How far in advance to book/pay?

[AZAmtrakfan]

Hi. DW and I have taken four or five long distance Amtrak trips, but it has been many years since. I had written off more since neither of us is in any shape to climb up into an upper bunk. Then, I read something that gave me an idea. Just book two roomettes across the aisle, and we'll both be able to get into and out of bed easily. It actually looks like this is cheaper than a single bedroom, and I couldn't care less about not having my own toilet and shower.

All that aside, I'm considering booking the CZ for September of 2024. It will be train 5 all the way from Chicago to Emeryville. It looks like I'll have to pay in full at time of booking (with full cash refunds up until 121 days prior). If we want to get rooms near the center of the car (3/4 or 5/6), how far in advance should I purchase the tickets? Am I correct in remembering that I'll buy the tickets and then call to have specific rooms assigned? I will welcome any other suggestions regarding how to book and enjoy this (possibly last) Amtrak adventure. Thanks.

 

[pennyk]

There are some that believe (or used to believe) that booking 5 months out will get you the best fare. I personally, book as soon as I am able to do so. I book 11 months out if I know I will be traveling. Since you want roomettes across from each other, I would book as soon as possible and make the reservation on the phone by speaking to an agent. If you are an AGR member, I would phone AGR since their agents are generally more knowledgeable.

Enjoy the trip. The CZ is wonderful.

 

[AZAmtrakfan]

There are some that believe (or used to believe) that booking 5 months out will get you the best fare. I personally, book as soon as I am able to do so. I book 11 months out if I know I will be traveling. Since you want roomettes across from each other, I would book as soon as possible and make the reservation on the phone by speaking to an agent. If you are an AGR member, I would phone AGR since their agents are generally more knowledgeable.

Enjoy the trip. The CZ is wonderful.

Thanks. We'll likely book sooner rather than later. If prices drop prior to 121 days, I'll just cancel and rebook (or ask for a reprice - cruise lines will do that).

What is the advantage of booking through a phone agent versus on-line?

 

[niemi24s]

If prices drop prior to 121 days, I'll just cancel and rebook (or ask for a reprice - cruise lines will do that).

What is the advantage of booking through a phone agent versus on-line?

If you book now at some higher fare and they later drop, call an AGR agent to have your booking MODIFIED to the lower fare - do not use the word cancel unless you want to cancel the whole trip.

At present, the fares for two seniors in two Roomettes can range from $1196.40 to $2902.40 with seven other fares in between.

As you have no control over where a Roomette is located when booking online, you might even end up being assigned Roomettes in two different cars or one upstairs and one downstairs in the same car.

As pennyk stated, book by talking to an AGR agent. If you're not an AGR member, join now. They have a different phone number than the other agents, are generally the most knowledgeable and can even tell you what choices you have for booking two Roomettes across the hall from each other.

Here's the layout of a Superliner Sleeper car:

 

[AZAmtrakfan]

If you book now at some higher fare and they later drop, call an AGR agent to have your booking MODIFIED to the lower fare - do not use the word cancel unless you want to cancel the whole trip.

At present, the fares for two seniors in two Roomettes can range from $1196.40 to $2902.40 with seven other fares in between.

As you have no control over where a Roomette is located when booking online, you might even end up being assigned Roomettes in two different cars or one upstairs and one downstairs in the same car.

As pennyk stated, book by talking to an AGR agent. If you're not an AGR member, join now. They have a different phone number than the other agents, are generally the most knowledgeable and can even tell you what choices you have for booking two Roomettes across the hall from each other.

Here's the layout of a Superliner Sleeper car:
View attachment 34662

Thanks!! I was assuming that if I booked on line that I could then call to arrange/alter assigned room numbers. I haven't booked an Amtrak trip in over ten years, so I may not be remembering that correctly. I did scrounge up our old AGR numbers (once I figured out that AGR meant Amtrak Guest Rewards). We're not quite 65, so won't benefit from the Senior discount next year. I'm seeing around $2200 for the total fare for two of us in two roomettes for September 2024. We'll be in Chicago for other purposes, and I'm looking at this as a REALLY nice alternative to coach air. I'll still wind up with a short flight from Oakland to Phoenix.

 

[AZAmtrakfan]

I've done an on-line mock booking through payment. Nowhere does it let me select a room number or car line number. Is that just randomly assigned by the Amtrak system? If so, can I call and request a change? It's been a decade since I did this. Thanks.

 

[Eric in East County]

As seniors in their late 70s who are no longer up to making a long-distance train trip in coach or a roomette, we now book bedrooms (with their own shower and toilet) exclusively. We also opt for bedrooms in the so called first or prime sleeping cars; the ones that aren’t removed from the consist in the event of an equipment shortage. To be assured of being able to obtain bedrooms in the first sleepers for the travel dates we want, we are now making and paying for our reservations 11 months in advance. (It is our understanding that 11 months out is the earliest that we can make our reservations.) To help pay for our reservations, we take full advantage of the travel points we have accumulated over the years plus any credit vouchers issued to us by Amtrak because of major inconveniences which Amtrak caused us on earlier trips.

One advantage to purchasing our tickets so far in advance is that we will not be subject to any fare increases that occur from the time we make our reservations until we travel. If for some reason, our train is cancelled, we do not request a refund but will contact Amtrak Customer Relations and have them reschedule our reservations to some future date. By the time we do finally travel, the cost of bedroom accommodations is sure to be even higher, but we will only pay what we originally paid for them months earlier.

 

[AZAmtrakfan]

We also opt for bedrooms in the so called first or prime sleeping cars; the ones that aren’t removed from the consist in the event of an equipment shortage.

Would you please educate me as to how I can determine which cars these are? What is a "first or prime" sleeping car? Is it the lowest line number? I see nothing on the Amtrak booking system that offers a "prime" sleeping car.

As seniors in their late 70s who are no longer up to making a long-distance train trip in coach or a roomette, we now book bedrooms (with their own shower and toilet) exclusively.

Just to clarify, it sounds like it is more important to you to have your own toilet than to have accommodations where nobody has to make the risky climb to an upper berth. Is that correct, or do you book two bedrooms for two people?

Thanks.

 

[caravanman]

I don't want to confuse matters, but it can happen...
If you book online and then call later to "change your rooms", you might find that no roomettes opposite each other are still available.
By calling to book, you have all available options laid out before you commit.
There are no special "first class" sleeper cars, all are the same price for that booking, at the time it is made. However, some trains have a "trans dorm" sleeper car, certainly on the Zephyr, towards the engine, which carries crew as well as paying passengers. Some more knowledgeable members here may prefer to choose to be in a sleeper as far from the front of the train as possible, to minimise train horn noise, or to be closest to the dining car for mobility issues, etc. So, one persons "first choice sleeper" may be different to another.
Sadly, in recent times, whole sleeper cars can just get removed from the train at short notice, it sounds from what Eric says that certain numbers are more likely to remain, but I don't know which. (Maybe the trans-dorm might be the best bet, after all! )
You can do a "trial booking" by phone, just pretend you have suddenly misplaced your card when they ask for the payment...
I have ridden the Zephyr many times, and it remains my favourite route by far.

 

[pi314]

As seniors in their late 70s who are no longer up to making a long-distance train trip in coach or a roomette, we now book bedrooms (with their own shower and toilet) exclusively. We also opt for bedrooms in the so called first or prime sleeping cars; the ones that aren’t removed from the consist in the event of an equipment shortage. To be assured of being able to obtain bedrooms in the first sleepers for the travel dates we want, we are now making and paying for our reservations 11 months in advance. (It is our understanding that 11 months out is the earliest that we can make our reservations.) To help pay for our reservations, we take full advantage of the travel points we have accumulated over the years plus any credit vouchers issued to us by Amtrak because of major inconveniences which Amtrak caused us on earlier trips.

One advantage to purchasing our tickets so far in advance is that we will not be subject to any fare increases that occur from the time we make our reservations until we travel. If for some reason, our train is cancelled, we do not request a refund but will contact Amtrak Customer Relations and have them reschedule our reservations to some future date. By the time we do finally travel, the cost of bedroom accommodations is sure to be even higher, but we will only pay what we originally paid for them months earlier.

So there seems to be conflicting information on this thread. How can you determine which sleeper car you are booking in advance and what its priority is in the consist hierarchy?

 

[pparish]

Hi. DW and I have taken four or five long distance Amtrak trips, but it has been many years since. I had written off more since neither of us is in any shape to climb up into an upper bunk. Then, I read something that gave me an idea. Just book two roomettes across the aisle, and we'll both be able to get into and out of bed easily. It actually looks like this is cheaper than a single bedroom, and I couldn't care less about not having my own toilet and shower.

All that aside, I'm considering booking the CZ for September of 2024. It will be train 5 all the way from Chicago to Emeryville. It looks like I'll have to pay in full at time of booking (with full cash refunds up until 121 days prior). If we want to get rooms near the center of the car (3/4 or 5/6), how far in advance should I purchase the tickets? Am I correct in remembering that I'll buy the tickets and then call to have specific rooms assigned? I will welcome any other suggestions regarding how to book and enjoy this (possibly last) Amtrak adventure. Thanks.

I had all the same thoughts you stated in your post and had been watching the fares for Chicago to New Orleans, for late March of 2024, for the past few months. They just kept going up each time I logged onto Amtraks site, with a train that was 10-20% booked. On advice from wonderful travelers in this forum, I decided to book (paying in full) last week and called an agent first to ensure I had 2 roomettes across from each other for my 73 year old husband and myself (65). Also, from other advice in this forum, I did not book thru Amtrak Getaways or Amtrak Vacations, which includes your rail, hotel and excursions in the price. They are third party travel agencies that license use of Amtrak's name and puts together packages. They are not a subsidiary or otherwise affiliated with Amtrak. I was warned that people had been been ripped off on these all inclusive packages. I booked our hotel separately thru Expedia and will book excursions closer to when we leave when I know the weather conditions. Hope this helps. I just wanted the peace of mind I could get what we wanted and it was paid for.

 

[ms garrison]

Hi. DW and I have taken four or five long distance Amtrak trips, but it has been many years since. I had written off more since neither of us is in any shape to climb up into an upper bunk. Then, I read something that gave me an idea. Just book two roomettes across the aisle, and we'll both be able to get into and out of bed easily. It actually looks like this is cheaper than a single bedroom, and I couldn't care less about not having my own toilet and shower.

All that aside, I'm considering booking the CZ for September of 2024. It will be train 5 all the way from Chicago to Emeryville. It looks like I'll have to pay in full at time of booking (with full cash refunds up until 121 days prior). If we want to get rooms near the center of the car (3/4 or 5/6), how far in advance should I purchase the tickets? Am I correct in remembering that I'll buy the tickets and then call to have specific rooms assigned? I will welcome any other suggestions regarding how to book and enjoy this (possibly last) Amtrak adventure. Thanks.

Hubby and I did that several years ago on the CL and it was wonderful. I booked roomettes across from each other; we had dinner together in a room, joined each other when scenery was good one one side. And it was cheaper than a bedroom. I bought our tickets by phone and told the agent what we wanted.

 

[AZAmtrakfan]

Thank you all for the excellent feedback. I'm a newbie on the forum but have been an avid railfan all of my life. I place train travel right up there next to cruising as my holidays of choice. Cruises have more fun stuff to do, but train travel has.....trains!.

There are no special "first class" sleeper cars, all are the same price for that booking, at the time it is made. However, some trains have a "trans dorm" sleeper car, certainly on the Zephyr, towards the engine, which carries crew as well as paying passengers. Some more knowledgeable members here may prefer to choose to be in a sleeper as far from the front of the train as possible, to minimise train horn noise, or to be closest to the dining car for mobility issues, etc. So, one persons "first choice sleeper" may be different to another.

Thanks. Somewhere on the forum I found an old thread about sleepers being removed from the CZ without much advance warning. I seem to remember several posts about line 0532 being the removed car. IIRC, that would be in a train with three full sleepers, and 8032 would be the one closest to the engines. Can somebody clarify if that is correct or not? Thanks.

 

[dlagrua]

There are some that believe (or used to believe) that booking 5 months out will get you the best fare. I personally, book as soon as I am able to do so. I book 11 months out if I know I will be traveling. Since you want roomettes across from each other, I would book as soon as possible and make the reservation on the phone by speaking to an agent. If you are an AGR member, I would phone AGR since their agents are generally more knowledgeable.

Enjoy the trip. The CZ is wonderful.

I share this view for a few reasons. The first being is that we don't have reliable info on when the prices will ever drop or rise. The second is that the sleeper bedrooms are frequently selling out. If we wait until a few months out to book; chances are that something may not be available.
Another factor is that we book our vacation lodging about a year early. Next year we will stay at the Grand Canyon Lodge, If you don't book lodging a year or more in advance, your chances of finding lodging availability are small. This is the same with many National parks; so you book lodging early and now book Amtrak reservations to coincide with the stay. In this case one depends on the other.

 

[Eric in East County]

Would you please educate me as to how I can determine which cars these are? What is a "first or prime" sleeping car? Is it the lowest line number? I see nothing on the Amtrak booking system that offers a "prime" sleeping car.

Just to clarify, it sounds like it is more important to you to have your own toilet than to have accommodations where nobody has to make the risky climb to an upper berth. Is that correct, or do you book two bedrooms for two people?

Thanks.

The numbers of the first or prime sleeping cars depend upon the train you are riding on. For the Southwest Chief, they are cars 430 eastbound and 330 westbound. (The numbers of the first sleepers for other trains have appeared in earlier threads. If you post a request for these numbers somebody is sure to provide them.) When we make our reservations, we always request to speak to an agent and then specifically indicate that we want bedrooms in cars 430 and 330. We also request bedroom E (which is supposed to give the smoothest ride) if it is still available. (11 months out it usually is.)

And yes, having our own toilet is an important consideration, particularly when we have to answer a "call of nature" during the middle of the night.

I am still able to get up into and down from the top bunk. (Getting down can be little tricky.) On some of our earlier trips, we shared the bottom bunk and, when it becomes necessary, can do so again.

 

[fdaley]

In general the advice here is sound: Book early to be sure of getting the rooms you want, and this makes it easier to plan the other elements of your trip.

Booking early also used to mean that you'd also get the best fare, but that no longer is the case. In fact, you may have to shell out a relatively high fare, so it pays to keep checking online after you've booked and call an agent to "modify" to a lower fare if one becomes available in the final days or weeks.

In our most recent effort to plan a cross-country trip, which would have involved both the Zephyr and Chief in February, Amtrak for some reason (probably limited inventory because of only running a single sleeper) had all of the roomettes on the Chief priced at the two of the highest fare buckets, which we were unwilling to pay, throughout the two-week window we were considering for travel. The prices held at this level from last November until about the beginning of February, at which point we gave up and booked a Plan B vacation that kept us on the east coast. Then in the final two weeks before we'd have traveled, Amtrak apparently realized that few people were willing to pay the high rates on offer, so roomettes on the Chief dropped to the three of the lowest fare buckets for a bunch of the dates we'd been considering. But by then it was too late to scramble to change our plans.

So, perhaps a better strategy is to book early at the higher fare and hope to modify to a lower fare later. But if a bunch of other people do the same thing, the risk goes up that the high fare becomes the final price.

 

[pparish]

From 11/17, when I booked thru today... our fare for 2 roomettes has increase $100.

 

[AZAmtrakfan]

The numbers of the first or prime sleeping cars depend upon the train you are riding on. For the Southwest Chief, they are cars 430 eastbound and 330 westbound. (The numbers of the first sleepers for other trains have appeared in earlier threads. If you post a request for these numbers somebody is sure to provide them.)

Thanks. I did some more searching and found that line 531 is the car least likely to be removed from the Westbound CZ. I called and booked roomettes 5/6 in 531 for next September.

We also request bedroom E (which is supposed to give the smoothest ride) if it is still available. (11 months out it usually is.)

That was the bedroom we requested during our last trip (Eastbound EB way back in 2012). It was very nice, but we decided that having our own toilet just wasn't that important.

And yes, having our own toilet is an important consideration, particularly when we have to answer a "call of nature" during the middle of the night.

I am still able to get up into and down from the top bunk. (Getting down can be little tricky.) On some of our earlier trips, we shared the bottom bunk and, when it becomes necessary, can do so again.

Please be safe friend. Climbing down from the upper bunk in the middle of the night, perhaps after a cocktail or two after dinner, works until it doesn't.

AZAmtrakfan says: "better to have damp PJs than broken hip"

But seriously, to each their own. I'll be exiting my roomette on occasion during the night to walk 15 feet to the bathroom, but there will be no climbing/steps/falls to worry about.

 

[dlagrua]

Another point that I believe has been made (that I will reinforce) is to book early to get the "prime" sleeper. If for any reason a sleeper needs to be removed there is less chance the the prime sleeper will be the choice. If you decide to re-book for a lower cost you may be moved to the secondary sleeper. The shortage of sleepers will probably continue for the foreseeable future.

 

[pparish]

Hi. DW and I have taken four or five long distance Amtrak trips, but it has been many years since. I had written off more since neither of us is in any shape to climb up into an upper bunk. Then, I read something that gave me an idea. Just book two roomettes across the aisle, and we'll both be able to get into and out of bed easily. It actually looks like this is cheaper than a single bedroom, and I couldn't care less about not having my own toilet and shower.

All that aside, I'm considering booking the CZ for September of 2024. It will be train 5 all the way from Chicago to Emeryville. It looks like I'll have to pay in full at time of booking (with full cash refunds up until 121 days prior). If we want to get rooms near the center of the car (3/4 or 5/6), how far in advance should I purchase the tickets? Am I correct in remembering that I'll buy the tickets and then call to have specific rooms assigned? I will welcome any other suggestions regarding how to book and enjoy this (possibly last) Amtrak adventure. Thanks.

I just checked again today, the 2 roomettes I booked on 11/17 has increased $400.00+.

 

[uncleboots]

I take my big yearly trip late September-early October. I purchase my Sleeping Car Tickets late January-early February.