My first time on a train and it wasn't bad at all. Nice way to travel. Relaxing and pleasant. Reasonably price especially if your not traveling too far. The observatory deck is the best thing. You can enjoy the natural light the the great scenery. Really nice way to travel. The only thing I would avoid is the food service. Anything that is already packed and sealed I would purchase. Stay away from anything they have to prepare. I noticed they don't use gloves and they will touch the food with bare hand...after handling other things such as money. Good thing you're allowed to bring your own food...in fact bring your own food! read more

Amtrak - Train Stations Near Me - Jackson, Mississippi

Good morning America, how are ya? Me and kiddo have been wanting to make a trip up to visit my sister for a while, and recently had the time to take a little adventure. Most any parent can attest, long drives with toddlers are painful. Especially if you are going about to solo. So, as I was weighing travel options, I decided to give Amtrak a go. My advice. Don't ride coach with a two year old. Trains could potentially be very dangerous with little exploring fingers, when the train his a bump, and you are standing it can knock you down (or into a fellow passenger) and if your toddler decides to have a meltdown of epic proportion there is no where to run (and not disturb fellow sleeping passengers). The bathrooms are like a glorified port-o-potty. Having learned that lesson on the way up there, so on the way back home to Nola, we upgraded to an econo-sleeper. Man, did that make a huge difference! You have two captains chairs that fold out to a small bed, black out curtains, and a door that you can close so the kid can scream NONONONONONO to her hearts content, and no one wants to throw you from the train. Also, meals are provided (I'm not saying good meals, but edible) and that's one less thing you have to worry about. The bathrroms are wayyyyy nicer in the sleeper cars. They even have little showers. I think the upgrade was around $60-$70 bucks. All passengers on the train can indulge in a beer or coctail, as they serve alcohol. There is a car made all clear, for those who want to look at the scenery. They make stops where smokers are allowed a chance to go grab a cigarette, or others can step out for a few minutes of fresh air. The staff were all really helpful and friendly. It was kind of fun sitting in the common area and visiting with other passengers. Now, lastly. This is a leisurely ride. If you are an impatient person, this may not be your best bet for travel. Also, then they say what time the train leaves, your butt better be there, or you will get left! The website is very user friendly. They keep it updates with arrivals and departures (our train was running a little late, and it was nice to be able to get on my smartphone and check that). read more

Horrible atmosphere!! It's a shame there's no security, and people hanging around on all corners asking for money and cigarettes!! Hollering out profanity through the whole entire station! Thank goodness i didn't have my kids with me on this particular trip! Makes me want to drive from now on! Pathetic!! read more

Did you know that Amtrak ships moving boxes cross-country for super cheap? This is seriously the best way to move boxes of non-electronic/non-breakable stuff! Sewanna (sp?), who works at the desk, was SUPER helpful when I came to ship boxes and really went above and beyond. I saw her act in a very conscientious manner towards at least two other customers around me. She deserves a raise! The only pitfall of this station is that the accessible doors don't work (at least not the ones I tried), and they open out, so folks in wheelchairs or people trying to bring in lots of items by themselves might need some extra help. They offer carts for luggage or boxes that fit about one large moving box at a time. So if you have a ton of stuff, it would be good to bring a second person with you to help. read more

I LOVE TAKIN Amtrak from Jackson to NOLA. No worry about parking car for ridiculous prices, a really fine and relaxing trip there. We always go straight to the dining car after boarding and have lunch on the train....have had many meals, and most have been good. After lunch, a nice ride in the observation car to NOLA....very inexpensive, and stressless way to travel. The narrow stairs are a bit of a bitch, but hey... read more

Cheap, & fast way to travel. It would have 5 stars, but I took one because the train is always late. Other than that it's the best way to travel.. The station here in Jackson, Ms is very clean, the bathrooms are clean too. The food here needs work, but hey, you can't win them all.. :) read more

Clean and fresh, but delays are the worst. I think my first trip from Chicago to New Orleans will be the last. Sitting in one place for 18+ hours just isn't my cup of tea. Staff is very friendly ad the bathrooms weren't as bad as i thought they would be. read more

It was run down on the outside, but nice inside the food smelled great but i wasn't hungry.

I just don't know about Amtrak. Last year my review would have been 4 or 5 stars but after this last trip, only 2. First up, the station is downtown and it is in a terrible neighborhood. It is pretty shabby on the outside but the inside is decent. This last trip we took ( 3/9/15 ) was a disaster. The train was late. The first and only text message I received said 25 minutes late. Ok that is fine. Got to the station and checked in and when it was getting close to 11:40 everyone started lining up to board only to be told then the train was further delayed yet they couldn't tell us why. In the end, over an hour late and no one bothered to tell us this. The biggest issue I had this trip was the stairs at the station. You have to go upstairs to board the train and they stair were "out of order"! Really? We had to ride the elevator which only holds about 7 or 8 people at a time! There was a group of 25 freaking people traveling together, want to guess how long it took for them to get up to the boarding platform??? That large group is another problem I had but that is not Amtrak's issue. Let's just say I hope I NEVER see that group of "people" again! Anyway, we boarded and off we went. Upon return to the station once our trip was over we found the stairs still out of order. How are stairs out of order? Well the building was collapsing! Yes, above the stairs the roof was falling in. Why don't you fix that? Seems like that would be top priority! Catching the train to NOLA is very convenient but I don't know if I can deal with all the issues Amtrak has. read more