[boop]

I must respectfully disagree on "economical". I had to travel from Seattle to Montana for my grandma's funeral. I took Amtrak. Of course you need a sleeper, because it's an overnight trip. Cost around $1000 round trip.

I've gone cross-country on Amtrak, and being poor, I couldn't afford a sleeper. 2 and a half days from Seattle to Chicago in a partially reclining seat was pure misery.

I'll give points for the scenery, though.

Well, except for North Dakota at night.

Not much better in daytime.

[Lmo56]

I must respectfully disagree on "economical".

Like I said in my post, if you have to go a long distance and you have the time, it is pretty economical. The cost of the 30-day rail pass was about $400 and the cost of the sleeper was about $100/day ...

Unfortunately, SEA-MT is not a long distance - even round trip ...

[punchamullah]

In January 2012, I rode the Empire Builder MSP-SEA for $132, one way. It took 37 hours then, but now takes 40 hours.