How to get 2 people with different tickets into the same car?

[Sam31452]

We will be meeting a Friend in PHI who has spontaneously decided that he will travel with us (2) to Boston.

As I have already reserved my tickets but have no clue about the car number (as I'm using a Railpass) I somehow have to make sure he gets into the same car as we do. What is the best way to do that?

Should I buy his ticket?

 

[Acela150]

All seats are on a first come first serve basis. You are not assigned a certain car or seat. The only case you have an assigned car is if your ticket says Business Class. Or on Acela your ticket will say Express First. Since you already have a railpass you're fine, as far as your friend ask him if he already has bought a ticket. If not you should work that out between you two.

I'm taking 176 on Friday. Which is a 1:58pm departure. But depending on what train you will be taking I strongly suggest getting to 30th Street Station about 90 minutes before your train as the ticket counter is pretty busy all day. But keep in mind you can use the quik-trak machines.

Enjoy Your Trip,

Stephen

 

[the_traveler]

As Acela150 said, all seats on the NEC are unassigned. So just agree to meet (for example) "in car #5". And if there are no open seats, you all could move to "car 3" or "car 6"!

BTW - did you mean PHL (Philadelphia), not PHI?

 

[Acela150]

30th Street has many great meeting spots. Such as the information booth where the solari board is. The army statue. Any of the stairways. (1-10) When my brother picks me up when I visit him for a day I always tell him to meet me at Stairway 9. But the best place in my mind is the information booth where the solari board is. If you can't meet on the concourse I suggest the cafe car. Easy to find people because the cafe car has the least amount of passengers in the car.

Stephen

 

[jis]

If your group has more than 2 people and you are on a Regional I'd recommend meeting up in the cafe car and sit at a table for the journey. That way you get to have a conversation, perhaps over a drink or two. The conductor will happily take your ticket and stick a seat check above you and let you be. I have done this many times even when I am traveling alone and could not find a window seat in the rest of the train.

 

[Guest]

I somehow have to make sure he gets into the same car as we do. What is the best way to do that?

Call your friend on our cell phone? Unlike planes, you can use cell phones on Amtrak, and you should have no problem getting a signal when at a station.

"Hay Tim, we are in the car with the stained purple seats"

 

[Green Maned Lion]

If your group has more than 2 people and you are on a Regional I'd recommend meeting up in the cafe car and sit at a table for the journey. That way you get to have a conversation, perhaps over a drink or two. The conductor will happily take your ticket and stick a seat check above you and let you be. I have done this many times even when I am traveling alone and could not find a window seat in the rest of the train.

Not that Cafe seats are much easier to find. But yeah, I was gonna suggest that. Failing availible seats, you meet there and go elsewhere.

 

[Long Train Runnin']

Well Arnt there some Amfleet I with the set of 4 facing seats the end of each car so if you can't sit in the cafe you might be able to get a set of those seats.

 

[battalion51]

Generally the only time an Amfleet would have four seats facing each other would be on a Keystone train or the Vermonter where half the seats face one way, and the other half face the other. Amfleets don't have set areas that will always have seats facing each other like on the Acela.

 

[Upstate]

Generally the only time an Amfleet would have four seats facing each other would be on a Keystone train or the Vermonter where half the seats face one way, and the other half face the other. Amfleets don't have set areas that will always have seats facing each other like on the Acela.

I was on #66 last summer and we had a set of four facing seats.

 

[battalion51]

I said generally. :lol: There will always be exceptions to the rule.

 

[Crescent ATN & TCL]

Generally the only time an Amfleet would have four seats facing each other would be on a Keystone train or the Vermonter where half the seats face one way, and the other half face the other. Amfleets don't have set areas that will always have seats facing each other like on the Acela.

I was on #66 last summer and we had a set of four facing seats.

Any seat can be easily turned to create 4 facing seats, most SA's are nice enough to move them for you, Some not so much. If they decide to be un-helpful do it yourself, there's a foot pedal below the armrest, push it down pull the seat toward you, rotate, and push back until you feel it lock.

 

[battalion51]

It's generally not recommended that you just do it yourself. It could be very dangerous, and can hurt you. A group turned a set around on the Acela when I was on board, and the Conductor promptly turned them back around. Check with someone, before you do it.

 

[Long Train Runnin']

Okay I am not like super good with remember details but I feel like every AMI car has 2 sets of 4 seats at the one end of the car. I might be wrong but I seem to think so...

 

[jis]

One thing that people are forgetting is that on a typical loaded Northeast Regional that one is trying to board from an intermediate stop, it is pretty unlikely that you will find two adjacent rows of seats vacant to even try to turn anything around to make a four-seater. Often you will be lucky to find two seats next to each other.