I work for Amtrak, great job to have! I have a few tips for travel on my trains. If you can always get a bedroom! They are the best on the train. Try to avoid room E though, it’s the smallest. If you travel by coach try to go business class! Better seats by far. In a bedroom, after using the toilet rinse it out with the shower. The toilets are vacuum operated so don’t flush anything but bodily waste and toilet paper!! That goes for all of them btw. We’ve upgraded the blankets and pillows! They are much nicer now. Bring snacks too. By all means enjoy a meal on the diner, but snacks are a must. Enjoy the ride and know there are guys like me doing everything we can to make your trip safe and comfortable.
Love me some Amtrak!! One thing to remember about sleeper cars - for the price you pay, you are getting gas, food and lodging plus personal service from your car attendants. Yes, it's a bit spendy, but I think the money is better spent on a train than a sardine can of a jumbo jet. You might (MIGHT) get there faster by jet, but you won't have to take your shoes off, get scanned or wanded, fight over an armrest, and you will probably be a lot happier and more relaxed when you arrive.
@@g5flyr169 My husband was fortunate enough to fly in his company's executive jet a few times. He said it was great, except the fact that their jet used the (closed) toilet as an extra seat. (PS. sorry about the PTSD trigger)
I didn't take Amtrak yet but plan to go from Philly to Orlando soon. I want to book a roomette, and I was thinking the exact same thing regarding the cost. It's your transportation, hotel and meals all in one. Plus you have privacy, the ability to get up and walk, and especially the view. I'm sure it's very relaxing. I'm wondering if all the roomettes have a sink and toilet? Thanks for the information!
How is it your hotel? When you arrive at your destination you can’t stay in a train, so your still going for a hotel. So that analogy really isn’t that accurate.
My son and I just returned from a great trip on Amtrak. Our trip began with the Empire Builder from La Crosse, WI to Chicago. We took the Lakeshore Limited from Chicago to Boston in a roomette. Next, we traveled from Boston to DC on the Acela. After that, we hopped on the Northeast Regional from DC to Philadelphia to catch the Pennsylvanian to Pittsburgh. We spent 29 hours in Pittsburgh, then boarded the Capitol Limited to Chicago in a bedroom. Finally, we rode the Empire Builder to La Crosse. To say we had a good time is an understatement!
Very good rundown. One thing I'll add is that I travelled with someone in a wheelchair, so we had an accessible bedroom. Like the family bedroom, it spans the car so you have windows on both sides. We loved that.
Was the room truly accessible or just barely? I often find places that are supposed to be accessible are often difficult to navigate in my wheelchair. Also, is the person in the wheelchair confined to the room?
It was truly accessible, but once you're in it there's not much of any place to go. And not "confined" but a wheelchair can really only go into the corridor outside. The dining car, observation car, club car etc are all on the second level. Since meals are included in sleeping car accommodations, they bring all your meals to the room for you.
A nice, succinct summary. Of course, a lot also depends on how long you're going to be on the train. If one is traveling overnight or for a longer distance, a sleeper is probably the way to go. As I've gotten older, I've gotten to the point where I don't mind paying a bit more for added comfort on a longer trip.
What I learned: The stand alone showers on the superliners are wider than the ones in the bedrooms; the ones in the bedrooms taper narrower from front to back, so you can get 'stuck' in the little shower. So I always shower in the 'public' showers. The fold away bed in the bedroom, well, the seats slope towards the floor, so I always felt like I was sliding off the seat, and couldn't lay down on the long seat at all. And the regular chair was bolted to the floor, so I had no legroom trying to use that. For a single traveler, the roomette was perfect; I'm six foot four, and there's room enough for me to stretch out when lying down on the 'bed', and the seats were quite comfortable, and will sliightly recline as well. there is very little leg room between the opposing seats in the roomettes, but traveling alone, there is plenty of room for one person; two would be cramped. I would often use the opposing seat as an ottoman. The food was surprisingly good, but the snack bar food was mediocre, horrible hot dogs and hamburgers and bland breakfast sandwiches, all of which had to be microwaved. So I stuck to the snack cakes and candy from there. As I have severe arthritis, I would send the car attendant to the snack bar for me once a day, to collect everything I would need throughout the day, as on superliners I would have to climb up and down two sets of narrow stairs TWICE just to go to the snack bar and back. The car attendants were all very good. On the viewliner, the toilet is in the roomette under a countertop type cover. Handy in the middle of the night, but awkward if you're traveling with another person. However, there is also a public toilet at the end of the cars for the 'coach' passengers, which can be used, as well. Down side? Few outlets in any of the rooms, and check beforehand if your train has wifi or not, because you WILL be traveling through some areas where cellular service just doesn't exist for any cellphone carrier. Hope this augments the info in the video.
Thanks for the information. I'm vaguely sort of planning a long round-trip from Sacramento to wherever some time about next summer solstice. Won't know where until the band I'm taking a coach seat to see next month (1 to 2 hours each way) sets up their tour schedule for next year. That's IF they're touring the US then...Canada maybe. I flew up to Victoria, BC to see them early May, a few month ago. Home Free is wonderful!! And well worth the travel time and all that goes with it.
Yes! Very helpful, and just the sort of info one hopes to understand, and that you couldn't otherwise know. I'm surprised to hear the seats slope down like that in the bedroom. I had thought a bedroom would be a nice upgade, but now I'm thinking that 2 roomettes might be more comfortable for me and a companion, vs. one bedroom!
About 32 years ago my wife and spent almost 6 months in the USA riding the rails and yes we did everything from coach to the family room on one occasion when there was nothing else available. It was a magical experience that I will never forget. The thing I liked was the opportunity to meet such a cross section of America - we met dancers from Vegas, two oil guys from Texas, a jet fighter sales man and my favorite an 93 year old black lady from NY who was making her first trip to Alabama since she was 15 years old! It is disappointing though to find that the website is just as lacking in information to day as the travel brochures we got back then….
Isn't that interesting -- that "the website is just as lacking in information today as the travel brochures we got back then..." WHY would that be other than Amtrak is not supported by government subsidies as quality train lines are in other countries -- I believe sometimes they work in the red (but that may not be true.) Just now, I saw to the right a RU-vid video one month old that is titled: "Amtrak's billion dollar problem" (and I think that's the problem.) Going to watch that video right now!
@@FrankieSpeaksProbably because that 93 year old lady shared her stories of what it was like as a young black girl living in Alabama during segregation. He likely received a living history lesson on that trip that no visit to any museum could ever provide.
We went from Pittsburgh to Chicago then onto Los Angeles. It took 4.5 days. We had the roomette. By the 3rd day it seemed to shrink. The room was taken care of anytime we left. The bathroom is as ok but very small. It got messy when we picked up a group of people. The meals were included in price. They were comparable to Friday’s food, excellent. Downside was the crowds of people using the same bathroom, lounge and diner car.
I've traveled in all the Amtrak accomodations. As you noted, so much depends on budget and because of dynamic pricing, you can't tell what the upgrades will cost until you make your reservation. Also any room is more of a Per Room than per person. The pricing is really coach plus Room Surcharge, the room surcharge is less per person if 2 people occupy a room. Several notes - the bedroom can sleep up to 3, but the two on the lower bed had better be a close couple. It's tight but doable. The Bedroom Suite is just 2 Bedrooms with a door between them opened up, so you don't have to go out into the hall to be with each other. Get your reservation in early so you can get the adjoining rooms. This is great for families with Money. I look at the Family Room as a Roomette that can sleep 4. Warning 2 of the beds are short. But the bathroom is Roomette style, ie down the hall. And the handicapped room is a Roomette with a toilet and sink inside your room for the Superliner. It is Roomette priced, which is its advantage over a Bedroom. And they give you special attention because you are handicapped. My husband loved it in his declining years. But that toilet is IN your room, so privacy and smell are an issue. The shower is the Down the Hall and the same one the Roomettes use. And then there is the new Business Class, which has basically Coach with some Roomette perks. It has its own attendant. And a food allowance. And they go to Business Class for dining car reservations after the Roommimg Cars. This class has sadly been discontinued during Covid-19, but keep your eyes open. It's a good compromise between coach and Roomettes for shorter runs. And another note for Handicapped. If you are traveling Coach, they have a lower section of coach seats and the car attendants will note your location and give you special help, like getting food from the Cafe Car, so you don't need to go up the stairs. They were very kind to us.
Thanks for all the details you have shared with us. I have traveled on trains and used the roomette a couple of times. Now being 69 and in a wheelchair, Travel is different. Hearing from you that the handicapped room was roomette priced was good information to me.
@@cigarcaptain The Handicapped Room is very Handicapped friendly. On the lower level and occupying the entire end of the car, you get some good manuvering room. But one warning, it has a lack of electrical plugs and they are poorly located. Bring extension cords with plug multipliers, especially if you have an electric chair.
So if two people are booking a train trip and are getting a bedroom, do they each have to purchase a ticket at that same fare, or is it split? For example, in the video the bedroom cost was about $1200. If I am booking that trip with my partner, are we each paying $1200 for a total price of $2400 for our trip? Or just the $1200 total for both us (which we could split to be $600 each)?
I took 5 children for 21 days in the family bedroom from Atlanta to New Orleans to Los Angelos to Seattle to Chicago and back to Atlanta. What an adventure!!!
My brother and I shared a bedroom accomodation from Chicago to Los Angeles back in the summer of 2010. It was a great trip, since we traveled through so many states the scenery was always changing. I took the upper berth and slept like a baby. My brother took the lower berth and didn't sleep well either of the two nights we were on the train. He joked with me both mornings that as he sat up and looked out the window at 3am he could hear me snoring! My brother passed away in 2019 but i'm so glad we got a chance to take that trip together.
I know how special that memory must be for you, having lost a much loved family member myself. And I'm grateful for the opportunities we had to be together. So I can really relate.
Another thing that I'm surprised was skipped because it never is in airplane videos, is it all of your meals are included with rooms, so if you're in the train for 2 days that's 6 full meals and they are really very good , and far beyond anything and airline can serve. In the morning my purser gave me the menu selections for the day and a choice of reservation times for the dining car, and although it was very nice with real glass and silverware, I am just a little too introverted to be seated with strangers while eating (even though they were very friendly) so my purser was kind enough to bring the rest of my meals for the trip to my roomette. I believe they came in foam boxes with that was perfectly fine for the more relaxed eating experience, and I also was given the option of getting anything from the cafe which is distinctly different from the dining car. The dining car can you thought of it as more of a restaurant experience in the cafe is very much like a snack bar but they are in two different places and people may not be aware of that and of course food from the cafe is cheaper, but sometimes you just want a burger and fries :-) I have no idea how much the food would have cost if it weren't included in the room, but it was definitely sufficient for a big guy appetite and the food came frequently enough that I had enough saved muffins and rolls that I thought I would eat snacks later, but there was always another full meal just around the corner! I think there were two shared bathrooms in my car and I never had trouble walking the few steps to use it, it was clean and there was no smell I'm not so sure I would want one right next to my chair though. A cool tip I read here was that when you flush the toilet if you're in a room with one to follow with water from the shower or water bottle and that will prevent any build-up or odors in your small space. The attendance for the rooms really are nice and helpful. If you want turndown service at the end of the day and have your chairs converted to a bed, you can do that. I elected to do that.just once since the bed takes up nearly the entire room at with just enough room to stand up between the bed and the door, I found it just as comfortable sleeping in the chair with it reclined. Also if you're not planning on using the upper fold-down bunk bed, you can use that space for additional luggage or storage of pillows during the day etc. The attendants really can help you with just about anything you need, they will get you pretty much anything you want, or can give you complete privacy just depending on what you prefer. It was nice to have a shower room available, the one in my car was downstairs but very large I think designed to also accommodate wheelchairs so I took a late night shower and it was cool to have that experience on a train. All of those things added together, as well as someone to help you with your luggage and all the rest, was worth the upgrade for me which was an optional upgrade after the fact and nowhere near the advertised price, about $100 over Coach and that part can be a little tricky, and you do gamble a little bit by buying a coach seat and then waiting for the inevitable upgrade email, but for me it was well worth the price for really being treated like a first-class passenger on the Southwest Chief from Kansas City to LA was a trip of a lifetime and not having to worry about packing snacks or worrying about having enough money for food aboard was great, and you're also were local foods available in at several of the stops not that I needed any more food but I did have to try some homemade burritos being sold vendor on the platform in Albuquerque, they were amazing! Plus unique souvenirs and keepsakes, I bought some authentic Indian Arrowheads and jewelry there as well. I could have made the flight in 3 hours in been crammed into a seat designed for skinny teenagers and been subjected to intrusive body searches and the crazy hubbub of an airport but I wasn't no hurry and the 35 our train trip was extremely comfortable and enjoyable, extraordinary views of abandoned missions in the middle of the desert with no roads in sight as well as flying across the tracks in Western Kansas at ninety miles an hour at night and crawling through canyons so narrow in New Mexico that have the windows opened it seems like you could touch the walls, you don't get experiences like that flying at 35,000 ft. Although during that high-speed segment of the trip we did hit some real turbulence and I got tossed into a luckily vacant booth in the dining car lol I would recommend staying in your seats when the train is going 90 + miles per hour ;) Everything I needed was taken care of and it was cool being pampered. My only regret is that since I was traveling on a budget and my first time on a train, I was not able to tip my excellent car attendant very much. I would next time make sure to figure that into my plans because they really work hard. I hope everyone gives Amtrak chance and I hope that their routes are expanded so that most cities are serviced!
You raise an excellent point! In Europe, a sleeping car accommodation may just mean you have a "berth" in the car. There may be five other people in the room. For Amtrak, a single person can purchase a roomette, and, I think, a bedroom, and occupy it singly.
Eastern Bloc countries inherited the old Italian etc trains from the 1950s & 60s, when wagons were divided into compartments w/locking doors, window tables, and 'seats facing seats' folding into 4 or 6 bunkbeds. These are great! Phobia of strangers was used as an excuse to scrap the compartmentalized wagons in the US. A pity. They are such a fun, social way to travel. You meet new people, and they are very affordable because bunks use far less floor space than roomettes etc. This month I took the train from L'viv to Kiev, Ukraine, an overnight trip of 9 hours. Cost: $13! Clean sheets on a narrow fold down bed, and a cup of tea in a real china cup served free to everyone in the morning! Those old wagons will keep rolling forever; they weren't built in an Asian sweatshop, but with pride by Italian craftsmen out of quality steel. And Ukrainians don't throw things away and buy new; they repair them. The tea is made with water from a large boiler at the end of every wagon, just turn the tap any time you want. Why doesn't Amtrak add some of these sociable and inexpensive-ticket COMPARTMENT cars to their other 5 options (roomette etc.)? I'm not the only one who would like both the lower cost, and the opportunity to meet new people that only '3 seats facing 3 seats' can provide. Airplane seating is no way to travel on a train!
Great review, Jeb. If I were to pick I would go with Roomette? But-- $ difference between Roomette & bedroom is not much. Just depends on length of route. Been 100 years since I traveled across country by train. Coast to coast---IN A SEAT. Pretty rough. So cold at night. Make sure to carry: scarves, flip flops for shower if shared (+baggy for flip flops), light layers, Xtra socks & underwear and snacks. A back pack is perfect for this. Also, make note of what you should & shouldn't pack NEXT time. And watch & read YT reviews comments!!🚆
This is a fantastic summary video! Great job! · I am glad that you mentioned a Bedroom Suite as its own class of bedroom, because Amtrak sells them that way. I think they only pop up as a pricing option if you are buying tickets for three or more persons. · Of the five classes of rooms that you mention (Roomettes, Bedrooms, Bedroom Suites, Family Bedrooms, and Accessible Bedrooms), only four are available on Viewliner trains. There is no Family Bedroom in a Viewliner sleeper car. For a 3-4 person family with at least one child, you might try a Bedroom Suite, or a pair of Roomettes across the hall from each other. · The Accessible Bedrooms on a Superliner are kind of a drag. They're downstairs, and they don't have an en-suite shower. It may be easy to get on and off the train, but if your mobility is limited enough so that you can't navigate a spiral staircase, it's hard to leave lower level of your sleeping car. You end up living in the space of a half car length for the entire duration of your trip. No dining car experience for you! The car-to-car vestibules and two thirds of the living space in the sleeper cars are upstairs, because the downstairs level of the car is foreshortened by the service areas over the rail trucks. I can't imagine living in that confined a space for several days, so I find renewed gratitude that my wife and I are both still able to climb stairs. The window on the bathroom side is frosted, so no sightseeing on that side of the train. The four rooms closest to the Accessible Bedroom are three public restrooms and a public shower. Welcome aboard. · Regarding the sway difference between upstairs and downstairs on a Superliner: Keep in mind that Family Bedrooms and Accessible Bedrooms are all downstairs (less sway), but ("Deluxe") Bedrooms (and therefore Bedroom Suites) are all upstairs (more sway). Roomettes, like Coach Seats, are available on both levels of a Superliner. Also, upstairs areas naturally tend to have a better view over short trees and any single-story buildings that may be near the tracks. So the sway may be worthwhile. Some say it helps them sleep on a train. · I have heard that, in some cases, dual Roomettes (across the hall from each other) is cheaper than a single ("Deluxe") Bedroom - though that was not true in your single-sampling price example. If that is affordable, then a couple traveling together might consider booking a pair of Roomettes. This looks attractive, compared to the alternatives of cramming both people into a single Roomette, paying extra for a ("Deluxe") Bedroom with en-suite and more space, or shelling out even more cash for a Bedroom Suite. If both companions want a bottom bunk, and you want downstairs Superliner accomodations with less sway, this sounds completely viable. Maybe you and your Creative Director could comment on that?
We took Amtrak from Orlando to DC and return. Found a great deal by booking coach and then when in route we asked the conductor for an upgrade to roomette. Got a great deal. On the way back home we got a bedroom for a great deal as well. Now I know that sometimes they’re all taken, but we lucked out. It was worth the risk. They don’t want empty rooms moving empty.
I have traveled by train several times and have had several different experiences. Overall I do not think the price is worth it for a room. The reason why is that I found it uncomfortable to shower on board and the meals are not that outstanding. My preferred is to get a business seat if that is offered and to bring a cooler on board with food that is better quality. On trips that last a couple of days it is worth it to off-board in a town or city on the way and to get a room for 24 hours. That way you can be on solid ground and see a little of one of those places you are normally bypassing. It's good to sleep in a regular bed and use a regular shower. Then catch the next train and off you go! Last word; coach seats are not that bad! I was able to do so with an infant on the Southwest Chief with no problems
How do you off board? As a former travel agent, I am extremely familiar with airfares but not train fares. Would this be two point to point fares (one way tickets) or some such thing if you off-boarded once? How do they do the pricing and do they allow you back on the next train? I guess I'm confused about how that works...
From my experience, the accessible room has 2 different styles, one has a private attached bathroom that is separated from the rest of the bedroom with an actual door. The other has only a heavy curtain that separates the bathroom and bedroom areas. We decided not to use the curtain and went out the door to the bathrooms as they are located right next to the accessible room. The problem we ran into was towards the end of our 2 1/2 day trip, the smell came through the seat. We recommend use poopourri in the toilet and maybe bring a well liked scent of airfreshner. Reading other posts here and watching other videos it might vary even more than this, so I would talk to the Amtrak representative to find out the specifics of each train.
I remember from fiddling with an Amtrak price-checking bot (which I found out about on the Amtrak Unlimited forum) immediately pre-pandemic what the prices were like for the long-distance trains I was "armchair traveling" on, and it seems that the prices have come down quite a lot since then, per the example you gave of Empire Builder fares. (My favorite "dream trip" to plan was the Texas Eagle/Sunset Limited, since the southbound TE goes past my office window every afternoon, but the Empire Builder was probably my #2 favorite, because I used to ride that in coach to get home from college back in the 1970s.) I think the Family Bedroom would be my preferred accommodation for a couple (like me and my spouse), because the lower price vs. the Bedroom and the extra space would make up for the lack of a private bathroom. The one big problem with booking a Family Bedroom is that there's only 1 in the whole sleeping car, so it can get snapped up pretty quickly. Looking forward to relaxing mask requirements on Amtrak and the return of full dining car service on Superliner routes, especially as my spouse and I get closer to retirement age!
Amazing review Jeb! Now I know the ins and outs of Amtrak trains! In Australia, sleeper trains usually give you a cabin to yourself in First class with one seat which turns into a bed 😀
My most favorite about the Amtrak Superliner sleepers and transition sleepers are the bedrooms and bedroom suites because they're the biggest. My least favorites are the coach seats (economy seats) and the roomettes including on the viewliners because the coach seats are tough for us to get extra sleep and for commuters only just on long-distance trains and the roomettes are kind of too small. Riding the rails should be way better than flying because of ear pain on flights.
We used to travel from LA to NYC every year, for opera season, in 2 Deluxe Bedrooms En Suite. That was magnificent!! Making my first Amtrak travel, since I stopped working for them...decades ago. I alway loved the train! And you meet such interesting people!
There is one very important thing you left out. The earlier you book on Amtrak the cheaper the fares are. One can save a considerable amount of money by booking several months ahead. This hint should have been in your video.
So, the price of the $1,300 bedroom he fantasy-booked in the middle of May for October 2021 is going to go UP? Ewww... that's close to being a deal-breaker, for sure.
This is incorrect. The prices, especially for rooms/roomettes don't work like that. You'll never find a room for a cross country train for less than 900 each way. Doesn't matter how far ahead you book. Go look, NY to LA is 900 bucks every month until next June.
Thanks so much!! Trying to book a trip for me and my 11 year old son from New Orleans to Oregon! I didn’t realize it would be so complicated!! Thanks again!
Previously had roomette for two- Flagstaff, AZ to Washington D.C. - bathroom in the car was out of order had to go to next car. I’m 5’2” husband 6’- didn’t think I was ever claustrophobic, but didn’t do well on upper berth- ended up sharing lower berth with husband. Having private space was good! We are thinking of going again on same route- am looking closely at the bedroom accommodation. Thank you for your comprehensive info on all of it!
my wife and i just traveled on the last leg of the Crescent (ATL to NOLA) in a roomette. we LOVED IT... you started out talking about the viewliner and superliner cars and then only showed the superliner accommodations in the chart comparing the seat to the roomette/bedroom/family bedroom.. we had a viewliner roomette with the in room toilet but we used the one in the lounge car because a) there was more room and honestly as much as i love my wife, i dont need to sit knee to knee with her while she's on the toilet. good breakdown otherwise though!
Wow! I took the empire builder in 1978 from Philadelphia to Chicago and Chicago to Seattle and was 18 years old! That venture, alone, was one of the greatest times of my life! 🙏🏻🙂🌞☮️❤️Sadness thing is seeing the roomettes looking pretty much the same as they did then! Boy,our train systems needs way more attention, innovation, updating, expansion…etc. terrible looking! And the prices! Oh my God! My favorite part was the bubble top observation car and as we approached the Rocky Mountains, the majesty of them was just outstanding! All in all, great time(4 days out and4 days back)!!
Don’t forget reading material, blankets, big bag of snacks, drinks, OTC meds, flashlight, disposable underwear and lots of wet wipes. A little like camping, I suggest a sleeping room.
Holy Cow! I never dreamed that fares on trains was sooo high! Guess I’ll mark the train off my bucket list unless I win the lottery. Very disappointing!😢
Keep up the videos, I used to live in Norway my freshman year of college, so I have traveled a lot by train and would love to travel to San Fran by train! Awesome videos!
Regarding price, it's important to note that the price is per person. So, if the priced stated for a bedroom is $1,259, it's really $2,518 for a couple. That's pretty damned pricey! I don't have any idea about Amtrak's economics, but prices like that pretty much eliminate Amtrak as a travel option. Four hours in a semi-cramped seat on an airplane for $2,000 less money is a no-brainer.
Get ur butt 2 the station & take a day trip! I take Amtrak to LA for work quite often from Oceanside stop…its SO MUCH BETTER than driving in that hellish traffic
Took 2 trips last year. Hastings Nebraska to winter park Colorado. Tried the roomette. I got motion sickness in the first hour. If you any inkling of claustrophobia don’t choose the roomette. Hutchinson Kansas to Galesburg Illinois we chose the seat car. It’s not great for sleeping but it can be done and it’s a lot less expensive.
You left out an advantage of coach, which is you can see both sides of the train. I personally enjoy the interaction with others in coach, most of the time ....
The biggest downside of the Family Bedroom is that it’s only available on Superliner trains, and even there there’s only one such room per car. There’s no such option on the single-level trains. For a family with kids to travel on a train to/from New York, the cheapest option is two roomettes. As a side point, the single-level long-distance trains consist not only of Viewliners but also of Amfleet II coaches. The Viewliners have been the most prevalent type of single-level sleepers since their introduction in mid-1990’s and have become exclusive since the last Heritage sleeper went out of service circa 2001. As of now, with Viewliner II being manufactured, this model has become exclusive for diners on single-level trains, as well as for baggage cars systemwide. And the sleeper capacity on single-level trains have been increased with Viewliner II sleepers that, luckily, don’t have toilets in roomettes. The coaches on single-level trains are still exclusively Amfleet II. While their seat are relatively convenient for sleeping (especially after refurbishing), they’re still not as comfortable as their Superliner counterparts. I’m waiting to see new single-level coach fleet. Unfortunately, it wasn’t included in the Viewliner II contract.
Why would you pay $767 (roommette) to travel for 27 hours in an uncomfortable little cabin from Chicago to Seattle when you could pay $300 on southwest and get there in 2 hours? I love trains, but really. The view and suffering cost should not be on me for $567 more.
Traveled only twice by Amtrak - once from Ann Arbor to Chicago and then recently from Orlando to Tampa (and back). It's way better than a flight. I took coach seats both times - of course if I could afford I'll get a room. But even the coach seat is fairly comfortable.
I think all you guys for the comments. Because for Thanksgiving I just rode the Amtrak train. In the regular seats however I'm disabled and it was very difficult for me but I did it from North Carolina to New Jersey and vice versa. The only problem was they didn't tell me the sea legs went up until late in the trip but I found that that was even worse for the back of my legs it was very painful. So my sister was telling me that sleeper cars were not good they were very small and unaccommodating due to my size. But I was able to see from the videos and your comments that it probably will be better for me so I'm going to try that the next time I travel
I took an Amtrak to Phoenix from Peoria, IL but it actually left from and arrived at a different city. The last night, it took 3 hrs to travel 20 miles because of freight trains which actually own the tracks. Then a bus ride to Phoenix from Tucson, not sure if I’d go again even though I traveled 1st class and everything else I sliding the steward was fantastic. But those freight trains!
So for me comfort is more important and i believe for the price of a Roomette that can work , besides if the shared bathroom is the only real down side i can live with that, think of travel by plane it's shared also or worse Bus also shared , now with the bed and food included in the Roomette and all the other perks lounge access ETC. for me its a no brainer for a higher price but perks and bed worth it .
I am really bummed . We went on the Auto Train in 1998 and had a room with a bathroom. It was decent . My husband and l are much older and are going on for a second time . I booked our tickets in Aug and found the website extremely confusing. I booked a roomette . We are in our 70s and the entire point was that we need a bit more space and a bathroom. There is no way to change our accommodations at this point . I guess that we will be spending more of our time in the lounge area , something that l wanted to avoid during these Covid times . I really wish that the Amtrak website was more user friendly .
This is a very good description of the autotrain experience, but should be updated and emphasized that this is for room accommodations and not coach class. 😀
When you say roommate, I assume you mean roomette, the smallest sleeper. When you book a roomette, you specify how many people (one or two) will be in that roomette. The price you see is an-all-inclusive single ticket that covers both of you. There is no "extra" ticket required. And that includes all your meals. I recommend it.
To did not mention the price for the disability room. For the smallest room may I please ask? Are you allowed to make up the bottom two chairs to a bed if you are traveling alone and you need to rest laying down during daylight hours? In my opinion Amtrak makes it very difficult to book what you want and to understand the prices. My very young sons and I sat in seats from Denver to California in 1980 and it was a wonderful experience that they have never forgotton. People traveling and the staff were so wonderful. I want to travel from California to North Carolina. At 71 and somewhat disabled I think a room however tiny would be better, but I do need to elevate my legs during the day if possible. Thank you for any answers. Oh also The Amtrak reservation lady told me you must get off the train in New Orleans and then back on the train the next day. Would there be a shuttle to a hotel or do you spend the night in the station. This was taking the lower route. Thanks again, Debbie.
Accessible bedrooms have private bathroom/shower that wheelchairs can fit in. Downside is, you will most likely spend your entire trip in your room unless you have the ability to walk with assistance. Aisle width is too narrow for many wheelchairs to get through.
@@khm2128 Also consider that the observation lounge and dining room are on the UPPER decks, only accessible by VERY narrow stairs. I would not even recommend a extended train trip for overweight people.
@@khm2128 There are many "laws" that railroads do not have to abide by. Rail travel is considered a luxury and does not have to abide by ADA standards in any car other than the ADA approved sleeper unit.
If I were doing long distance, I can't see many circumstances in which I'd ride coach. For me, if I'm traveling with my girlfriend, we'd go with the accessible bedroom, since she's a wheelchair user. Also worth noting, pax with disabilities get a slight discount on travel, which is super cool. I want to take her to New Orleans someday, that's somewhere she wants to go. (I think you should have stressed that passengers shouldn't book accessible bedrooms unless they literally need to. It's like the accessible stall in the bathroom, you don't know who's gonna need it.)
I want to go from Portland to Austin on rail to see the solar eclipse at my Texas family's place on April 2024 but fly home. Train ride thru the rockies would be nice.
Thanks. Great job. As for preference; if I'm traveling for a few days I think a bedroom would be the choice if I have the money to spare because I would probably spend more in hotel/motel + uber etc. If a day or overnight trip I woul say business class at min.
One thing you didn't note is that bedroom passenger have all free meals and beverages throughout the trip. Of course the Pandemic has limited the offerings in the dining cars, but you can be served in your room (included) Also when I went on the Coast Starlight 15 years ago there was a first class "parlor car" that always had drinks and fresh fruit for fist class passengers. In addition there were wine tastings and a cinema car then. So with all the meals and drinks (including "hard drinks") and other services and amenities, the price was pretty good. Of Course food was really very good then. I've heard that Amtrak has cut back on the quality of the offerings since the pandemic but meals then consisted of full steak dinners, fresh fish entrees and great desserts! Even the great breakfasts were wonderfully unhealthy! Now, with new funding coming their way, I hope they ll re-instate those "amenities" again soon. I'm more then ready to have that experience again! The cars were absolutely quiet, the staff was very friendly and always accommodating, and of course the scenery was magical.
Got a roomette from Albuquerque to Los Angeles, loved it, it was about the same price as an Airplane, but I saved the price of a hotel in 2009. Food was great, I wish I could eaten in my room, but I didn't ask Great trip, but 700.00 seems a bit much, I paid 300.00
Here’s my personal advice: if you are taking a day trip, book a coach/business seat. It’s comfy and you get great views. If it’s longer than that, fly. The delays, service failures and costs of long-distance Amtrak travel aren’t worth the money.
It depends on if you have to be somewhere or not. On the train I can putter around on my computer, and in most places I can have mobile internet service (the places without coverage are usually in the mountains and such and great for looking at the scenery). This doesn't work if you have to be at a place of employment physically and you want to maximize vacation time at a destination, but if you can work from remote you can basically travel and work at the same time. Likewise if your goal is to get from point A to point B on a weekend, but you were going to just be sitting on your computer at home for the rest of the weekend, you might as well be sitting on your computer on the train. Either way flying coach on airlines is so miserable I will pay for an upgrade to domestic first class (which is about equivalent to Amtrak long distance coach in terms of seating) just to avoid the experience. I think Spirit Airlines has the right idea by having inexpensive upgrades to a better seat ("Big Front Seat") without having to pay for better service, but Spirit's delays are just as bad as Amtrak's and their overall customer experience is worse. In general I find that a roomette is a great way to travel for both day trips and overnight trips (since I'll be sleeping anyway). Flying is for if I'm crunched for time or going from one end of the country to the other. I actually enjoy flying but the combination of the horrible experience of airports and coach class is what pushes me back to Amtrak's slow trains.
@@NozomuYume If you don’t have to be somewhere, don’t waste so much money being absolutely nowhere, pretending you’re traveling. You’re not. You’re on public transport, not interacting with the people or places.
@@afcgeo882 Well let me put it this way. I get on the train, take off my clothes, lie down in the bed, crack open a bottle of wine, and just chill. I don't have to interact with anyone and I have privacy and space. There is no other means of travel where I can do that -- aside from a few international routes on some middle eastern airlines that have those $20,000 fully-enclosed rooms. The other exception being the few remaining ocean liner routes that still exist. Driving gets me my personal space but I can't drive naked while drinking a bottle of wine and watching a movie on my tablet. Flying coach is IMHO the second-worst way to travel (the worst being Greyhound, although at least with Greyhound I don't have to deal with airport crap). If I were super rich and could afford a private jet with a bedroom I could do all those things and Amtrak would be a lot less appealing.
Can you make a video addressing wheelchair accessibility or lack there of? Please please please. I'm in a wheelchair and husband is an amputee and we want to do lots of traveling.
Very informative video. Thanks for posting. If you can, get a bedroom as it is the best with a private shower and bathroom. However, a roomette is okay, although I wish they would have a private toilet (and as a tip travel solo in a roomette regardless.)
5:54 I do have some amtrak questions: When we are in an Amtrak Bedroom, and we have a shower and a toilet for each bedroom right? what is the length of the space for each of them? Is it enough to take a shower and use the toilet efficiently?
I recently discovered your posts and I can't thank you enough. Trains have always been my favorite mode of transportation but life got in the way and I'm always in a hurry so it's been airplanes and cars for decades. I'm rediscovering my love for trains and looking forward to my first long haul excursion. Thanks and happy trails, see you on the rails.! 🚆 🚉
