Hi,
I took the CZ from Chicago to Emeryville in July 2012. It can only be described as the trip of a lifetime!
Full details of the train can be found on the Amtrak page at
http://www.amtrak.com/california-zephyr-train This page includes the timetable (departs Chicago at 2pm each day), excellent routeguide is also there to download (sleeping car passengers also get a hard copy of this guide on the train), diagrams of the different types of sleeping car accommodation and the current dining car and snack car menus.
I'm not sure if your aware of the excellent seat61 website. This is the essential guide for European and Worldwide train Travel. Mark Smith and his family travelled across the USA from New York to Chicago (Lake Shore Limited) and onwards to San Francisco onboard the Zephyr. Click on
http://www.seat61.com/california-zephyr.htm
The pictures from my trip on the train are at
http://smu.gs/PChnlX
The train contains several different types of accommodation: Coach Class, Roometts, Bedrooms, Family Bedrooms.
Coach Class:
http://smu.gs/PChnlX
Roometts:
http://smu.gs/17joU3d http://smu.gs/13ALK0T - Roometts are really small, bascially a compartment off a central corridor. The seats come together to form the bottom bed and the top bed drops down from above. There is limited luggage space although luggage racks are provided on the lower level. Amtrak also offer a checked baggage service like airlines and we just took along what we needed for the train in a small bag each, and left the suitcases in the care of Amtrak - they travel in the baggage car at the front of the train.
Bedrooms:
http://smu.gs/13AMenO The Bedrooms are really nice and this is what we got for the trip. They contain comfortable seats. The bottom seat rolls out to become the main bed and the top bed drops down from the wall. The sleeping car attendant will change between day and night modes. The bedrooms also contain a private toilet and shower. Its cosy but it gets the job done. The bedrooms also have decent nooks and crannys to store your hand luggage. We had no problem at all in storing everything in our room. In day mode it is surprising spacious but in night mode it is a tad cramped for moving around the room.
For further info on the different types of room the
http://www.amtrak.com/california-zephyr-train page has diagrams of each type of room at the bottom right
Tickets:
Amtrak is not cheap! While the coach class tickets can be considered good value for money considering the distance. The price the company charge for sleeping cars is high and operates like Ryanair, higher the demand, higher the fare to a set point. For example we paid $1803 for the two of us for our trip in July, broken down as follows:
FARE INFORMATION
----------------
Rail Fare $312.00
Accommodations Price $1,491.00
Ticket Delivery Fee $0.00
-------------------------------
Total $1,803.00
I would suggest booking as early as possible (they take bookings up to 11 months in advance). Despite the high price the rooms do sell out. Also if you have an idea of when you're going try a few dates either side. Sometimes you may get lucky with the price.
The Roometts are the cheapest room, followed by the Bedroom and/or Family Bedroom. The family bedroom does not have a bathroom or toilet and is on the lower level. There are public toilets just down the corridor.
I booked our tickets on amtrak.com and collected them the day before travel using one of Amtrak's easy to use ticket machines. We visited Union Station the day before to get a feel of the place and layout (checked baggage dropoff, metropolitan lounge etc).
Another friend of mine used trailfinders to book his tickets on this train and he said it was cheaper than what I paid on amtrak.com so I suggest checking them out and see what they offer (of course he only mentioned that fact after I had done the trip!! Annoying!).
For sleeping Car passengers all meals are included in the price of the ticket. Only alcohol has to be paid for.
Day One: Dinner.
Day Two: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.
Day Three: Breakfast and early lunch.
Current Dining Car menu:
http://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/27/239/California-Zephyr-Dining-Menu.pdf
Snack Car (paid for):
http://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/312/410/National_Cafe_201101.pdf
The dining car staff can appear to be rather curt and short but they offer a good efficient service and the meals do hit the spot. It has to be remembered that they have a trainload of passengers to feed up to three times daily so once you have finished your meal it is good manners to leave your table and another pair of passengers will be called (once the table is prepped of course). All the dining car seats are arranged around tables of four so if it is two of you travelling you will always be sat opposite other people. We met people from Cleveland, Boston, Chicago and a few more places. It is interesting to get a snapshot into their lives.
The trip itself:
The train departs Chicago Union Station at 2pm each day. Where we stayed in Chicago was only about a 10 minute walk from the station (Central Loop Hotel on West Adam Street). So at checkout time from the hotel (12pm) we strolled over to Union Station, checked in our suitcases and retired to the lounge
http://thewandererphotos.smugmug.co...ak-CZ/24325636_9G76Ms#!i=1981461369&k=nbRdGnJ . All Sleeping car passengers can use the lounge. It can get busy after 1pm as passengers arrive for the long distance West Coast Trains. I would suggest a visit to a drugstore before the trip and stock up on a few sweets and treats and big bottles of water. While water is available on the train its good to have your own supply, especially if any serious delays occurred on route and it gets hot in the middle of the USA.
When boarding time comes an Amtrak employee will gather all the sleeper passengers together and lead you out to the train. Your ticket will have the details of what coach you are in. The current consist of the train is as follows (from
http://discuss.amtraktrains.com/index.php?/topic/32610-line-numbersconsist-listings/)
CALIFORNIA ZEPHYR 6 sets
----|---- Heritage Baggage
0540|0640 Superliner Dorm/Sleeper
0510|0610 Superliner Coach
0511|0611 Superliner Coach
0512|0612 Superliner Coach
----|---- Superliner Lounge
----|---- Superliner Diner
0531|0631 Superliner Sleeper
0532|0632 Superliner Sleeper
0533|0633 Superliner Sleeper - Additional Summer Only coach.
05xx being Westbound and 06xx being Eastbound. We were booked into 0531 which was right next to the diner so was very handy.
Coach Class Passengers will wait in the normal passenger waiting area.
Once you have settled in to your cabin and departed Chicago your dinner reservation will be taken. After a short while take a walk around and explore the train. The dining car staff will probably prepping the dining car
http://thewandererphotos.smugmug.co...ak-CZ/24325636_9G76Ms#!i=1981463333&k=CKBKt8r
The best vehicle on the train has to be the Lounge Car with its wide wrap around windows.
http://thewandererphotos.smugmug.co...ak-CZ/24325636_9G76Ms#!i=1981463429&k=sdmTKJh http://thewandererphotos.smugmug.co...ak-CZ/24325636_9G76Ms#!i=1981450024&k=vtqxZKV http://thewandererphotos.smugmug.co...ak-CZ/24325636_9G76Ms#!i=1981451668&k=2QfMPcp
The first hour or so is spent travelling through the Chicago suburbs and then the countryside arrives with mile after mile of corn fields. To be honest this is ALL you will see until Denver the next morning! I never want to see a corn field again. The first highlight of the trip comes when you cross the mighty Mississippi River at Burlington, 200 miles from Chicago. You will be probably be having dinner at this stage.
At certain stations an extended break of 15-20 minutes will be taken. Denver & Salt Lake City are longer (30-60 minutes approx) as the train is fuelled and watered. This allows you to get out and stretch the legs (and in my case take photos!). The first such stop at Galesburg I stuck close to the carriage I was in but as the trip went on I got braver and walked to the front of the train etc.
We were still suffering from the jetlag so retired to bed fairly early on the first night. The advantage of the jetlag was that we were awake early the following morning (0600) and it turned out to our advantage. Breakfast was served early and once we were finished there we headed straight to the lounge car to grab a seat for the journey through the Rockies. Make sure you do this so you will get the best views! Arrival in Denver, I seem to recall we left a jacket or something on our seats and went for a stroll around the basic station. Denver Station is currently a temporary station on the outskirts of town while the main Union Station is rebuilt into a public transport interchange. (in 2012 - I think the main station has reopened now).
Back into our seats before departure from Denver and the Volunteer Rangers from the National Park Service Intermountain Regional Office joined the lounge car to provide a narrative between Denver and Grand Junction.
I'll let my pictures do the talking of the Rocky mountains. Breathtaking. As you head west from Glenwood Springs the landscape changes once again as you head into the Utah desert. Watch out for the heat of Grand Junction. It's like stepping into a Oven. Remember the bottles of water I mentioned earlier? Well one of them was consumed as soon as I got back on board!
We arrived into Salt Lake City at about 11pm I seem to recall. Had a quick walk around the station area before retiring to the comfy bed for the night.
The next morning you arrive in Reno. Sadly, the station is in a concrete box in the centre of town so you don't get to see the town. The line used to run at street level through several level crossing and this was causing too much disruption in the city (mile long freight trains and all that).
On leaving Reno do take a look out for the oddly named Tombstone Territory Motel on the right hand side in the direction of travel. It's next to a Mortuary!!
https://maps.google.ie/maps?q=39.52...96&spn=0.004494,0.010568&num=1&t=h&gl=ie&z=17
On leaving Reno and its strange Motels behind, you enter the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Another jaw dropping day of scenery to be had. Again the pictures can do the talking.
Before long you drop down to Sacramento and it feels like the journey is coming to a close. A sad feeling I must say, These people you have got to know over the last 50 odd hours all going their separate ways.
Soon we arrived in to Emeryville where the train terminates. In our case 50 minutes early. With such a long journey and the freight companies owning the railroads the passenger trains do not have priority. So be prepared for delays of whatever length. This website gives you the current ontime performance of Train No. 5.
http://www.amtrakdelays.onlineschedulingsoftware.com - Change location to EMY and Train number is 5.
As I said earlier the train terminates in Emeryville. Due to the geography of SF, Amtrak doesn't actually serve the city by Rail. It provides coach services from Emeryville or Oakland across the Bay Bridge to San Francisco. You checked bagged will be transferred by Amtrak onto the coach. It doesn't make it clear in the timetable but the coach actually operates via Oakland (the timetable suggests two separate coaches).
When we booked the train we hadn't decided what hotel we were staying in. Therefore, I booked the Amtrak tickets to Ferry Building San Francisco. Once the hotel was booked (Villa Florence on Powell Street - can't get much more central) I looked up the closest bus drop off and it was:
S.F. Shopping Ctr., 835 Market St
Even though the tickets were for Ferry Building the driver had no issues with dropping us off at the most convenient stop. The only downside was the Sunday afternoon traffic was chronic in San Francisco. The bus goes Ferry Building all the way up the Quays to Fisherman's Wharf and then back down again. After travelling so far it just seemed to take ages and the early arrival at Emeryville was turned into a late arrival at 835 Market Street.
With the possibility of a late arrival its best to keep the diary free on the first night in San Francisco. However we did take a gamble and booked tickets for a comedy club gig for a 2230 showing with the view the train can't be THAT late into Emeryville! The gig finished at about 0130 (it ran late) but it was a great jetlag reset as we didn't wake up at the crack of dawn on the Monday morning.
I'm sorry for rambling on for so long but I hope I have given you a flavour of what the Californian Zephyr is like. It is no means a luxury train, but it is comfortable and IS the way to truly see America. Something you don't get to see at 35,000ft in a tin tube.
The Wanderer.
