the_traveler
Engineer
Since you have a room, you can use the Metropolitan Lounge and store your luggage there free of charge.
Over the years, I've looked into them &,like yourself, I think I'll do it myself!!!Has anyone used the Amtrak Vacations thing to put together their trips? I called them today and they quoted me the rail portions of the trip as well as some hotel stays and it seemed way more expensive than what you can get just doing it on your own. Maybe the "packages" just aren't as big of discounts as it seems like they should be. Haha.
So far as I can tell there's no "discount" at all. You're paying a premium to cover the cost of having a travel agent book it for you.Has anyone used the Amtrak Vacations thing to put together their trips? I called them today and they quoted me the rail portions of the trip as well as some hotel stays and it seemed way more expensive than what you can get just doing it on your own. Maybe the "packages" just aren't as big of discounts as it seems like they should be. Haha.
Amtrak Vacations is operated by Yankee Leisure Group, Inc.
Thanks! We'll just stick to the half hour then. So it is pretty much carte blanche for what you can bring on the train? That's a little unsettling. Haha. Well, at least I don't have to explain a box of diabetic needles to anyone. We're just going to be utilizing one carry-on and one personal size bag each since we don't want to pay for anything extra on the airplane on the way back. Amtrak allowing TWO carry-ons (which are the size of most airplane checked bags) and TWO personal bags PER PERSON is ridiculous!If you see any kind of a security screening at all, don't bother buying a lottery ticket for the next full year. You're that unlucky!
If you're not checking baggage (when you have to have the baggage IN THE AGENT'S HAND 45 minutes prior to departure), you just have to be on the platform before the train is...particularly at the small stations. And while a train may arrive early, it will never leave before posted departure time (exception: stations coded "D" [discharge only] or "L" [limited stop] in the timetable). Even at a flag stop, which the train may bypass if no passengers are scheduled to board or detrain, the engineer is supposed to slow down enough to check the platform and stop if a last-minute passenger is waiting...and to not leave the station until posted boarding time. (Key word: supposed!)
Thirty minutes is generous. If there's a coffee shop or similar within sight of the station, I'd willingly cut it to fifteen.
Ridiculous? I think it's great!Amtrak allowing TWO carry-ons (which are the size of most airplane checked bags) and TWO personal bags PER PERSON is ridiculous!
No problem with diabetic needles. I've been doing a nightly injection for two years now and absolutely no problem bringing my insulin pens and needles aboard. One word of caution if you are traveling LD overnight -- Don't do the injection while the train is in motion. I did it once and needle bounce in and out. After that I plan my injection when I know the train is stopping for a station stop or better yet a fresh air break stop.Thanks! We'll just stick to the half hour then. So it is pretty much carte blanche for what you can bring on the train? That's a little unsettling. Haha. Well, at least I don't have to explain a box of diabetic needles to anyone. We're just going to be utilizing one carry-on and one personal size bag each since we don't want to pay for anything extra on the airplane on the way back. Amtrak allowing TWO carry-ons (which are the size of most airplane checked bags) and TWO personal bags PER PERSON is ridiculous!If you see any kind of a security screening at all, don't bother buying a lottery ticket for the next full year. You're that unlucky!
If you're not checking baggage (when you have to have the baggage IN THE AGENT'S HAND 45 minutes prior to departure), you just have to be on the platform before the train is...particularly at the small stations. And while a train may arrive early, it will never leave before posted departure time (exception: stations coded "D" [discharge only] or "L" [limited stop] in the timetable). Even at a flag stop, which the train may bypass if no passengers are scheduled to board or detrain, the engineer is supposed to slow down enough to check the platform and stop if a last-minute passenger is waiting...and to not leave the station until posted boarding time. (Key word: supposed!)
Thirty minutes is generous. If there's a coffee shop or similar within sight of the station, I'd willingly cut it to fifteen.
No.https://assistive.amtrak.com/h5/assistive/r/www.amtrak.com/onboard/baggage-policy/baggage-prohibited-items.htmlSo it is pretty much carte blanche for what you can bring on the train?
Very true. While there is seldom formal screening (although spot checks are occasionally conducted; hence my comment about being 'unlucky'), if it comes to the attention of the train crew that you have one or more of these prohibited items with you then you could be in Big Trouble.No.https://assistive.amtrak.com/h5/assistive/r/www.amtrak.com/onboard/baggage-policy/baggage-prohibited-items.htmlSo it is pretty much carte blanche for what you can bring on the train?
Plus their is usually scenic stuff on both sides on a long distance train ride.Was told bedroom cars are oriented to face the scenic views,
No. Sleeping cars can be and are oriented to face either direction, so it is completely luck of the draw whether or not the bedrooms (or even numbered roomettes) are on the ocean side or not. Even within the same consist on the Starlight the various sleeping cars are often oriented differently.Was told bedroom cars are oriented to face the scenic views, such as the ride from la to sf. The roomettes are numbered with even numbers the same side as bedrooms. So, the the best views from roomettes are the even numbers.
Bedroom A is a foot smaller then b,c,d,e between chair and bathroom wall. No space at all. I got stuck with A room last trip only to find that we were in the last car. What a spectacular view...we had the rear window all to our selves and could see miles down the track.
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I'm so torn on what to do. I'm thinking of seeing if I can switch from Bedroom E to Bedroom A. I think I would prefer the quietness and privacy over the extra 2 feet of space. I would regret it so much if I stay in Bedroom E and we end up with noisy neighbors.I feel fortunate that most don't like Bedroom A. I always book Bedroom A, although it's for solo travel, so the slight space reduction is not an issue.
Also, I don't use the "torture" chair for anything except storage.
I was led to Bedroom A by the very concerns that the OP expressed. I always found the sliding doors between the other bedrooms flimsy, they rattled as we rolled, and conversations and telephone calls were clearly audible to me.
I once had to politely knock on the door of the adjoining bedroom and tell the person I could hear all of her phone calls; could she please keep it down.
Then there was the group of frat boys who rented a Bedroom to drink and play cards on the LSL from NYC to Buffalo. Noisy.
Still, of the four other bedrooms, E is the best because as others said you are adjoining only one other room and not two, and it's over the center of the car.
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