Coast Starlight- Kiddie Car, Free DigEPlayer?

[Eris]

When we rode the Coast Starlight a year ago March, we spent a fair amount of time in the kiddie car/play room- it was run down and dingy, but allowed my small kids some space to move. This year March, though, the kiddie car was gone, but I note that Amtrak's web page for the Coast Starlight still lists it. Has anyone ridden the Starlight recently and know if the play room has been there or not? We're travelling southbound in a couple of weeks...

That page also says, "*For a limited time the Coast Starlight is offering complimentary DigEplayers as part of the enhanced Sleeping Car service"... don't suppose anyone knows if THAT is outdated or current, and if it's current, how to get one?

 

[Penn Central]

Well, the "Kiddie Car" was a converted coach/baggage car. Given the current baggage car crisis, it is quite possible that Amtrak is going to use these cars the way they were intended. This may or may not be true, but that is the logical thing for Amtrak to do(No rhyme intended). However, given that they're scrapping MHC's instead of at least attemping to rebuild them into baggage cars, Amtrak seems not to use common sense when it comes to baggage cars.

 

[Guest]

Yes, just rode 14 and we got 2 free digEplayers. May I say that it was great and we were so happily surprised with Amtrak's enhanced service and my kids did't make a peep even though we were delayed several hours.

 

[Eris]

Hey, wow! How did you get them? Do I need to do anything special?

 

[AlanB]

Hey, wow! How did you get them? Do I need to do anything special?

Details about the free Digi-Players can be found in this Amtrak Press Release.

 

[AlanB]

When we rode the Coast Starlight a year ago March, we spent a fair amount of time in the kiddie car/play room- it was run down and dingy, but allowed my small kids some space to move. This year March, though, the kiddie car was gone, but I note that Amtrak's web page for the Coast Starlight still lists it. Has anyone ridden the Starlight recently and know if the play room has been there or not? We're travelling southbound in a couple of weeks...

Well, the "Kiddie Car" was a converted coach/baggage car. Given the current baggage car crisis, it is quite possible that Amtrak is going to use these cars the way they were intended. This may or may not be true, but that is the logical thing for Amtrak to do(No rhyme intended). However, given that they're scrapping MHC's instead of at least attemping to rebuild them into baggage cars, Amtrak seems not to use common sense when it comes to baggage cars.

As of right now the Kiddie cars are still carried on Amtrak's roster as such. There are only 5 of them however, so if one or more is out for inspection or repairs, it is possible to not have one on your run. However, AFAIK, as of last October the kiddie cars no longer have any special games and stuff in them. You can still use them to allow the kids to play in the area, but you'll have to bring your own toys, games, and such.

As for baggage coaches, AFAIK Amtrak has converted most of the Smoker Coaches back over to baggage coaches, so they don't really need to convert the kiddie cars over.

 

[Guest]

Anyone have pictures of the inside or outside of the kiddie cars?

 

[Eris]

I thought I had or could find pictures of the kiddie-car, but apparently not!

It's just a room downstairs in a coach car, where in other coach cars there is lower-level coach. When we were there a year ago March, it had a train table but no train, some plastic toy vehicles which had seen better days, a tv whose cable had been pulled out, so you couldn't watch videos that might otherwise be playable on the VCR across the room. There's a bench lining the walls, for parents to sit on. There may have been a small basket of other toys.

 

[TransAtlantic]

No pic here, but the kiddie cars are simply carpeted walls and floor, with long metal (rounded, and low, so not too much danger) benches running along each side; the end of movies in the lounge cars has also apparently meant the end of cartoons and such in the kiddie cars, so bring a few toys or games...