Is an Auto Train Bedroom Worth the Cost? Tips for Booking & What to Expect

You've probably wondered what it's like riding in a sleeper car on Amtrak's Auto Train. Well, we've got you covered because we're about to take you along on the journey from Sanford, Florida to Lorton, Virginia.

From departing Sanford train station to arriving at the Lorton train station, we'll give you the scoop on everything that comes with riding on Auto Train in a sleeper car.

Was springing for the Bedroom on Auto Train or taking Amtrak worth it? Read on to find out as we detail the experience, and help you decide if Auto Train and a night in a sleeper car are right for your family's next adventure.

11 Things to Know about Traveling on Auto Train in a Bedroom

Vehicle check-in starts at 12:30pm at the Sanford station and ends at 3:00pm
Pack an overnight backpack that contains a change of clothes, medicine, and any valuables
Just like airports, the food options at the station are expensive, and in the case of Sanford, limited. Be sure to bring your own food and snacks
Meals are included with First Class accommodations; dinner was served at 5:30 and 7:30
Continental breakfast is included with First Class accommodations
Dining is communal and depending on the size of your party, you may be seated with other passengers
Be sure to bring games, books/magazines and movies loaded on your devices to keep the littles entertained
Smoking of any kind is not allowed anywhere on the train
All children under 13 must be accompanied by an adult at all times
Consider paying for Priority Offloading of your vehicle to speed you on your way
Remember to tip your room steward and dining car staff; gratuities are not included in the Rail Fare

Amtrak Auto Train By the Numbers

Before we dive in, here are some of the basic facts and figures that you might be curious about when it comes to this train.

Amtrak Auto Train is a 4,000 horse power diesel locomotive
In its entirety, it averages nearly 3/4ths of a mile in length and is the longest passenger train in the U.S.
There are 6 sleeper cars and 4 coach cars. This includes the Cross Country Cafe Car where you can purchase food items, the sleeper lounge car which is unmanned and used for relaxing and lastly the sleeper diner car.

All Aboard: Our Experience Booking a Bedroom on the Auto Train

Since this was our inaugural ride, we wanted to share details of our experience, starting with the booking process.

We stalked the Amtrak web site for weeks as we went back and forth deciding our dates and whether or not we'd actually take the plunge and book the tickets. While we could have booked our tickets via the website, we called to make certain that we understood the details. You can of course book directly on the website, this little group just happens to be type A.

Amtrak Accommodations

Once you decide that you're going with Amtrak from Sanford to Virginia or the reverse trip, you'll need to decide where you'll want to spend those 17 hours on board the train.

As you may have guessed, accommodations do vary and run from Coach up to Bedroom Suites. If you're traveling in a Roomette or above, you will receive the First Class perks listed below. Also note that in First Class you will be provided with towels and linens for your stay.

First Class Perks

Priority boarding
Dinner and breakfast
First class attendant
Turndown service

Coach

This will be your least expensive option when booking your tickets. You will have seat trays, reading lights, an electric outlet, and the legroom is certainly more ample than being seated in coach on any airline.

Meals are not included with this type of ticket. However, there is the Cross Country Cafe Car where you can purchase food.

Roomette

This private room is the smallest and least expensive of the First Class accommodations with space for two adults. The room is transformed in the evening with an upper and lower berth for sleeping.

To be clear, this room type does not come with a private restroom. You will have to share the bathroom with others in this type of accommodation in your car.

Bedroom

This private room is the next level up in First Class accommodations and is twice the size of a Roomette. Instead of two chairs, you'll have one chair and a sofa. These private rooms are designed to sleep two adults and do come with an in-room shower and bathroom.

Accessible Bedrooms

Accessible Bedrooms are private rooms that have entry on the main floor of the train. These room come with the accessible in-room sinks. An in-room bathroom is included and these rooms can accommodate up to two adults.

Bedroom Suite

Essentially, this is two connecting Bedrooms that give you twice the space of a single Bedroom. The nice perk here is that you have access to two bathrooms instead of one. You're also able to double the number of people traveling in this sleeper room from two adults to four.

Family Room

This is the only private room that is dedicated to families. It has seating for four by day and has two upper and two lower berths for sleeping. Amtrak is very specific here and will only allow 2 adults and 2 children in this room. Here you will have access to a private restroom.

What to Expect When Departing from the Sanford Station

Being type A, we arrived early to the Sanford train station. So early in fact that we were the fifth or so vehicle in line for check-in.

Checking-in your Vehicle

Amtrak is very precise about the boarding process and started at 12:30 on the dot. You drive up to one of the windows where a representative will check your ticketing information and then tell you what number bay to drive up to.

Once at the bay, you hand your keys over to Amtrak personnel who will place a magnetic number on your vehicle and give you paperwork that explains the process for removing the vehicle and your number. At this time, they will also video record the condition of your vehicle in case there are any issues later.

Checking-in your Party

The team will instruct you to have one person from your party go inside to check-in. We left check-in with our dining time and vouchers for each individual in our party along with a boarding pass to enter the train. The boarding pass will confirm the number in your party and where your room is located.

The Waiting Area

There was ample seating, it was clean, and came equipped with a convenience store and restrooms.

As you might expect, the food options were limited and expensive. We purchased a fruit juice and it came in at a whopping $7. You'll also find two or three food trucks just outside but we found those to be expensive as well.

Our advice here is whether you are in first class or coach, bring your own food. You'll save money and have a meal that you'll likely enjoy more than the expensive items available at the station. Tables are located inside and outside of the waiting area. You'll also find a playground for the littles outside of the building.

What to Expect in a Bedroom on the Auto Train

Why a Bedroom?

When choosing our sleeper room on Amtrak one of our top objectives was to have our own private room and bathroom.

With those things in mind, we went with the Bedroom because it would give us the private bathroom and the privacy we were looking for on this trip.

We did look at the Family Room but were not able to book this room. Even though we were a family of four, we didn't fit the two adults and two children configuration.

What's a Bedroom Like?

Here's the good, the bad and a little ugly of this room.

The Good

While the room understandably is not very large, it is more spacious than what we would have gotten in a Roomette or Coach, it was a private room and all things considered was very comfortable.

You should note, that the top bunk is most suitable for the smallest person in your party. There is a guard that hangs from the ceiling to keep anyone from bouncing out of the bunk. Our little guy tells us it was comfortable and we'll take him at his word.

Storage in the Upper Berth on Amtrak Auto Train

The other point here is that if you get the short end of the stick and end up on the upper berth, place your feet near the air vent and not your head. The air conditioning is strong and you will get cold.

An unexpected surprise was to have the door opened between our rooms. This gave us twice the space during the day and privacy between rooms in the evening.

It was nice to have a hot meal served for dinner and breakfast in the morning. We didn't have to think about it, we just listened for the announcements and headed to the dining car at the appointed time.

The Bad

Though comfortable, our rooms and we can assume the other rooms in the sleeper cars have a certain amount of wear and tear. Things like placing more than one electric outlet for the multiple devices we all travel with would go a long way.

The linens were okay but the towels were a little thin. This may be specific to our rooms but the climate control was non-existent. We were freezing with no way to turn down the air, and this is coming from a family where half of our little group is always hot.

Now, let's talk about the included meals. They were all just, meh. The breakfast wrap was particularly bad and all of the food was cafeteria level at best.

The Ugly

The shower. While it was nice to have the private bathroom, make no mistake, the bathroom is really a wet room. Your shower is also your bathroom, sit with that for a minute.

Shower Head in the Private Bathroom on Amtrak Auto Train

If you can get past that little factoid, take a look at the shower head in the bathroom. It may not be obvious from the picture, but there is grime in and around the holes of the shower head.

All in one shower and bathroom on Amtrak Auto Train

This is what we mean when we say the rooms need a serious refurb. We're not certain what's happening here with shower nozzle, either way, this was not appealing and we did not use the shower. Ick!

How much did the Amtrak Bedroom cost?

Our fees for the two Bedrooms broke down like this:

$429.00 - Rail Fare for 3 Adults
$71.50 - Rail Fare for 1 Child
$1,356 - 2 Bedrooms
$239 - Vehicle

All in we spent $2,095 for this experience.

What to Expect When Arriving at the Lorton Virginia Station

Your room steward will help you with your bags if you'd like; taking them to the platform for you and placing them in a trolley cart for you to wheel into the waiting area.

Monitor to check for the offloading of vehicles in Lorton Auto Train Stations

Priority Offloading

Here is where we recommend splurging on the Priority Offloading of your vehicle. We waited roughly an hour for our car to come off of the train. After the long ride and unexpected delay, we were at the point where we just wanted to go home.

Vehicles being Offloaded from Auto Train in Lorton Virginia

At the time of this writing the fee is $60 on top of the costs listed above. Our advice, spend the extra no matter what accommodations you choose.

Tips for Booking a Bedroom on the Auto Train

Book early. The prices seem to fluctuate and rise the closer you get to your departure date and rooms can sell out.
The booking system will likely put your party of four into two separate Bedrooms if you are not two adults and two children.
On top of the passenger fares, you'll pay a separate fee to transport your vehicle. The rate varies based on vehicle size and type.
For an extra fee, you can have your car offloaded in the first round. This allows you to hit the road faster.
Read accommodation details carefully. Remember that Roomettes do not include a private restroom.
Get to the station at least 90 minutes before departure to, check in, and load your vehicle onto the Auto Train.
If for any reason you need to rebook; call Amtrak to understand your options and they will help you move your booking.

Was Auto Train and a Bedroom worth it?

So, would we do this again? The answer here is decidedly mixed, it's a solid maybe.

Overall, we had a pleasant experience. This room ticked all of boxes, we had a private bathroom and a private space. The Bedroom was definitely an upgraded experience with priority boarding and the rest of the First Class perks. It was certainly more comfortable than Coach and we didn't have to drive all the way home from Orlando.

That said, an additional $2,000 on top of an already pricey Disney vacation can be a bit of a stretch for most families, ours included. Next time around, we would see if we could lower costs by booking much further in advance.

Lower Berth in Bedroom on Amtrak Auto Train

The other consideration is that price versus the condition of the sleeper cars and the quality of the food that's included leaves a bit to be desired. With refurbished sleeper cars and earlier booking we might seriously consider this if we were to take another road trip down to Disney.

The other option might be to step down to a Roomette since it's unlikely that we'd use the showers. In any event, we don't think that we'd do this ride in Coach. We'd want some privacy and the ability to stretch out.

And yes, we would reserve priority vehicle offloading to shorten the time between getting off of the train and moving on to our final destination.

Final Thoughts: Leaving the Driving Behind

The one thing that we did want to mention that would likely sway us to repeat this trip is Amtrak's customer service.

There was a delay that Amtrak had no control over that kept us stalled in Florence South Carolina for hours. The team on board were very accommodating; they provided breakfast and lunch during the delay without needing to be asked.

Then Amtrak issued each adult a $250 travel voucher and $50 for our little guy. That's $800 off of our original $2,000 price. That was an appreciated touch and again, we did not have to request it, we simply received an email apologizing and then another with the credit.

We hope that this overview of Amtrak's Auto Train and Bedroom will help you as you're planning your next trip in either direction on I95.

Until next time, enjoy the journey!

Riding the Rails: What It's Like in a Bedroom on the Auto Train

11 Things to Know about Traveling on Auto Train in a Bedroom

Amtrak Auto Train By the Numbers