I have a tip for those who live in the Northeast and stay in a hotel the night before the 6:45a NY departure. An alternative is to take the NE Regional to Baltimore the day before, and pick up the Cardinal the following morning at a much more civilized 9:30a. The ride through VA and WVA is the same, and the hotels in Baltimore are much more affordable.
If the STD from Baltimore Penn is 9:29 a.m. were you still able to get breakfast on the train? The dining car apparently closes for breakfast at 10am and you only get served if boarding before 9:30am I'd like to know your experience as I'm considering taking the Cardinal.
@@andrewschwartz22 I got my breakfast at 9:30am just fine. The sleeping car attendant encouraged me to go get breakfast as soon as I boarded in Baltimore. The only issue I had was that there was no butter for the Flexible Dining pancakes because they ran out (I traveled on a Sunday morning train). The cafe car was restocked in Washington DC. At least on the Cardinal, I was told that I had to get my breakfast order submitted so that it could be heated before the train arrived in DC. The headend power is changed from electric to diesel in DC, and the train is without power during the changeover. The Cardinal will be VERY MUCH improved if and when Amtrak is ever able to restore an actual diner with "Traditional Dining" and ditch the infamous "Flexible Dining". That has been promised ever since the infrastructure bill was passed -- the current promise is "before the end of the year". I'm pretty sure Amtrak was saying the same thing in 2023. I still enjoyed the ride. We were on-time for the entire trip (perhaps because it was a Sunday) and the weather and scenery was beautiful. I highly recommend the bedroom over the roomette if you can afford it, especially if you (like me) are of an age where you need at least one night-time trip to the toilet each night. The new Viewliner II roomettes have no in-room toilet. The bedroom is much more spacious. Also, bring a power strip or extension cord if you bring any gear.
Thank you for the video! Beautiful landscapes! I love watching videos about traveling around the USA, enjoying the beauty of nature and cities! I wish you success!
The Cardinal is on my list to do. I want to do it in the fall when still daylight passing through the New River Gorge (now National Park). I have seen the train pass by when visiting the Hawks Nest area of the Gorge.
It is a good idea to take the trip at a time of year when there's more daylight. I missed a lot of the mountain scenery in the darkness, one of the downsides of doing it in winter.
I took it Chi-NYC beginning of October some years ago. Trouble as ever is that much of the time you’re looking at the trees twenty feet from the train and not the river beyond.
Hinton is the closest station to me. 40 miles, but an hour's drive on twisty mountain roads. I'v taken the Cardinal several times (and the George Washington before that) to or from Washington DC.
I did this journey in 2009 from Philadelphia to Chicago. Although the middle of summer there was just one sleeping car with three deluxe sleepers with shower/toilet compartments but I paid the inordinate price as the brunettes had the toilet next to the head of the bed with no public toilets so this looks better. However in those days we had our meals in the restaurant car which was much better as it gave you a chance to meet and chat with fellow passengers which as a solo traveller was one of the pluses of travelling in the US. In What amazed me was the relaxed attitude of the regular passengers to timing. At one stage we were running nearly 3 hours behind schedule which meant that one of my fellow diners from the seating carriage was going to arrive at his station in Kentucky at two in the morning instead of 11 o'clock at night but he did this journey monthly and accepted it as normal.
Thanks for the comments. Yes, the older Viewliner 1 cars have toilets in the roomettes, while the Viewliner 2 cars have public restrooms and the roomettes just have sinks. I prefer the Viewliner 2 approach as well. As for dining cars on the eastern trains, only the Florida routes (Silver Star and Silver Meteor) have full dining cars and offer "traditional dining" now. I thought the New York branch of the Lake Shore Limited had a dining car, but I'm not sure about that. Every other eastern train has a cafe car and offers "flexible dining". But you can ask to have your meals in the cafe car, as another commenter mentioned. Amtrak long distance trains do frequently run hours late, unfortunately. The biggest factor is that they're beholden to the freight railroads whose tracks they use outside of the Northeast Corridor.
@@SightlinesTravel : While the combined Lakeshore Limited (between Albany and Chicago each direction) has a dining car (it stays on the New York section), it still offers only "Flexible Dining". My understanding from the crew is that Amtrak has still not hired and trained crew who can use the kitchen in the dining car. I don't know whether the kitchen equipment in that car actually works -- the inability to keep the kitchens in good repair was cited by Amtrak as one of the reasons they terminated traditional dining before the pandemic.
I took the Cardinal twice from Chicago to Washington, DC. First time was in a superliner car, second time was just in a regional style car. I wish they'd bring the superliners back, but that can't happen. Quite a nice ride.
The unnecessarily long way to get to Chicago. The Lake Shore Limited is the train to take if you don't want to take forever to get to Chicago. And yes, it is scenic too.
It is the longer route from New York to Chicago for sure, but serves West Virginia, Cincinnati, and Indianapolis for people who live around there. I'm planning to take the LSL route sometime soon and check it out.
@@SightlinesTravel Exactly, it is a train that is best used for individual segments. I would not use it to get to Chicago from any point north of Washington, DC.
The Lakeshore is indeed a very pleasant ride. I ride for pleasure, and the Cardinal offers gorgeous views through Virginia and West Virginia. I prefer to take it during daylight time so that more of West Virginia goes by in daylight. The New River Gorge is truly spectacular.
@@mikeymutual5489 The Lake Shore Ltd. does have that nice scenic ride between New York City and Albany but the Cardinal has a longer scenic area through Wast Virginia and Virginia especially running eastbound. As for people riding west to Chicago that board on intermediate stations north of Washington DC it is the only train that offers a one seat ride. Otherwise you either have to change trains in either New York or Washington DC.
I have ridden this train several times both from Chicago and Indianapolis. I have ridden the route from the beginning of Amtrak when it was called the James Whitcomb Riley. At that time it did not run through to New York and you had to take a regional train to Washington DC. I actually preferred the old schedule since you left Washington DC in late afternoon and arrived in Cincinnati early the next morning. It then ran as a morning train to Chicago. With the change to use Indianapolis as the morning stop Cincinnati got bad times both east and westbound. Indianapolis is most likely where you picked up the Superliners since that is where Amtrak has its heavy overhaul facility. One of the Cardinals job is to shuttle cars to and from Indianapolis. While this is the slowest route to or from Chicago the scenery through West Virginia is great in the daylight hours. You will usually see more running eastbound to Washington DC. I have heard that Amtrak is planning on running this train daily. It would also be nice if they would add a full service dinner with fresh cooked meals especially since the sleeping car fares are so high.
My favorite was the beef burgundy. Each meal was good, I'd say, not great. I got about 5-6 hours of uninterrupted sleep, which is good for me on a train.
New subbie, here. Excellent presentation! I've long been curious about the Cardinal. Also, I'm the weird bird that longs for Amtrak delays ... when I'm in a sleeping compartment. Why? More rest pour moi! Looking forward to more, more, more!❤❤❤
That "Flexible Dining" chow is terrible! I recently had it on a Chicago - Pittsburgh round trip. I opted to eat it in (what passes for) the dining car. Nobody looked like they were enjoying it. Until the full dining service cars are restored to the Eastern trains, I won't be riding them.
Why not have a later departure on the three other days so that its arrival time into Cincinnati is later as well. Do the opposite for east bound Cardinal making the departure out of Chicago earlier. Of course, these adjustments will be made at the discretion of the controlling railroads, which is unfortunate.
All of the pressure points preventing a daily Cardinal are actively being worked on, but I don't know that it'll help the awful times it comes through Indy and Cinci in both directions. In their 15 yr plan, Amtrak presented the idea of running trains from Chicago-Cincinnati on the Cardinal off days. Additionally they proposed the "3C+D Ohio Corridor" connecting Cinci, Cleveland, Columbus and Dayton. So hopefully y'all get better access soon, cause there's a lot of people in that area missing out because the train runs at 2am or something silly.
That's true, there is a cafe car ahead of the sleepers. The SCA didn't ask if we wanted to eat there, but I'm sure you could ask for it. It wasn't very busy the couple of times I wandered up there.
That app is just called "Speedometer". There are a bunch of speedometer apps on both the Apple and Google app stores. They just need a GPS signal to work. Have a fun trip on the Empire Builder! I'd like to take that one someday.
Yes, that's true, the VL2 rooms are a little smaller, and there are a few design flaws, like having no place to store the ladder to the upper bunk in the deluxe bedrooms (you can see it wedged behind the extra seat at 4:41). But the VL2s do have a number of nice features, like more outlets, nicer lights, and no toilet in the roomettes. :)
@@SightlinesTravelI'm the weird bird who looooves having a commode in the room. I travel solo l, so it's wonderful. That said, I do prefer the design, colors of the VL2's. I also prefer the VL2 dining lounges, with their etched-glass partitions.
This is a great embarrassment that from NYC and Chicago. two very big cities, you gave only 3 trains PER WEEK. No wonder the US is the bottom of the pile in mass transit.
For what it's worth, Amtrak also runs the Lakeshore Limited. That route connects NYC and Chicago 7 days a week, and is faster than the Cardinal. However, as someone who lives in Indianapolis with family in Chicago, I'm pretty miffed about the Cardinal only running 3x weekly. Fortunately, it sounds like they'll be upping that to 7 days a week in the near future. Hopefully that helps many other people along the route as well. You're right though, if for no reason other than the speed and reliability of our passenger rail due to Amtrak using freight right-of-way, the US is definitely bottom-tier for rail transit.
It's too bad that the most scenic parts of this trip are in the dark. You miss all of the mounrain in W Va, and Ky, the cities of Cincinnati and Indianapolis. Makes for a wasted video.
You must have been in the first coach car. Unfortunately being just behind the engine the ventilation system sometimes picks up some of the exhaust from the engine especially when starting up from a station stop. That is one of the disadvantages of not having a full baggage car as the first car. That helps prevent the smoke problem from the engine.
I have a tip for those who live in the Northeast and stay in a hotel the night before the 6:45a NY departure. An alternative is to take the NE Regional to Baltimore the day before, and pick up the Cardinal the following morning at a much more civilized 9:30a. The ride through VA and WVA is the same, and the hotels in Baltimore are much more affordable.
Yes, that's a good tip, thanks.
Thank you for that idea
If the STD from Baltimore Penn is 9:29 a.m. were you still able to get breakfast on the train? The dining car apparently closes for breakfast at 10am and you only get served if boarding before 9:30am
I'd like to know your experience as I'm considering taking the Cardinal.
@@andrewschwartz22 I got my breakfast at 9:30am just fine. The sleeping car attendant encouraged me to go get breakfast as soon as I boarded in Baltimore. The only issue I had was that there was no butter for the Flexible Dining pancakes because they ran out (I traveled on a Sunday morning train). The cafe car was restocked in Washington DC.
At least on the Cardinal, I was told that I had to get my breakfast order submitted so that it could be heated before the train arrived in DC. The headend power is changed from electric to diesel in DC, and the train is without power during the changeover.
The Cardinal will be VERY MUCH improved if and when Amtrak is ever able to restore an actual diner with "Traditional Dining" and ditch the infamous "Flexible Dining". That has been promised ever since the infrastructure bill was passed -- the current promise is "before the end of the year". I'm pretty sure Amtrak was saying the same thing in 2023.
I still enjoyed the ride. We were on-time for the entire trip (perhaps because it was a Sunday) and the weather and scenery was beautiful. I highly recommend the bedroom over the roomette if you can afford it, especially if you (like me) are of an age where you need at least one night-time trip to the toilet each night. The new Viewliner II roomettes have no in-room toilet. The bedroom is much more spacious. Also, bring a power strip or extension cord if you bring any gear.
Very nice video ! Thanks ! 👍💜🥁🐉🎤🎶🚈💕💞
Thank you!
This is a new channel to me. I enjoyed the video.
Thank you, welcome to the channel!
Great review! The Cardinal stops in Lafayette, IN where I grew up. We need more trains in the Midwest.
Thank you, and agreed.
Yep but wish prices were more reasonable
I've taken the Cardinal several times. The last trip was in December, and I was amazed at how much more scenic it was in the winter.
Thank you for the video! Beautiful landscapes! I love watching videos about traveling around the USA, enjoying the beauty of nature and cities! I wish you success!
Thank you, glad you enjoyed it!
@@SightlinesTravel 👍😉
The Cardinal is on my list to do. I want to do it in the fall when still daylight passing through the New River Gorge (now National Park). I have seen the train pass by when visiting the Hawks Nest area of the Gorge.
It is a good idea to take the trip at a time of year when there's more daylight. I missed a lot of the mountain scenery in the darkness, one of the downsides of doing it in winter.
I took it Chi-NYC beginning of October some years ago. Trouble as ever is that much of the time you’re looking at the trees twenty feet from the train and not the river beyond.
New subscriber here. Like your format & manner of presentation.
Excellent video. Thanks. Do continue to make more.
Thank you, glad you enjoyed!
Enjoyed the video. Ive only travelled on the lakeside and california zephyr and day trains on the NYC washington corridor. Need to do more
Thanks. The Zephyr is a beautiful trip.
South Portsmouth is my hometown station. Love the Cardinal.
Thanks for commenting, the Cardinal is a favorite.
Hinton is the closest station to me. 40 miles, but an hour's drive on twisty mountain roads. I'v taken the Cardinal several times (and the George Washington before that) to or from Washington DC.
From a scenery standpoint, do the trip from Chicago to New York. The NRG is in daylight.
Good to know, thank you.
Great insight. Cardinal vs Lakeshore. Which is better?? Parents visiting from india soon. want to give them a memorable trip
I did this journey in 2009 from Philadelphia to Chicago. Although the middle of summer there was just one sleeping car with three deluxe sleepers with shower/toilet compartments but I paid the inordinate price as the brunettes had the toilet next to the head of the bed with no public toilets so this looks better. However in those days we had our meals in the restaurant car which was much better as it gave you a chance to meet and chat with fellow passengers which as a solo traveller was one of the pluses of travelling in the US. In What amazed me was the relaxed attitude of the regular passengers to timing. At one stage we were running nearly 3 hours behind schedule which meant that one of my fellow diners from the seating carriage was going to arrive at his station in Kentucky at two in the morning instead of 11 o'clock at night but he did this journey monthly and accepted it as normal.
Thanks for the comments. Yes, the older Viewliner 1 cars have toilets in the roomettes, while the Viewliner 2 cars have public restrooms and the roomettes just have sinks. I prefer the Viewliner 2 approach as well.
As for dining cars on the eastern trains, only the Florida routes (Silver Star and Silver Meteor) have full dining cars and offer "traditional dining" now. I thought the New York branch of the Lake Shore Limited had a dining car, but I'm not sure about that. Every other eastern train has a cafe car and offers "flexible dining". But you can ask to have your meals in the cafe car, as another commenter mentioned.
Amtrak long distance trains do frequently run hours late, unfortunately. The biggest factor is that they're beholden to the freight railroads whose tracks they use outside of the Northeast Corridor.
@@SightlinesTravel : While the combined Lakeshore Limited (between Albany and Chicago each direction) has a dining car (it stays on the New York section), it still offers only "Flexible Dining". My understanding from the crew is that Amtrak has still not hired and trained crew who can use the kitchen in the dining car. I don't know whether the kitchen equipment in that car actually works -- the inability to keep the kitchens in good repair was cited by Amtrak as one of the reasons they terminated traditional dining before the pandemic.
at the 13:20 mark of the video, that’s Manassas, VA.
Maybe you will see them stop at Thurmond, West Virginia.
That New River Gorge area is so beautiful and historic.
We arrived at Thurmond after 7pm and it was already dark then unfortunately.
It is a beautiful area from what I could see in the diminishing light.
6:52 That is Philadelphia, not outside of the city. It's 30th Street Station.
Yes, that's true, the yard at 30th Street Station, just before you arrive at the platforms.
I took the Cardinal twice from Chicago to Washington, DC. First time was in a superliner car, second time was just in a regional style car. I wish they'd bring the superliners back, but that can't happen. Quite a nice ride.
I think the Cardinal ran from DC (instead of New York) to Chicago for a while, and used Superliner cars on at least some of those trips.
The unnecessarily long way to get to Chicago. The Lake Shore Limited is the train to take if you don't want to take forever to get to Chicago. And yes, it is scenic too.
It is the longer route from New York to Chicago for sure, but serves West Virginia, Cincinnati, and Indianapolis for people who live around there. I'm planning to take the LSL route sometime soon and check it out.
@@SightlinesTravel Exactly, it is a train that is best used for individual segments. I would not use it to get to Chicago from any point north of Washington, DC.
The Lakeshore is indeed a very pleasant ride. I ride for pleasure, and the Cardinal offers gorgeous views through Virginia and West Virginia. I prefer to take it during daylight time so that more of West Virginia goes by in daylight. The New River Gorge is truly spectacular.
@@thomasstambaugh5181 Taking the Cardinal from Chicago going east is the way to go, then.
@@mikeymutual5489 The Lake Shore Ltd. does have that nice scenic ride between New York City and Albany but the Cardinal has a longer scenic area through Wast Virginia and Virginia especially running eastbound. As for people riding west to Chicago that board on intermediate stations north of Washington DC it is the only train that offers a one seat ride. Otherwise you either have to change trains in either New York or Washington DC.
Very nice video, thanks... hope to ride the Cardinal sometime.
Thank you!
You're welcome!@@SightlinesTravel
Look at all those electric outlets ! Impressive
Probably the best feature of the Viewliner 2s! 😊
You'll still want a power strip or extension cord if you want anything near the window.
I have ridden this train several times both from Chicago and Indianapolis. I have ridden the route from the beginning of Amtrak when it was called the James Whitcomb Riley. At that time it did not run through to New York and you had to take a regional train to Washington DC. I actually preferred the old schedule since you left Washington DC in late afternoon and arrived in Cincinnati early the next morning. It then ran as a morning train to Chicago. With the change to use Indianapolis as the morning stop Cincinnati got bad times both east and westbound. Indianapolis is most likely where you picked up the Superliners since that is where Amtrak has its heavy overhaul facility. One of the Cardinals job is to shuttle cars to and from Indianapolis. While this is the slowest route to or from Chicago the scenery through West Virginia is great in the daylight hours. You will usually see more running eastbound to Washington DC. I have heard that Amtrak is planning on running this train daily. It would also be nice if they would add a full service dinner with fresh cooked meals especially since the sleeping car fares are so high.
Thanks for the background! I would like to take the eastbound train at some point.
What was your favorite meal on this train. How many hours of uninterrupted sleep did you get on this train
My favorite was the beef burgundy. Each meal was good, I'd say, not great. I got about 5-6 hours of uninterrupted sleep, which is good for me on a train.
New subbie, here. Excellent presentation! I've long been curious about the Cardinal.
Also, I'm the weird bird that longs for Amtrak delays ... when I'm in a sleeping compartment. Why? More rest pour moi!
Looking forward to more, more, more!❤❤❤
Thank you and glad you enjoyed the video!
@@SightlinesTravel You're welcome! I def will take the Cardinal to Chi Town. Thx!
Took one of these on the Crescent last September and it was a great setup!
Sounds like a fun trip!
I enjoyed the detailed review. Out of curiosity, do you remember the room number you were in?
Thank you. I think I was in roomette #3 on that one.
That "Flexible Dining" chow is terrible! I recently had it on a Chicago - Pittsburgh round trip. I opted to eat it in (what passes for) the dining car. Nobody looked like they were enjoying it. Until the full dining service cars are restored to the Eastern trains, I won't be riding them.
Why not have a later departure on the three other days so that its arrival time into Cincinnati is later as well. Do the opposite for east bound Cardinal making the departure out of Chicago earlier. Of course, these adjustments will be made at the discretion of the controlling railroads, which is unfortunate.
All of the pressure points preventing a daily Cardinal are actively being worked on, but I don't know that it'll help the awful times it comes through Indy and Cinci in both directions. In their 15 yr plan, Amtrak presented the idea of running trains from Chicago-Cincinnati on the Cardinal off days. Additionally they proposed the "3C+D Ohio Corridor" connecting Cinci, Cleveland, Columbus and Dayton. So hopefully y'all get better access soon, cause there's a lot of people in that area missing out because the train runs at 2am or something silly.
There was a cafe car on your train, where you could have eaten your meals. Did you even walk through the rest of the train?
That's true, there is a cafe car ahead of the sleepers. The SCA didn't ask if we wanted to eat there, but I'm sure you could ask for it. It wasn't very busy the couple of times I wandered up there.
How were you able to capture the train speed? What app was that? Interested for my own upcoming trip on the Empire Builder.
That app is just called "Speedometer". There are a bunch of speedometer apps on both the Apple and Google app stores. They just need a GPS signal to work. Have a fun trip on the Empire Builder! I'd like to take that one someday.
Great video, just a shame you didn’t show the diesel loco that replaced the electric at D.C !
Thanks, unfortunately I didn't get a good shot of the diesel at DC or Chicago.
Viewliner 2 is more comfortable but also less room
Yes, that's true, the VL2 rooms are a little smaller, and there are a few design flaws, like having no place to store the ladder to the upper bunk in the deluxe bedrooms (you can see it wedged behind the extra seat at 4:41). But the VL2s do have a number of nice features, like more outlets, nicer lights, and no toilet in the roomettes. :)
@@SightlinesTravel u right
@@SightlinesTravelI'm the weird bird who looooves having a commode in the room. I travel solo l, so it's wonderful. That said, I do prefer the design, colors of the VL2's. I also prefer the VL2 dining lounges, with their etched-glass partitions.
Always wear flip flops in the shower. Never know what you can pick up on the floor there. We do that, never had an issue doing this.
Good advice!
If your planning trips on Amtrak give your self at least a day for further transportation 😊😊
The Amt track remains in active use within the dinosaur train.
This is a great embarrassment that from NYC and Chicago. two very big cities, you gave only 3 trains PER WEEK.
No wonder the US is the bottom of the pile in mass transit.
For what it's worth, Amtrak also runs the Lakeshore Limited. That route connects NYC and Chicago 7 days a week, and is faster than the Cardinal. However, as someone who lives in Indianapolis with family in Chicago, I'm pretty miffed about the Cardinal only running 3x weekly. Fortunately, it sounds like they'll be upping that to 7 days a week in the near future. Hopefully that helps many other people along the route as well. You're right though, if for no reason other than the speed and reliability of our passenger rail due to Amtrak using freight right-of-way, the US is definitely bottom-tier for rail transit.
Why does the baggage need privacy?
It's too bad that the most scenic parts of this trip are in the dark. You miss all of the mounrain in W Va, and Ky, the cities of Cincinnati and Indianapolis. Makes for a wasted video.
Can’t barely breathe in the coach because of the smoke. Ridiculous
You must have been in the first coach car. Unfortunately being just behind the engine the ventilation system sometimes picks up some of the exhaust from the engine especially when starting up from a station stop. That is one of the disadvantages of not having a full baggage car as the first car. That helps prevent the smoke problem from the engine.
Make it daily and get a full service diner. 👍🏽😎🚃🚃
I'm spoiled because I travel the Starlight with daily service and both a cafe car and a full service dining car.