When do I book a roomette?

[hanmatt]

Hi there

I'm wondering if you could help a first time planner from Birmingham UK. :help:

I am planning my holiday for next year and myself and my son (he will be 13) are wanting to travel from Chicago to Kissimee FL.

We have always wanted to travel by train and would love to go by Capitol Limited and Silver Meteor.

We are planning on going on around the 5th Aug 2011 and we will want a sleeper compartment.

Could you please let me know when we should book these rooms for the best deal, is there anything I should check prior to booking our room? Any hints and tips would be appreciated

Look forward to any replies

Hannah

 

[arrow3]

Usually, the earlier you book, the cheaper it is. I don't think you can book August 2011 yet, but by the end of next month you should be able to. I really like the trip on the Capitol Limited.

The Silver Meteor uses Viewliner sleepers and the roomettes in those have toilets in the room. Just something to consider since you said you would be traveling with your son. Personally, I don't like that. Superliner roomettes don't have that.

 

[Trogdor]

I think tickets go on sale around 330 days out (give or take a few days). So, with that, first or second week of September you should be able to book your trip for next August (make sure that both segments are bookable, so you'd need to check 330 days from August 6th, not August 5th).

Generally speaking, the earlier you book, the better. However, prices can fluctuate over time. Check a few days before and after August 5th (if your travel dates are flexible) to see if better fares are available on alternate dates. After you book, check back periodically to see if the fare decreases. If it does, you can book the new fare and cancel the old reservation for a full refund (if you're unfamiliar with the peculiarities of Amtrak pricing policies and how to get the best fare, then it's generally better if you call an Amtrak agent, or whoever can do Amtrak bookings in the UK, if you're really interested in saving the few dollars if the fare goes down). You can do this without penalty until seven days prior to departure.

Once you book, it's best to choose the option to pick up your tickets at the station. You can pick them up on the day of departure, and do so just a few hours before departure. If you have your tickets printed ahead of time, it increases the risk of them getting lost (and, really, there's no need to have them so far in advance). Also, if you do decide that you want to watch the fares closely and see if they drop in price, it's much more difficult to get your reservation changed to the new fare if your tickets are already printed (since the tickets themselves have the fare value printed on them).

Make sure Amtrak has reliable contact information (of course). Since you're booking so far in advance, it's possible there may be a schedule change (or two) that impact your trip, so keep your ear open. They will notify you if anything changes.

Since you've already figured out the two trains you want to take, there should be no problem. You may or may not already know that there is a second train between Chicago and Washington, DC, the Cardinal, which currently operates three days per week. It takes a more roundabout routing to get to DC, but generally tends to be more expensive, and also is less reliable in its OTP. The Capitol Limited will let you experience the bi-level Superliner equipment, which many passengers prefer vs. the hodge-podge of single-level equipment that will operate on the Silver Meteor. You'll get to try them both and decide which you prefer.

Lastly, if you plan to check back here regularly, I'd suggest you join as an official member. If you have the time to read the posts, you'll find many other people who are asking the same (or similar) questions as you ask, and perhaps some questions you didn't even think of. There are many members of this forum who ride Amtrak several times per year on long-distance trains (some even ride several times per month, it seems), and can share their varied experiences (the good, the bad, the ugly and the indifferent), and a few Amtrak employees on here as well (though it may not always be obvious who the employees are and who the railfans are).

You'll learn a lot about what to expect on your trip.

 

[caravanman]

Hi,

Welcome to Amtrak Unlimited.

Although I too live in the UK, I have taken many Amtrak trains, and also travelled to Orlando with my young son by train, from New York.

Amtrak won't allow anyone to book a train more than 11 months ahead, either by internet, or direct with an agent. I imagine it is a computer problem for them.

You should book as soon as is possible, so I guess the 5 sept 2010 would be 11 months ahead.. I am not sure if it is 11 months exactly to the day, or just thereabouts.

Ticket and sleeper prices rise as more are sold, so the cheapest option is to book as early as poss.

You can do "pretend" bookings online on Amtrak.com to see train times, etc. Just as an indication, the nearest Saturday the website will give a fare for today, is July 23rd 2011, with a fare of $216 for 1 adult and 1 child. You need to add sleeper costs to this, for "roomettes" they quote $125 for the Capitol, plus $191 for the Silver Meteor.. Bedrooms instead of roomettes would be $254 plus $498.

I stress that these are just example fares, and are not for the 5 August, but should give an approximate indication..

Changing trains in Washington should give an hour or two for a little sightseeing too!

Cheers,

Eddie

Edit.. sorry to seem to repeat earlier info, I am a slow typist, others got in first while I was composing!

 

[hanmatt]

Thanks for all the replies - much appreciated!

So I gather I should look to book early Sept 2010 for next Aug, I assume I can do this independently on Amtraks website - is this right??

Arrow3 mentioned toilets in the rooms on the silver meteor - are there other toilets we can use ? Hope so as i can't imagine my son ever speaking to me again and its def not an experience I wish to share:blush:!! LOL

Trogdor - thanks for all you information, I def will not print my tickets - not a risk worth taking IMHO with my organisational skills :giggle:

Caravanman - did you book your tickets independently or did you go through an agent? Any hints for booking from the UK will be appreciated! We were initially going to go to Orlando from NY but I have been there before and fancied trying another city with the added bonus of trying two Amtrak routes!

Thanks again all that have replied - am off to trawl through the boards now

Hannah

 

[rosemary]

Hi,

Welcome to Amtrak Unlimited.

Although I too live in the UK, I have taken many Amtrak trains, and also travelled to Orlando with my young son by train, from New York.

Amtrak won't allow anyone to book a train more than 11 months ahead, either by internet, or direct with an agent. I imagine it is a computer problem for them.

You should book as soon as is possible, so I guess the 5 sept 2010 would be 11 months ahead.. I am not sure if it is 11 months exactly to the day, or just thereabouts.

Ticket and sleeper prices rise as more are sold, so the cheapest option is to book as early as poss.

You can do "pretend" bookings online on Amtrak.com to see train times, etc. Just as an indication, the nearest Saturday the website will give a fare for today, is July 23rd 2011, with a fare of $216 for 1 adult and 1 child. You need to add sleeper costs to this, for "roomettes" they quote $125 for the Capitol, plus $191 for the Silver Meteor.. Bedrooms instead of roomettes would be $254 plus $498.

I stress that these are just example fares, and are not for the 5 August, but should give an approximate indication..

Changing trains in Washington should give an hour or two for a little sightseeing too!

Cheers,

Eddie

Edit.. sorry to seem to repeat earlier info, I am a slow typist, others got in first while I was composing!

welcome aboard, we live on the south coast of UK, and this will be the second year we have Amtraked across America, we did it last year, LSL to chicao, then SWC to LA, in a roomette, brilliant, so we are going again in 3 weeks time, this time taking the CZ to San Francisco, last year we let an agent handle it as part of a package, but this time we did it . No probs, we booked on line exactley 11 months to the day, which worked out at about 9 am in the uk, so easy to do, they will send u an email, which will have your car and sleeper no on, which also contains a ref and a bar code, print this out as it is your confirmation, take it to the station, find a ticket machine, scan the bar code in, and your tickets will appear, easy, have a wonderfull trip, u will luv it

 

[the_traveler]

Roomettes (and any seats or rooms) can be booked 11 months in advance. (Thus if your trip is on 5 August 2011, you could book on 5 September 2010.) You should book as soon as you have an idea of the dates. With Amtrak, as long as you cancel a roomette reservation 7 days prior to departure, there is no penalty!

Also, if at all possible, you should also check dates around your first choice.

It's possible that the train on the 4th or 6th may have a different fare than the train on the 5th!

 

[Trogdor]

On the Silver Meteor, the only toilets in the sleepers will be in the rooms (the next order of sleeping cars will change that, but those won't be delivered until at least a year after your trip). Toilets are available in the coaches and possibly the lounge car as well, so you'd have to walk back there. If there are any empty roomettes in your sleeper, and your car attendant is okay with it, you may be able to use the facilities in a different room (make sure that the attendant is okay with it first, though). That said, traveling in the middle of the summer, the likelihood of there being empty rooms is fairly low.

Just to make sure you know, when booking travel for two people, you only need to book one roomette. The roomette price (which is in addition to the per-person rail fare quoted) is valid for one or two people. So, when you book your travel, you'll specify 1 Adult, 1 Child (total 2 passengers). When booking your sleeper, specify that you want 1 roomette on each train (and, keep in mind also that you'll have to book your roomette on both the Capitol Limited and the Silver Meteor, so don't overlook that step when making your reservations).

The actual online reservation process is pretty straightforward once you've got that much figured out, so you can go ahead and book yourself once the trains open up for sale.

The 11-month limit is pretty standard, and isn't really an Amtrak computer thing. I don't know offhand if there are any airlines that will let you book too far into the future either (some airlines, like Southwest, will only let you book about six months out, while Mexicana, for example, wouldn't let you book beyond noon today, though that's because they shut down). The main reason for this is because you don't want someone accidentally booking the wrong year.

 

[hanmatt]

Hi,

Welcome to Amtrak Unlimited.

Although I too live in the UK, I have taken many Amtrak trains, and also travelled to Orlando with my young son by train, from New York.

Amtrak won't allow anyone to book a train more than 11 months ahead, either by internet, or direct with an agent. I imagine it is a computer problem for them.

You should book as soon as is possible, so I guess the 5 sept 2010 would be 11 months ahead.. I am not sure if it is 11 months exactly to the day, or just thereabouts.

Ticket and sleeper prices rise as more are sold, so the cheapest option is to book as early as poss.

You can do "pretend" bookings online on Amtrak.com to see train times, etc. Just as an indication, the nearest Saturday the website will give a fare for today, is July 23rd 2011, with a fare of $216 for 1 adult and 1 child. You need to add sleeper costs to this, for "roomettes" they quote $125 for the Capitol, plus $191 for the Silver Meteor.. Bedrooms instead of roomettes would be $254 plus $498.

I stress that these are just example fares, and are not for the 5 August, but should give an approximate indication..

Changing trains in Washington should give an hour or two for a little sightseeing too!

Cheers,

Eddie

Edit.. sorry to seem to repeat earlier info, I am a slow typist, others got in first while I was composing!

welcome aboard, we live on the south coast of UK, and this will be the second year we have Amtraked across America, we did it last year, LSL to chicao, then SWC to LA, in a roomette, brilliant, so we are going again in 3 weeks time, this time taking the CZ to San Francisco, last year we let an agent handle it as part of a package, but this time we did it . No probs, we booked on line exactley 11 months to the day, which worked out at about 9 am in the uk, so easy to do, they will send u an email, which will have your car and sleeper no on, which also contains a ref and a bar code, print this out as it is your confirmation, take it to the station, find a ticket machine, scan the bar code in, and your tickets will appear, easy, have a wonderfull trip, u will luv it

Thanks for the info re booking from the UK - now just counting down the days to book!!

Is the cancellation policy the same if booking from the UK? If so fantastic system and I will keep an eye on the rates!

My dates are not set in stone so will check dates 1-2 days +/- to see if there is a difference.

Very excited as we have been planning this trip for months and we are finally getting to the stage of being able to book

 

[the_traveler]

So I gather I should look to book early Sept 2010 for next Aug, I assume I can do this independently on Amtraks website - is this right??

Yes.

Arrow3 mentioned toilets in the rooms on the silver meteor - are there other toilets we can use ? Hope so as i can't imagine my son ever speaking to me again and its def not an experience I wish to share:blush:!! LOL

There are not other public toilets in the Viewliners (sleeping car), but there are in the coachs and IIRC the lounge car. Or you can just have 1 person step out in the hallway while the other uses the toilet.

I def will not print my tickets - not a risk worth taking IMHO with my organisational skills :giggle:

I would not print them until near train time (like at the station)!

did you book your tickets independently or did you go through an agent? Any hints for booking from the UK will be appreciated! We were initially going to go to Orlando from NY but I have been there before and fancied trying another city with the added bonus of trying two Amtrak routes!

If you're comfortable with booking online, I would recommend booking that way (amtrak.com)! That way, your tickets will not be printed until YOU want them to be printed! (Nothing like going thru an agent in the UK, getting to NY - and finding out that you left your tickets at home!

)

Also I would recommend that you make 2 reservations, one for each way. The cost a return (round trip) ticket on Amtrak is just the same as 2 one-way tickets - so there is no savings. And if it's on 1 reservation, ALL tickets will be printed - including the return trip!

Thus, you will have to hold your other tickets during you holiday in Orlando! If you had 2 reservations, you could print one way in NYC and the other way in Orlando!

 

[AlanB]

Arrow3 mentioned toilets in the rooms on the silver meteor - are there other toilets we can use ? Hope so as i can't imagine my son ever speaking to me again and its def not an experience I wish to share:blush:!! LOL

As mentioned by others, you can walk back several cars if you really want to do so, to find a public restroom. Most people however just step out into the hall while the other uses the facilities inside the room.

 

[bbecker258]

And it seems that something that's been missed with all the talk of reservations and such is that by booking a roomette the cost of your meals is included in the price of your ticket. Snacks and beverages are available in the lounge car and will be an additional expense. But meals include complimentary bevs like pop, coffee and milk.

I am a rookie to this site as well and have found that the discussions about what to bring and such to be helpful as well.

Good luck and Welcome!

 

[hanmatt]

Thank you everyone for your valuable advice - so good having a site like this that is so welcoming and informative.

Can i ask - does Amtrak look after your luggage when you are waiting for your connection if you've booked a through ticket?

Would be great to have a couple of hours sightseeing in Washington DC - assuming that the train isn't too late Lol

Thanks again to all the replies

Hannah

 

[cindylou]

Yes, you can leave your carry-on bags with the Red Cap in the Amtrak first class lounge. They will store them while you go off to sightsee. My husband and I have done the same trip from Chicago to Ft. Lauderdale the past 2 winters. We paid for one of the "hop-on hop-off" trolley tours right outside Union Station. It's a great way to see some of the high points of Washington DC (monuments,museums etc.) and you can get off at any of the stops as you like to explore for while, and then catch the trolley again ( if I remember correctly, it comes around about every 30-45 minutes).

Enjoy your trip!

Cindy

 

[the_traveler]

Slight correction to Cindylou's answer. As a sleeper passenger, you are entitled to use the Club Acela (CA) in Washington (as well as the Metropolitan Lounge in Chicago). The CA does have a room to store luggage, but it is not manned by a Red Cap (like it is in Chicago). However, I've felt very safe leaving things there. It is right next to the front desk.

 

[hanmatt]

Yes, you can leave your carry-on bags with the Red Cap in the Amtrak first class lounge. They will store them while you go off to sightsee. My husband and I have done the same trip from Chicago to Ft. Lauderdale the past 2 winters. We paid for one of the "hop-on hop-off" trolley tours right outside Union Station. It's a great way to see some of the high points of Washington DC (monuments,museums etc.) and you can get off at any of the stops as you like to explore for while, and then catch the trolley again ( if I remember correctly, it comes around about every 30-45 minutes).

Enjoy your trip!

Cindy

Thanks Cindy

Its good to hear from someone who has done this trip and all info appreciated

Hannah

 

[arrow3]

Slight correction to Cindylou's answer. As a sleeper passenger, you are entitled to use the Club Acela (CA) in Washington (as well as the Metropolitan Lounge in Chicago). The CA does have a room to store luggage, but it is not manned by a Red Cap (like it is in Chicago). However, I've felt very safe leaving things there. It is right next to the front desk.

I also felt safe leaving my bags in the Club Acela in Washington DC on my last trip on the Capitol Limited. There's a a lot to see in DC in short walking distance to the station.

 

[Rail Freak]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/railfreak/sets/72157607284744380/

Have Fun

 

[PaulM]

Can i ask - does Amtrak look after your luggage when you are waiting for your connection if you've booked a through ticket?

Others have mentioned the first class lounge where you can store your luggage.

You can also check the luggage through from Chicago to Orlando, and not have to deal with it in DC. Of course, you could check larger pieces of luggage and carry on an overnight bag.

 

[caravanman]

Hi Hannah,

I recommend that you book your tickets direct via the Amtrak.com website. It is simplicity itself. When you get to Union Station in Chicago, you stick your credit card in the Amtrak Quick Ticket machine, and your tickets are printed on the spot.

(You will recieve an email confirmation as soon as you book, anyway)

As a sleeper passenger, you get to use the special "lounges" at Chicago and Washington, you can store your bags there free, plus get a free coffee, juice, etc.

When you are looking for low prices, just concentrate on the roomette price, as Amtrak always just adds the lowest possible "coach fare" on to sleeper customers anyway.

Sounds a bit bonkers, but I have seen a coach fare of $260 or thereabouts, but by booking a roomette at $94, the basic fare drops back from $260 to $112 (+roomette at $94) = $206.

Please feel free to ask anything else you need to know, there is a wealth of "Amtrak Enthusiasm" on this site!

Cheers,

Eddie

 

[cindylou]

Slight correction to Cindylou's answer. As a sleeper passenger, you are entitled to use the Club Acela (CA) in Washington (as well as the Metropolitan Lounge in Chicago). The CA does have a room to store luggage, but it is not manned by a Red Cap (like it is in Chicago). However, I've felt very safe leaving things there. It is right next to the front desk.

Oops! Thanks for the correction...I was picturing Chicago instead of DC. Train Brain Freeze! :blink:

Cindy

 

[NETrainfan]

Good to know that the next order of sleepers will not have toilets in the roomettes.