I chose a 20-hour train over a 2-hour flight to avoid airport chaos. See what the experience aboard was really like.
· Business Insider
Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
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- The partial government shutdown caused long, hourslong TSA lines at many US airports.
- To skip the airport chaos, I canceled my 2-hour flight and booked a 20-hour Amtrak.
- Spacious seats, food on board, and more flexible boarding were among the train's standout perks.
It's been a particularly tough month to travel by air.
The partial government shutdown, which started on February 14, left TSA workers without pay for nearly two months, leading to staffing shortages and hourslong security lines at some US airports.
While TSA workers are starting to see their pay and lines are beginning to subside, the travel chaos caused by the shutdown has already affected millions of Americans' travel plans, including my own.
On a recent trip on March 24, I made the last-minute decision to avoid the airport drama and take the long route instead.
I canceled my $100 one-way flight from Chicago to New York — a route with an average flight time of 2 hours — and booked a $200 coach ticket aboard Amtrak's Lake Shore Limited train, which would get me between the two cities in 20 hours.
While I could've reached my destination 10 times faster by air, I would've also missed out on stunning views, hours of relaxation, and other perks that made me reconsider adding more train trips to my travel schedule.
Here's what the experience was really like, along with all the amenities that came with it.
I got to the station about 45 minutes before my train's departure.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
I arrived at the Chicago Union Station about 45 minutes before my train's scheduled departure.
The station, over 100 years old and located in the heart of the city's downtown, is grand and historic, and connects Amtrak trains with local Metra commuter rail lines.
According to its website, the station spans nearly 10 city blocks and is the third-busiest rail terminal in the US, seeing about 140,000 travelers on an average weekday.
It is also home to a food court, the Amtrak Metropolitan Lounge, and preserved rooms that serve as private event spaces.
While I wish I'd had more time to explore the historic station, the pre-boarding process began shortly after I arrived.
There wasn't a security screening before boarding the train.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
After passengers for my train were called, we made our way to the boarding area, where we lined up for a few minutes before being directed to the train platform.
I was surprised that there weren't any pre-boarding security screenings.
While the speed of the process was nice and far from what I would've experienced at the airport during the same week, I would've felt a bit safer if there were some pre-boarding checkpoints.
While Amtrak doesn't have pre-boarding screenings, the network relies on its own police department, which works inside Amtrak stations and aboard the trains, per the company.
Boarding took about 20 minutes from beginning to end.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
After we lined up and waited a few minutes, Amtrak staff gave us instructions on which cars to board, making boarding relatively simple.
From what I could tell, cars were separated by final destination, and the conductor confirmed that I — along with the people who ended up being in the same train car as me — were heading to New York's Penn Station as our final destination.
Seats have comfortable, ample legroom.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
Inside the train, I found a seat near the front of the car with an outlet conveniently placed.
I was surprised by how much legroom there was on the coach seats, after being used to the crammed seats on basic economy flights. I could stretch out and recline nearly flat, which felt like a luxury for traveling.
My seat was comfortable and had a good window view, as well as curtains to block the light coming through the windows at night.
Overhead luggage space wasn't as limited as it is on airplanes.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
While I had some initial doubts about whether the overhead storage would be big enough to fit my overpacked carry-on bag — mostly based on my previous experiences with long-distance bus travel — the Amtrak storage space was bigger and less coveted than on airplanes, and I had more than enough space to store all my belongings.
On the train, you can take two carry-on-sized bags and a personal item for free, which felt generous.
I also spotted some space on the train car for oversize baggage, which could be handy for those traveling with more than I did.
As a chronic overpacker, I thought the luggage space was a huge perk.
The train attendant didn't check for tickets until we had already departed.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
While we were boarding, the attendant only asked for our final destination, which they checked against a printed sheet.
I was surprised I didn't need to pull up my e-ticket until several minutes after we had departed. While this probably helped speed up the boarding process, it raised the same concerns as the lack of security screening, but also made the experience feel more relaxed and less procedural.
Not every seat was taken, and many passengers like myself had an entire row to themselves.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
While the train was largely occupied, not every seat was sold out, and some passengers, including me, enjoyed having two seats — or an entire row — to ourselves.
This made the already-roomy seats feel even more comfortable and gave me privacy to take off my shoes and room to stretch out during overnight travel. At night, the two seats reclined and, with their footrests out, made a comfortable bed to lie down on.
Movement on the train was nonstop, especially during higher-speed sections.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
Once the train departed, the entire trip felt like airplane turbulence, ranging from slight — and even sleep-inducing — sways to full-on roller coaster vibes where I had to put my computer away to avoid it falling.
While some slower sections of the trip, which averaged about 75 mph, didn't feel too rattling, the higher speeds of 110 mph or more felt like a ride at a theme park.
Once we reached higher speeds, I moved one of my bags to the seat next to me so I'd have access to everything I needed without getting up to reach overhead storage.
Sleeping was great — with some essentials.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
One of the most surprising aspects of this trip was just how well I slept.
Within an hour of departing, I had already fallen into a deep sleep, and throughout the night, I achieved my 8-hour goal with only a couple of brief interruptions during the earlier half of the night.
Some key things for securing a good night's sleep on the train were a sleep eye mask, a scarf I rolled into a small pillow, my earbuds and the white noise I played throughout the night, and my long puffer jacket that I used as a blanket. I also kept a full water bottle next to me for sips when I woke during the night.
Next time, I'll make sure to pack a real pillow and a real blanket.
A lot of the views along the way were of rural areas or small towns.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
For most of the trip, the views were mundane, but that didn't make them any less interesting to me.
I saw old churches, parked pickup trucks, kids' tree houses, small backyard gardens, large farm fields, cattle and horses, and a wide variety of uniquely local views that showed how people in each population pocket lived.
It felt like traveling through America's backyards, and gave me a glimpse of areas of the country that I wouldn't have seen otherwise, from acres of woods and rural areas to historic downtowns.
I often wondered what role past train lines might have played in the history of some of the towns we crossed, and how they might've been developed with train routes in mind.
Other views were truly stunning and felt surreal to travel through.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
Some of the landscapes aboard the train were jaw-dropping, to my surprise.
While the route isn't considered among the most scenic Amtrak routes, many of which travel across the West Coast, it still delivered breathtaking views, especially along the Hudson River valley, where the train tracks were so close to the water that it looked like the train was floating.
The bathrooms on the train were a step up from airplane bathrooms.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
I was not expecting the train bathrooms to be as spacious as they are.
While they lacked pretty much any counter space — which would've been helpful for getting ready during my morning aboard, or even just for setting my phone down — they were certainly a big upgrade over airplane bathrooms.
Getting water refills took some effort.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
The water fountains, which I only found after asking an attendant, are small, awkwardly placed outside the restrooms, and designed only for small cups.
To fill my water bottle, I had to hold it at an awkward angle and press down on the spout, which left me unable to see how full the bottle was (I accidentally overfilled it once or twice).
The water itself had a mild plastic taste. While it wasn't strong enough to truly bother me, it wasn't particularly pleasant either.
An Amtrak spokesperson told me over email that "the watering system to replenish the cars and the cars themselves are routinely inspected."
Despite the taste, I was grateful that they were an option at all, and that I didn't need to go all the way to the café car or pay for a bottle of water.
The food options aboard were much better than airplane peanuts (or pretzels).Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
Having previously traveled on Amtrak, I was familiar with the menu aboard.
The Amtrak food options range from snacks, including pretzels and various chips, to meals, such as sandwiches or burgers, with warm options heated in a microwave-like oven and cold options being pre-packaged.
The café car also had condiments like ketchup and mustard for items like sandwiches or hot dogs.
However, during my journey, I missed the announcement that said that the café car on our train would separate at the Albany, New York, stop, where the Lake Shore Limited route divides between New York City (my destination) and Boston (where the café car went) and by the time I was ready to get food, the café was no longer traveling with us.
An Amtrak spokesperson confirmed by email that the Lake Shore Limited train splits to go to two separate terminals, leaving one half with a café car and the other with a first-class dining car.
Packing snacks was the right choice, even with other options available for purchase.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
Despite missing out on the café car's food options, I didn't go hungry during my long journey.
Packing dense snacks like beef jerky and peanut-butter-filled pretzel nuggets, and having a filling dinner before departing on the overnight train, helped me stay satisfied throughout the journey and saved on the additional cost of purchasing train food.
The train made some longer stops for passengers to stretch out their legs or take a smoke break.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
Throughout the trip, the train often extended stop times by a few minutes, with announcements made at stops where passengers could stretch their legs or take a smoke break if needed.
While these stops, which were usually about 10 or 15 minutes long, were nice to have as an option and were already factored into the travel time, I only left the train during the longest stop, which lasted about 50 minutes.
Some of the stations reminded me of small regional airports.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
I was surprised when I walked into the Albany station. With a small convenience shop, a USPS office, and a full restaurant, the station reminded me of some of the small airports I had traveled through before, both in size and in amenities.
Along with Chicago's historic Union Station, the scale of some of the Amtrak stations took me by surprise. If getting an airport experience or buying some local souvenirs was a priority during my travels, these stations would satisfy that.
Cell connection wasn't the best, but I was able to work remotely for a full workday.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
On Amtrak's website, the route is listed as having onboard Wi-Fi, but the connection wasn't that reliable, especially during rural portions of the trip.
"WI-Fi service is wholly dependent on the quality of the cellular network above us," an Amtrak spokesperson told Business Insider over email. "Cellular coverage also tends to be more dense in urban areas or along interstate routes, while many of our trains operate far from cities or highways."
They also mentioned that many passengers, like myself, prefer to use their own hotspots aboard rather than the Amtrak WiFi network, which combines signals from multiple carriers.
My connection went out a few times while passing through rural areas, but it was stable enough that I could stay connected throughout my 9-to-5 workday and make progress on my work, a huge perk for me.
I'd do it again, even without the airport chaos.Kristine Villarroel/Business Insider
I was expecting the 20-hour journey to feel like a drag by the end, and I prepared myself to endure a tiring trek, but what I found instead was that the trip was much more relaxing, enjoyable, and restful than I imagined. I arrived in New York feeling less tired than I would after a shorter flight.
As someone who often makes the trip between the two cities, taking the train rather than my usual 2-hour flight made me reconsider whether, in some cases, taking the long route could be a better way to travel. It could be a good option when I have some extra time or simply want to avoid the hassle of flying.
As time-consuming as the trip was, I enjoyed the experience much more than flying in uncomfortable economy seats out of crowded airports, even though the latter takes only a fraction of the time.
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