Since Delta is the only commercial airline into the local airport, it is expensive to fly into the area.  Although not close to an Amtrak train line, there is bus service from Amtrak stations to the Redwood area, which may be the cheapest way to travel to the park.  Here are three tips/hints for effectively traveling to/from Redwood by land:

One:  Martinez, California is your Amtrak connection to Redwood National Park.  The San Joaquin line from Bakersfield (with connecting service from San Diego and Los Angeles) and Oakland (with connecting service from San Francisco) stops there.  Martinez is also on the Capitol Corridor line from San Jose, Oakland and Sacramento (with connecting service from Reno.)  From Martinez, there are two Amtrak Thruway Motorcoaches departing at 10:25 am and 3:25 pm for the six to seven hour ride to the Redwood area. 

Two:  Since there is no shuttle service at Redwood National Park, you must rent a car to see the entire park.  Therefore, the McKinleyville stop at the Arcata Airport is the destination for your bus ride.  If you arrive before the rental car counters close in the early evening, you have a choice of companies from which to rent.  If you arrive when the rental car counters are closed, you can take a complementary shuttle bus to your hotel for the night and come back to the airport in the morning to rent your car.  There are a number of hotels in the area that will provide this service.  The motorcoaches back to Martinez leave McKinleyville at 6:15 am and 10:30 am.

Three:  The need to make reservations for the train portion of your trip depends on the service you take.  Although the Capitol Corridor trains are unreserved, the San Joaquins are all-reserved trains.  Although you do not need reservations for the Thruway Motorcoach Connection service, you may be able to receive discounted advance purchase fares or special fares for students and seniors by buying both your train and bus ticket in advance.

Fortunately, Grand Canyon National Park’s South Rim has Amtrak service close by on the Southwest Chief.  You literally have automobile, train and bus alternatives.   Here are five tips/hints for effectively traveling to/from the Grand Canyon by land:

One:  If you wish to take the train right up to the Canyon, you can board the Grand Canyon Railway.  Once you disembark at Williams Junction, you can take the free shuttle service to the Grand Canyon Hotel and Railway.  For those arriving from the west, there is a five hour layoff before the 9:30 am departure to the Canyon.  If you are going back west, the train leaves the Canyon at 3:30 pm and arrives at the Grand Canyon Hotel at 5:45 pm.  This leaves you with about 3 ½ hours before the shuttle takes you back to the Williams Junction Amtrak station.

Coming from the east, it is not as convenient.  Since the Southwest Chief arrives in the late evening, you will probably want to take the shuttle to the Grand Canyon Hotel and stay the night.  The hotel is well-appointed and resembles the original Santa Fe Railroad hotel in Williams.  After a good breakfast, you will be ready for the 9:30 am departure described above.  Going back east, you may also wish to rent a hotel room since the train leaves Williams Junction in the early morning.

Two:  If you prefer to travel by bus to the canyon, there is convenient service from the Flagstaff Amtrak station provided by Open Road Shuttle.  For those arriving from the west, there is a three hour layover before the 8:00 am departure to the Canyon.  If you are going back west, the bus leaves the Maswik Lodge at 6:15 pm and arrives at the Flagstaff Amtrak station at 8:00 pm, which is about an hour before your departure on the Southwest Chief.

Coming from the east, again, it is less convenient.  Upon your late evening arrival in Flagstaff, you will probably want to reserve a hotel room before taking the 8:00 am departure described above.  Going back east, you may also wish to rent a hotel room since the train leaves Flagstaff in the morning.

Three:  You may wish to reserve a rental car for maximum flexibility.  Since the Amtrak arrivals and departures in the area are not doing normal business hours, you should probably rent from an airport facility that has extended hours.  Your best bet to find such a facility by the Grand Canyon is at the Flagstaff Pulliam Airport.  Check with your rental car agency to see whether they can pick you up at the train station or if you will need to take a taxi to get there.

Four:  If you really want to go to the North Rim and do not have a car, there is a bus service run by Transcanyon Shuttle.  The service leaves the South Rim at 1:30 pm and arrives at the North Rim 4 ½ hours later.  The return bus leaves the North Rim at 7:00 am.  Obviously, the service runs only form mid-May to mid-October when the North Rim is open.

Five:  The Southwest Chief is an all-reserved train.  Whether you are experiencing Amtrak’s coach service or the Superliner sleeping accommodations, you must make advanced reservations.  By buying your tickets in advance for both Amtrak and local transportation services near the Grand Canyon, you may be able to receive discounted advance purchase fares or special fares for students and seniors.

Fortunately, Yosemite National Park has Amtrak service close by on the San Joaquin service.  From Merced, CA, you have automobile and bus alternatives to the park.  Here are five tips/hints for effectively traveling to/from Yosemite by land:

One:  There are three or four Amtrak trains northbound from Bakersfield and southbound from Sacramento or Oakland each day that have connecting service to Yosemite.  At Merced, connect to the Yosemite Area Regional Transportation System (YARTS) bus right at the Amtrak station.  The YARTS bus stops in Catheys Valley, Mariposa, Midpines and El Portal on its way to/from Yosemite.  In the park itself, the bus stops at the Yosemite Lodge, Valley Visitor Center, Ahwahnee Hotel and Curry Village.  The same bus will get you back to the Amtrak Merced station in time to board your outbound train.

Two:  From the Visitor Center, you can connect with another YARTS bus to the rest of Yosemite and beyond to Mammoth Lakes.  This service runs only when the Tioga Pass is open, which is typically from June to September.  The bus goes to Crane Flat, White Wolf, Tuolumne Meadows, Lee Vining, June Lake and Mammoth Lakes.

Three:  You may wish to reserve a rental car for maximum flexibility.  Most of the car rental facilities are on 13th or 16th Streets in Merced, at least one mile away from the train station.  Therefore you should check with your rental car agency to see whether they can pick you up at the train station or if you will need to take a taxi to get there.

Four:  If it is more convenient to start your trip in San Francisco or Southern California, Amtrak has connecting service.  There are six locations in San Francisco where travelers can connect to an Amtrak Thruway bus to Oakland.  In Los Angeles, there is connecting train or bus service from San Diego, Oceanside, and Santa Ana.  From Los Angeles, there is dedicated bus service to Bakersfield.  For all of these services, there is through ticketing that allows you to travel the various buses and trains on one ticket!

Five:  The San Joaquins are all-reserved trains.  To experience Amtrak coach service, you must make advanced reservations.  By buying your tickets in advance for both Amtrak and connecting services to Yosemite, you may be able to receive discounted advance purchase fares or special fares for students and seniors.

One:  You must know the park entrances available to you at the time of the year you are travelling.  During the peak travel months of mid-May to early November, all five entrances are open:  North near Gardiner, MT; West near West Yellowstone, MT; South near Jackson, WY; East near Cody, WY and Northeast near Silver Gate, MT.  Starting in mid-November, only the North Entrance is open until spring.

Two:  If you are travelling to Yellowstone via Amtrak when all of the entrances are open, riding the California Zephyr to Salt Lake City is the train line of choice.  If you are coming from the west, the train arrives in Salt Lake City at 4:05 am.  You can catch the Salt Lake Express bus to Jackson, WY at 7:30 am.  You will want to disembark at Jackson’s airport at 2:15 pm so you can take advantage of the airport’s car rental facilities.  To go back west, you can take the 11:30 am Salt Lake Express bus to catch the 11:30 pm Amtrak departure.

If you are coming from the east, the California Zephyr arrives in Salt Lake City at 11:00 pm.  You may wish to rent a hotel room for the night, since the Salt Lake Express bus doesn’t leave until 7:30 am (as noted above.)  To go back east, you must take the same 11:30 am bus described above.  Since it arrives at 6:15 pm in Salt Lake City and your train departure is not until 4:30 am, you may wish to book a hotel room for the night.

Three:  In the winter, you must use the Empire Builder to get to Yellowstone National Park’s North Entrance.  The best way to connect with the Empire Builder is through Spokane, Washington.  Greyhound Lines has a convenient schedule that works well with Amtrak’s.  Part of the beauty of connecting through Spokane is that the trains arrive and depart in the early morning from both directions.  Thus, if you are going to Yellowstone, your train will arrive in Spokane no later than 2:00 am.  You can take the 5:05 am Greyhound bus and arrive in Bozeman, MT at 12:50 pm.  From Bozeman, there is a 4:50 pm bus that arrives in Spokane at 12:35 am.  The earliest train leaves Spokane at 1:15 am.  Connecting in Spokane is easy since Greyhound uses the Spokane train station as its depot.  Since the connections take place in the middle of the night, this is very convenient.  Also, this connection works well year-round if you are coming from the Northwest.

Four:  If you are planning to drive to Yellowstone from Bozeman, you should use one of the rental car facilities at the airport.  Although there are some rental car offices in town, they have limited hours, especially on weekends.  Some of the airport rental car facilities will pick you up at the Bozeman Amtrak station at no additional charge for added convenience.

Five:  Both the Empire Builder and California Zephyr are all-reserved trains.  Whether you are experiencing Amtrak’s coach service or the Superliner sleeping accommodations, you must make advanced reservations.  By buying your tickets in advance for both Amtrak and bus services, you may be able to receive discounted advance purchase fares and special fares for students and seniors.

For residents of the Sioux Falls area, utilizing a combination of Amtrak trains and buses is the cheapest way to travel to other parts of the county.  Here are five tips/hints for effectively traveling to/from Sioux Falls by land:

One:  Ignore Amtrak’s recommendation to connect with the train at Fargo.  On Amtrak’s schedule for the Empire Builder that runs between Chicago and Seattle/Portland, there is an indication that connecting service is available between Fargo, ND and Sioux Falls.  Jefferson Lines provides this service.  Unfortunately, Jefferson Lines’ schedule at Fargo does not work well with Amtrak’s timetable.

The only direct bus to Sioux Falls leaves Fargo in the mid-afternoon.  Also, the one direct bus from Sioux Falls arrives in Fargo around the same time.  But the Empire Builder arrives in Fargo for both directions in the middle of the night.  Thus, there will be a half-day wait (that includes some early morning hours) in Fargo before a connection can be made.

Two:  If you are coming from the Northwest on the Empire Builder, the best place to connect to a Jefferson Lines bus is Minneapolis/St. Paul.  The eastbound train arrives in St. Paul around 7:00 am.  After a short cab ride to the Minneapolis Greyhound Bus Terminal, the bus leaves around noon for the 6 ½ hour trip to Sioux Falls.  In order to connect with the westbound train, travelers should board the 4:00 pm bus to Minneapolis that arrives around 9:00 pm.  That will give you plenty of time to transfer to the St. Paul Amtrak station to catch the 11:15 pm.

Three:  If you are coming from the east, the California Zephyr from Chicago is the Amtrak service you should utilize.  The train arrives in Omaha around 10:30 pm.  After a brief hotel stay in Omaha, you can board a 5:45 am bus for the 3 ½ hour trip to Sioux Falls.  For eastbound passengers, the bus leaves the Sioux Falls depot around 8:30 pm and arrives in Omaha after midnight.  The train for Chicago leaves Omaha a little after 6:00 am.

Four:  If you are coming from the west, the eastbound California Zephyr provides the most convenient connection to Sioux Falls.  The train arrives in Omaha around 6:00 am.  At noon, the Jefferson Lines bus leaves for Sioux Falls.  For westbound passengers, the bus leaves Sioux Falls at 3:45 pm and arrives in Omaha at 7:15 pm, which is plenty of time to catch the 10:30 pm California Zephyr.

Five:  Both the Empire Builder and California Zephyr are all-reserved trains.  Whether you are experiencing Amtrak’s coach service or the Superliner sleeping accommodations, you must make advanced reservations.  By buying your tickets in advance for both Amtrak and Jefferson Lines services, you may be able to receive discounted advance purchase fares or special fares for students and seniors.