Maybe traveling from CA to the April or October 2025 York Train Meets

Hi Stan. When we moved from the Philly area seven years ago to San Diego county I had only one condition. To be able to continue to attend York Meets just like when we lived about an hour away from the Fairgrounds. Only missed one Meet that was a couple weeks after we arrived here.

Your itinerary sounds similar to what we do, except for one thing.  If you can avoid Dallas airport!!!  There’s nothing wrong with the airport itself, it’s just so huge. We did a stop to and from York through Dallas once. The terminals are so far apart that we almost missed the connecting flights.

We fly out of San Diego nonstop to either Baltimore or Philly via Southwest Airlines. Baltimore is a little closer but sometimes we go through Philly to visit our daughter and our grandson. It’s about an hour and twenty minutes drive from BWI to Round the Clock Diner and all the hotels in the area.

You can get a flight out of SLO with one stop in LA or Denver and arrive in Baltimore late afternoon/early evening. Or take the Surfliner to LA, stay overnight there and get a nonstop from LA to Baltimore or Philadelphia. Car rentals are available near the airport and off you go!

Make sure you visit the Strasburg Railroad which is a 30 minute drive from York straight out Rt. 30 East.

@stangtrain posted:

It's been over ten years since I have been at a York train meet!

Stan

You will find it to be VERY different from the last time you attended the event. Not meaning to discourage you from making that long trip, but just be aware that you will be attending a significantly different York Meet. Oh. . . and if it's going to be April or October, shoot for October.

@Allan Miller posted:

You will find it to be VERY different from the last time you attended the event. Not meaning to discourage you from making that long trip, but just be aware that you will be attending a significantly different York Meet. Oh. . . and if it's going to be April or October, shoot for October.

Absolutely true, and IMO it's better.  I kind of miss the blowout sales of excess inventory, but to be honest it tempted me to buy unnecessary stuff.  You'll still see rare / unusual items, and prices for common operator-grade trains have fallen substantially.

There's a lot more emphasis on club layouts and the meetings for various groups - social media, brand-specific, etc.  The Standard Gauge Module Association (SGMA) takes over the black hall with a huge layout and has a fun meeting - not to be missed.  The smaller crowds and wider aisles make it easier to have a leisurely look at the items for sale, and there are many more opportunities to talk with people. 

There is a contingent of forum members from Southern California who sometimes make the trek to York - some by air, some by car.  Hopefully they'll chime in.

If I may add another option - AMTRAK! (we're all 'train guys' - right?)

They are now running their annual sale of $299 for 10 stops over a 30 day period. I've done this twice. One trip was 'Pittsburgh/Chicago/Omaha/Denver/San Diego/San Francisco/Portland/Fargo/Chicago/Pittsburgh. ALL of that for $299!

Yes, I slept in the 'recliner coach' seats on some of the longer runs, but for the most part I scheduled my stops with a day or two so that I slept in a 'real bed' and got to tour the cities.

And WOW, what scenery!

I definitely recommend going to York. I have only been there in October and it was great. We don't have any big shows on the west coast anymore and this is still the best show I have been at. I would arrive early to attend bandit meets and train related events in the area. Now that I'm retired, I'm planning to go every October. We drove the last two years and it worked out great. Plenty of room to bring stuff back.

Bob

York is around 30 - 45 minutes from the Harrisburg airport and 90 minutes from Philadelphia.

You may get a better fare flying into Philadelphia.  Probably better timing as well.

Allan, It's not that different in the collector halls, and the orange hall is still pretty full of dealers, and The pre shows inside the Wyndham, and the Purple hall at the fairgrounds are full of sellers.

Just about everything is different than it was ten years ago. I’m different than I was ten years ago. (But I’m still the best looking man in O gauge).

But one thing that hasn’t changed is that I still bring home a ton of trains from the York Meet!!

Thanks so much to all of you!!

Great responses and ideas!

@Allan Miller posted:

You will find it to be VERY different from the last time you attended the event. Not meaning to discourage you from making that long trip, but just be aware that you will be attending a significantly different York Meet. Oh. . . and if it's going to be April or October, shoot for October.

I have to agree with Allan. I would go with the October meet. Since the pandemic York has changed considerably. I went back after a 3 year hiatus and did both shows, April and October. Shows are still worth seeing and I went primarily to see old friends and see the different clubs that now run layouts. Of course I also bought a bunch. Much has changed some for better some not. Just don’t go with the anticipation of what York used to be.

@stangtrain posted:

Thanks so much to all of you!!

Great responses and ideas!

You certainly will be welcome to the pre-York breakfast and I also organize a Friday evening dinner for those of us staying through Saturday. Details, obviously, nearer to York……..

Peter

Ok I get it and yes York has been weak in the April meets in the past. But we (train people) need to really try and get over it and move on. Lot's of things for goodness sake used to be better. Well, York is still going to be memories for people years from now. Let's try to look for positives. It's still a great show and a lot of fun to go to. Lets brag a wee bit about that and have great time in April. See ya there.

@Larry Sr. posted:

Ok I get it and yes York has been weak in the April meets in the past. But we (train people) need to really try and get over it and move on. Lot's of things for goodness sake used to be better. Well, York is still going to be memories for people years from now. Let's try to look for positives. It's still a great show and a lot of fun to go to. Lets brag a wee bit about that and have great time in April. See ya there.

Looking forward to it already!

Peter

After attending York Meets since 1983 I don’t see any difference between April and October Meets. It’s an individual thing that people experience. At both Meets there are tons of trains to see and buy, lots of great meals to enjoy and lots of great people enjoying the hobby. I love it!

@Traindiesel posted:

Just about everything is different than it was ten years ago. I’m different than I was ten years ago. (But I’m still the best looking man in O gauge).

But one thing that hasn’t changed is that I still bring home a ton of trains from the York Meet!!

I too am considering a trip to a big event like York (I live in Washington). The question I have is how do you get all your purchases home? Do you stop at the post office the FedEx store or something else?

@Bill Barlowe posted:

I too am considering a trip to a big event like York (I live in Washington). The question I have is how do you get all your purchases home? Do you stop at the post office the FedEx store or something else?

In the lobby between the Blue and Silver Halls there are people from FedEx that will pack up and ship your items home.  For a long time UPS was the shipper at the Meet but a couple years ago they botched every shipment and almost no one received the trains that they shipped, including me.  They were subsequently uninvited and replaced with FedEx.  I haven’t heard of any problems with FedEx being the vendor there.

However, ever since my shipment was lost, stolen, thrown away, who knows (I never got a straight answer from UPS), I instead brought a large empty sturdy suitcase on the flight with me to bring my items home.  I’ve done this the last two Meets without issue.  Larger locomotives went into the suitcase and wrapped with a heavy blanket.  Smaller purchases that didn’t fit went into our other suitcases padded with clothes or brought onto the plane as a carry on.  The extra bag fee for the flight was a lot cheaper than shipping the trains.  Plus, they were with me the entire time except when I was on the plane.  The baggage handlers were no worse than a shipping vendor is.  And I had them when I got home instead of waiting and hoping for five days.  I did have two large boxes that couldn’t fit in the suitcase and had to ship those but did that at an offsite shipping store that my daughter uses in Philly when we stopped by to visit.

I wouldn’t be adverse to using the FedEx vendor on site but since the extra suitcase worked great the last two Meets I’ll continue with that way of bringing my purchases home.  I’ll probably use them if I have any extra large items I may get.

Great info and ideas. Many thanks, Bill

Stan, come back as planned. It doesn’t matter what meet you choose. York is still a great time buying, looking or spending time with old friends If you’re looking for something special you’ll most likely find it. As you know, Strasburg is close by for added enjoyment.