When I scheduled a getaway to Rochester, New York, in May 2025, I was more excited about the train rides there and back than the destination itself.
I wasn’t a stranger to Amtrak trips before traveling upstate, though it became my longest train ride to date. It would take seven hours to get there and nine hours to return, making for a whopping 16 hours on the tracks in total.
That’s a long time to be on a train (or on a plane or in an automobile), but I was excited about it. Trains still have a novelty about them for me, and I love how easy they are for passengers. I rode in coach on the way there and business class on the way back, paying $249 for the round trip.
Both of my rides were fun, but I made a few travel mistakes that I’ll try to avoid in the future.
Although it’s good to be early, I arrived a little too early for my train.
Amtrak recommends passengers arrive 30 minutes before their trains are scheduled to depart. I am nothing if not a rule follower, so I got to Moynihan Train Hall at Penn Station for my 7:15 a.m. train at 6:37.
I grabbed a coffee before the Amtrak-recommended waiting period began, and by 6:50, I was waiting in the train hall for my ride with caffeine in hand, feeling proud of myself for being ready with 25 minutes to spare. Soon, though, I realized my track wasn’t even listed yet.
I idled in the waiting area, the minutes ticking by without any news on my train. It ended up getting delayed over an hour for maintenance, and the track listing didn’t become available until about 10 minutes before it left.
When my return trip rolled around, I realized the 40 minutes I had given myself would have felt too long whether the train was delayed or not. My train from Rochester to Manhattan was supposed to depart at 1:27, and I made it to the station by 1 p.m. My fellow passengers and I weren’t even allowed to move toward the train until 1:20, which left me feeling antsy while I waited.
I’d rather be early than late when it comes to travel, but next time I take Amtrak, I’ll probably arrive 20 minutes before my train is scheduled instead of 30. Lollygag at your own risk.
I sat on the wrong side of the train.
The train bound for Rochester didn’t have assigned seating, which made me a little nervous. I was among the final people to board the train, so I grabbed the first open seat I saw.
I was relieved I snagged a row to myself for the whole seven-hour journey, but as we rolled through upstate New York, I noticed the side I was sitting on didn’t have as nice a view as the one opposite me.
I mostly saw other trains from my window, while sweeping landscapes and the Hudson River were visible from the windows on the other side of the train. Because the train was pretty packed, I couldn’t move to the other side while still having a row to myself, either. I craned my neck to take a peek at the other side often, trying to get glimpses of the landscape.
I ended up sitting in a seat that gave me gorgeous views of New York for the return trip, but I wished I could have seen the area well on both routes.
Looking back, I should have anticipated that WiFi would be spotty on board.
Before my Rochester trip, I remembered easily scrolling on my phone to pass the time on my other Amtrak journeys.
I hadn’t ever worked or used my laptop to stream on Amtrak, though, so I didn’t give much thought to the WiFi situation on board, which was included with my ticket.
To my surprise, WiFi was unavailable for the first bit of the journey from New York City to Rochester because you exit Penn Station through a fairly long tunnel. WiFi became available once we cleared it, but the internet was still spotty, cutting out sporadically. I found it hard to get work done on my laptop or my phone, and when I tried to stream a show on my laptop, it buffered pretty frequently.
Luckily, I had my Kindle for backup entertainment, but having more options would have been nice.
Next time, I’ll download a few shows or movies ahead of the ride, just in case the internet cuts out.
I wish I hadn’t sat at the very back of the train for my return journey.
For my return trip to New York, I was excited to ride in the business-class car at the back of the train.
Unfortunately, the car was fairly small and had limited seating, so I sat in a chair in the last row for most of the journey.
Because it was at the back, the entire business-class car was bumpier than the coach car I sat in on my ride to Rochester, and it only got worse in the last row. It was like I could feel nearly every groove and jolt in the track, so it was hard to relax. I couldn’t sleep for any part of the ride, and I ended up regretting splurging on the fancier ticket.
I’d skip business class on a ride upstate for a few reasons, but the bumpy feel was one of the biggest.
Packing snacks would have been wise.
Because my train rides were over seven hours, I knew I’d be eating a meal on both journeys. For my trip from New York City to Rochester, I had lunch and got a surprisingly good salad and a bag of chips from the café car.
However, the café car closed for an hour of the journey, which would have been a problem if I had timed my lunch incorrectly or wanted a snack.
I’m aware I can get hangry, so for my return trip, I packed some Cheez-Its as a backup snack in case the café closure coincided with my hunger. The café car is definitely a perk of Amtrak, but I’d recommend bringing extra snacks in case it’s unavailable.
My biggest mistake was booking a train with a long stop.
I left New York City early on a Thursday and planned to return on Friday afternoon. Since it was such a short trip, I wanted to give myself time to do some sightseeing in the morning before heading back to the city.
I was focused on departure time instead of arrival time for my return, not noticing until after I booked my ticket that the trip back would take nine hours instead of the seven it took to get to Rochester. I thought maybe the train would be making more stops, but it actually made an extended stop in Albany for over an hour and a half to connect with another train.
A long stop turned out to be much more annoying than more frequent stops. During the pause, the lights were off, the AC only came on sporadically, and the café car was closed. I was frustrated when I realized what was happening, but I had no one to blame but myself. Amtrak had clearly listed the estimated arrival time on my ticket when I purchased it.
I made the most of the time we were stopped, grabbing a lackluster dinner from a small café at the Albany station and walking around to stretch my legs. It wasn’t a huge problem in the grand scheme of things, but next time, I’ll pay closer attention to journey length when booking an Amtrak ticket.
It sounds silly, but I should have been more careful with my body as I got used to riding the train.
I’m a pretty clumsy person by nature. I trip often, and anyone who has thrown a ball my way knows I lack basic hand-eye coordination.
I didn’t think that would matter on a train, but when I repeatedly bonked my head on the luggage shelving above my seats, I realized my miscalculation. It was easy to lose my balance as I maneuvered around the moving train, leading me to knock my head more than once on the shelves above my seat when I got in and out of my chair.
It might not be a problem for every train rider, but I hope other clumsy people heed my warning. I wish I had moved a little more slowly and with more care on the train, as I likely could have avoided some bumps and bruises.
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