I took my first long-distance Amtrak trip. Here are 10 things that surprised me.
I took Amtrak from Miami to Tampa for my first-ever train trip.Compared to air and car travel, my long-distance train ride was neither cheaper nor faster.There was more waiting than I expected, but I also experienced some surprising perks.I've traveled a lot between cities and have explored nearly all of Florida, yet I had never set foot on a long-distance train before last year.While I am familiar with local light-rail systems like Miami's Metrorail and the New York City subway, I have most often opted for long-distance and intra-city buses when moving around Florida.The state, which lacks the train commuting culture of regions like the Northeast, is loosely connected by a network of rail systems, including the local Brightline high-speed rail and the commuter trains TriRail in South Florida and SunRail in the Orlando area.On a June 2025 trip from Miami to Tampa, I opted to see what Amtrak is like in the state, which is the namesake of Amtrak's Floridian line, which travels from Chicago to Miami.On the way to Tampa, I rode in the coach economy class, and on the way back, I had a private first-class roomette.These 10 things surprised me as a first-time Amtrak passenger.In Florida, traveling by train was not cheaper or faster than driving.At first, I expected my train journey to offer a clear benefit over other modes of transportation, such as lower cost or faster travel times.Instead, the train ride — which made nine stops between Tampa and Miami — took longer than it would take me to drive or, obviously, fly between the same two points. In fact, my almost-six-hour train ride was 1 ½ hours longer than an average drive starting at the same time of day.While the train reached a top speed of about 80 miles per hour, which would be a bit faster than driving on the highway, it also faced a fair amount of train traffic, and our average speed during the trip was closer to 45 miles per hour, which is slower than the speed limits on Florida highways, which usually have a minimum speed of 50 miles per hour.Of course, I reaped some benefits by traveling by train rather than driving the route.
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I took Amtrak from Miami to Tampa for my first-ever train trip.Compared to air and car travel, my long-distance train ride was neither cheaper nor faster.There was more waiting than I expected, but I also experienced some surprising perks.I've traveled a lot between cities and have explored nearly all of Florida, yet I had never set foot on a long-distance train before last year.While I am familiar with local light-rail systems like Miami's Metrorail and the New York City subway, I have most often opted for long-distance and intra-city buses when moving around Florida.The state, which lacks the train commuting culture of regions like the Northeast, is loosely connected by a network of rail systems, including the local Brightline high-speed rail and the commuter trains TriRail in South Florida and SunRail in the Orlando area.On a June 2025 trip from Miami to Tampa, I opted to see what Amtrak is like in the state, which is the namesake of Amtrak's Floridian line, which travels from Chicago to Miami.On the way to Tampa, I rode in the coach economy class, and on the way back, I had a private first-class roomette.These 10 things surprised me as a first-time Amtrak passenger.In Florida, traveling by train was not cheaper or faster than driving.At first, I expected my train journey to offer a clear benefit over other modes of transportation, such as lower cost or faster travel times.Instead, the train ride — which made nine stops between Tampa and Miami — took longer than it would take me to drive or, obviously, fly between the same two points. In fact, my almost-six-hour train ride was 1 ½ hours longer than an average drive starting at the same time of day.While the train reached a top speed of about 80 miles per hour, which would be a bit faster than driving on the highway, it also faced a fair amount of train traffic, and our average speed during the trip was closer to 45 miles per hour, which is slower than the speed limits on Florida highways, which usually have a minimum speed of 50 miles per hour.Of course, I reaped some benefits by traveling by train rather than driving the route. I didn't have to deal with road traffic, and I had the chance to sleep, eat, and relax on the journey.I was also surprised that the ticket cost wasn't much cheaper than driving or flying. An ultra-economy flight between Tampa and Miami on a carrier like the now-defunct Spirit Airlines or its peer, Frontier Airlines, could've cost between $35 and $150 at the time of my trip, depending on when I booked.Today, flights between the two cities can go for as low as $40, with an average of $80 to $140 round-trip, depending on booking timing.Driving the trip would have cost an average of $34.16 at the time of my trip, as calculated using The Zebra's fuel cost calculator and AAA's state average fuel prices.I paid $60 for a single coach ticket (and $230 for the first-class ticket), so both driving and flying could've been faster and cheaper.Riding by train felt like traveling back in time.Despite the extra time and cost, there were benefits to taking the train: It was a fun and enriching experience that felt like traveling back in time, with routes that went through rural areas that were once hubs of industries such as manufacturing.The stations themselves — many of which were built when train travel was much more common — felt like glimpses into a different era.In Tampa, for example, I boarded the train at Tampa Union Station, which is on the National Register of Historic Places and was built in 1912.I experienced more waiting around on my trip than I expected.Expecting a somewhat more elevated travel experience than long-distance buses, which can often be delayed by road traffic, I was surprised by the amount of waiting I experienced on my journeys.On one leg of the trip, for example, I stood in line for food in the café car for almost an hour, and on the other, my train was delayed by five hours due to extreme heat — a factor that is increasingly impacting rail travel, The New York Times reported in 2024.Amtrak did not respond to my requests for comment about my experiences.Boarding was quick, with no security checkpoints.Once your train arrives, you can just hop on and find your seat, much like on long-distance buses.While I appreciated the uncomplicated boarding process, a thought or two about safety crossed my mind when I compared it to airplane boarding.
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- I took Amtrak from Miami to Tampa for my first-ever train trip.Compared to air and car travel, my long-distance train ride was neither cheaper nor faster.There was more waiting than I expected, but I also experienced some surprising perks.I've traveled a lot between cities and have explored nearly all of Florida, yet I had never set foot on a long-distance train before last year.While I am familiar with local light-rail systems like Miami's Metrorail and the New York City subway, I have most often opted for long-distance and intra-city buses when moving around Florida.The state, which lacks the train commuting culture of regions like the Northeast, is loosely connected by a network of rail systems, including the local Brightline high-speed rail and the commuter trains TriRail in South Florida and SunRail in the Orlando area.On a June 2025 trip from Miami to Tampa, I opted to see what Amtrak is like in the state, which is the namesake of Amtrak's Floridian line, which travels from Chicago to Miami.On the way to Tampa, I rode in the coach economy class, and on the way back, I had a private first-class roomette.These 10 things surprised me as a first-time Amtrak passenger.In Florida, traveling by train was not cheaper or faster than driving.At first, I expected my train journey to offer a clear benefit over other modes of transportation, such as lower cost or faster travel times.Instead, the train ride — which made nine stops between Tampa and Miami — took longer than it would take me to drive or, obviously, fly between the same two points. In fact, my almost-six-hour train ride was 1 ½ hours longer than an average drive starting at the same time of day.While the train reached a top speed of about 80 miles per hour, which would be a bit faster than driving on the highway, it also faced a fair amount of train traffic, and our average speed during the trip was closer to 45 miles per hour, which is slower than the speed limits on Florida highways, which usually have a minimum speed of 50 miles per hour.Of course, I reaped some benefits by traveling by train rather than driving the route.
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I took my first long-distance Amtrak trip. Here are 10 things that surprised me.
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