Amtrak Summer Destinations?

[Jetrock]

Well, why not start with the Empire Builder? Take it out to Seattle, then take the Coast Starlight south to California. Spend a couple days in San Francisco, then go back to Emeryville and hop the California Zephyr back to Chicago, and take the EB back to Minneapolis.

Take the sleeper if you can afford it. It's worth the extra ca***o get the comfort, although they are a bit pricey during the travel season. In the off-season you can get 'em for chickenfeed.

About temperature: Having stopped briefly in the Mpls/St. Paul airport on the way to Green Bay, I noticed that it was pretty humid--common in the Midwest in the summer. We don't have that stuff in California. 85 degrees in Minnesota humidity is about as comfortable as 100 degrees in California's Central Valley.

And if you plan on visiting San Francisco in the summer, all I can say is that you might want to bring a warm coat!

[Roadtrp]

My wife and I have decided we want to go on an Amtrak vacation next summer, but we are not sure where we want to go.

Our #1 choice would be Washington DC, but we have heard that DC can be pretty miserable during July because of the heat.

I think the Empire Builder to Glacier National Park would be a great choice, but my wife is not a real mountain fan. She thinks the Empire Builder to Chicago and then the Lakeshore Limited to Buffalo for a Niagara Falls trip would be a lot of fun.

I like the train that a Niagara Falls trip would involve... the Limited uses Viewliner Sleepers which I think are nicer than the Superliner Sleepers used by the Empire Builder and the Capitol Limited.

On the other hand; once you've seen the falls, what the heck else is there to do in Niagara Falls??

Do you have any opinions on the options I've listed? Do you have a good idea for a Summer train destination that I have overlooked? Please remember that we live in the Mpls-St. Paul area. That means we have to start any trip on the Empire Builder. It also means that we think any summer temperatures above 85 degrees are absolutely intolerable!!

Your thoughts?

[:)]

Edited to add: I may want to MODEL whatever destination we choose.

(Whew... I hope that satisfies the Topic ***...)

[;)] [(-D]