A few first-timer questions

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I fly every week but I am starting to work for a new customer on Monday and it makes more sense to take the train. I will be traveling from HAR to NWK. I have a few questions.

  1. How early should I get to the station
  2. What is security like. Will I be searched, will I go through a metal detector, etc...
  3. Is business class that much better than coach? I don't pay for the tickets so price isn't the issue but the train schedule is.


I'm sorry if some of these have already been asked/answered but I've been searching for the past two days and didn't see the answers.
 
1. 10 minutes before the train gets there? The train will be "just passing through", so theres no need to be there crazy early.

2. What security? Walk out on the platform and get on the train when it arrived.

3. I'm confused. What does business class have to do with the schedule? Both are on the same train. You get more leg room and free sodas.
 
3. I'm confused. What does business class have to do with the schedule? Both are on the same train. You get more leg room and free sodas.
At some stations, BC gets priority boarding too. I mean, they announce first boarding for handicapped and BC passengers (ie, cut to the front of the line).
 
I would suggest getting to the station 1 hour before the train departs so you can find your way around sense it's your first time(Amtrak suggests 30 minutes).
 
1. 10 minutes before the train gets there? The train will be "just passing through", so theres no need to be there crazy early.
The Keystone originates in HAR, does it not? It may be possible to board early.

3. I'm confused. What does business class have to do with the schedule? Both are on the same train.
Business class is better on some trains than others. The OP has a choice of taking the Keystone or the Pennsylvanian. If I recall correctly, the Pennsylvanian is more comfortable (Amfleet IIs, 2-1 business class, food service), but only runs once a day, takes longer, and doesn't have as good an OTP. Given that the OP is a business traveller, she almost certainly will be taking the Keystone.
 
1. 10 minutes before the train gets there? The train will be "just passing through", so theres no need to be there crazy early.2. What security? Walk out on the platform and get on the train when it arrived.

3. I'm confused. What does business class have to do with the schedule? Both are on the same train. You get more leg room and free sodas.

It has to do with schedule because some trains don't have a BC. Also if I go from HAR to EWR I go through PHL and business class isn't available on all but one leg out of about 10 possible trains.

So there is no security at all? I know that is how it was about 20 years ago but I thought for sure there would be some by now.
 
1. 10 minutes before the train gets there? The train will be "just passing through", so theres no need to be there crazy early.
The Keystone originates in HAR, does it not? It may be possible to board early.

3. I'm confused. What does business class have to do with the schedule? Both are on the same train.
Business class is better on some trains than others. The OP has a choice of taking the Keystone or the Pennsylvanian. If I recall correctly, the Pennsylvanian is more comfortable (Amfleet IIs, 2-1 business class, food service), but only runs once a day, takes longer, and doesn't have as good an OTP. Given that the OP is a business traveller, she almost certainly will be taking the Keystone.
What is OTP? I'm taking the 44 Pennsylvanian out and the 43 Pennsylvanian back. I decided to out on a Sunday rather than Monday. I usually fly out Monday morning but I'm changing it up a bit for a more relaxed trip. I will miss the FF miles though!
 
I would suggest getting to the station 1 hour before the train departs so you can find your way around sense it's your first time(Amtrak suggests 30 minutes).
Harrisburg doesn't have a very large train station, you can walk through the entire station in 10 minutes and finding the tracks isn't a problem. I would say get there 20 to 30 minutes early since they will start the boarding process roughly 15 minutes before departure, and the further up you are in line the better your chances of getting a seat by yourself.
 
So there is no security at all? I know that is how it was about 20 years ago but I thought for sure there would be some by now.
You may see some Police or other security around, but NOTHING like you will find at the airport! I do not recommend you doing this (or anyone else - including me), but one time I dropped my sister off near the platform at my station and went to park the car. Before I even found a parking place, the train pulled in! :eek: I still made the train! ;)

OTP is On Time Performance. You can check online at amtrak.com or HERE.

If you are on the Pennsylvanian, I certainly would go for business class! :)
 
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It has to do with schedule because some trains don't have a BC. Also if I go from HAR to EWR I go through PHL and business class isn't available on all but one leg out of about 10 possible trains.
You're right, Keystone doesn't have any business class at all. Personally, I would just take the Keystone or the Pennsylvanian all the way to Newark (NWK), and either grab a taxi or one of the bazillilion New Jersey Transit trains to the airport from there, rather than transfering at PHL.

So there is no security at all? I know that is how it was about 20 years ago but I thought for sure there would be some by now.
I suppose there is a very small chance of a random security stop, but it's something I've never personally experienced.
 
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It has to do with schedule because some trains don't have a BC. Also if I go from HAR to EWR I go through PHL and business class isn't available on all but one leg out of about 10 possible trains.
You're right, Keystone doesn't have any business class at all. Personally, I would just take the Keystone or the Pennsylvanian all the way to Newark (NWK), and either grab a taxi or one of the bazillilion New Jersey Transit trains to the airport from there, rather than transfering at PHL.
EWR is also the code for the Amtrak stop at Newark International Airport. NWK is the station in downtown Newark.
 
Thank you so much for everybody's help. I have one more question.

I can also take the Keystone to EWR through PHL. If I do that how much time should I allot between trains. One option is to take the 666 Keystone to PHL then the 88 Northeast Regional to EWR but that is only 9 minutes between trains. That doesn't seem like enough time but Amtrak has that as an option.
 
Thank you so much for everybody's help. I have one more question.
I can also take the Keystone to EWR through PHL. If I do that how much time should I allot between trains. One option is to take the 666 Keystone to PHL then the 88 Northeast Regional to EWR but that is only 9 minutes between trains. That doesn't seem like enough time but Amtrak has that as an option.
If Amtrak offers you this connection, it's guaranteed, meaning that if you miss your connecting train it's Amtrak's problem, not yours. They will re-accomodate you on the next train. On the Northeast Corridor, trains run so often, it's not an issue -- you just hop on the next train. The only situation when it might be an issue is if you book business class, and it's not available on the next train. Then, you'll sit in coach and Amtrak will give you a voucher for the difference.

That said, the best tool for estimating your chances for making a connection is www.amtrakdelays.com. Just enter your train number and station, and you'll get the train's delay history for the last month.

Finally, if you need to get to the Newark Airport (EWR) as opposed to downtown Newark (NWK), it's probably more reliable to go to NWK direct from HAR and catch a New Jersey Transit train from there. Based on my recollection NJT trains run between NWK and EWR about every 10 minutes, the ride only costs a few bucks, and you can pay on the train.
 
Finally, if you need to get to the Newark Airport (EWR) as opposed to downtown Newark (NWK), it's probably more reliable to go to NWK direct from HAR and catch a New Jersey Transit train from there. Based on my recollection NJT trains run between NWK and EWR about every 10 minutes, the ride only costs a few bucks, and you can pay on the train.
While you can pay on the train, it includes IIRC a $5 penalty fee for not buying your tickets in advance. So I'd recommend finding either a ticket agent or a ticket vending machine.
 
While you can pay on the train, it includes IIRC a $5 penalty fee for not buying your tickets in advance. So I'd recommend finding either a ticket agent or a ticket vending machine.
Since we're talking about a business traveler with an expense account, the convenience of hopping on a train that may already be at the platform is probably worth $5.
 
I will be traveling from HAR to NWK.
Also if I go from HAR to EWR I go through PHL and business class isn't available on all but one leg out of about 10 possible trains.
Hi, Biaviian,

I'm confused. Are you traveling to Newark, New Jersey (NWK) or Newark International Airport (EWR)? (You've used both Amtrak codes). They are two separate stations. I suspect that you are actually traveling to Newark, New Jersey, because of your comment on the "10 possible trains".

I can also take the Keystone to EWR through PHL. If I do that how much time should I allot between trains. One option is to take the 666 Keystone to PHL then the 88 Northeast Regional to EWR but that is only 9 minutes between trains. That doesn't seem like enough time but Amtrak has that as an option.
If you are indeed going to Newark International Airport, there is only one train a day going from Harrisburg (HAR) to Newark International Airport (EWR).

The Harrisburg station (HAR) is my "home station", and a quite nice place to start a journey from (not too hectic). My only quibble is that there is no readily accessible parking near the station. You can easily arrive 10 minutes before the train is scheduled to depart, get your ticket at the Quik-Trak, and go down to the waiting train. Because the Keystones originate in Harrisburg, you are likely to be able to get any seat you want. The Pennsylvanian originates in Pittsburgh, so you might have a seatmate (but then you do have the choice of Business Class)!

As long as a trip comes up via amtrak.com without the multi-city option, it is a guaranteed connection and if you miss a connection in Philadelphia, it is up to Amtrak to get you to your destination.
 
Thank you very much for all of your replies/help. I look forward to taking the train rather than flying.
 
Hi, Biaviian,I'm confused. Are you traveling to Newark, New Jersey (NWK) or Newark International Airport (EWR)? (You've used both Amtrak codes). They are two separate stations. I suspect that you are actually traveling to Newark, New Jersey, because of your comment on the "10 possible trains".
I want to go to EWR but if I go to NWK it looks like a nicer ride (business the whole way and no stops). Sorry for the confusion. This first time I'm going to NWK and the next time I'll go to EWR and compare the two. Either way I get picked up by a limo service and drive to northern NJ (woodcliff lake to be exact). When I fly there I fly to EWR so I realize that I will have to get on the rail to make it to ground transportation.

The Harrisburg station (HAR) is my "home station", and a quite nice place to start a journey from (not too hectic). My only quibble is that there is no readily accessible parking near the station.
That is my only issue too. I will just have somebody drop me off the first time and I'll deal with parking the next time. I know where I can park (I forget the name of the garage) but it's about 10 blocks away.
 
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When I fly there I fly to EWR so I realize that I will have to get on the rail to make it to ground transportation.
I'm not sure what you mean by this. If you mean rental cars, there's an Enterprise branch at NWK. It's listed as "1 RAYMOND PLZ W/ PENN STATION NEWARK, NJ 07102" on their website.
 
When I fly there I fly to EWR so I realize that I will have to get on the rail to make it to ground transportation.
I'm not sure what you mean by this. If you mean rental cars, there's an Enterprise branch at NWK. It's listed as "1 RAYMOND PLZ W/ PENN STATION NEWARK, NJ 07102" on their website.
If I go into EWR I have to take the train (Air rail or whatever they call it) to a terminal in order to get ground transportation.
 
I will miss the FF miles though!
Amtrak has a pretty nice rewards program called Amtrak Guest Rewards (AGR), and you can even transfer Amtrak points to Continental OnePass if you have an AGR-branded credit card: http://www.continental.com/web/en-US/conte...nsfer/rail.aspx
I signed up for the rewards and also use OnePass. I wasn't aware that I could transfer points though. That's a great tip!!!
Glad you signed up. You can benefit from this quite a bit. I'm not sure what your status is with OnePass but if you are Elite, I believe you are allowed to wait in the ClubAcela lounges at PHL, NYP, BOS, and WAS. And exchanging points between the two is a great perk. It's a 1 to 1 ratio too so 10,000 miles will get you 10,000 points.

Also be aware that the Pennsylvanian, #42/44 comes from Pittsburgh. It runs on freight owned tracks so its possible it could be late. I don't think that train really has a problem of being late, but at be aware of that fact. All the Keystone's of course originate in Harrisburg so you won't have to worry about that. Just have a backup plan, and don't schedule a meeting 10 minutes after the arrival of the Pennsy. :lol:
 
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