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My Amtrak Experience.
- Thread starter Jack Boudreaux
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Department of Transportation. (Seriously, how could you not remember that?)
rrdude
Engineer
Alan, I wish to say VERY PUBLICLY, that unless insults are slung personally, and repeatedly, DO NOT CLOSE THIS THREAD! Don't like it, don't read it.
It is in NO WAY counter-productive. To whom I ask? Those who don't like the tone? Don't read it.
GML is a good wordsmyth, and I admire his intellect, but asking to shut down a thread, no, no way.
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W
what are you afraid of?
Guest
Why close the thread? There are a lot of interesting observations and voices here. They shouldn't be denied a chance to voice their opinions just because you as the chief Amtrakapologist don't like to hear them!
ALC Rail Writer
Engineer
I wouldn't close it, but it is counter-rpoductive.
How hard is it to get that your Attendant isn't employed by the Feds.
How hard is it to get that your Attendant isn't employed by the Feds.
Green Maned Lion
Engineer
I'm starting a business turning car seats into office chairs and attempting to sell them. Pursuant to this, I have spent the past week in 80-95° heat breaking my back in a U-Pull-It yard in Pennsylvania pulling car seats out of cars. For some reason, I also didn't sleep last night.
I have had moments where I can't remember my own name, let alone the department of government that owns Amtrak.
Because all I am hearing is a bunch of Amtrak bashing by somebody with limited knowledge, and no apparent desire to gain any, being backed up by a few people here who have knowledge and agree with him, or rather think they do.
I am not an Amtrak apologist. Amtrak has numerous problems, most of them imposed by the bounds of reality and extreme underfunding.
This person is sitting here, posting luxury rail cruises that maybe one out of ten thousand people in India can afford (I'd never spend money on them, they cost so much!), and somehow indicating that Amtrak is a failure because they don't live up to those standards. Foolish fool foolishly fooling with folly. It isn't a reasonable observation, or a reasonable point. It's just bughouse.
Somehow, having a sleeping car attendant that is a bit lazy means we have worse rail service than the third world...? Amtrak has lazy attendants. What do you expect? Amtrak attendants are American and most American's are amazingly lazy. Having some of those lazy louse working at Amtrak... is entirely predictable.
Although there are less of them then I would expect.
And then, clearly the fact that this Mr. Jack here had a bad sleeping car attendant on his train is indicative that all of Amtrak, as an entire organization, is dysfunctional and shouldn't exist. Uh?
Let's get Rush Limbaugh to make a post in here. Then we can take Jack's silliness, add it to Limbaugh's silliness, and have a more complete silliness.
O/P sorry that the service was so poor and things like a/c didn't work when they should. I have had limited experience with Amtrak and it has all been good but I can imagine the things the O/P stated happening.
Making wild comparisons (to third world trains in India) and comparing one's experience to trains used for Holocaust victims decreases a person's credibility and reasonableness. My initial reaction to those comparisons is that the holder of those opinions has unreasonable expectations. The most effective way to address the complaints was dismissed. It is very difficult to discern how credible the original complaint really is.
Dan
Making wild comparisons (to third world trains in India) and comparing one's experience to trains used for Holocaust victims decreases a person's credibility and reasonableness. My initial reaction to those comparisons is that the holder of those opinions has unreasonable expectations. The most effective way to address the complaints was dismissed. It is very difficult to discern how credible the original complaint really is.
Dan
GML.
Off line I discussed the break down of the two sides to this thread. There has for some time been a set of people here. Obviously ardent supporters of Amtrak on whom any form of complaint about service or comparison to previous eras of operation are loudly denounced as foolish and unrealistic. Then there are some of us who rode many of the railroads, even though in the fading days, for whom a point of comparison is available. If you may recall the pullman ads of the 40's or 50's most show everyday people, a mother with her children, a elderly couple, the neighbors next door traveling by rail and preferring it to other forms of transportation at the time. You will also see passengers, both coach and pullman who have interesting lounges in which to pass the hours which is a necessary part of rail travel. Another add might show a spiffy diner with decorative touches one might find in a nice restaurant with food to match. This was the way in which rail travel was promoted to the public and was the standard of operation for lines that had any sense of pride of operation. Your contention somehow that any of those expectations are simply those of wildly out of touch americans who are seeking the height of luxury are a bit overboard. They are only the standards that any long distance train worth riding considered necessary for the publics comfort and continued patronage.
I grant you that today is different from yesterday. Much of it is reflected in the attitudes of customers in all forms of transportation. So yes amtrak has a simplified and basic service in comparison to those of old. That basis of service if it were provided with a degree of pride in operation that many railroads had would perhaps be enough to keep the complaints to a minimum. But if you raise fares to the point where the price can reach several thousand one way, your then expected by the public to provide at least a successful and comfortable trip given the equipment and level of service your providing. Most passengers are probably not aware of the back ground of many of the issues plaguing Amtrak. Some are perfectly understandable given the ridiculous management and boards and lack of funding or support by many administrations. However when your accepting peoples hard earned money, and advertising glowing reports of a pleasant trip then your going to be getting some, or even many complaints and the party responsible for that is not the paying public.
We have endlessly pointed out here and in mail to Amtrak the dislike for pre made meals.. (probably a hopeless complaint but often valid).
Toilets that don't flush for most of the trip such as our trip to and from california on both the CZ and the CC. (this one has no excuse. They have had endless complaints and refunds over this for probably 10 years).
Broken and ill repaired doors in sleepers that are most annoying to anyone other than the most ardent fan of rail. (here again a passenger unaware of the issues would be prone to wonder how they were charged such a fare for such conditions.).
Now we have the latest insults, no lounge on some long distance trains, deemed as "non revenue" an unnecessary by those who haven't a clue about the reasons people often travel. Now they are looking at even more limitations to "non revenue" cars. Greatly reduced staffing in diners as well as CCC cars which are not popular but still touted by Amtrak officials as a great success.
Heating an cooling issues which are almost constant issues with the older cars.
These are but a few of the issues found on board for which many riders are not satisfied with their trip.. Instead of degrading the comments, a real supporter of rail transportation that will encourage those new riders to want to come back and tell all their friends about their trip. Do we really want more "never again" senerios. I think Amtrak doesn't want them either, but its been 40 years now and I hate to say, but little has been learned about what the public needs or wants. No private hotel or business or restaurant stays in business unless the offer what the public expects. Amtrak is no different. Please don't encourage their demise.
Off line I discussed the break down of the two sides to this thread. There has for some time been a set of people here. Obviously ardent supporters of Amtrak on whom any form of complaint about service or comparison to previous eras of operation are loudly denounced as foolish and unrealistic. Then there are some of us who rode many of the railroads, even though in the fading days, for whom a point of comparison is available. If you may recall the pullman ads of the 40's or 50's most show everyday people, a mother with her children, a elderly couple, the neighbors next door traveling by rail and preferring it to other forms of transportation at the time. You will also see passengers, both coach and pullman who have interesting lounges in which to pass the hours which is a necessary part of rail travel. Another add might show a spiffy diner with decorative touches one might find in a nice restaurant with food to match. This was the way in which rail travel was promoted to the public and was the standard of operation for lines that had any sense of pride of operation. Your contention somehow that any of those expectations are simply those of wildly out of touch americans who are seeking the height of luxury are a bit overboard. They are only the standards that any long distance train worth riding considered necessary for the publics comfort and continued patronage.
I grant you that today is different from yesterday. Much of it is reflected in the attitudes of customers in all forms of transportation. So yes amtrak has a simplified and basic service in comparison to those of old. That basis of service if it were provided with a degree of pride in operation that many railroads had would perhaps be enough to keep the complaints to a minimum. But if you raise fares to the point where the price can reach several thousand one way, your then expected by the public to provide at least a successful and comfortable trip given the equipment and level of service your providing. Most passengers are probably not aware of the back ground of many of the issues plaguing Amtrak. Some are perfectly understandable given the ridiculous management and boards and lack of funding or support by many administrations. However when your accepting peoples hard earned money, and advertising glowing reports of a pleasant trip then your going to be getting some, or even many complaints and the party responsible for that is not the paying public.
We have endlessly pointed out here and in mail to Amtrak the dislike for pre made meals.. (probably a hopeless complaint but often valid).
Toilets that don't flush for most of the trip such as our trip to and from california on both the CZ and the CC. (this one has no excuse. They have had endless complaints and refunds over this for probably 10 years).
Broken and ill repaired doors in sleepers that are most annoying to anyone other than the most ardent fan of rail. (here again a passenger unaware of the issues would be prone to wonder how they were charged such a fare for such conditions.).
Now we have the latest insults, no lounge on some long distance trains, deemed as "non revenue" an unnecessary by those who haven't a clue about the reasons people often travel. Now they are looking at even more limitations to "non revenue" cars. Greatly reduced staffing in diners as well as CCC cars which are not popular but still touted by Amtrak officials as a great success.
Heating an cooling issues which are almost constant issues with the older cars.
These are but a few of the issues found on board for which many riders are not satisfied with their trip.. Instead of degrading the comments, a real supporter of rail transportation that will encourage those new riders to want to come back and tell all their friends about their trip. Do we really want more "never again" senerios. I think Amtrak doesn't want them either, but its been 40 years now and I hate to say, but little has been learned about what the public needs or wants. No private hotel or business or restaurant stays in business unless the offer what the public expects. Amtrak is no different. Please don't encourage their demise.
RailFanLNK
Conductor
I don't see why Amtrak couldn't add a hot tub in the lower level coach area where the luggage storage is that hasn't been replaced with the handicapped seating. Maybe a big screen tv and maybe even workshops for passengers on "how to build things on a moving train" etc to keep one entertained! I would literally love it if someone could wave a "fan" in front of my face as they fed me grapes as I sat in the hot tub watching ESPN. Maybe a Broadway musical in the Sightseer Lounge car with the real actors providing the entertainment. I don't understand how things like this can't be done with the budget they operate on!
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Larry,
I agree with most of what you said, and that's despite the fact that while old enough to have traveled on trains pre-Amtrak I never had that chance as my parents found it too expensive for us.
And has often been noted, much of what you've mentioned could be helped by having more funding, even though there really is no excuse for so many things being wrong right out of the yard.
But I do have to take issue with the quoted text. While it is true that it was Amtrak that picked what routes to drop the lounge from, that wasn't something that Amtrak wanted to do willingly. That was forced upon them by a Congress that doesn't understand exactly what you said "why people travel on trains." Yes Amtrak may well be continuing to spin those changes to some extent, but that's pretty much what they have to do. After all they aren't going to sell tickets by pretending that the CCC isn't an improvement.
Finally, to Amtrak's credit and thanks to less Congressional interference, Amtrak is rolling back on some of those cuts. There are many more meal options today where some of the food is actually cooked on board once again, as compared to 3 & 4 years ago. They have plans to pull the CCC off the Capitol Limited and return a full diner, the lounge is back on the Eagle and it seems the City of NOL too. Glassware has returned to the Coast Starlight and I'm hearing that plans are underway to do that on a few more runs. And perhaps most important is that Amtrak made a major change to the staffing formula's about 2 years ago IIRC.
While staffing in the diner is still less than it used to be 30 years ago, on sold out trains and trains that are at least 3/4ths full, the staffing levels in the dining cars are up from the earlier lows that we saw when SDS was first introduced.
sunchaser
Conductor
I must admit that if I had not found this board before we took our first trip, we would have been very angry & disappointed. Why? Because I had a flawed, more romantic concept of riding the train..I had never been on a train before, had seen them in the movies, & was going by the info on Amtrak's website. Basically I had rose colored glasses on.
The reality is~
Amtrak is not like the old 'high end' more exclusive trains. Examples could be anything from serving regional dishes along the route, to being able to get a haircut & shave onboard.
Given that, I still like Amtrak, but there is room for improvement.
We've all gone over the lists of improvements needed.
Some are very simple, & cheap, some are not.
As to staff, you can go to almost any business & have contact with an employee that is not doing their job, is rude or lazy.
I'm sure that most of us have experienced something that was not 'as advertised' & been let down besides riding Amtrak. How many times has any of us bought a new movie & when we haven't seen it? The trailer shows one thing, then when you watch it, it's not nearly as good as you thought it would be. Too late, you've bought it, opened it, it's yours.
The reality is~
Amtrak is not like the old 'high end' more exclusive trains. Examples could be anything from serving regional dishes along the route, to being able to get a haircut & shave onboard.
Given that, I still like Amtrak, but there is room for improvement.
We've all gone over the lists of improvements needed.
Some are very simple, & cheap, some are not.
As to staff, you can go to almost any business & have contact with an employee that is not doing their job, is rude or lazy.
I'm sure that most of us have experienced something that was not 'as advertised' & been let down besides riding Amtrak. How many times has any of us bought a new movie & when we haven't seen it? The trailer shows one thing, then when you watch it, it's not nearly as good as you thought it would be. Too late, you've bought it, opened it, it's yours.
Alan,
I agree with everything you have said. I think that all of us who would wish the best for passenger rail understand some of the issues they face. I have no doubt that if they had been able to provide a service that would have encouraged more return passengers over the years that they would be in better shape than they are in. But too we both know all of it is not their fault. Its odd how a non governmental service is so controlled by that very body? What most of us would hope for is that some sense of quality of service and equipment would return. Really that is mostly what all this is about. If I stay at a hotel I was unhappy with, I don't stay their again if there is any choice in the matter. Amtrak is in the position of being the only choice and some times operates like it. Those who defend that stance most likely haven't worked much with the public.
And to RAilfans comments. Its typical of those who somehow think that offering basic services well is somehow expecting the moon. No one has called for luxury service such as the Orient express. Many have called for at least their expectations of a comfortable, enjoyable trip to be met, and sometimes that is not the case. Its kind of like your choice in accommodations on land. If you stay at the Ritz your going to pay for things that the Motel six won't provide. If I am paying several thousand dollars for a rail trip I do not expect to be at motel six. But even at motel six they probably worry about wether the toilets are working and the heat and air are up to snuff.
sunchaser
Conductor
Larry,
Last october we did a run by train to Glenwood Springs. We booked a fairly nice hotel well in advance. When we arrived, we found out that the room we booked, a king deluxe, had some sort of a problem. We ended up with a double queen deluxe & a discount. Things can happen out of Amtrak's control. But, if it's an ongoing problem, it should be fixed, period. That just makes sense. The toilet problem is a prime example. It can't be very healthy for pax or employees to deal with that all the time.
G
guest
Guest
Not very funny. Try again.
ALC Rail Writer
Engineer
I would think that could be debated, at least one person wanted 600-fiber sheets, then proceeded to call another poster a fool for having a bad experience and saying they would give Amtrak another shot... posted pictures of luxury trains and private varnish and asked "if they can do that why can't we" ...
In truth any ad of a new 50's streamliners designed for long distance travel would have photos that would run rings around the current design standards. Some of that is no doubt due to lawyers and liability issues that were not so common in that day. However what might appear to look like luxury to many who are accustomed to todays bench seating was the norm and not seen as lavish by any stretch. Even in the early 60's when I traveled from Kansas City in college I used to admire the Santa Fe cars parked at the terminal next too us. A lounge with bookcases for reading and comfortable overstuffed seating with reading lamps on end tables. The union pacific Cites trains had diners in the dome, no one thought it was luxury, they just found it to be appealing to the passenger. The UP did have first class lounges with card rooms, domes, overstuffed sofas for viewing and writing desk with postcards to send notes to friends from On board the train. The empire builder even in coach had wonderful imaginative indian designed themes though out the cars and coffee shop lounge. Hardly people traveling with expensive budgets but still the railroad felt that travel was partly an experience to be enjoyed. That may be where we differ so today. Today its about 'hauling" people with as little "non revenue" help and equipment as possible, and that is part of the large disappointed often expressed here.
When someone writes to say they felt they didn't receive their moneys worth, they shouldn't then be attacked by people who insult them as being out of touch. I have an underlying suspicion that some of this mimics the class warfare so common in todays politics. When you don't agree with someone you degrade them and attempt to make them look like the problem. The problem often is with Amtrak and they should and perhaps have been working to correct it.
I have taken many trips that were enjoyable over all. I too am a hard core fan, and would probably put up with many things the average person would find irritating. But I can't just over look things that should and could be standard operating procedures but are allowed to go unprepared after repeated complaints. People used to say the "buck stops here", but often at amtrak I can't figure out where the buck is?
ALC Rail Writer
Engineer
When they start comparing their personal travels with the Holocaust I think that means they are indeed out of touch.
No problem there. I don't recall if that occurred after their complaints were chastised or not without going back to look Either way the comment was out place and inconsiderate at best, but it may have been a knee jerk reaction to the replies they were receiving. One might expect from fans of rail travel a sense of understanding which unfortunately can be lacking here with some.
ALC Rail Writer
Engineer
It was after he was told not to expect pampering. Then calling people Amtrak employees, clearly misinformed about who employees these people, and somewhere in there the word 'Holocaust' appeared.
I will write more after he posts yet another repsponse.
I will write more after he posts yet another repsponse.
ALC Rail Writer
Engineer
Actually it was post number 16, thats how fast it went.
Agreed. Quality control is partially money based, but also people based. Far too many little things seem to often be let go. Sometimes I think that part of the later issue however is lack of time since the cars are run so hard & often, but still I do believe that they could do better.
You couldn't have known this, but you couldn't have possibly picked a worse example than Motel 6. Let me start by saying that I'm reasonably sure that what we encountered was an aberration, and not the norm, but still the OTOL gang many years ago did have a toilet issue at a Motel 6. There were many other issues too, like being charged up front for the room, not honoring the rates that were booked online, and that we had inadvertently hit a hotel in Boston that catered to John's and their companions.
But to the crux of the story. One of my good friends a fellow named Mike (aka Albany Mike here) whom many on the forum know and met last October is legally blind. He has some vision, but no peripheral vision. So if your standing directly in front of him, he can see you. Take two steps to the side and he wouldn't know that you're there, unless you said something.
After a day of riding trains in Boston, we all trooped out to this hotel and after the check in fiasco, poor Mike goes to his room, empties his bladder, and flushes the toilet. Immediately Mike is taking a shower.
Something has broken on the toilet and water is flying every where. Poor Mike is down on hand & knees with his limited vision trying to find the shut off valve to the toilet. He succeeds in that, dries off, and calls the front desk for help.They inform him that they have no one on duty who can deal with that problem at 10:00 PM on a Friday night. Mike then requests being transferred to a new room. They inform him that they have no empty rooms. Personally I think that was a lie, but I'm not 100% sure. Mike asks, "Well what do you expect me to do for a bathroom then?" Their answer to again a man who is legally blind, and they know this, is to step out of his room (this is an outside hall hotel setup, not an inside hall), walk past 10 other rooms, turn left through a central corridor between the two hotel buildings, turn right, walk past another dozen rooms, turn left and walk across a small parking lot to the nearby restaurant that's open 24/7.
Well Mike did avail himself of that option for those times he needed to sit down, but otherwise he took to doing his business in the tub.
In the morning, he went down to the office to talk with them, to ensure that either they would have things fixed or find him another room. We get back on Saturday night, toilet hasn't been fixed, and they still can't move him to another room. (From what we could figure out, the manager didn't want to pay a plumber Saturday rates to fix things.)
Mike is not a happy camper and asks to speak with the manager. No manager is on duty, but Mike is informed that the manager will be on duty in the morning. Mike wakes up early to go down a lodge a formal protest with the manager and is expecting some compensation obviously for his troubles. IIRC, we all had to pay $89 per night for those rooms at that time several years ago. After hearing Mike's story and making only very minimal apologies for the problems, the manager offers to take $10 off his total bill.
Not $10 per night, not one night free, just 10 bucks in total.Mike is now furious, especially since he's worked in customer service positions for many years, still does in fact today, as he currently works for Marriott Corp as a reservation agent. Mike says "if that's the best you can do, I'm calling corporate." Manager says, "well then you get nothing." and walks away leaving Mike just standing there with his cane.
Now again, I will grant you that this was without a doubt an aberration, but it's just so funny that you used Motel 6 in your example as it's obviously not always that rosy. By the way, ever since that fateful trip, OTOL fest members have sworn off Motel 6's. We've used many others, and over the years with the advent of AGR points, many of us now look specifically for hotels that give AGR points.
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Re Motel 6. I went to a family reunion one year and booked Motel 6 w/ credit card. Showed up around 9 PM and they said they didn't have my room but another Motel 6 about 20 miles up the road would help me. Hmm...but everyone is staying at THIS Motel 6. I had to stay at a place that cost more but I did write corporate and got a voucher for a free night to be used within the next year. I think I about broke even on the whole thing as the other motel was more and we stayed there two nights. I still use Motel 6 but it is irksome that a reservation w/ credit card means nothing.
Dan
Dan
ALC Rail Writer
Engineer
I really wish people instead of focusing on the "thousands of dollars" paid would instead do cost-benefit analysis, which you should have done before you even booked the room much less after the trip is done and mope about on a platform.
I performed a hypothetical booking for my mother and I from CHI-LAX on July 3rd, on the SWC with a Deluxe Bedroom/Bedroom.
Cost: $1297
Let's break that down, shall we?
The coach fare for two is currently $368, by purchasing the room we save $76 off the top. We also get Dinner-Breakfast-Lunch-Dinner-Breakfast comped, about $70 worth of food, twice. That's another $140, gone.
That means we are paying $1081 for the sleeper service (ie, the privacy, beds, private shower, ect.) $1081 divided by two is $540.50. This is a 43 hour trip, which if you divide that number by 43 you get $12.57.
That's it. Each of us is paying $12.57 per hour to have the all of the amenities of a sleeper. Compare that to the amenities of coach, and well, that's up to you if its worth it. Personally with my mom if its overnight we must get a sleeper, however, I would not pay for the deluxe bedroom in this case or may alter my dates because the above is not worth it IMHO.
Now let's look at the complaints we have here:
No/broken A/C
Broken toilets
Lack of lounges
Uncleanliness
Well if the A/C breaks en route, that is Amtrak's fault. But the OBS can't do much about it-- they aren't mechanics. The yard should have fixed or should fix the problem. They don't always do that, why, possibly because everything is breaking down on these trains and some of them are being held together with bubblegum and rubber bands. The same goes for toilets.
Lounges, well who is going to give Amtrak money for lounges. Amtrak can't make the money itself without raising fares, so it has to go get an investment. Private banks wouldn't give Amtrak a $100 million loan. The government would give it to them, but only if they can turn it into a political football. Like any company, investors want to have a say in what their money is being spent on-- and no Senator would get in front of a camera and say "Amtrak needs more first-class lounges".
You keep calling the CS and the EB "premier" trains. Apart from the PPCs (which are the only cars of their kind which exist, as you know) the EB isn't all that fabulous from the other LD trains. They don't always run with refurbished cars, I was on 28 with a Superliner II that hadn't been touched since the 90's. I then got on the Capitol Limited which had a more recent refurbishment than the cars on 8 that day... brought out of BG in 2006-07. The only thing the EB has is the extra chef in the diner, the plates, and wine tasting.
Plates were just put back on the CS, plans to roll them out nationwide. Most other LD trains have regional menus which help break up the day-to-day Am-food.
Dare we compare today's food service with the stuff we got five years ago?
I performed a hypothetical booking for my mother and I from CHI-LAX on July 3rd, on the SWC with a Deluxe Bedroom/Bedroom.
Cost: $1297
Let's break that down, shall we?
The coach fare for two is currently $368, by purchasing the room we save $76 off the top. We also get Dinner-Breakfast-Lunch-Dinner-Breakfast comped, about $70 worth of food, twice. That's another $140, gone.
That means we are paying $1081 for the sleeper service (ie, the privacy, beds, private shower, ect.) $1081 divided by two is $540.50. This is a 43 hour trip, which if you divide that number by 43 you get $12.57.
That's it. Each of us is paying $12.57 per hour to have the all of the amenities of a sleeper. Compare that to the amenities of coach, and well, that's up to you if its worth it. Personally with my mom if its overnight we must get a sleeper, however, I would not pay for the deluxe bedroom in this case or may alter my dates because the above is not worth it IMHO.
Now let's look at the complaints we have here:
No/broken A/C
Broken toilets
Lack of lounges
Uncleanliness
Well if the A/C breaks en route, that is Amtrak's fault. But the OBS can't do much about it-- they aren't mechanics. The yard should have fixed or should fix the problem. They don't always do that, why, possibly because everything is breaking down on these trains and some of them are being held together with bubblegum and rubber bands. The same goes for toilets.
Lounges, well who is going to give Amtrak money for lounges. Amtrak can't make the money itself without raising fares, so it has to go get an investment. Private banks wouldn't give Amtrak a $100 million loan. The government would give it to them, but only if they can turn it into a political football. Like any company, investors want to have a say in what their money is being spent on-- and no Senator would get in front of a camera and say "Amtrak needs more first-class lounges".
You keep calling the CS and the EB "premier" trains. Apart from the PPCs (which are the only cars of their kind which exist, as you know) the EB isn't all that fabulous from the other LD trains. They don't always run with refurbished cars, I was on 28 with a Superliner II that hadn't been touched since the 90's. I then got on the Capitol Limited which had a more recent refurbishment than the cars on 8 that day... brought out of BG in 2006-07. The only thing the EB has is the extra chef in the diner, the plates, and wine tasting.
Plates were just put back on the CS, plans to roll them out nationwide. Most other LD trains have regional menus which help break up the day-to-day Am-food.
Dare we compare today's food service with the stuff we got five years ago?
G
Guest
Guest
Really first rate summation, sort of says it all! :hi: Everyone is entitled to their opinion of course but chronic complainers without solutions= the tea-party/Republicans!
Round trip, two individual persons, I in my roomette and my mom in her bedroom which she needs due to her age and connivence. Centralia to Chicago, Chicago to San Francisco, San Francisco to Los Angeles, Los angeles to Chicago and home.. $5,500.00 plus a few bucks. That was two summers ago. Not exactly cheap in my opinion but if you want to go sleeper and need a bedroom that is the cost. We did share a bedroom on the Coast Starlight since it was a day run.
I just still cringe when people take what was typical everyday operation for rail roads till amtrak and suddenly its excessive opulence for the rich. No its the way trains were operated in order to build and keep business. A trip taking from two to three days should have decent food, which I agree has improved greatly, the diners haven't. They need a decent lounge and if the train carries a fair load of sleepers and coaches the old plan of providing a separate lounge would be nice. In fact while you all complain about how silly the idea is, Amtrak obviously seems to have at least someone who manages the Coast Starlight that "gets it".. How often do I see reports here of fans of rail travel telling of their experience with the pacific parlor cars? If they weren't a draw no one would bother to want to ride them.. enough said. No one is going to change their minds here I realize that, I guess neither am I. The cost of the lounge equipment is a part of doing business and selling tickets and providing a place for people confined to seats or rooms for days to have someplace to go, its not a foolish unnecessary luxury as seen by some here and in congress. What I am really appalled by is how many train fans seem to agree? That is really puzzling.
Alan,
I should maybe have chosen a different hotel I guess. Frankly I never stayed at a motel six, didn't appeal to me. I have stayed in several lower end hotels that were passable if you didn't mind listening to the excitement in the room next door! I was making a comparison that people base their decisions on. We stayed at the Palace in San Francisco, a little pricy for my blood even for a holiday but you did have surroundings that were commensurate with the price.
I just still cringe when people take what was typical everyday operation for rail roads till amtrak and suddenly its excessive opulence for the rich. No its the way trains were operated in order to build and keep business. A trip taking from two to three days should have decent food, which I agree has improved greatly, the diners haven't. They need a decent lounge and if the train carries a fair load of sleepers and coaches the old plan of providing a separate lounge would be nice. In fact while you all complain about how silly the idea is, Amtrak obviously seems to have at least someone who manages the Coast Starlight that "gets it".. How often do I see reports here of fans of rail travel telling of their experience with the pacific parlor cars? If they weren't a draw no one would bother to want to ride them.. enough said. No one is going to change their minds here I realize that, I guess neither am I. The cost of the lounge equipment is a part of doing business and selling tickets and providing a place for people confined to seats or rooms for days to have someplace to go, its not a foolish unnecessary luxury as seen by some here and in congress. What I am really appalled by is how many train fans seem to agree? That is really puzzling.
Alan,
I should maybe have chosen a different hotel I guess. Frankly I never stayed at a motel six, didn't appeal to me. I have stayed in several lower end hotels that were passable if you didn't mind listening to the excitement in the room next door! I was making a comparison that people base their decisions on. We stayed at the Palace in San Francisco, a little pricy for my blood even for a holiday but you did have surroundings that were commensurate with the price.
- Status
