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Hi All- I just completed a cross country Amtrak trip. Lake Shore NYC-CHI, Zephyr CHI-SAC, Capitol Corridor round trip to San Francisco, Starlight SAC- SEA with flight home. What a great ride, and with all things considered Amtrak was perhaps at the best it ever was, in my experience. Here are some random observations, rants and raves, in no particular order.
Equipment- looking good all around. Our Viewliner Morning View had crystal clear windows to view the Hudson. Tip: Make sure you book an even numbered room westbound, odd eastbound to view the Hudson on the correct side; there is no lounge car on the NYC-Albany stretch (something that really is needed). Our Superliners were both the older 1979-80 refurbished models, again looking good but for some minor paint scuffing in the rooms. Also, the AC vent comes out of the ceiling in Superliners and next to the lower windows in Viewliners, so plan accordingly when picking your bunk with your companion if you are sensitive to cool breezes, or if you need a cool breeze while sleeping.
Meals- Very good to excellent, almost without exception. Has Amtrak finally struck the correct balance between food quality and reduction of food services costs? One can only hope so, as I don’t think anyone misses the “simplified dining” of the mid 2000’s. Especially recommended- French Toast and Chicken Apple Sausage for breakfast, Pork Bratwurst for lunch, and Steak or the Turkey Shank for dinner. Honorable mentions also go to the Braised Beef (dinner) and Pancakes.
Scenery- The routes described above speak for themselves. The Denver to Salt Lake City stretch of the Zephyr has to be among the finest days in passenger railroading in the world. A special scenic surprise was the Helper-Provo, UT crossing of Soldier Summit. A clear day crossing the Cascades on the Starlight gave me a new appreciation of this route as well. The weather was clear for us every day. Everything in this respect was a true delight.
Crews- Competent all around, though none were especially memorable. Perhaps the worst was the LSA in the diner on the Starlight, with a disposition bordering on surly. Another waitress on the same train made fun of my father when he asked for white milk. She replied, “Is there another kind?” I reminded her that yes, chocolate milk does exist. She replied, “Well, we only have white”. She then proceeded to forget the milk all together until we reminded her. This was minor, to be sure. Also, the Lake Shore, which has a reputation for having the worst crews, actually had the best sleeper attendant of our trip, and the diner crew, while slow, was also fine.
Timekeeping- Good as well, in fact would have been outstanding if not for a 2hr late arrival of the Lake Shore into Chicago. Both the Zephyr and Starlight were VERY EARLY (1 HR) arriving into both Sacramento and Seattle, but were up to 1 hour late for other parts of their trip-which is great for end point passengers but frustrating for those boarding at intermediate points.
Other tidbits: -The Pacific Parlour Car is just a great piece of equipment. I enjoyed wine tasting with a young couple from England and a cool guy from Ohio with really long hair. It is now FREE, and despite a crowded train, was not full up. The 8 swiveling chairs at the end of the car make you feel like a rail baron- if you can get a seat in one of them. I was lucky to be able to spend about 2 hours at different times in them. We did not take advantage of the Parlour Car dining, but it looks like a great change from the diner, and if you are a party of less than four, you will NOT be seated with someone else- a great choice for a quiet meal. -Going along with the above, my biggest train pet peeve is people spending every waking hour in the lounge car. On a busy train, this is truly annoying. One conductor on the Starlight was kind enough to suggest passengers limit their time, but in fact the Zephyr attendant seemed to encourage people to bring their own food (not food purchased on board) into the upper level lounge for meals. This should NOT be allowed, and anyone who seems to be “camped out” in these facilities (this includes the Parlour Car) should be asked to move on after a reasonable time (does up to 90 minutes seem fair?) Granted, this would be hard to police, but repeated announcements should help. Of especially bad form are people that leave books and coats on seats when not there, and others who “reserve” seats for their friends on an ongoing basis. EVERYONE should be able to enjoy these wonderful cars- for a time.
All in all, the magic of the rails survives, and it took all of our strength to not board the Empire Builder for the trip back home!
Posts: 38 | From: Highland, NY, USA | Registered: Jul 2003
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I'm trying to remember Amtrak's policy on bringing your own food on-board the train. I think you can bring it to consume in your own sleeping accommodation, and/or at your coach seat. But I thought there was something about NOT bringing your own food into a food service car (such as the lounge) due to federal health regulations. Am I dreaming this, or is something like this in place? If so, then an Amtrak employee encouraging a law violation (and something that could be unhealthy) should be reported to "the powers that be".
So they don't charge for the wine tasting any more in the Parlour Car? Wow!!! Do they still invite coach passengers to partake, or is it back to being a sleeping car passenger only event?
Thanks for the report.
Posts: 2355 | From: Pleasanton, CA | Registered: Apr 2007
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Mr. Joe R, even if I am not the world's greatest advocate of the Long Distance trains, I am pleased to learn your experience was top-notch.
I can't recall during the forty plus years that I have followed Amtrak affairs in which the Agency (whoops, Corporation) has been 'firing on all cylinders' as it is today. While of course there have been times in its history that the average age of locomotives and cars has been lower, I believe the 'state of good repair' has never been better (remember, I can observe 3-6 passing MP 18.34 anytime I choose). New equipment is on the way, Corridor patronage is rising, and both Acela and LD's are holding their own.
Possibly you may choose to share your remarks with your Rep. Hanna (R-NY22) as well as Sens. Gillebrand and Schumer, as even if their constituent interests are best served with increased Corridor service, a quality LD product, so long as it is politically necessary to provide such, is part of the 'mix'.
Posts: 9976 | From: Clarendon Hills, IL USA (BNSF Chicago Sub MP 18.71) | Registered: Apr 2002
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To reply to smitty195, to be fair to the lounge attendant on the Zephyr, he did state you could NOT bring your own food into the LOWER level of the lounge car due to those FDA rules you speak of. Also, coach passengers are no longer invited to the Parlour Car for wine tasting, which probably explains why the tasting is now free.
Posts: 38 | From: Highland, NY, USA | Registered: Jul 2003
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I think chocolate milk is more of an east coast product and perhaps from a different era. On the west coast, a request for 2% milk or soy milk wouldn't be strange, but chocolate milk would be pretty unusual. I seem to remember strawberry milk from my childhood days, too.
Posts: 831 | From: Seattle | Registered: Jan 2011
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It has been my experience the last 2-4 years that things out there on the system seem to be more uniformly 'decent' than ever before..... though my wife, daughter, and I did have a sleeping car room on #14 earleier this summer where the bracket holding the upper berth in place in the nighttime configuration did not work properly. It seemed that a repair had been attempted by some maintenance person somewhere using what they had on hand as opposed to having gotten the full 'Beech Grove' treatment.
Turned out to be safe for my 50 pound daughter but we likely would have run into problems had we tried to put an adult there.
Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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quote:Originally posted by JoeR: To reply to smitty195, to be fair to the lounge attendant on the Zephyr, he did state you could NOT bring your own food into the LOWER level of the lounge car due to those FDA rules you speak of. Also, coach passengers are no longer invited to the Parlour Car for wine tasting, which probably explains why the tasting is now free.
Okay got it, thanks. I'm glad they dropped the fee for wine tasting and put it back to sleeper passengers only. It's so funny how Amtrak is CONSTANTLY trying to reinvent the wheel, when they always end up going back to what worked in the first place.
Posts: 2355 | From: Pleasanton, CA | Registered: Apr 2007
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