Anonymous wrote:How can flights be outrageous? Even walk up fares on Southwest are only like $350 each way.

$700 round trip to Florida is not a price I'd pay outside of an emergency.

Just drive, it isn't far

My kids loved the overnight train. We've been on it 3 times. They just recently asked about it again and they are now teenagers!

Drive.

Stop the press!! It’s less than 2 weeks to spring break and flights are outrageous? Get out of town!

No, I would not take an overnight train because my kid thinks it will be “fun.” How does your kid even know such a thing exists?

I took the train to Florida (from DC) 3x as a tween. My mom has a serious fear of flying and did not feel comfortable doing the whole drive alone. We had a roomette - went to sleep not long after leaving DC, arrived the next afternoon. It was not at all miserable and in fact a lot of fun, but these days it's rare for flights to be more expensive than Amtrak with a sleeping car. I don't know that I would do it if I had just a normal Amtrak seat. I don't sleep well sitting up and there's a lot more coming and going in the regular cars during the night then there would be on a flight - lots of stops and people coming in and out, bumping their suitcases down the aisle, the ticket taker walking through announcing stops, etc. On the other hand you have a lot more room and ability to move around than on a plane. So if you think you can get enough sleep despite the disruptions and the train cost savings makes the trip feasible, go for it.
But I'd be surprised if between all three DC area airports and looking at alternative airports in FL as well you couldn't find flights at a reasonable price. I mean, I never fly Spirit but I'd do it to save 14 hours of travel time...

If you're kid just wants to take a train, take him to NY instead.

Every time we've looked at it, we're priced out for a family of four. If you buy tickets early enough, I think kids go free in the summer but there's a deadline of early early June. We've always ended up driving. The drive or the train won't be bad, if your kid has electronics and movies to view video games to play, Etc

I took the auto train once. It hit a person on the tracks. No lie.

I've heard that the auto train is not too bad.

How can flights be outrageous? Even walk up fares on Southwest are only like $350 each way.

We had a blast on the auto train to Florida. You sound like a pill, though, so you probably won't appreciate it.

Anonymous wrote:You know your kid...

People take flights that long all the time.

Yeah, but then they're somewhere a lot better than Florida.

You know your kid...

People take flights that long all the time.

flight are outrageous at this point. my kid desperately wants to take an overnight train. sound like a nightmare to me. 17 hours.