There is a lot that you should know about long distance travveling on Amtrak. You can get a lot of information from AMTRAK. You can order a Travel Planner which will help you, but what I have written is the important information I think Amtrak did not mention. You should definetly bring a blanket on board, along with your pillow. I reccomend a fleece blanket. On Silver Service trains you should bring a pair of regular headphones, so you don't have to buy a pair. Also I think you should also bring a CD player or some type of entertainment. A train is a great time to read! Also the seats are very comfortable. They have individual lights on each seat, and leg rests on most long distance trains. Also the seat reclines much more then a coach seat on an airplane. I also reccomend that you bring a large cooler with snacks, drinks, and other things, because the Cafe car is pricy and can run out of food and drink chocies. The pillows that are provided are just like airplane pillows, not great! You are allowed to get off the train. Smoking is permitted on some trains in a section of the Lounge car at specific times. You can smoke at station stops. It is great to get a breath of fresh air, after being on a train for a while, so I suggest you do so, but if the train is running late then it may not stop for the scheduled amount of time which means you can not get off. If a party is meeting your train, then you should tell them to check out the www.amtrak.com site, it will tell them if the train is running late, so they do not have to call AMTRAK. You really can have unlimeted bagedge on the train in the overhead racks, but they say you can only have a few. If you have to change trains and you want to leave the station and leave your bags, there is a bag holding service at major stations. If you want to park your car overnight at a residential station, for example Rt. 128 station in Westwood, MA. call the station directly. AMTRAk is wrong for some. For 128 they say there is NO overnight parking, but there actually is if you call the main station telephone number. Evreything else you need to know is in The Amtrak Travel Planner.