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Yesterday I had my first experience with the new Business Class offering on the Coast Starlight. I'm familiar with (and appreciate) the Cascades Business Class service offered on the Talgo trains. I also take an occasional sleeper class trip on the Starlight, so I was interested to see how the Starlight's B Class compares to both the sleeper experience and the Talgo's B Class.
The Starlight's Business section is located on the bottom level of a Superliner Coach car. There are 12 nice seats and room for one wheelchair in the space along with a luggage rack. Everything in the space appears to be new and everything was in a state of good repair. The color scheme was a very calm combination of deep blue and a burgundy-ish red.
The seats were comfortable and offered ample legroom for my 5'10" body. There also was plenty of recline for longer trips that might include an overnight section. When I reclined my seat, lifted the leg supporter and adjusted the foot rest to simulate the sleeping position for an overnight trip, I felt pretty comfortable. It wouldn't be as comfortable as a roomette bed with full recline, but the Business Class seat would be equivalent to a domestic First Class seat on most US airlines. I would imagine that an overnight trip in the Starlight Business section would be as comfortable as a red-eye flight in any US airline's First Class cabin.
On my particular trip, every Amtrak employee I encountered was friendly and engaged with the passengers. Eric, the B Class attendant, was very welcoming and attentive to the 4 of us in the Business section. The only negatives on the trip were a 15 minute late departure from Seattle and a disappointing sandwich from the Cafe. Of course, apologies were offered (without an explanation) for the delayed departure and we were told that we might be able to make the time up enroute. But with heavy rain and high winds, that seemed unlikely and we ended up arriving 55 minutes late in Portland.
In summary, I liked the Starlight's Business Class product and would consider it again, particularly if I'm ever riding on the California part of the route. The Superliners are no match for the Talgos in terms of comfort and speed on Seattle to Portland trips, but Amtrak has done a good job with its Starlight Business Class product and I would recommend it to anyone who is looking for some extra comfort, but doesn't need the full sleeper experience on west coast trips.
yukon11 Member # 2997
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Thanks for the report, Vincent.
I agree, the long route through California would make business class much more enjoyable. It also seems to be popular for the leg between Portland and Seattle.
I don't think that 12 seats are nearly adequate, however. I would like to see a seperate car, on the Starlight, for business class with its own bistro car for food and wine tasting.
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