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Hi guys, in a fortnight I will be taking a very short holiday from Melbourne, Australia where I live, to Los Angeles. I'm meeting a friend who will be flying down from San Fransisco & we are taking a short 3 day cruise off Long Beach, he is taking a break from his stressful job. Anyway, the cruise arrives back at Long Beach at 8 AM, Monday,14th June & we are hoping to take the light rail back to Union Station to enable us to catch The Coast Starlight back to Emeryville on the same day. Is this achievable as I believe there is an 8.45 AM light rail service from Long Beach. Is it far from the wharf at Long Beach to Long Beach Transit Mall? Thanks for any suggestions. Mike.
Posts: 8 | From: Ballan, Victoria, Australia | Registered: Jan 2003
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You'll never get off the ship by 8:45. They must be cleared by customs and that could take some time. I wouldn't risk it. Stay in LA or better yet, at the Queen Mary in Long Beach. You'll dock right next to her. They say she's haunted, which would make for an interesting night. Then take the Coast Starlight the next day, just to be safe. Have fun!! Eat plenty!!
Posts: 34 | From: Biloxi, MS USA | Registered: Aug 2000
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I'm not sure how far the LB transit mall is from the LB cruise terminal.
As for riding the MTA Blue Line, it runs every 12-15-18 minutes (something like that) and you will need to transfer to the MTA Blue Line at 7th/Metro Ctr. {thanks for correcting me}
I agree with Genesis's advice to spend a day in Long Beach or the LA area, rather than trying to rush the connection.
[This message has been edited by MPALMER (edited 05-28-2004).]
Posts: 874 | From: South Bay (LA County), Calif, USA | Registered: Aug 2000
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I was just out there in Feb. If you do dock next to the Queen Mary, it is quite a ways (say 2 miles) to the Transit Mall. There is a free mini-bus, so it would mostly depend on how long you had to wait on it. There are also taxis there. You transfer from the Blue Line to the Red Line (short ride) at 7th St/Metro Center, the end of the line. The ride on the Blue Line is no more than 45 minutes once you're rolling. The Starlight will in no case leave before 10:15 am, and in many cases later.
Posts: 326 | From: San Antonio Texas USA | Registered: Dec 2003
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You have a very tight window to get off the train and get to Union Station. Your first challenge is to get off the ship quickly. Some cruise lines remove passengers in groups; it can take up to 2 hours to get everyone off the ship. If you want to make the CS on the same day I suggest taking the following steps: make sure you can get off the ship in the first group. If you only have carry-on luggage for the cruise you can get off anytime. Take a cab to Union Station, it won't be cheap but it should be the quickest. Tell the cab driver to take the I-710 and use the carpool lanes on the 105 and 110 The other choice is to relax and enjoy your day anywhere in the Los Angeles area.
Posts: 32 | From: Redondo Beach, CA | Registered: Sep 2003
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Thanks to you all for the tips, we have already booked our tickets for the Coast Starlight the same day. We will be travelling light, I personally will only be bringing a medium size back pack from Australia & my friend about the same. So we will make every effort to be first off the boat then see if there's a mini bus to take us to the Transit Mall OR a cab, then see what the story is on the next Blue Line train OR the cab option down the suggested carpool lane on I 710, etc. I note from the Amtrak website the only Thruway Bus available departs 15 mins before the boat docks. So thanks again guys. Mike.
Posts: 8 | From: Ballan, Victoria, Australia | Registered: Jan 2003
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I too will be in Long Beach visiting a friend next week and was wondering how to get to Union Station to catch the SW Chief. I was about to ask here... LOL
An Aussie and a Kiwi hitting the US within a week... will the US ever recover? LOL
Posts: 116 | From: Auckland, New Zealand | Registered: Jan 2004
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