Bigger in Texas: Three Nights on Amtrak’s Texas Eagle

Amtrak’s Texas Eagle is unique among American trains.

Running daily between Chicago and San Antonio, the Eagle turns into something special three times a week: On those days, it connects to another train in San Antonio—heading either to or from Los Angeles; in so doing, it becomes the only three-night trip in the system: 2,728 miles—44 stations through seven different states.

And for me personally, the Eagle was also the last Amtrak overnight train I hadn’t yet ridden.

So in April 2026, a friend and I checked off this bucket-list item with a three-night odyssey from L.A. to Chicago.

Locked and Loaded

A fellow rider on this trip shared with us one of his hard-and-fast travel rules: “Never plane and train on the same day.”

My friend and I had been unconsciously observing that principle for years. On this trip, for instance, we landed in Los Angeles the day before our train—and thus, even with late check-out from a downtown hotel, John and I arrived at Union Station more than five hours ahead of our 10 p.m. departure.

From long experience, we knew that in major cities like Boston, DC and New York, Amtrak offers a Metropolitan Lounge for sleeping-car passengers; this has comfy seating, along with generous snacks and drinks—plus storage for bags. So John and I planned to dump our stuff and head out to dinner.

Little did we know, Amtrak recently limited lounge access to three hours before departure; so there we stood, looking at a locked lounge door—loaded with luggage and feeling lost.

Serving roughly 300 trains a day, Union Station as a whole has an even stricter two-hour limit on seats. With many homeless folks both in and outside the terminal, a guard stands at the roped-off waiting area—for ticketed passengers only, of course.

There are no other seats—and no storage lockers.

Happily, an Amtrak ticket agent took pity on our sob story; “because you didn’t know,” she said—and kindly agreed to stash our bags, meanwhile fending off a voluble vagrant who apparently stopped by several times daily for a vigorous but very one-sided discussion.

After Sunset

Between L.A. and San Antonio, the Eagle is part of the longer, thrice-weekly Sunset Limited. In San Antonio, the Sunset‘s last two cars get pulled off and spliced onto the daily Eagle for its run up to Chicago. (In the opposite direction, cars are likewise taken from the arriving Eagle and hooked up to the westbound Sunset). East of San Antonio, the shortened Sunset continues to New Orleans—a trip John and I had made in 2023.

So I won’t say much about our initial repeat journey—except that in L.A., the lounge agent sent us out to the platform 80 minutes early (it’s usually less than an hour). And there, we found no train. Just a gaggle of befuddled riders, waiting 15 minutes before the 10-car consist backed in.

Rooms with a View

Amtrak’s Western trains all have bi-level sleepers offering three types of overnight rooms:

The snug “roomette” has a small pull-out table between facing seats—which convert to upper and lower bunks at night.

The larger and costlier “bedroom” likewise has bunks—but also a wide couch, plus private toilet and shower. (Roomette riders can use a manageable public shower on the lower level.)

Also on the lower level is a spacious “family bedroom” which—because the through corridor is upstairs—spans the entire nine-foot width of the car. Here, in addition to the upper and lower bunks, you’ll find two smaller, kid-sized beds.

For more flexibility on such a long trip, John and I prefer separate roomettes (they’re a bit tight for two middle-agers). Since there’s only one thrice-weekly sleeper between L.A. and Chicago, these three-night reservations should be made early. I called an agent (rather than booking online) to make sure our roomettes were across the narrow hall from each other.

Silent Night

Each sleeping car also has its own attendant; they handle bedding & boarding and can bring meals to your room if you prefer that to the diner.

After the next day’s mesmerizing desert scenery and a long stop at El Paso, our steward assured us that we wouldn’t even notice the subsequent 5 a.m. car-change in San Antonio: “Just a little bump,” he said.

But in fact, what woke me was the silence. This happens when power to the car gets cut off, and it’s rare on rail rides—even when the train is stopped. Suddenly wide awake, I stepped off into a cool Texas morning, with a clear view of the glowing, 750-foot Tower of the Americas—a city landmark built for the 1968 World’s Fair.

I was back aboard in plenty of time for the Eagle‘s 6:48 departure—concluding Amtrak’s longest single station-stop. Though I did get back to sleep, this departure also kicked off my first-ever ride from San Antonio to Chicago.

Cities and Rivers

Despite the popular observation car, scenery on the Eagle felt a bit mundane; among other things, the combined Sunset-Eagle spends a total of 28 hours in Texas alone. I did enjoy crossing many rivers with evocative names steeped in American history and culture: the Rio Grande, the Colorado, the Trinity, the Brazos and of course, the Mississippi—with stirring views of the famous Gateway Arch.

But what I relished most were lengthy station stops in major cities—all made even longer by early arrival. On the Sunset leg, El Paso had featured a thrilling three-train meet, where BNSF and Union Pacific freights closed in from opposite directions to pass our resting Amtrak consist.

The first morning in Austin, we arrived so early that several riders headed up the street to bring back Starbucks. Meanwhile, I enjoyed a look at the entire Eagle—with its battered workhorse of an engine. According to a quick Google search, some of these aging P42 units have accrued four or five million miles. (And the math on many routes bears this out—say 3000 miles a week for the 25 or 30 years of service on these beasts.) This one in particular looked like it had done some of that mileage through a war zone—or hurricane.

Later, around noon, Fort Worth was a hive of activity: Our sister train, the southbound Eagle, sat across the platform—and also nearby stood Amtrak’s Heartland Flyer, bound for Oklahoma City in a few short hours. At least two of the city’s light-rail lash-ups glided in and out—and exactly one hour later, we caught similar commuter action in Dallas.

When I’m Sixty-Three

As you can see, I love railroads of all kinds; but for me, the trip’s highlight was a non-train landmark in Dallas: Cracking open John Pitt’s USA by Rail, I learned that the Eagle would pass right over Dealey Plaza—where JFK was killed back in 1963.

Folks, I’m a classic Boomer: If someone said to me, “Joe, you’re in Dallas for 20 minutes; where are you going?”—I’d cry, “Take me to the Texas Book Depository!”

That’s the site from which assassin Lee Harvey Oswald fired his fateful shot.

And there it was: Not only out my roomette window, but plainly visible from the station’s platform. Zooming in, I could even see the mock-up of Oswald’s profile in a corner window on the sixth floor—where a museum details the assassination.

When I posted pictures on Facebook, several friends commented along these lines: “Okay—but where’s the grassy knoll with the other shooter?”

That’s right: It’s been sixty-three years—but many of us apparently remain obsessed with this shattering event in American history.

On the Border

Along with the cities, I enjoyed shorter stops at smaller Texas towns like Temple, Longview and Texarkana. In the latter (according to Pitt), the Eagle spans two states when stopped at the platform in that famous border town.

Our last morning was the day after Easter, and in St. Louis I did get jarred awake by a heavy bump—when Amtrak slammed another coach onto the Eagle, accommodating post-holiday crowds to Chicago.

I always understood that the Amtrak speed limit was 79; but we reached well over 90 blasting through Illinois on this final day, passing the handsome state capitol in Springfield, along with a gorgeous old terminal in Joliet—and a new but equally appealing station in Alton.

Looking Ahead

Crossing one final river (the Chicago, of course), we arrived a trifle late in the Windy City. John and I were already wondering what trip to take next—as I had now ridden all of Amtrak’s 14 overnight trains.

Hmmm. Since we soon boarded the Floridian to return to our homes—a trek I’ve taken nine or ten times—I guess a repeat route is never out of the question.

But I wouldn’t mind running the Eagle again, either.

CODA: RAIL-RIDE RECIPE

Traveling can be hard on the immune system; and sure enough, on our third night I felt a sore throat coming on.

I generally keep a teabag or two in my knapsack; so I trekked up to the café car and scrounged a honey-packet from the condiment rack—then I dug out my pocket knife and cut a slice from the lemon I’d earlier picked off a tree at the Tucson depot. Filling an old paper coffee cup with hot water from the shower, I stuck in the tea, lemon and honey, then let that steep for several minutes—later adding a hefty shot of bourbon from the bottle in my suitcase.

Honey, hot water, pocket knife, fresh lemon, whiskey: I ask you honestly, is there any other means of travel on which I could have crafted such a concoction? And for the record, I slept well and woke feeling great.

Which almost never happens with a plane, bus or car.

About the Author

Joseph W. Smith III is a writer, teacher and speaker in Central PA. Published in several websites and periodicals, Joe has also penned books on Hitchcock, the Bible, church life and under-the-radar movies—along with a volume of Great Jokes and Riddles. He plays trumpet in a community band; reads 100 books a year; serves as officer in his local church; struggles to keep cheering for the Buffalo Bills; listens to music whenever not sleeping; and maintains a small collection of unused postcards. He can be reached at robbwhitefan@gmail.com.

All images courtesy of the author, unless otherwise noted.