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Sleepers from Chicago to Seattle?
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[QUOTE]Originally posted by Judy: [QB] I traveled Seattle-Milwaukee on the Empire Builder in July in a deluxe room. Having arthritic knees and being a queen-size traveler, I was concerned about the stairs in the sleeper and about the size of the beds in the standard rooms (on the LakeShore Limited the standard room beds are quite narrow). The deluxe room is great for really spreading out to enjoy your trip. In addition to the couch there is a moveable chair. Large pieces of luggage would be better stored in the rack downstairs and only small carryons taken into the rooms, even the deluxe room if occupied by more than one person. If you're going to connect to a cruise, you probably have a large bag and a small one and can do as I described. Keep in mind that if you get a standard room, the floor space when the room is made up in beds is about the size of a cafeteria tray. The beds are fine, but dressing is a challenge worthy of a contortionist. If you decide to go for the deluxe room (which is pretty pricey), avoid room A because it is smaller than the others. If several in your group get deluxe rooms, two adjoining rooms can be opened into a suite, although that might be too much togetherness outside of a family. The Empire Builder seems to have a reasonable on-time record, but I would opt for the extra day in Seattle just because I'd want to be SURE I wouldn't miss the cruise. You won't have a problem finding things to do there, and you can probably buy Seattle-Vancouver bus transportation from the cruise line, which may be more convenient than the Amtrak bus. Earlier in the same trip I had a standard room on the Coast Starlight and had no trouble with the shared bathrooms. I never had to wait at the single bath on the top floor - must have found different times to use it than everyone else. I looked in the lower level baths & found all to be clean - people seemed to be pretty considerate about cleaning up after themselves. The shower in the deluxe room is pretty small - you'd be surprised to know how few people use the showers on the train, so you probably could run downstairs and use the common shared shower even if you were in the deluxe room. Remember that your food is included in the price of the room - much like a cruise - but please remember to tip your wait staff and the car attendant if they have served you well. As for the train boarding in Akron in the middle of the night: if you are traveling in a sleeper to Chicago, your room will be ready and made up in beds when you board. If you are traveling coach on that section, you will find that a reserved seat doesn't mean you have a seat assigned to you before you board. Your party may be spread out, even in different cars. Be sure you have enough time to make the Chicago connection. Even if the connection is "guaranteed" by Amtrak, that guarantee may not be fulfilled in a way that will mesh with your other plans.I would follow the on-time performance of the Akron train on Amtrak's website for a couple weeks to get a hint of what awaits you. Have a wonderful trip - the train part can be called your "land cruise"! [/QB][/QUOTE]
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