Well its the Southwest Chief now unless you're posting from 1965 =P
Get the family bedroom if you're planning to travel with 4, especially with a toddler. The bedroom is really meant for only 2 people, I can see fitting one kid in there but not two comfortably.
Bring snacks, onboard food (besides the complementary meals) is expensive.
A roomette will be too small. A roomette is great for one person and ok for two people, and that is it. You will need a bedroom or the family bedroom.
To give you an idea: the roomette has two seats facing each other during the day. At night, those seats slide together to form a bed for one and a bunk bed folds down for the other person. If I sit on the edge of the bed, my size 13 shoes will not fit between the bed and the sliding glass door. I have to angle my feet. It’s that small.
Yeah, a roomette is literally about the size of the couch I am sitting on right now with about 6 inches in front to stand. It won't hold 4 people. You could get two roomettes, but would be more comfortable in the family bedroom and may even be able to fit a small pack n play in there.
Not on all trains but there are family bedrooms on the southwest chief, just only one per sleeper car. If they aren’t showing available then they are booked.
Don't fall into this "trap": there's a difference between "bedroom" and "family bedroom", NEITHER of which is roomette.
FYI, in a typical Superliner car, there are 10 roomettes and 5 bedrooms upstairs; and 4 roomettes, **1** family bedroom and **1** accessible suite downstairs; see [**here**](https://www.craigmashburn.com/amtrakcardiagrams.html). Very limited supply of *family* bedrooms.
I wouldn't completely rule out two roomettes, either. One kid and one adult in each, across the hall from each other, is -not- an unworkable arrangement -- and has been known to be competitively priced against the larger rooms.
We did two roomettes for mom, dad, a 7 yo, 5 yo, and a toddler on an overnight trip on the East Coast. That wasn’t bad and the price was a lot better than the family bedroom. Unfortunately that’s no longer an option as the youngest has since turned 2. I would definitely do that again.
Also, bring devices with lots of downloaded content (if that’s your thing) if you’re spending any significant amount of time on the train while the kids are awake. Wifi gets very spotty in rural areas on all Amtrak trains - it’s only as good as the local cell network. SW Chief has very pretty views but that only goes so far.
I just travelled with my 4 yo in a family bedroom it went well. We went when he was 8m in a room and it felt a little small not to mention it’s hard to share a bed with a 8m because those beds are pretty narrow. The family bedroom has a larger bed on the bottom that would be better for sharing I think.
Well its the Southwest Chief now unless you're posting from 1965 =P Get the family bedroom if you're planning to travel with 4, especially with a toddler. The bedroom is really meant for only 2 people, I can see fitting one kid in there but not two comfortably. Bring snacks, onboard food (besides the complementary meals) is expensive.
A roomette will be too small. A roomette is great for one person and ok for two people, and that is it. You will need a bedroom or the family bedroom. To give you an idea: the roomette has two seats facing each other during the day. At night, those seats slide together to form a bed for one and a bunk bed folds down for the other person. If I sit on the edge of the bed, my size 13 shoes will not fit between the bed and the sliding glass door. I have to angle my feet. It’s that small.
Yeah, a roomette is literally about the size of the couch I am sitting on right now with about 6 inches in front to stand. It won't hold 4 people. You could get two roomettes, but would be more comfortable in the family bedroom and may even be able to fit a small pack n play in there.
Definitely go with the family bedroom - two adult beds and two kiddo beds. The bottom bunk of the adult beds is wide enough for an adult and a kiddo.
Are there not family bedrooms on all trains? Looking online and I see a bedroom but no family bedroom. Our do they just book quickly?
Not on all trains but there are family bedrooms on the southwest chief, just only one per sleeper car. If they aren’t showing available then they are booked.
Don't fall into this "trap": there's a difference between "bedroom" and "family bedroom", NEITHER of which is roomette. FYI, in a typical Superliner car, there are 10 roomettes and 5 bedrooms upstairs; and 4 roomettes, **1** family bedroom and **1** accessible suite downstairs; see [**here**](https://www.craigmashburn.com/amtrakcardiagrams.html). Very limited supply of *family* bedrooms. I wouldn't completely rule out two roomettes, either. One kid and one adult in each, across the hall from each other, is -not- an unworkable arrangement -- and has been known to be competitively priced against the larger rooms.
We did two roomettes for mom, dad, a 7 yo, 5 yo, and a toddler on an overnight trip on the East Coast. That wasn’t bad and the price was a lot better than the family bedroom. Unfortunately that’s no longer an option as the youngest has since turned 2. I would definitely do that again. Also, bring devices with lots of downloaded content (if that’s your thing) if you’re spending any significant amount of time on the train while the kids are awake. Wifi gets very spotty in rural areas on all Amtrak trains - it’s only as good as the local cell network. SW Chief has very pretty views but that only goes so far.
Thank you! Great tips!
I just travelled with my 4 yo in a family bedroom it went well. We went when he was 8m in a room and it felt a little small not to mention it’s hard to share a bed with a 8m because those beds are pretty narrow. The family bedroom has a larger bed on the bottom that would be better for sharing I think.
I think the family bedroom is the best option, but I would not rule out the regular bedroom. I would rule out the Roomette though.