Going from the Roomette to Club Car

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Can you travel from the sleeper car to the club car and how do you get back into the sleeper car?
 
jj29407 said:
1345918577[/url]' post='389480']Can you travel from the sleeper car to the club car and how do you get back into the sleeper car?
There is no Club Car on Amtrak! Or do you mean the Café Car or Dining Car, or on the Coast Starlight the Pacific Parlour Car (PPC)?
huh.gif
You just walk thru the door! (Note that the PPC is a lounge for ONLY sleeping car passengers. Coach passengers are not permitted to use the PPC at all!
excl.gif
)
 
I think the OP is referring to the fact that you usually need to pass through the dining car to get from the sleeping car to the lounge car

on a LD train. The technical answer is that sleeping car passengers are allowed to pass through the diner at any time, 24 hrs a day,

for the purpose of accessing the lounge car. The lounge car is for the enjoyment of everyone on the train, including sleeping car

passengers.

The real-life answer is that if you wish to pass through the diner during peak dining hours, be prepared for a series of "evil

eyes" from the dining car staff.
 
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The real-life answer is that if you wish to pass through the diner during peak dining hours, be prepared for a series of "evil

eyes" from the dining car staff.
Usually when I pass through the dining car during one of their busy periods, I make sure that none of the wait staff is in my path. If they are, I usually step aside to let them through. I've never gotten "evil eyes" from any employee there.
 
The real-life answer is that if you wish to pass through the diner during peak dining hours, be prepared for a series of "evil

eyes" from the dining car staff.
Usually when I pass through the dining car during one of their busy periods, I make sure that none of the wait staff is in my path. If they are, I usually step aside to let them through. I've never gotten "evil eyes" from any employee there.
Exactly -- you and me both don't get in the way of the working crew, and they appreciate us being considerate people. No problem, no delay. Basic politeness. We all can do that. We all mostly do do that - be considerate I mean.
 
Well obviously I try not to "get in the way." Duh.

I'm referring to my own experiences:

Enter the dining car...wait at the end for an appropriate moment to run the cattle chute...and get admonished

for blocking people behind us with reservations. Or get barked at as soon as we enter that we "must have a reservation,

we don't have any open seating right now." (Really, a reservation to walk through...didn't know that).

And of course the all-time favorite of dining car staff...when I enter the dining car, there's no one in the way, so I proceed

toward the other end... "YOU MUST WAIT AT THE END FOR US TO COME SEAT YOU!" Seriously, the way they react

sometimes you'd think I was trying to walk through an airport security checkpoint with my shoes on.

Now try doing all this with a young child in tow and you'll begin to understand why it's sometimes just easier to stay put

in the sleeping car.
 
Well obviously I try not to "get in the way." Duh.

I'm referring to my own experiences:

Enter the dining car...wait at the end for an appropriate moment to run the cattle chute...and get admonished

for blocking people behind us with reservations. Or get barked at as soon as we enter that we "must have a reservation,

we don't have any open seating right now." (Really, a reservation to walk through...didn't know that).

And of course the all-time favorite of dining car staff...when I enter the dining car, there's no one in the way, so I proceed

toward the other end... "YOU MUST WAIT AT THE END FOR US TO COME SEAT YOU!" Seriously, the way they react

sometimes you'd think I was trying to walk through an airport security checkpoint with my shoes on.

Now try doing all this with a young child in tow and you'll begin to understand why it's sometimes just easier to stay put

in the sleeping car.
Are you holding a sign that says "Just passing through"? If not, then how does the staff know you're just passing through and not there to eat? They probably get enough people who do try to seat themselves to react that way with anyone who enters the diner. If I hadn't read this forum before my first LD trip (in a sleeper), I would not have known that I needed to be seated by the staff.
 
Are you holding a sign that says "Just passing through"? If not, then how does the staff know you're just passing through and not there to eat? They probably get enough people who do try to seat themselves to react that way with anyone who enters the diner. If I hadn't read this forum before my first LD trip (in a sleeper), I would not have known that I needed to be seated by the staff.
A polite inquiry from the dining car staff would be preferable to an accusation of ignoring protocol. Your expectations may vary, of course.
 
Couple of weeks ago I was on the SSL/TE hen a young man with a service dog got on traveling from TUS to AUS. Since he was in the last coach on the TE he had to walk a couple of times through the diner to get to the lounge car. I'm sure the dining staff loved having that big dog go through their diner.
 
Well obviously I try not to "get in the way." Duh.

I'm referring to my own experiences:

Enter the dining car...wait at the end for an appropriate moment to run the cattle chute...and get admonished

for blocking people behind us with reservations. Or get barked at as soon as we enter that we "must have a reservation,

we don't have any open seating right now." (Really, a reservation to walk through...didn't know that).

And of course the all-time favorite of dining car staff...when I enter the dining car, there's no one in the way, so I proceed

toward the other end... "YOU MUST WAIT AT THE END FOR US TO COME SEAT YOU!" Seriously, the way they react

sometimes you'd think I was trying to walk through an airport security checkpoint with my shoes on.

Now try doing all this with a young child in tow and you'll begin to understand why it's sometimes just easier to stay put

in the sleeping car.
Are you holding a sign that says "Just passing through"? If not, then how does the staff know you're just passing through and not there to eat? They probably get enough people who do try to seat themselves to react that way with anyone who enters the diner. If I hadn't read this forum before my first LD trip (in a sleeper), I would not have known that I needed to be seated by the staff.
I've done it many times and never had a problem with the staff. I usually signal by waving my hand pointed straight away from me down the aisle instead of holding up my fingers indicating the number in the party, and they always seem to get it. Sometimes if a server is near me when they have a second, I say "just passing through".
 
Can you travel from the sleeper car to the club car and how do you get back into the sleeper car?
When you need to get back to the sleeper cars, you should have your tickets ready to prove to the dinning car staff that you are indeed a sleeping car passenger.

Yea, the dining car staff might not ask to see your tickets; they might recognize you or they might not care. However, I believe its their job to prevent coach passengers from entering the sleeper cars.
 
Well obviously I try not to "get in the way." Duh.

I'm referring to my own experiences:

Enter the dining car...wait at the end for an appropriate moment to run the cattle chute...and get admonished

for blocking people behind us with reservations. Or get barked at as soon as we enter that we "must have a reservation,

we don't have any open seating right now." (Really, a reservation to walk through...didn't know that).

And of course the all-time favorite of dining car staff...when I enter the dining car, there's no one in the way, so I proceed

toward the other end... "YOU MUST WAIT AT THE END FOR US TO COME SEAT YOU!" Seriously, the way they react

sometimes you'd think I was trying to walk through an airport security checkpoint with my shoes on.

Now try doing all this with a young child in tow and you'll begin to understand why it's sometimes just easier to stay put

in the sleeping car.
I've made that passage many times, and never once felt that it was any kind of hassle at all. Jeez.
 
Well obviously I try not to "get in the way." Duh.

I'm referring to my own experiences:

Enter the dining car...wait at the end for an appropriate moment to run the cattle chute...and get admonished

for blocking people behind us with reservations. Or get barked at as soon as we enter that we "must have a reservation,

we don't have any open seating right now." (Really, a reservation to walk through...didn't know that).

And of course the all-time favorite of dining car staff...when I enter the dining car, there's no one in the way, so I proceed

toward the other end... "YOU MUST WAIT AT THE END FOR US TO COME SEAT YOU!" Seriously, the way they react

sometimes you'd think I was trying to walk through an airport security checkpoint with my shoes on.

Now try doing all this with a young child in tow and you'll begin to understand why it's sometimes just easier to stay put

in the sleeping car.
RIGHT ON!

I worked for Amtrak in the dining car. (decades ago,ugh) and I TRAVEL by Amtrak yearly, sometimes a LOT.

This goes on, and turns first-time riders off.

Why should the passengers have to "walk on egg shells" when simply passing thru the diner? They shouldn't.
 
Well obviously I try not to "get in the way." Duh.

I'm referring to my own experiences:

Enter the dining car...wait at the end for an appropriate moment to run the cattle chute...and get admonished

for blocking people behind us with reservations. Or get barked at as soon as we enter that we "must have a reservation,

we don't have any open seating right now." (Really, a reservation to walk through...didn't know that).

And of course the all-time favorite of dining car staff...when I enter the dining car, there's no one in the way, so I proceed

toward the other end... "YOU MUST WAIT AT THE END FOR US TO COME SEAT YOU!" Seriously, the way they react

sometimes you'd think I was trying to walk through an airport security checkpoint with my shoes on.

Now try doing all this with a young child in tow and you'll begin to understand why it's sometimes just easier to stay put

in the sleeping car.
RIGHT ON!

I worked for Amtrak in the dining car. (decades ago,ugh) and I TRAVEL by Amtrak yearly, sometimes a LOT.

This goes on, and turns first-time riders off.

Why should the passengers have to "walk on egg shells" when simply passing thru the diner? They shouldn't.
Making eye-contact with staff and using common sense and timing have kept me from ever walking on egg shells in the diner... unless there were some underfoot that I didn't notice.
 
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