The Brightline is a train service that is taking South Florida by storm. If you are unfamiliar with it, this train offers stops between Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach with plans to offer future service to Orlando, FL (Hello Mickey!). Recently, I decided to use the Brightline to explore more of sunny South Florida, so here are some of the highlights...
This time we opted for the "Select Service" ticket which starts at a fare of $15 (one-way) but can vary depending on the date/time of your train. With "Select" service you get tons of perks that you don't get in the regular service, so if you want my advice, splurge on "Select" to get the full-experience.
Your day will begin at the beautiful Brightline station where you can park you car for free, and go relax at the "Select" Lounge. The lounge offers a variety of small breakfast options (well, at least at 10 am) including croissants, fruits, parfaits, and muffins. You can pair these with a hot coffee, water, soda, or if you're ready to pregame your journey, beer. Make sure to give yourself a bit of time before your train takes off to get through security and enjoy the awesome lounge.
When the train arrives, "Select" members are invited to board first. Go on in and take a seat in a wider chair than normal where you'll be pampered with a fresh towel to clean your hands, and a variety of snacks to choose from right after the train takes off. While you munch on your snacks the attendants will come around to offer you a variety of beverages whether you want a caffeine kick, or need a drink. They also offer small snack boxes with hummus, olives, cheeses, pretzels, nuts, etc. I'm telling you service is A+, goodbye tri-rail, goodbye car, I'll stick to the Brightline for now.
I only have one complaint about the Brightline, the ride is too short! Between each station it only takes approx. 30 minutes to reach your destination, meaning you gotta to chug that beer if you want to go for seconds. Gone are the days of sitting in traffic for two hours whether you're commuting to Miami for work or traveling to West Palm Beach for Sunday brunch. Another plus is that each station is in the heart of the city with the Miami station leaving you smack in the middle of Brickell, and the West Palm Beach station leaving you right on the main avenue.
So think twice the next time you're going to get in the car to drive to one of these places. You'll save time, probably money (gas is expensive), and reduce your carbon footprint by choosing to #GoBrightline.