Amtrak to the Big Apple

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Geo: 40.7528, -73.9853

Today was another travel day, so after a taxi to South Station, we got ourselves a Red Cap who helped organise our group of eight with seats in the same area and somewhere to stow all our luggage. It was our first time using Amtrak and at this stage we were very impressed.

We had purchased baguettes from Le Bon Pain at the station for our lunch. Having bought food on the Eurostar on a previous holiday, we were very wary of train food. It was very pleasant to sip on a glass of wine, eat a baguette and watch the coastline go past.

We arrived on time into Union Station, New York City and immediately hailed cabs to take us to our hotel, The Hotel Elysee, on East 54th Street. We were very excited, not only to be in New York for the first time, but also our group of eight was going to expand to a group of eleven for the five days in New York. Our daughter who lives in London was flying in and our other daughter and her partner were coming in by train. We hadn't seen either of the girls for a few months so couldn't wait to catch up with them.

Here is my review of the Hotel Elysee: https://www.tripadvisor.com.au/ShowUserReviews-g60763-d93340-r358609852-Hotel_Elysee-New_York_City_New_York.html

We headed out to the nearest metro station and got organised with our unlimited travelcards before returning to the hotel. The Elysee is one of the Library Group of hotels. They have hotels in New York as well as in Budapest and Prague. They all work to the same theme, where a generous continental breakfast and a three-hour evening wine and cheese "hour" is all included in the room rate. We headed to the lounge where our daughters had finally arrived and it was wonderful for us all to be able to have a glass of wine and a chat together. Perfect for such a large group.

We finished the day with a delicious Italian meal across the road at Cellini.

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Photos

Snow from the Train on the Way to New York
Jan 13 2016 01 Snow on the Train on the Way from Boston to New York

Lake View from The Train on the Way to New York
Jan 13 2016 03 Lake View from the Train on the Way from Boston to New York

Sea View from The Train on the Way to New York
Jan 13 2016 04 Sea View from the Train on the Way from Boston to New York