Amtrak Acela Train first class: surprising things that I learned

I have traveled in many Amtrak trains in the coach and I also spent 60 hours in Amtrak trains overnight between Miami and New York in bedroom and bedroom accommodation, which cost hundreds more than my Acela ticket.

Acela is an express option for regional trips to the northeast with 14 stops in 12 cities, according to the train line website.

This special walk was 20 minutes faster on Acela than she would have been on a typical Amtrak.

Each Amtrak that I had been previously had coach seats, but the Amtrak Acela trains only have first class business and seats.

My ticket cost $ 273 because I reserved a standard ticket (which on an Acela is actually a business class) for $ 121, then I spent an additional $ 152 to switch to first class.

The price I reserved was about $ 100 cheaper than the same tickets in the coming weeks, according to a quick search for Amtrak.

The cost of upgrade to the first class – $ 152 – was more expensive than the standard business class ticket – $ 121.

“Like our peers of airlines, Amtrak’s pricing strategy is influenced by several factors – demand, departure, seasonality, route, pair of cities, service class and other market conditions,” an Amtrak representative at Business Insider told.

As New Yorker, part of the attraction of a first class ticket was to have access to the Penn Station metropolitan fair, a calm waiting area for some Amtrak customers with comfortable seats and free snacks.

First class passengers enter the day of their trip for free, while business class passengers can pay $ 50 to access the club.

I thought that the show was the best advantage of my first class ticket, so I was shocked to see that it is only available in some stations on the Amtrak Acela line.

Apart from New York, anyone traveling from Philadelphia, Washington, DC and the southern Boston station has access to a living room, according to Amtrak. But there are many other stops on Amtrak Acela which do not offer this advantage.

Amtrak did not respond to a request for BI comments about this advantage only available in a few stations.

When I approached the snack counter in the living room, I was overwhelmed with choice. There were bars, cookies, popcorn, candies, chips and houmous.

I also spotted free drinks such as coffee, iced tea and citrus infused water.

I ordered water, icy coffee and a kind bar, and the server gave me an additional.

Going back to it, I would have liked to have asked for some additional treats to enjoy my trip.

Amtrak Acela automatically assigned my headquarters when I reserved a ticket. However, I learned later that it could be changed on the website at any time before departure.

Headquarters are available on the Amtrak website. They specify in which direction each seat faces, because all the seats are not forward forward.

Fortunately, I found myself in a seat positioned in the direction of the train.

In most of the trains on which I have been, each row had the same number of seats on each side of the aisle. In the first class Acela car, however, there were two seats on one side and one seat on the other. The seats faced the two directions.

I was lucky to see that my automatically assigned seat was only one, which I thought, gave me a little more space since I was traveling alone.

In my opinion, the first class seats were not as comfortable as they initially seemed to be based on their size.

I also did not find them much more comfortable than the business class seats that I also known, which were slightly smaller and closer to each other.

Amtrak did not respond to a request for BI comments on the seats.

As soon as I poured my orange juice into the accompanying glass, I regretted it.

I was disappointed to see that there was no tutor on my tray table and once we moved, the ride was quite jumped.

I feared that the glass is falling from the table. Looking back, I should have left the juice in the bottle.

Three minutes after the order, my meal came out and I was surprised to see that it also included a croissant, because it was not listed on the menu.

The fruit had a cold and fresh taste. Each piece was just as juicy and tasty as the previous one, which I didn’t expect since I was on a train. The croissant had a slightly less fresh taste for me, but it was still hot and tasty.

According to my experience, the bathroom seemed quite typical of a train bathroom in other lessons. I have not noticed any special and luxurious touch that would make him feel more similar to traveling in first class.

Overall, my ride was pleasant, but with what I thought was a limited menu and rigid seats, my first class ticket was not worth $ 273 for me.

Next time, I will save my money and reserve a standard ticket for a short trip.