Arrive Magazine - November/December, 2008

All Aboard

Season’s Greetings from Amtrak

While train travel is becoming increasingly popular year-round, the winter season tends to be particularly busy for Amtrak.

Without a doubt, Thanksgiving is our busiest time of year. Just as we do every year, we will prepare for the week of Thanksgiving by adding trains and capacity to meet the demand for service. If you’re traveling in the Northeast Corridor, look out for a special timetable for train schedules that week. Last Thanksgiving, we transported more than 600,000 passengers to family and friends across the country.

We anticipate higher-than-ever demand this Thanksgiving, and while we will make the most of all the equipment we can put to use, our trains will sell out. Not surprisingly, our busiest travel days are the Wednesday before and Sunday after Thanksgiving. I urge you to book your reservations early, and allow plenty of time at stations prior to your train’s departure.

Although not quite as busy as Thanksgiving, the Christmas holiday will also see a good deal of activity. In addition to carrying people to their Christmas destinations, we take people to cities like New York or Philadelphia for shopping and festivities leading up

to the holiday. The Radio City Christmas Spectacular, which runs from Nov. 7 through Dec. 30 and features the world-famous Rockettes, is one of our many Amtrak Vacations packages and a favorite of both adults and children. For more information about this and other packages, please visit Amtrakvacations.com or ask one of our ticket agents.

In many areas across the country, holiday cheer is often accompanied by challenging winter weather conditions. With the snowplows mounted on our trains’ locomotives, Amtrak is often the smarter alternative to grounded flights and treacherous roads. Many winter-weary travelers choose the rails to get home safely and comfortably.

I wish you and your family safe and happy holidays—may there be another Amtrak trip in your stocking this year. In the meantime, please let our on-board crews know if there’s anything we can do to make your trip more enjoyable.