Sebring

There were a few complications with checkout, and a mixup between the wait staff at the restaurant had delayed our departure, so we were running fairly late by the time we arrived at the Kissimmee Amtrak railway station. Fortunately although we were technically past the posted deadline, we were allowed to check-in our luggage (which we weren’t allowed to carry on ourselves). The station is very unlike those in Europe, with no raised platform - just a concrete pathway with some shelters and an office beside the tracks.

Train departures are a bit more of an all hands on deck affair on the US national railway, with only two departures in each direction per day. Well before the train arrived, the platform staff directed the dozen or so passengers joining the train to a point on the platform which the train crew had let them know had seats available, tickets were inspected as passengers boarded and we were told which seat number to take. Although not significantly bigger than a British train, climbing up from ground rather than platform level made it seem quite imposing and strange.

The train was rolling almost before we had found our seats, leaving at 13:30 (4mins late); despite the fact that its one of only 4 trains a day it was dispatched quicker than most British trains which have hundreds of passengers getting on an off in a relatively disorganised throng. The train runs all the way from Boston, and takes more than 24 hours to complete its journey, in consequence the seating is spacious with lots of legroom for the benefit of those sleeping onboard (there also sleeping berths in other cars). There was a buffet car onboard, but with small chance of a decent vegan offering, we had used the last of our Disney dining plan credits to get some hummus and vegetable boxes from the marketplace fridges at Art of Animation.

From Kissimmee, the track runs south as far as the town of Sebring, where it turns to the south east passing through huge areas of Florida’s famous orange groves towards the Atalntic coast. From West Palm Beach the track turns again, this time due south to complete the journey to Miami through the essentially continuous conurbation that follows this part of the coast. The service arrived nearly an hour early, pulling into the Miami station just as the sun was settling low to the westward horizon.Read more