Travel by train has always been one of my favorite forms of travel. Even before I ever rode one, it had been a dream of mine. My first train experience came in Canada in 2013 with Via Rail, and from there I ended up taking many trains across Europe too. But train travel across America was one of my biggest dreams of all.
With my working holiday visa approved for New Zealand, I decided I did not want to fly straight there. I might as well make stops on the way, and one of those bigger dreams was finally taking shape here in the U.S. From the South to California, I wanted to see the country go by from the rails instead of rushing over it by air. That was the whole point.
The Cross Country Voyage
New Orleans Houston Amtrak
Segment One: New Orleans to Houston
Instead of taking the Amtrak Crescent down to New Orleans, I flew there first and spent five days in one of my favorite cities. From there, the rail journey really began. I arrived at the New Orleans Amtrak station and boarded the Sunset Limited, bound west. Rather than taking it all the way to Los Angeles on that first leg, I rode the nine-hour stretch to Houston, where I had a high school friend waiting.
The scenery between Louisiana and Texas was not the most dramatic stretch I would see on the trip, but that honestly did not matter much to me. There is just something about being on a train, watching the country pass by slowly, that changes the whole feeling of travel. Even though I had been assigned a window seat, I spent most of that ride in the Sightseer Lounge, which quickly became one of my favorite parts of Amtrak. Large windows, lounge-style seating, and the simple act of sitting back and taking it all in — that was exactly what I had wanted.
I also kept things pretty simple with food. The train had a dining car, but as a budget backpacker I brought some of my own food and leaned on the café below the Sightseer car for smaller bites and coffee. It was a comfortable, easy first segment and a great start to what I knew would be a much bigger journey.
Segment Two: San Antonio to Los Angeles
After spending time in Houston and Austin, plus a quick stop in San Antonio, I boarded the Sunset Limited again for the longest and most memorable stretch of the trip: the ride west across the American desert to Los Angeles. Departure was at 2 a.m., which made it easy enough to just give in to the weirdness of overnight travel and go with it.
This was the part of the journey that really felt cross-country. The ride took about 29 hours, and while coach is not exactly luxury for a trip that long, the experience itself was worth it. Once again, I spent a lot of time in the Sightseer Lounge, where it was easy to lounge out, stare out the windows, and meet other people. That part of train travel always matters to me too. On a long ride like this, the train becomes its own little moving world.
Making friends on Amtrak
The scenery here was the real payoff. If you love the sight of wide open desert, empty distance, and that feeling of the American West stretching on and on, this route delivers. In some parts the train runs so close to the U.S.–Mexico border that you can see the fence itself. One of the longer stops came in El Paso, and later in Tucson, though I still remember the pizza there for all the wrong reasons.
The ride itself was long, uncomfortable at times, and not exactly built for perfect sleep in coach. But by the time I made it to Los Angeles, none of that really took away from what the experience had been. It felt like I had crossed the country the right way: slowly
Final Leg: Glendale to San Luis Obispo
Technically, Los Angeles marked the end of the big east-to-west crossing. But my train journey in America still had one more leg. Using points, I booked a one-way ticket in Business Class aboard the Pacific Surfliner, heading north from the Los Angeles area toward San Luis Obispo.
This route was a totally different kind of experience. Instead of desert, it gave me the Pacific. Even though the train ran late and I missed the full sunset I had hoped for, the ride still felt special. Business class made it even easier to relax, with more comfort, free coffee, and complimentary snacks. And when that route hugs the coast, it gives you a side of California that feels unique to rail travel.
It was a good final note for the whole American train chapter — less about endurance, more about comfort and scenery.
Cost, Points, and Taking It Slow
One thing I appreciated about this whole experience is that train travel in the U.S. can still be relatively affordable if you are willing to go the distance in coach. At the time of my trip, going from New Orleans to San Luis Obispo cost me $151, plus 3,500 Amtrak points I had earned through a hotel-booking signup with Rocketmiles. Of course, you can absolutely spend more if you want the room and sleeper experience, but for me, coach was part of the adventure.
Note: these costs and points reflect the trip at the time of my journey.
More than anything, what I loved about taking Amtrak across America was that it forced me to slow down. That was the whole beauty of it. In the U.S., train travel is not fast in the way modern high-speed rail is fast elsewhere, and that is exactly why I appreciated it. America is so used to cars, flights, rushing, and convenience. Train travel asks something else of you. It asks for patience, and in return it gives you time.
That is why I think everyone should experience train travel across America at least once — whether you are local or from abroad. Not because it is the fastest way, but because it is not. It lets the country unfold in a way that planes never can. And for me, that was exactly the point.
