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Insider's reporter thought Penn Station's new train hall primarily for Amtrak travelers was brighter, cleaner, and easier to get around than Amtrak's old facility in Penn Station.Andrew Burton/Getty Images, Joey Hadden/Insider
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As a frequent traveler through New York's Grand Central Station, a train station I find to be bright and easy to navigate, having to pass through NYC's Penn Station always made my stomach churn — until now.
Grand Central Station and Penn Station are train stations in NYC.Matteo Colombo/Getty Images, Photo by Chris Hondros/Getty Images
Penn Station, which is notoriously loathed by New Yorkers, has a reputation for being dark, dirty, crowded, and confusing, as Insider previously reported.
Travelers pass through the Amtrak terminal of New York Penn Station in 2015.Andrew Burton/Getty Images
Traveling through Penn Station in the past, I felt like a rat in a maze, and getting to my destination often felt like pure luck.
A traveler waits for a train at New York's Penn Station in 2009.Photo by Chris Hondros/Getty Images
But when I set foot in Penn Station's new Moynihan Train Hall during a recent Amtrak trip to Miami, I was floored. Thanks to the $1.6 billion upgrade, I don't think I'll ever get lost in Penn Station again.
New York City's new Moynihan Train Hall in January 2021.Thomas Pallini/Business Insider
Large, bright screens showed train schedules throughout the station, and I was relieved that I didn't have to step over people in front of one screen, as I previously had to do.
New York City's Moynihan Train Hall in January 2021.Thomas Pallini/Business Insider
I felt relaxed sitting on the spacious waiting room's cushioned seats, a nice upgrade from the floor, where I've previously sat many times in Penn Station.
The author sits in the waiting area in the Moynihan Train Hall.Joey Hadden/Insider
Since the hall wasn't crowded and I could see everything going on, I felt calm as my train was called, and I was told to line up to board just a few feet away.
The author's view of the waiting room at Moynihan Train Hall.Joey Hadden/Insider
I also had people guiding me on where to go, and I realized I felt less anxious than usual knowing that I was in the right place. I'm so glad I'll probably never get lost in Penn Station again.
A view of the line to board an afternoon Amtrak to Miami.Joey Hadden/Insider
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Joey Hadden is a travel reporter and photojournalist at Business Insider based in NYC. She covers transportation modes, alternative lifestyles, and luxury travel. Many of Joey's stories are visual features that give readers a front-row seat to her personal experiences at home and around the world.Joey graduated from St. Edward's University in May 2019 with a BA in Photocommunications. Since joining Business Insider in 2019, Joey has traveled by train in seven different countries, including overnight rides lasting up to 53 hours. She's ridden on many different train lines, including Amtrak, Via Rail, Nightjet, and the iconic Orient Express of the 21st century, among others. During her travels, she's slept in countless accommodations — five-star hotels, unique tiny homes, and private train cabins, to name a few.When traveling in North America, Joey takes readers inside the continent's wealthiest enclaves where billionaires hide away, from Jackson Hole, Wyoming, to Medina, Washington. When she's not taking trains, notes, or pictures, Joey spends her time singing and playing drums for the indie-rock band Blanket Approval.
