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Abbynormal I too am in my 60s.

I take a long distance train trip at least yearly.

I move about the train quite a bit.

Use Amsnag Version 2 http://biketrain.net/amsnag2.0/amSnag.php to check pricing on the dates you want to or can travel.

I'm in the habit of booking a Roomette for only part of my long distance train trips. To do so I book a Multi-City ticket. It took me a few tries to master booking a Multi-City ticket but master it didn't take to much practice to figure it out.

Note that can be some advantages to booking the outgoing leg of a train trip separate from the return trip.

I usually ride the California Zephyr from Ottumwa (OTM) to Sacramento (SAC).

The westbound train gets to OTM in the early evening, so I eat dinner in Ottumwa before I board the train and I book a coach seat from Ottumwa to Denver (DEN) overnight.

I book a roomette from Denver to SAC. Denver is a 40 minute or so service stop so I have plenty of time to move from coach to my sleeper accommodation.

On my return I book a Roomette from SAC to DEN and again ride in coach from DEN back to OTM.

So I booked a multi-city reservation from OTM to DEN (in coach on Monday)

DEN to SAC (on Tuesday, and we arrived at SAC on Wednesday).

This last May my long distance train trip goal was to ride 4 different Amtrak trains.

It is a bit trickier to book because the Sunset Limited/Texas Eagle only runs between LA and San Antonio 3 days a week.

Train #1 was the Southwest Chief from Galesburg, IL (GBB) to LA (LAX). I rode in coach (2 nights) the whole way, leaving GBB late afternoon on Monday and arriving at LAX about 8 AM Wednesday morning. After 2 nights in a row in coach I was sufficiently rested.

I then rode the Sunset Limited/Texas Eagle from LA to Alpine, TX (ALP) in a Sunset Limited (train #2) sleeper car Roomette.

At ALP I moved to the Texas Eagle (train #3) coach car for the 2 night ride to Chicago (CHI).

I had a Business Class ticket booked from CHI to GBB so I would have access to the Metropolitan Lounge at Chicago Union Station (CUS).

Amtrak train #4 was the state supported Illinois Zephyr. I got back to GBB on Saturday evening.
 
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Boy am I new to this, and just realize
Speaking of airlines - I've been meaning to ask this. I'm looking a taking a trip to the west coast and want to make at least one connection, maybe two. When booking online, can I choose different classes on the 2-3 planes? If so, at what point do they show the upcharge?

Depends on the airline. I think Delta allows that now. Not sure about others, as they are all I fly whenever possible.
 
Welcome! One of the more perplexing things about Amtrak for the newcomer may be ticket prices - it's fairly complex and (I'm told) based on supply and demand. And none of us outside of Amtrak really knows what the supply or demand is. But after keeping track of prices for the various accommodations for a few years, here's a nutshell introduction:

• Your ticket price is composed of the Coach fare and any additional charge for a sleeper (Roomette, Bedroom or possibly Family Bedroom)

• For any trip, there are 6 different Coach prices and 5 different prices for each of the sleepers (with the exception of the Auto Train which has one more of each)

• Which one of those different prices you pay depends on the date the travel begins

• The lowest Coach fare is the Saver Fare and (if offered at all) is offered only for travel booked 2 weeks in advance.

• Each successive Coach fare is very nearly 25% above the previous one, so their progression is a geometric one.

• Each successive Sleeper fare is very nearly a fixed amount above the previous one, so their progression is an arithmetic one.

• When buying a Sleeper, the Coach fare you also pay is always the second highest Coach fare - even if the prevailing Coach fare alone is the most expensive.

• Sleeper upcharges are independent of each other (are not linked). In other words you may find a day when each of the upcharges is at a different level. You may also find a day when a Family Bedroom is at its lowest price and cheaper than a Roomette at its highest price!

All these words may make a little more sense when looking at these prices for the Empire Builders route:

4 May 2017 EB Fare Buckets.jpg

Again, this is a nutshell description with many aspects omitted. Hope it helps you understand why a tickets cost can vary so much depending upon the date of travel.
 
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Boy am I new to this, and just realized the Amtrak website does NOT give you Round-trip fares even if you click on RT. Ok, so more money, not sure I'll be able to afford it. I'll keep researching though;)
Check Amsnag out. You can search which days will have cheaper Amtrak fares, over as much as a 30 day consecutive period at once(most days that site allows you to compare at once). And it works for more than just coach fares, since you also can check sleeper and business class(if the train you're riding offers that). Someone brought up wi-fi, so I'll note that the Coast Starlight only has wi-fi if you have access to the Pacific Parlor Car. Which btw is only sleeper passengers, and anyone in business class(allegedly have heard CS has business class which'd be cheaper vs. a sleeper, but hadn't been able to confirm that). Empire Builder and California Zephyr(in case you connect in Portland or Sacramento to one of these trains) don't have wi-fi whatsoever, just FYI. All the shorter distance Amtrak trains(Cascades, San Joaquin, Capitol Corridor, and yes any other one I'm forgetting only within California) have wi-fi, though.

If you live just south of the OR/CA border, I'd agree Klamath Falls, OR probably has the better arrival times vs. the Coast Starlight stops in very northern California(Dunsmuir(sp?), Redding, etc). And whoops, I almost forgot to add the link for Amsnag! Here you go(note you do need to know the 3 letter code for the Amtrak station you're leaving from and traveling to, in order to use this site):

http://biketrain.net/amsnag2.0/amSnag.php
 
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Welcome aboard!

Lots of our members live in rural and remote areas away from Amtrak Stations,and some even live in other Countries, so must travel great distances to ride Amtrak!
Yep! 11,954 km [6,455 nm] from my house to my nearest Amtrak station [Oakland/Emeryville]. Still I managed to enjoy just most of the LD trains in my 6 weeks in the USA a few years ago.
 
There are two versions of AmSnag:

• Version 1, via the link in Post #27, is currently unavailable. When available, it displays Coach and Sleeper fares separately as shown below in this now-outdated query:

CHIswcLAXa.jpg

• Version 2, via the link in Post #30, shows the combined Coach + Sleeper fares.

If there is any flexibility in your prospective date of travel, AmSnag will let you choose a date with the lowest possible fare. But AmSnag does not (AFAIK) show any of the several discounts available from Amtrak. So use AmSnag to select a date with the best fare and then use the Amtrak website to apply the discounts to find the actual ticket price.
 
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