With the coronavirus starting to be corralled, vacation travel is beginning to pick up. Now the big question, with answers changing daily: masks or not? Plus, not everything is back to normal as we write; cruise ships are still shut down from US ports, Canada and Mexico borders are closed for visitors and with the tension in the Middle East, well, you might not want to travel there anytime soon. India is in the midst of a major coronavirus situation, so avoid it also. New variants appear to be cropping up daily, so should you travel? If vaccinated, I say âyes,â but with caution.
Domestically, we needed to travel to see our daughter in Detroit and pick up a car. Instead of driving there and then bringing back two cars, we decided to take the train. Sounds easy, right? Well, it took a little more planning than we expected.
First, where do we catch the train? It turns out the only train from Chicago to Detroit leaves from Union Station. Eileen had actually taken the train a couple of times previously so that part was easy. Now, what is the best way to get to the station? Multiple scenarios popped up.
Drive to the station. Parking is available across from Union Station but we all know the cost of parking downtown is expensive and for the time we would be gone would cost more than the train tickets, so we looked for other options. Uber or any other taxi service would also be more expensive.
Metra offers service from Woodstock and from Crystal Lake. Parking is available at Crystal Lake for $1.50 per day (wow – a bargain) and weekends are free. The station is also manned. I liked the idea of actually interfacing with a human and giving them real money, and getting a real ticket in exchange. It can also be done with a smartphone. I checked on catching Metra in Big Timber (ends at Union) but was advised against it, by their agent, for any long-term parking as the lot is not monitored. Metra from Crystal Lake does go to Ogilvie versus Union but itâs only about a 10-minute walk between the two. If you have the time, the French Market has great food and snacks for your trip. Iâm hoping the hot pastrami with swiss survived the pandemic.
We drove to Crystal Lake and parked but found out when we tried to purchase the parking pass, we were not parked in the long-term area. Ok, fine – where is it? No one knew. I called Metra, âitâs somewhere near the station,â no help. Even the map for the train station did not show it, though the person manning the station did try to help us. Finally, the police were able to direct me and I moved the car to the lot 3 blocks away from the station. Hustling back, I tried again to purchase the pass, no luck. You need their app, the service rep stated. Problem, NO WIFI at the station! I found service via Starbucks, downloaded the app, and it still didnât work. Sorry, you downloaded the wrong app, they said. New app doesnât work either so again, I called their service number. It’s answered in India and they have never heard of Crystal Lake. OH! Our service doesnât include that part of the country, sorry. Back to square one and the Metra train is coming. Finally, Iâm able to pay but for only five days. If thatâs not enough, Iâll have to use their app to extend the parking. Fun start to the trip. But parking is finally taken care of!
Shoot, French Market at Ogilvie is still running on covid restrictions and only about half the food vendors are open. On to Union. Amtrak leaves from the south end of the station and we find the area easily. Due to the travel restrictions, masks are required. Iâm not sure if this is new or not but you canât board the train until just before departure, somewhat like boarding an airline flight. Wow! Once onboard, we look around, the train is great. New seating, lots of legroom, very comfortable seats that will recline, free Wifi and power outlets so you can charge your phone or laptop. Weâre happily on our way!
The clickity-clack of the wheels and the cushy seats will gently lure you to sleep, if youâre so inclined, as it exits the train station and heads across northern Indiana.
The club car is offering reduced cafe service, drinks, snacks and sandwiches. I took a look in the executive section, similar to airline first class; wider seats and only 3 across versus 4 elsewhere. Personally, I didnât see enough advantage to purchase the upgrade. Amtrak does offer a unique upgrade process. Business seating was all sold out when we purchased our tickets but people will auction off their seats. You can bid on seats and the highest bid wins.
We met a couple that loved the train and had taken it from Chicago to Washington, D.C. Views were great, especially across the Virginia mountains. They could see waterfalls from their seats.
Amtrak is also upgrading their tracks. We had a couple of short sections where we sped up to 110 mph. It was short lived but did reduce the travel time a little. They hope to have a few more sections for high-speed travel later this year. The transition was so smooth, we werenât even sure it had happened. Biggest detriment to overall high-speed travel is the number of crossings on the route. More than 200, some with speed restrictions.
The clickity-clack of the wheels and the cushy seats will gently lure you to sleep as it exits the train station and heads across northern Indiana.
We spoke with one passenger, a woman returning to Ann Arbor from a pleasure trip to Chicago. The train made it easy for her to catch up on her work while traveling, much easier to work as the ride was significantly gentler than in a car.
So remember, if you do travel, take a mask. Weâre not totally out of the woods yet and some areas still require them in certain situations. So, if youâre raring to go, âJust Do it!â
