Find trains from San Francisco to Los Angeles

There are no direct trains to Los Angeles from San Francisco, so you will make several stops along the route. Your journey from San Francisco to Los Angeles will first stop in San Jose, California. There are numerous exciting attractions in San Jose, such as the Rosicrucian Museum, Municipal Rose Garden, Happy Hollow Park & Zoo, and others. Other stops on this route include Salinas, Paso Robles, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Oxnard, Simi Valley, and Van Nuys, all in California. While the train is the primary method of transportation from San Francisco to Los Angeles, it doesn’t take you to every destination. You will need to board a bus or express shuttle to connect to various stations.

Amtrak is the primary train provider between San Francisco and Los Angeles. It offers medium and long-distance intercity trains to Los Angeles from San Francisco. You can connect with your friends, stream music, watch your favorite movie, or reply to emails onboard San Francisco to Los Angeles trains because Amtrak trains offers unlimited complimentary Wi-Fi for everyone.

You can travel comfortably by train from San Francisco to Los Angeles, as Amtrak has no luggage restriction policy for passengers onboard. You are allowed to bring two bags or suitcases, as long as they do not exceed 50 lbs (23 kg) and are no bigger than 28 x 22 x 14 inches. Strollers and diaper bags are excluded from your carry-on limit if you are traveling with an infant or toddler. Amtrak does not impose additional charges for luggage onboard. However, passengers traveling with oversized luggage that cannot fit in luggage racks must buy an extra train ticket. If you are a musician, you can still carry your musical instrument—such as a flute, trumpet, clarinet, or other small instrument—as long as it can fit in your luggage as a train passenger. You can also carry on your medium-sized instrument, such as a guitar or saxophone, for an extra charge.

Since you will not be crossing an international border while traveling from San Francisco to Los Angeles via train, passengers don't need to present their passports. Anyone in the US can travel without restriction from one city to another. However, Amtrak requires passengers traveling from San Francisco to Los Angeles to produce valid photo identification when asked by a police officer, or when storing baggage at the train station, refunding Amtrak travel documents, checking luggage, buying documents using a transportation credit, traveling as a pass rider, etc.

You can conveniently travel with a small pet on San Francisco to Los Angeles trains operated by Amtrak. However, your pet's weight, together with its carrier, should not exceed 20 lbs. Unfortunately, you cannot bring your pet onboard if you are traveling in non-Acela business class, sleeping cars, food service cars, or other accommodations. Pets are only allowed in coach class and Acela business class on various train lines. It is essential to make a reservation for your pet in advance because Amtrak trains from San Francisco to Los Angeles allow only five pets per train. Passengers can make a reservation for one pet only. In case your voyage is disrupted along the way, Amtrak may try to look for pet-friendly hotel accommodations where your pet will be safe.

You can find train tickets for Amtrak which service this route currently. Amtrak is the cheapest option recently available with prices starting at $108 round-trip.

There are 345.0 mi between San Francisco and Los Angeles. By train, the distance is greater, and the train route may stop elsewhere along the way.

Taking a train to Los Angeles from San Francisco has a carbon footprint of 75lb, on average. Carbon emissions for flights between these two cities are around 341lb. A bus for this journey would also have lower emissions than flying, with a carbon footprint of around 47lb.

We’ve found that taking a flight from San Francisco to Los Angeles with Frontier is more time-efficient when based simply on travel duration. A train from San Francisco to Los Angeles or a bus from San Francisco to Los Angeles can take you longer than a 1h 25m flight.

The cheapest way is to get a flight from San Francisco to Los Angeles, which can be as cheap as $47. A train from San Francisco to Los Angeles is more expensive than a flight, with prices starting at $108. A bus from San Francisco to Los Angeles is also an option, with an average price of $72.