When I first starting talking to Amtrak about sponsoring the book tour, I pointed out to them that I thought Honeymooning via Amtrak was perhaps the best idea on the planet. Now that I’ve listened to a history tour through the Sierras, crossed the Rockies in a snowstorm, watched the snowy fields of Iowa fly by while drinking coffee in my heated compartment, slept in the cozy Amtrak double beds, had lunch delivered to my room, and waved to Southerners on their porches while the train chugged by, I think it’s an even better idea.
Seriously. I think Honeymoons are built for one particular thing: blissing out with your partner while you stare at your new rings, cuddle up, and nap. And it turns out, there is no form of transportation better built for that than a sleeping car on a train.
Plus, for those of you trying to make your weddings as green as possible, not only is train travel pretty darn green, Amtrak is dedicated to keeping things environmentally friendly. Most of what you use in Amtrak sleepers isn’t even disposable (hello, cloth towels), but to add to that, I’ve seen so many compostable Amtrak cups that I love them more every day.
That, and trains take you interesting places. Like, say, New Orleans. Or exploring the West Coast.
So! I’m super excited to announce that APW is giving away a honeymoon via Amtrak! Hooray! (Now, while this is technically a honeymoon giveaway, according to the terms and conditions, anyone can enter, so you could use this for a mini-moon trip together if you’re already married.) But seriously, you didn’t think I was going to have Amtrak sponsor the APW Book Tour, and write about how much fun I was having traveling by sleeper car all over the country, without having a big giveaway for you guys, did you? Of course not.
Here are the details of what Amtrak is offering for the Honeymoon Giveaway:
A round trip for two in a “Roomette” to any destination served by Amtrak’s Coast Starlight or a round trip for two to any destination served by Amtrak’s City of New Orleans. The trip is valid for travel until December 31, 2013, subject to blackouts and other restrictions that may apply. The winner has the option to upgrade to a bedroom upon payment of accommodation charges, subject to availability.
Amtrak and APW picked these train lines as the options because they are particularly good ones. The City Of New Orleans line goes from Chicago to New Orleans (Maddie and I explored New Orleans for you this weekend… check back this afternoon for details) with a stop along the way in Memphis. The Amtrak Coast Starlight runs between Seattle and Los Angeles, and goes along some of the most beautiful track in the United States, including over the sand on beaches that are unreachable by road. No matter which line you pick, it’s going to be an amazing trip for whoever wins. And may I suggest that you spend your dollars on a bedroom? For a honeymoon, it’s the only way to go.
HOW TO ENTER (You may enter each way one time.)
1. Leave a comment in the comment section of this post.
2. Post a link on Twitter to this contest page http://apracticalwedding.com/2012/02/apw-amtrak-honeymoon-giveaway/ and include the hashtag #APWamtrakhoneymoon
The contest begins 4:30 AM PST 2/8/12 and ends 11:59 PM PST 2/14/12, when I will close comments. I’ll announce the winner the following week.
Important details: You have to be 21 to enter and a resident of the United States. Please read the Official Contest Rules before you enter.
I’m so grateful to all of you for making the APW Book fly and for supporting me during this long, intense, and wonderful month of traveling around the country on book tour. This giveaway is just a token of how grateful I really am. Now let’s get cracking! And tune in this afternoon for a serious chat about New Orleans and how I think you should go there (probably by train).
**This post was made possible by Amtrak, who is sponsoring the book tour, and this giveaway. Thank you Amtrak!**
Picture: One of my favorite views of my trip, in the Sierras. Personal for A Practical Wedding.
Resident of the US, damn! Maybe I should enter on behalf of the Boy, ha.
Excellent contest for all the lucky Americans!
February 8, 2012 4:38 am
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Haha, I had the same reaction. I was so excited until I got to the must be a resident of the United States part. Oh well, whoever wins is going to have a blast! Please report back for APW!
February 8, 2012 5:08 am
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Ditto! Was already planning my adventure when I got there. Oh well!
February 8, 2012 10:35 am
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Ha, I had exactly the same thought. Lucky Americans!
Also, I couldn’t believe this post had 500 comments until I realised you have to comment to win :)
February 8, 2012 11:25 am
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Here I was thinking I could enter on behalf of my parents, who are off to the states in about 8 weeks and currently have flights booked from Seattle to LA.
Oh well.
Best of luck to everyone who is eligible to enter :)
February 8, 2012 12:48 pm
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This sounds amazing! Our wedding was last year, but we haven’t gotten to travel much since then – plus despite having family in California and in the Seattle area, we’ve never traveled along the coast!
February 8, 2012 4:40 am
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This is awesome! We were thinking of doing a road trip honeymoon from Seattle to L.A.
Amtrak would be nice, too :)
February 8, 2012 4:41 am
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A multi-day and state trip with Amtrak sounds awesome! And along the coast — divine.
February 8, 2012 4:50 am
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This would be an amazing honeymoon! I’ve actually just started looking at Amtrak trips (as a result of Meg’s experience) too.
February 8, 2012 4:55 am
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This is amazing!!!! Thanks, Meg and Amtrak for making it possible!!!! I would love to put my name in the hat. Yours and Maddie’s posts on train travel have been making me salivate for some train adventures. Happy Wednesday indeed!
February 8, 2012 4:57 am
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I agree! I’ve taken Amtrak in the past, and would love to do it again with my hubby for our anniversary!!
February 8, 2012 10:44 am
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We were just talking about going to Chicago and New Orleans for our honeymoon, this would be perfect!
February 8, 2012 5:05 am
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Enter me please! We are desperately in need of time to curl up on the The City Of New Orleans line!
February 8, 2012 5:08 am
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My fiance and I were actually just talking about taking a train to see America for our honeymoon. (We’re Canadian, but have much love for our southern brothers and sisters)
Emily
February 8, 2012 5:10 am
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I’ve taken the train down to LA before, but not in a room. That would be sweet.
February 8, 2012 5:10 am
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Such fun! (Loved seeing you in Austin last night, by the way…)
February 8, 2012 5:11 am
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This would be a mini-moon for my husband and I but HOT DAMN I’d love to win!! We’ve always wanted to do a West Coast road trip but a train trip sounds even better! Long-time reader here, since March 2009! Love your work, Meg!
February 8, 2012 5:11 am
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This is so exciting!!! We’ve just started researching honeymoons & New Orleans was on our short list … this would be a dream!
February 8, 2012 5:13 am
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Consider this an entry! I would love love love! to win this giveaway.
February 8, 2012 5:14 am
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What a great opportunity! Thanks for making it happen, Meg!
February 8, 2012 5:14 am
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This sounds awesome! I love traveling by train.
February 8, 2012 5:15 am
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I’ve been training my way around India lately, but this would be an awesome upgrade when I get back! I would love to introduce the guy to train travel.
February 8, 2012 5:16 am
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This sounds incredible! Fingers crossed!
February 8, 2012 5:16 am
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I would love to enter! My fiancee and I met on an Amtrak train (at the New Haven Station in CT) more than 10 years ago. We then had a long distance relationship shuttled by Amtrak for years (I was in New York and Boston, he was in Philly). I haven’t been on Amtrak since, but this series inspired us to start planning an Amtrak honeymoon.
I’m speaking at a conference in San Diego this June and my fiancee and I were talking about flying him out to meet me in LA (which is only about an hour train ride from San Diego) when I finished and then riding the Coast Starlight up the California coast. We have friends spread throughout California that we never see (because if you fly to CA somehow you should see all your friends from LA to San Fran – and we just can’t afford that). and then using the sleeper car for a honeymoon up into northern California and the wine country. (I also LOVE Seattle so I might be able to convince him to cap that on if we were to win) This would be a perfect way to share our joy with friends and family that can’t make the East Coast wedding and be able to have a honeymoon too!
February 8, 2012 5:16 am
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I LOVE train travel and my fiance has never traveled by train before so this is perfect for us! Thanks for offering this giveaway!
February 8, 2012 5:17 am
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Oh this is a great idea — I love travelling by train. And since my childhood love for Arlo Guthrie I’ve always wanted to ride on the City of New Orleans.
February 8, 2012 5:18 am
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Our honeymoon was originally a 3-week cross country train trip that sounded just amazing, but we wound up cutting it down to a week that involved no train travel because of a lack of vacation time. I would love to win this – traveling on the Coast Starlight has long been a fantasy vacation of mine.
February 8, 2012 5:23 am
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Wow, Meg, this is so awesome! I’ve been loving reading about your trip so much, and actually mentioned it to my husband that we should think about taking a cross-country Amtrak trip this summer. We got married a few months ago, but have been waiting on our honeymoon till everything’s paid off, and I would love love love to take the Starlight Coast trip. What a great giveaway!
February 8, 2012 5:24 am
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This is my guy’s DREAM. I would love to surprise him with such a thing! Yay, Amtrak!
February 8, 2012 5:26 am
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My new husband and I have been talking about taking a train trip somewhere recently, this would be so wonderful! New Orleans is definitely one place I’m dying to go…have you been reading my mind!?
February 8, 2012 5:27 am
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This is so funny, I had actually already started looking into Amtrak for a honeymoon! It would be so phenomenal if we won!
February 8, 2012 5:28 am
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Jim and I have dreamed of taking a trip on Amtrak one day. A honeymoon trip would be amazing!
February 8, 2012 5:29 am
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Pick me! This sounds incredible. We’ve been looking for a cheap honeymoon option since we’re both poor students.
February 8, 2012 5:30 am
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How fun! My husband loves naps and I love going places…a train trip sounds like the best of both worlds! We’ve been married about a year, but only managed to fit in a few days of downtime after the wedding.
February 8, 2012 5:30 am
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Oooh, this sounds awesome! My husband and I just celebrated our one month anniversary yesterday, but we weren’t able to take a honeymoon (I was teaching class two days after the wedding). We’d like to do something this spring or summer, but we haven’t decided what yet. Both these options sound amazing!
February 8, 2012 5:33 am
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Oh man, this would be awesome. I’ve never been to New Orleans and would love to visit! Glad you’re still letting us married folks enter–hooray for mini-moons! :)
February 8, 2012 5:35 am
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I grew up taking Amtrak from Albany to Buffalo but I’ve never experienced such delights as “roommettes” or sleeping cars. You made it sound amazing, Meg! And I’m so glad Amtrak is offering the chance to those who might not be able to afford it.
February 8, 2012 5:36 am
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Our wedding’s in September — what a perfect time of year to travel by train! We drove cross-country a few years ago, hauling all our worldly possessions … how much nicer to see the country from a train’s window seat!
February 8, 2012 5:37 am
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We’ve been at a huge loss on what to do for our honeymoon, and this would be PERFECT!!!
February 8, 2012 5:38 am
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I would love to be entered in the giveaway! Our wedding is in Chicago so I think hopping on the Amtrak and heading to NOLA sounds fantastic! New Orleans is definitely on my travel list! Thanks for hosting the giveaway!
February 8, 2012 5:39 am
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Chicago and New Orleans are hands-down, two of my favorite cities. I would LOVE the chance to have a relaxing trip between them. I’ve loved your Amtrak posts – I think this should become an annual Meg vacation :)
February 8, 2012 5:39 am
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What a great idea! I love the train. I’m taking the Southwest Chief from Kansas City to Chicago tomorrow, one of my favorite trips!
February 8, 2012 5:40 am
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How wonderful!!! The boy and I are getting married in September and a train-ride down the West coast sounds just so lovely and romantic – a fine way to top-off an already happy and amazing event in our lives.
February 8, 2012 5:40 am
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Sounds so romantic!
February 8, 2012 5:41 am
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I travelled through Europe on a train and now would love to explore the US on one!
February 8, 2012 5:42 am
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This sounds so incredible – a coastal roadtrip is such a dream of mine!
February 8, 2012 5:43 am
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Would love to travel along the West Coast (literally!) via train. We’ll be having either a late 2012/2013 wedding and this would be a perfect honeymoon getaway!
February 8, 2012 5:43 am
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I love this! We’re playing around with honeymoon ideas and a Pacific Coast road trip was near the top of our list. A honeymoon train trip? Yes please!
February 8, 2012 5:44 am
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It sure would be nice to have a big part of the honeymoon tab picked up!
February 8, 2012 5:46 am
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I’d love to win this…it seems so romantic. Thanks for the opportunity!
February 8, 2012 5:47 am
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Grander than cake! We’re getting married in July…and were dreaming of West Coast adventure…Fingers crossed!!!
February 8, 2012 5:47 am
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Thanks!
February 8, 2012 5:49 am
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Both of those lines sound amazing – it would be so hard to choose! What a great giveaway APW team!
February 8, 2012 5:49 am
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Before we were married, my husband and I went from Minneapolis to Glacier National Park. I loved the community that emerges on an Amtrak train. I could easily slip into a conversation with just about anyone, or even a join a card game. We loved the train, and we talk all the time about going again.
February 8, 2012 5:50 am
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Count me in! I’ve been Jonesing to take a train trip with my Sweetie ever since we rode the (all too short but GORGEOUS) Whistler train from Vancouver to Whistler, BC last year!
February 8, 2012 5:51 am
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