The round-trip train journey between New York City and Rochester totaled 16 hours, comprising a seven-hour outbound ride and a nine-hour return. One coach ticket and one business class ticket were purchased for a combined $249. The traveler rode coach northbound and business southbound, enjoying the novelty and convenience of train travel despite lengthy transit times. Travel mistakes included booking a ticket with an extended stop and arriving excessively early at Moynihan Train Hall. A maintenance-related delay postponed the outbound departure by over an hour and track information appeared only minutes before departure. The experience highlighted timing and booking pitfalls to avoid on future Amtrak trips.
When I scheduled a getaway to Rochester, New York, back in May, I was more excited about the train rides there and back than the destination itself. I had been on Amtrak trains a few times before the trip upstate, though this would be my longest journey to date. It would take seven hours to get there and nine hours to return, for a whopping 16 hours on the tracks.
Although it's good to be early for an Amtrak train, I arrived a little too early. Amtrak recommends passengers arrive 30 minutes before their trains are scheduled to depart. I ended up arriving at 6:37 so I could grab a coffee before the Amtrak-recommended waiting period began. By 6:50, I was waiting in the train hall for my ride with coffee in hand.
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