You're basically describing a sleeper train but those are increasingly rare because they are that much more expensive than flying that people don't consider them worth it.
Not enough people will pay the extra for regular point to point travel. I could see something like that taking off in terms of an experience, like an air version of the orient express.
I took the Caledonian Sleeper from London to Edinburgh recently. For two people, the pricing wasn't bad and I don't regret doing it. But it was a very small room and the common cafe space was very cramped as well. We're definitely not talking Agatha Christie Orient Express experience.
But, yeah, in general sleeper trains don't work other than for the experience. Just for kicks, I looked at traveling to Chicago from Boston by sleeper a couple years back instead of flying. Made absolutely no sense for me in terms of time and I couldn't have justified the expense to my company.
The concept of airship travel as presented in fiction looks really appealing. But it would probably cost $10K for a trans-Atlantic ticket. And if you have that kind of money to spend, and especially aren't really in a hurry, there are other attractive options.
> But, yeah, in general sleeper trains don't work other than for the experience. Just for kicks, I looked at traveling to Chicago from Boston by sleeper a couple years back instead of flying. Made absolutely no sense for me in terms of time and I couldn't have justified the expense to my company.
I regularly travel Munich-Hamburg via sleeper train. It has many advantages:
- at short term booking it's way cheaper than a flight
- I arrive well rested, showered and fed in Hamburg, compared to being essentially a wreck the whole day after having to get up at 0330 (this alone is well worth the extra cost compared to a flight)
- I don't waste time travelling to and from the airports, or security crap, or have to expense taxis
Fair enough. I'm just not aware of any overnight routes in the US that are a good alternative to a morning (or even an evening) flight. I do take trains when they're a good option, especially Boston to NYC, but that's rarely the case either with respect to money or convenience.
I do the Caledonian Sleeper a few times a year to Inverness. Recently they've rolled out new rooms on their trains which are much better, but compared to the price of flying it's really expensive. I still travel on the sleeper though because I cannot stand the indignity of modern standard-class air travel.
We were on a longish trip and had checked luggage. I didn't want to fly a budget airline especially and my friend wanted to spend a bit of time in London. So it probably cost us a bit more but wasn't really too bad. But, especially given that I got a day room in London anyway, it certainly wasn't cheap either. The experience was fun and that's what counted anyway.
I will take train when I reasonably can though. I never fly from Boston to NYC unless it's to connect to another flight.
Not enough people will pay the extra for regular point to point travel. I could see something like that taking off in terms of an experience, like an air version of the orient express.