I spent $500 to have my own room on a 30-hour Amtrak ride. Take a look inside the 20-square-foot private cabin.

Business Insider's reporter traveled by train down the East Coast from New York to Miami in an Amtrak Viewliner roomette.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider This 20-square-foot train cabin was my home for 30 hours.

I spent $500 for the private space aboard an Amtrak train from NYC to Miami.

Take a look around the tiny hotel room on the rails.

I'll never forget my first Amtrak roomette .

Before I'd spent roughly 200 hours on overnight trains in the US and Europe, I had no idea what to expect on the 30-hour journey from New York City to Miami in October 2021.

It was my first overnight Amtrak trip, and I was set on having a bed in a private space.

So I spent $500 on a roomette accommodation — the lowest-tier private cabin on Amtrak sleeper trains.

The 22.75-square-foot cabin contained two beds, a toilet, and basic amenities.

Thanks to clever storage hacks , it felt like a tiny hotel room with no unused space.

See inside the most affordable Amtrak ride in a private cabin.

I walked down a narrow corridor through three sleeper cars to my private room.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider Inside the enclosed space with a sliding door, I found two seats that could pull out into a bed, a table, and a bed above the seats that pulled down.

I thought this was a big step up from sitting in coach, where you get one train seat and sit with other passengers.