Auto Train?
 

Hi,

We recently purchased a house in Springdale and are in a protracted process of moving in until we finally retire sometime next year. Renting a car each time we visit our (retirement) home is getting to be expensive. I would like to bring one of my cars from western NY to TV in early November before the snow starts to fly up north. I see that Amtrak will ship it from Lorton, VA to Sanford. Anyone have any experience doing this, good or bad? Is it worth it or should I just drive it all the way to FL and be done with it? Anything that I need to be aware of? Any and all suggestions will be appreciated.

Thanks!

You have to be a passenger on the auto train also. Or at least you have
to buy a passenger ticket along with a ticket for your auto.
Go to amtrak.com/reservations and look for auto train. You can
put in the dates you are likely to travel and get the price.
Right now, I think it will cost approximately $393 for one passenger
and one car in early November.
I have done it once. It gets the job done but it can be taxing
if you dont have a berth and are trying to get some sleep along
with other passengers seated around you.

Thank you for your quick reply! I appreciate your comment about sleeping (or trying to at least) surrounded by other passengers. That could be a problem. I see that a room runs in excess of $300 though - an expensive night's sleep. Could be an interesting trip!

Have you looked into having a transport company do it...There are many companys that will move door to door... I don't know what it will cost in comparison to what it costs to rent a car for the time you are in FL Have your car shipped down and then send it back...

may be better to sell your car and buy another in TV - often listed in "Items For Sale..."

saves re-registering it for Florida

and you may decide you only need a smaller model down here

We used the Auto Train when we closed last July to bring down a car full of stuff for the house. We have an SUV and it was packed to the roof(left a little peep hole to look out the back while driving). That saved us big bucks on getting the stuff there. You can reserve seats downstairs on the train that are much more private. I think there were 12 seats total which made for a much quieter ride regarding the mass upstairs on the train. Nice large seats which fit my 6'2" 250 lb frame. We would use it again when we come down for 3 months this winter but we're bringing the cat and she rules so we're gonna have to drive:laugh:
Skip 2

If you travel via autotrain, pets aren't allowed in your vehicle, even cats.
There have been other discussion threads on the autotrain, you might find them helpful. There is a search button on the blue band above, where you can search by topic.

Good luck with your move to Springdale, nice area. See you at the Square!

The prices of the auto train vary according to season. Now is the High season for Southbound. That will drop later. BTW we like the train and are using it again on our next trip in Oct. We usually book the bedroom or roomette. The price now for a bedroom was crazy. Train travel is not for everybody. I'm quirky and love it. When my parents use to take us to Florida in the 50s it was by train. ACL, Dad hated Seaboard Line.

We've taken the autotrain 4 times and find it very convenient. Because of the price of the sleeping rooms we just ride in the coach because I can be uncomfortable for 1 night if I can save $300 or so dollars. One thing we did find is that you should bring a comfortable pillow with you on board and a light blanket. Autotrain does provide a skimpy pillow but if you're sleeping in your seat it's much more comfortable to have a better pillow. The time before last the cars weren't filled and there were empty seats so we could spread out on 2 seats.

John

Auto Transporters
 

:cus:Just requested quotes from Auto Transports to ship my car from Dartmouth, Mass. to The Villages. Quotes are running from $600 to $1325. with Median around $800. Also my phone has been ringing off the hook with Brokers after I requested quotes by email only.:cus:

Did I mention that dinner with wine is included in the train trip?

I am taking my Harley on the auto train. Cheapest and easiest way to do it. And if you don't have a time table, check several different dates as the price will vary a lot.

The Bar was the best part of the trip!
 

I only took the trip one way many, many years ago. No room, just a train
seat, and I didn't realize it stopped in so many places along the way...this
was a long, long time ago. Perhaps things have changed. Once off, I had
a long, rainy drive from Sanford to Ft. Lauderdale. Would use it again if
necessary. The Bar was fun!

Non-stop now, with the exception of a crew change in Florence SC

We moved to TV from the Allentown, PA on the autotrain(Lorton to Sanford) on 31 March. We packed both vehicles full and we had a sleeping room. There are showers available taht we used in the morning. I beleive the cost was above $600, but I paid less than half that since I was able to use my Amtrak guest reward points which i accumulated travelling from Philadelphia to DC. I would recommend it, it worked out good for us.