I have ridden the train so many times! Especially about a dozen years ago when I worked up in Santa Barbara and I left my car at home and took the train there for my radio job back then.
and now.. Amtrak Reminds Travelers Bags Are Still Free
Amtrak is taking a poke at Southwest Airlines. The passenger railroad company posted on X Tuesday -- quote -- "Guess we're the only ones doing free baggage now." It then reminded passengers they can bring one personal item up to 25 pounds, plus two carry-on items up to 50 pounds each. Southwest Airlines announced Tuesday it would begin charging most customers for checked backs on May 28th. Passengers that have high loyalty status will still be allowed to check two bags for free.
Think about air travel vs train travel:
You can't park at the airport... you can long term park at many train stations.
Baggage check in on planes takes forever to check and pick up and your luggage could get lost and the CHARGE crazy amounts for it. It is FREE and easy to carry on with you on a train.
Waiting- how many times have you sat around waiting for ANOTHER flight delay? I just had a 5 hour delay on my last flight trip! Trains run ON TIME and there is no wait.
Crowding- Planes are always packed to the brim and UNLESS YOU PAY EXTRA you are always put in a middle seat. Trains almost always have PLENTY of open seating (unless you are near Grand Central Station in L.A. on a Friday)
People are friendly on trains...at airports, TSA, and flight attendants for the most part are not only NOT friendly they act burdened by your presence.
yes, you can't take a train to Europe or Asia or an island somewhere...but a train would be a great choice if you are traveling one the west coats all the way to Canada and there are plenty of stops along the way.
Finally train tickets are a FRACTION of the costs of planes.