of champagne upon arrival, chocolates just like at a hotel, and toiletries for the bathroom. Even though we had one of the larger rooms on the train it was still a bit tight so I was even more thankful we didn’t get one of the smaller rooms.
The train began in Chicago and over the course of 3 days we went through Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, and Washington ending in Seattle. I had never been to North Dakota, Montana, or Idaho so I got off the train when I could in both North Dakota and Montana so that I can now say I’ve been there. I should also note that those states were having extremely cold weather (I’m talking -25/-35 degrees) so I didn’t stay outside for long-burr! The cold temperatures also contributed to an almost 12 hour delay getting into Seattle. Some of that was due to the cold but the biggest reason for the delays was having to wait for freight trains. I knew that was increasingly becoming an issue but it made it more evident experiencing in slow motion on a train. During the day the delays didn’t seem to last more than 30-60 minutes but one night while everyone was sleeping we were stopped for 4 hours behind a derailed freight train. Oy!
All of the workers on the train that we met were so nice and it was interesting to be able to chat with them as we traveled along. We had most of our meals in our room so that gave us more chat time which was fun. On the second day they hosted a cheese and wine tasting in the dining car and that was a hoot. We tasted wine and played trivia in between to win bottles of the wine. I won a bottle of the best wine and enjoyed it in my room later on.
I brought all kinds of things to do on the train but it was actually entertaining enough just looking out the window. I explored the train a little but our room was probably the nicest and the quietest so I spend most of my time there. Once the sun went down looking out the window was pointless so we usually went to bed pretty early. If you’ve never slept on a train before I highly recommend it. It’s like getting rocked to sleep, it’s wonderful.
On the third day, 12 hours late-like I mentioned, we finally arrived in Seattle. As much as I enjoyed sleeping on the train I enjoyed being home and in my bed even more. Would I do it again? I think so but it might be awhile. I’m thinking the next one should be a trip down the California coast? We’ll see.
