If you’re traveling somewhere between Chicago and San Francisco, I highly suggest making a trip of it by taking the California Zephyr, an incredibly scenic overnight Amtrak train through the American West.
I’ve ridden it twice. In January 2025, I took a 15-hour leg of the route from Denver to Salt Lake City and booked a roomette for $400. Then, in February 2026, I took the entire 53-hour journey from Chicago to Emeryville, California, and booked a bedroom for $2,200.
If you’re wondering if the bedroom was worth the upgrade, I think it depends on how long your trip is. But I’ll give you all the details so you can decide for yourself.
I’ve taken two overnight train trips aboard the California Zephyr.
The California Zephyr is a double-decker Amtrak Superliner train that runs between Chicago and Emeryville, California.
The train has coach cars with regular seating and sleeper cars with private cabin accommodations — roomettes (the lowest tier), bedrooms, and bedroom suites (two joined bedrooms). There are also larger, family-sized bedrooms and accessible bedrooms.
First, I stayed in a roomette for a 15-hour trip from Colorado to Utah.
For the shorter journey from Denver to Salt Lake City, I booked a roomette for $400. With two seats and two beds, the roomette sleeps up to two passengers, though I was traveling alone.
Then I booked a bedroom for a 53-hour trip from Illinois to California.
I booked a bedroom for the full journey from Chicago to Emeryville for $2,200. The bedroom is roughly twice the size of a roomette and also includes a full bathroom. The bedroom also sleeps two, but again, I was traveling solo.
At 50 square feet, the bedroom was more than twice the size of the roomette.
The bedroom had a couch and a seat facing each other, with a table between them. I appreciated having a couch for the longer trip because I could stretch out and relax during the day.
I also liked that there was a bit more floor space in the bedroom.
In the roomette, the two chairs folded down to form a lower bunk.
The bed was cushy and wide enough to snuggle up comfortably.
In the bedroom, the couch folded down to form a cot that appeared to be slightly wider than the roomette bunk.
The lower bunk in the bedroom felt more spacious than the one in the roomette.
Both rooms also had a top bunk that pulled down from the ceiling.
Since I had two nights in the bedroom, I spent one night in each bunk.
The bedroom had a full en suite bathroom.
Inside the bedroom, there was a sink and vanity with a built-in cabinet where I found hand towels, soaps, toilet paper, and space to store my own toiletries. The toilet and shower were in a tiny space separated by a door.
For two nights on a train, I was thankful to have my own shower.
Roomette passengers shared a bathroom and a shower with other sleeper cabin passengers.
Since I only spent 15 hours in the roomette, I didn’t mind not having a bathroom in my room. I didn’t use the shared shower; instead, I washed up once I arrived at my destination.
The bedroom had more storage space than the roomette.
Each room had a mini closet with two hangers inside, as well as a shelf that appeared to be for storing luggage. In the roomette, the shelf was only large enough for my backpack, but in the bedroom, it held my carry-on suitcase.
On both trips, I also had access to shared luggage storage space in the train car.
The bedroom also had a larger mirror.
Both rooms had mirrors, but the roomette mirror was shorter and thinner. So I appreciated the wide, full-length mirror in the bedroom. It wasn’t just convenient for getting ready — it also made the space feel larger.
Both bookings included meals.
Passengers had the option of eating in the dining car or in their rooms.
I think I booked the right room for each trip.
The bedroom served me well for the two-night journey, and I would splurge on it for any Amtrak trip 24 hours or longer. I think it’s worth the added price for the extra space and full bathroom.
At the same time, I’m glad I booked the roomette for the 15-hour journey. It was a short trip compared to other overnight rides, so sacrificing some comforts and privacy to save money was a good move for me.
