Toronto to New York by Train: Route, Tickets and What to Expect

Yes, you can take a train from Toronto to New York — and for a lot of travellers it is the nicest way to do it. One train a day, the Amtrak Maple Leaf, makes the run in about 13 hours, leaving Union Station at 8:20 in the morning and reaching New York’s Moynihan Train Hall just after 9 at night. No airport lines, no middle seat, and the Hudson Valley slides past your window for the last stretch.

The catch is the border. This is an international train, so the middle of the journey belongs to customs officers, not the timetable. Here is the whole trip, honestly told: the schedule, what train tickets from Toronto to New York really cost, what happens at Niagara Falls, and what to pack for a 13-hour day on the rails.

The quick answer

The train from Toronto to New York is the Maple Leaf, run jointly by Amtrak and VIA Rail. There is exactly one departure a day in each direction, and the same train carries you the whole way — nobody changes trains halfway.

• Train 64, Toronto to New York: leaves Union Station at 8:20 a.m., arrives at Moynihan Train Hall at 9:16 p.m. on weekends and 9:21 p.m. on weekdays. The trip takes about 12 hours and 56 minutes.
• Train 63, New York to Toronto: leaves Moynihan Train Hall at 7:15 a.m. and arrives at Union Station at 7:43 p.m. — about 12 hours and 28 minutes.
• Distance: roughly 550 kilometres (342 miles).
• On board: Coach and Business Class seats, a café car, and power outlets at your seat. There are no sleeping cars and no checked baggage on this train.
• Time zones: none to worry about. Toronto and New York both run on Eastern Time, so the clock never changes during the trip.

Toronto to New York train schedule

This is the full timetable for Train 64, Toronto to New York, with every stop. Times are the current published schedule — check Amtrak before you travel, because schedules do change.

Station	Departure time
Toronto, ON — Union Station	8:20 a.m.
Oakville, ON	8:45 a.m.
Aldershot, ON	9:01 a.m.
Grimsby, ON	9:38 a.m.
St. Catharines, ON	9:58 a.m.
Niagara Falls, ON	10:22 a.m.
Niagara Falls, NY	11:40 a.m.
Buffalo, NY — Exchange Street	12:15 p.m.
Buffalo, NY — Depew	12:30 p.m.
Rochester, NY	1:25 p.m.
Syracuse, NY	2:50 p.m.
Rome, NY	3:33 p.m.
Utica, NY	3:52 p.m.
Amsterdam, NY	4:52 p.m.
Schenectady, NY	5:39 p.m.
Albany-Rensselaer, NY	6:40 p.m.
Hudson, NY	7:03 p.m.
Rhinecliff, NY	7:25 p.m.
Poughkeepsie, NY	7:41 p.m.
Croton-Harmon, NY	8:22 p.m.
Yonkers, NY	8:42 p.m.
New York, NY — Moynihan Train Hall	9:21 p.m. (9:16 p.m. weekends)

Notice the long pause at the border: the train reaches Niagara Falls, Ontario at 10:22 a.m. and does not leave Niagara Falls, New York until 11:40 a.m. That gap is the customs inspection, and it is the part most first-timers underestimate. The full Maple Leaf schedule, with the northbound times too, is worth a look before you book.

Do you have to change trains?

No — and this is where a lot of booking sites get it wrong. Some fare search pages list the trip as having “one transfer.” It does not. You board in Toronto, you sit in the same seat all day, and you step off in New York.

What actually changes at the border is the paperwork, not the train. In the United States the service runs as Amtrak trains 63 and 64. In Canada it runs as VIA Rail trains 97 and 98. The crew changes at Niagara Falls, Ontario — Amtrak staff take over for the American leg, VIA staff for the Canadian leg — and the café car gets restocked with the other country’s food. Your ticket covers the whole journey either way, and you book it as one trip on Amtrak or VIA Rail.

How much do train tickets from Toronto to New York cost?

There is no single fixed fare. Amtrak prices move with demand, the same way airline prices do, so the honest answer is a range — and the earlier you book, the lower the number.

Recent fare searches put a one-way coach ticket at roughly $150 to $200 when booked a few weeks ahead. Wanderu’s Toronto to New York train fares show $148 to $198 over the next 30 days, with the cheapest tickets in the last month around $169. Book on the day, or on a holiday weekend, and you will pay more. Always check Amtrak itself for today’s price before you decide — the range above is a guide, not a quote.

Coach or Business Class?

	Coach	Business Class
Seat	Reclining seat in pairs, no middle seats, generous legroom	Wider leather seat with footrest, in the café/business car
At your seat	Power outlet, reading light, fold-down tray table	Same, with more elbow room
Extras	—	Complimentary non-alcoholic drink, and a 25% bonus on Amtrak Guest Rewards points
Refunds	Depends on the fare you pick — flexible fares cost more and can be changed or cancelled, the cheapest value fares have tighter rules	Fully refundable if cancelled before departure
Price	From roughly $150 one way, booked ahead	Usually a few dozen dollars more than coach on this route

For a 13-hour ride, Business Class is a fair upgrade if the price gap is small. Coach is comfortable too — wide seats, generous legroom, and no middle seat to climb over.

How to get the cheapest fare

Book as early as you can. The lowest fares sell first, and with only one departure a day there is no second train to fall back on. Holiday weekends sell out — Thanksgiving week is one of the busiest of the year, so book weeks ahead if your trip lands near a holiday, and sort your Thanksgiving plans early too. Amtrak lists discounts for seniors, children and military members, so check those when you book.

What happens at the border?

This is the part no timetable explains properly. The inspection happens at Niagara Falls, and every passenger goes through it. Here is how it works, step by step.

Before you board

When you book, Amtrak asks for your date of birth, gender, citizenship and the details of the ID you will carry — that information goes to customs officers in advance, so give it exactly as it appears on your document. Arrive at Union Station at least 30 minutes before departure; if you are not a US or Canadian citizen, allow more than an hour.

The customs form

About half an hour before the train reaches Niagara Falls, the crew hands out customs declaration forms. Fill yours in on the train and keep a pen handy — there is no pen on the form, and everyone around you will want one too.

Getting off at Niagara Falls

At the border, everyone detrains with all of their luggage — this is the reason the train has no checked baggage. Officers inspect passengers and bags, and on the American side bags go through screening. Then you reboard the same train. Amtrak’s own border-crossing guide says it plainly: passengers detrain with baggage at the border and reboard the same train.

How long does it take?

Usually 30 to 45 minutes, though on a busy day it can stretch toward two hours — the timetable already has that slack built in. The train will not wait for you if you are held up, so build a buffer into your evening plans in New York, and do not book a same-night flight out of the city.

What not to bring

Some food cannot cross the border, so finish fresh fruit and other restricted items before Niagara Falls. If you are unsure about something in your bag, declare it — an honest answer costs a minute, a surprise find much longer.

What documents do you need?

A driver’s licence on its own will not get you across. The rules come from Amtrak’s border-crossing page, and they are strict.

US and Canadian citizens aged 16 and over

You need one of these, original and valid — copies and expired documents are not accepted:

• A passport, or a US passport card
• A NEXUS, FAST or SENTRI trusted traveller card
• An enhanced driver’s licence — issued by Washington, Minnesota, Michigan, New York or Vermont in the US, or by British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario or Quebec in Canada

The ID you carry must be the same one you gave details for when you booked.

Children under 16

A certified copy of a birth certificate works, as does any document above. If a child under 18 travels without one or both parents, bring a permission letter from the absent parent or guardian, with addresses and phone numbers. Children 15 and under can never cross alone; 16- and 17-year-olds may travel alone only to return home to their own country.

Travellers from other countries

Bring your passport, plus a visa if your nationality needs one. Entering the US under the Visa Waiver Program? Get your ESTA approved at least 72 hours before you reach the land border — without it, you can be turned back to Canada to apply. Non-US residents also need an I-94 arrival record, applied and pre-paid for online up to seven days before the trip.

On board: seats, food, Wi-Fi and luggage

Food and the café car

The café car sells snacks, drinks and light meals, but it works differently on each side of the border. On the American leg Amtrak runs it and takes US dollars, and it closes after the Buffalo Exchange Street stop. VIA Rail restocks it for the Canadian leg — a smaller menu, nothing hot, and credit cards, prepaid cards and VIA Rail gift cards only. The practical upshot: bring your own food and non-alcoholic drinks. You can eat your own food on board, but not drink alcohol you brought with you.

Wi-Fi

Free Wi-Fi works while the train is in the United States, and stops working in Canada. Download your shows, podcasts and maps before the border, and check whether your phone plan includes data in Canada before you count on it.

Luggage

There is no checked baggage on the Maple Leaf, so everything you bring rides with you: one personal item (up to 25 pounds, 14 x 11 x 7 inches) and two carry-on bags (up to 50 pounds each, 28 x 22 x 14 inches). That limit matters twice — once when you pack, and again at Niagara Falls, when you carry every bag off the train for inspection. If you are flying on from New York, remember that airlines play by different baggage rules — check your airline’s limits separately.

Pets and bikes

Small dogs and cats up to 20 pounds (pet and carrier combined) can travel on the American part of the route, but not the Canadian leg — so a pet cannot make the full trip. A limited number of bikes can come along if you declare yours when you book.

What to pack for 13 hours on the train

Thirteen hours is a long day in one seat, and there is no shop after Buffalo. A short list covers it:

• Food, snacks and a water bottle — the café is small and it closes before the border
• A phone charger or power bank, and your downloads ready before you lose Wi-Fi in Canada
• Layers — train air conditioning runs cold, even in summer
• A neck pillow and something to read or watch
• A pen for the customs form
• Your passport in a pocket you can reach without digging through your bag at the border
• One small day bag with your essentials, so the border walk is easy even if your big bag is heavy

Train vs flying vs bus

The train is not the fastest way between the two cities. It is the simplest. Here is the honest comparison:

	Train	Plane	Bus
Time	About 13 hours, station to station	About 1.5 hours in the air, plus getting to the airport, security and baggage claim	The slowest of the three — expect a full day on the road
Cost	Roughly $150–$200 one way in coach, booked ahead	Often more, especially booked late	Cheapest — fares from about $52
Comfort	Big reclining seats, room to walk around, café car	Tight seats, no legroom to speak of	Least legroom, fewest breaks
Hassle	City centre to city centre, one border stop, no security lines	Two airports, security, baggage claim, transfers into town	City centre to city centre, but a long sit

Fly if you are short on time. Take the train if you have the day free and would rather watch the Hudson Valley go by than stand in a security line. Take the bus if the budget matters more than your back.

The scenery: where to sit

The best stretch is the last one. Between Albany and New York the line runs right along the Hudson River — the prettiest rail ride in the north-east. Heading toward New York, sit on the right-hand side for the river views; Wikivoyage’s Maple Leaf guide gives the same tip, and it is the one most passengers miss. Earlier in the day you get Ontario farmland, the Niagara area and the small towns of upstate New York. Autumn is the best season for it, when the hills along the Hudson turn colour.

Arriving in New York at night

You arrive at Moynihan Train Hall, the modern hall attached to Penn Station in midtown Manhattan. It is late — after 9 p.m. — so have your next step planned before you get off. The subway runs all night from Penn Station, and taxis and rideshares wait outside. If you are flying out the next morning, stay near the station rather than gambling on a late-night trip across town. On the Toronto side, Union Station connects straight to the subway and to the UP Express train to Pearson Airport.

Can you do it as a day trip?

No. With one train a day in each direction, a same-day return is impossible — you arrive in New York after 9 p.m., and the train back to Toronto leaves at 7:15 the next morning. Plan at least one night in New York. The one day trip that does work is Toronto to Niagara Falls: the same train’s timings are set up so you can ride down in the morning, see the Falls, and ride back in the evening.

That is the whole journey. One train, one border, thirteen hours, and a view of the Hudson at the end of it. Book early, keep your passport in your pocket, and check Amtrak’s schedule the day before you travel — this train only runs once a day, and it waits for nobody.