Amtrak's Pere Marquette

The Amtrak Père Marquette is a daily train part of the Amtrak Midwest Regional service. It travels 138 miles and takes about 4 hours from Chicago, IL, to Grand Rapids, MI, including its intermediate stops.

The Père Marquette connects Chicago to Grand Rapids, “Beer City USA.” The train stops include St. Joseph and Holland, where you can enjoy beautiful beaches, rich Dutch heritage, and the annual Tulip Time Festival.

Amtrak Père Marquette Coach Class seating

The Père Marquette offers coach seating with the following:

• A fold-down tray
• Seat back pockets
• Individual reading lights
• 120V grounded (three-prong) electric outlets.
  • Some cars have USB chargers between the seats.
• There is a restroom in or between the coach cars.
• Storage is available above, under the seat in front of you, and there is a rack for storing your luggage.

Business class

Or try Business class, which includes extra legroom, a comfortable seat, and complimentary non-alcoholic beverages. These cars are typically quieter than coach cars, but sometimes, people don’t realize they can use their inside voice.

You are also closer to the café car and can, for a fee, access the lounge at Chicago Union.

Additionally, Business Class customers receive a 25% bonus on Amtrak Guest Rewards points.

Luggage: Checked and carry-on

This train does not offer a checked bag service.

Each passenger may carry on:

• One personal item, up to 25 pounds (12 kg), and 14 x 11 x 7 inches
• Two carry-on pieces of luggage, 50 lbs. (23 kg) and 28 x 22 x 14 inches each

If you transfer to the Pacific Surfliner at some point along your journey, the baggage size for that train is up to 28 x 22 x 11 inches each.

Charges apply for additional and oversized luggage; check out Amtrak’s carry-on bag policy for more information.

Père Marquette Add-ons

Amtrak offers a few options to add to your reservation for a fee.

Pets

If you want to bring your fur baby:

• They must weigh 20 pounds, including the carrier.
• The carrier must fit under the seat.
• Before you get too excited, read Amtrak’s pet policy.
  • Please print out the necessary paperwork and complete it before arriving at the station to make traveling with your pet smoother and less surprising.

If you have a service or comfort animal, read Amtrak’s service animal policy and chat with Amtrak staff before leaving for the station.

Bring your bike

You can bring your bike! For more information, check out Amtrak’s bike policy.

Golf clubs

You can bring your putter for mini-golf or a complete set of clubs, provided you follow Amtrak’s golf club policy.

Food offerings for the Amtrak Père Marquette

This train offers food service, and you can bring food with you.

Pere Marquette Café car

The café offers a variety of hot and cold meals and snacks. You can also purchase hot and cold beverages, including beer, wine, and spirits, to wash it down.

You can enjoy your purchases in the café car or return them to your seat.

Bringing food on the train

You may bring food and drink aboard the train, but cannot consume alcohol on the train.

Due to FDA rules and regulations, you cannot bring food or drink into the café car that you brought on the train.

Wi-Fi on the train

You can access Amtrak’s free Wi-Fi service. This service is for email and web surfing; it may not allow or support streaming.

Amtrak Père Marquette timetable/schedule

Below is a PDF you can download, print, or use to create a custom Amtrak schedule listing all the trains on your ticket.

Click on the stations to see the services offered at that stop.

Printable Amtrak Père Marquette Schedule

Feel free to print out or download this page from Amtrak. If you want to ensure you have the most up-to-date schedule (I do my best), this page will teach you how to print your Amtrak schedule. That link also shows you how to create custom schedules.

Amtrak Père Marquette Route Guide

While this is an older document, many people find it interesting because it provides a brief history of the towns where the train travels.

Safe Travels,

Kev