G
George
Guest
Took the Capitol Limited from Pittsburgh to Chicago overnight on 31 March, then got on the California Zephyr from Chicago to Salt Lake City. What a woderful trip! I travel for business a great deal and decided to try the train. Now I'm hooked. If the plane ride is longer than 3 hours, I'm going by train, if possible. I rode in coach and while sleeping was not great, it was good enough. I'm 6'2" so airplane seats don't afford me any comfort, whereas the train was very comfortable. The ability to move around and sit in the observation/snack car is ideal since I had back surgery a few years ago. Trying to move around in a plane is darn near impossible. It's also great to have a handful of restrooms on a car, rather than one or two for a planeload of people.
Some folks have complained about the staff but I found them to be just fine. I don't expect them to treat me like I would be treated at a nice hotel. I just expect them to do their jobs and not necessarily in a super cheerful manner. If you put yourself in their position, how would you like to spend 2 or 3 days with the same people? In most jobs where you deal with the public, they come and go quickly. It's easy to smile and be pleasant because they move on and you're onto the next person. Not so on a long train ride. I'm polite and respectful to the workers, and they were the same to me. In fact, the guy at the station in Salt Lake City went above and beyond.
I'm planning business trips to San Diego in May and Seattle in August. I've already booked my trains!
Some folks have complained about the staff but I found them to be just fine. I don't expect them to treat me like I would be treated at a nice hotel. I just expect them to do their jobs and not necessarily in a super cheerful manner. If you put yourself in their position, how would you like to spend 2 or 3 days with the same people? In most jobs where you deal with the public, they come and go quickly. It's easy to smile and be pleasant because they move on and you're onto the next person. Not so on a long train ride. I'm polite and respectful to the workers, and they were the same to me. In fact, the guy at the station in Salt Lake City went above and beyond.
I'm planning business trips to San Diego in May and Seattle in August. I've already booked my trains!
