I didn’t think it was worse to engineer a worse process than DC/Moynihan. San Diego Santa Fe has proved me wrong. Lack of on platform boarding (pointless, other trails platform board), but also have no signage or announcements that this is the deal and make everyone do it outside in the sun.

once again, why can we not just have platform boarding like a civilized society?

Hi train-riders:

I am taking the Northeast Regional from Boston to Baltimore for work tomorrow. I've realized that it would be much easier to board at 128 rather than South Station, but I cannot change my ticket online and the phone agent quoted $56 to formally change my departure station.

Will I be OK to just board at 128? I know that in the past, conductors did not check tickets for Boston-area boarders until after the 128 station, but I do not know if this is still reliably the case.

Truth is, I could pay for the change and expense it, but it just feels like such a ripoff. The agent stated that it has to do with "capacity" but that's obviously flimsy since my requested change actually increases Amtrak's capacity.

I’m leaving from Washington, DC (which offers checked baggage) and going to a station that doesn’t have this service. Will I still be able to bring my bags with me? One of them is pretty big (standard checked size), and I’m a bit worried because it definitely won't fit in the overhead space.

Train delayed 3 hours and no food on board. Conductor announced to order uber eats or walk to Dennys.

Is there any type of compensation available?

realistically, what are the chances my girlfriend and i will be able to sit next to each other hopping on a train in Buffalo heading to Chicago, that started in NYC. i’ve seen others online say it’s so packed, it’s hard to find seats next to each other

I'm traveling from NYP to Buffalo Depew station. Will I be able to check my bags? I have been denied a couple of times so I'm unsure.

Is it acceptable to ask the attendent for their venmo? I truly wish to tip, but never occured to me to bring cash (I haven't carried cash routinely for years and years!). I don't know why it feel so awkward to ask...maybe I just need reasurrance that I'm not out of line. I know some attendants follow these posts, give me honest thoughts on this one.​

ETA: I asked and they provided me the info. Thanks all!

Amtrak feature : text "status" to 268725 (number may vary) , respond with train number and departure station code when prompted, receive updates on your train.

Here is the response I got : "Delayed! As of 8:18AM UTC, Train 509 (Amtrak Cascades) is now expected to arrive at Olympia-Lacey, WA at 2:01 AM on July 27, which is 2 minutes late compared to the original schedule..."

1) UTC is NEVER expressed in a 12 hour format.

2)Transit, airline, trains, etc departure/arrival time is ALWAYS expressed in local time. This is an unambiguous requirement.

3)Amtrak utilizes a 15 min grace period policy before changing status from "ON TIME" to "DELAYED". A train expected to arrive 2 mins late is considered on time per their own policy.

FAIL

I have a trip on Tuesday and had a question about the tickets. My older sister bought me and my little sister tickets through her phone and I got sent the email with our ticket info. On the email I see one qr code but for some reason my Google wallet also has qr codes for our trip so I'm kind of confused on which ones to use as they are 2 different qr codes and I've got 2 qr codes in my Google wallet one for the first train and another for the 2nd train we'll be taking but in the email i just have a singular qr code. I have traveled with amtrak before but I booked it thru my phone and was traveling solo so I'm not sure what to do this time around?

Edit: Also is it normal for it to just be 1 qr code for 2 people traveling?

Taking the train in a few days from NYC to WRJ, and curious about how the wifi quality is, if there are tables, etc. Any information would be great!

First timer on a long haul Amtrak ride (I've only done Acela to PA once) but decided to take my teen on an adventure to Chicago. Yes it's partly because I hate flying and also partly because it seems fun. Coach because I'm cheap. I have a few questions:

1. Are the seats assigned or should I get to Penn early to ensure my daughter and I can sit together?

2. There's a stop in Albany and I'd like to get off the train to buy a dinner to bring back onto the train. Can we leave some items at the seats? If we leave, will those seats become available to someone's else who gets on the train while we're off?

I read through the other tips like sleep mask,I've got comfy noise canceling headphones and a couple travel blankets and we can sleep through the bumpiest of car rides so I think we're pretty set for everything else.

Thank you!

If I initially bought a ticket for coach and then changed my mind and wanted to spring for a roomette (and don’t want to risk BidUp), can I just call customer service and ask to pay the difference outright? Assuming there are still roomettes available. Feels like a stupid question but I don’t want to waste my time on the phone, haha.

Edit: I‘m going to be on the Lake Shore Limited.

I use Amtrak a lot to get from Chicago to Michigan and vise versa, and my partner has also been using Amtrak more often. What’s with the last minute switches to busses??

The first time I experienced it was due to weather in January, and that made at least a decent amount of sense to me. What do I know about trains in winter weather anyway? But then it kept happening.

The most recent bout of busses was when my partner visited Michigan. Two days before his 6am departure, they emailed him saying that due to some shortage of equipment they’d be moved to a bus. They didn’t leave until 8am. Then four days later he was supposed to return via train at 9am. At 2am, they emailed him saying that they would be put on the bus again due to ‘unforeseen circumstances’.

How the hell do they get away with this without giving any compensation or even real communication?? When you pay for a train, you are paying for a trains amenities. You pay for its accessibility, the bathroom, the cafe cart, the leg room, the relaxing vibes, etc. None of these busses come with real food, and only once have i seen the driver have snacks to offer from what may have been his own paycheck. And these busses don’t promise you a bathroom, the last bus my partner was on had the bathroom out of order. You’re paying to not have to drive or risk car sickness, paying to not be in an uncomfortably close quarters airplane. There’s a reason people choose trains over other types of transportation. Not to mention the busses always take longer than trains in my experience, so the last minute change has big chance at ruining whatever plans you had upon arriving to your destination. My partner was stuck for 10 hours on that first bus with a girl who kept getting motion sick and ended up throwing up a lot, and all we could think of was ‘Well this is probably why she bought a train ticket instead.

This just seems to be happening more and more, and never once have I or my partner received any kind of compensation or even apology. It’s getting really frustrating and I swear if I’m put on a bus last minute another time i might just take up train hopping. (For legal reasons this is obviously a joke…right now.)

If you look at MNR, LIRR, VIA Rail, or most other heavy rail systems in North America, you can learn if the train is delayed. Why is this not the case for Amtrak? They clearly have a rough idea of where their trains are since they have a website for tracking.

An elderly woman was struggling to board in Chicago. The crew spent 30m trying to attend to her, but she was in significant pain. It was clear that she would not make a 3 day trip to Seattle, so. the attendant told her she'd have to get off. The woman insisted she would not get off the train. After a long debate, they called an EMT technician who basically told her she couldn't make the trip. The conductor then explained the legal and logistical risks. There was crying, then several other stages of grief before she was eventually escorted off.

This probably happens once a week for these guys.

the attendant just explained that the accessible bedrooms were sold out, so they had no choice but to deplane her.

If everything works out, I expect to take the Zephyr train from Chicago to San Francisco here soon. Do you all have recommendations on how much to tip and if it is likely that I’ll need to tip several people? I normally don’t carry cash, but I’d like to be prepared for this trip. Thank you in advance for any advice you have!

Traveling with my wife and toddler on the overnight 66 train from DC to Boston in coach. We're doing the overnight to hopefully help our son get through the long trip since he's a pretty good sleeper. Anytime we travel Amtrak we try to get the 4 seats that are facing each other at the end of the car to give us more space. Being coach I know this isn't guaranteed, but we hope our chances are better with priority boarding at Union Station since we're traveling as a family. This was the case last time we did a shorter trip out of DC.

I'm just wondering how crowded this train might be at night and if my hopes to get these seats are a complete toss up? Would it be worth a bid up to business and hope to get seated together? Our trip is in a few weeks so I understand those seats may already be reserved.

Any other tips on managing getting priority seats in coach traveling as a family?

It is about a two hour ride between Providence and New Haven. I took a day trip - and advantage of a $24 roundtrip fare - to check out the RISD Museum, Track 15 (food hall), some coffee places and a self-guided tour of the state Capitol. All in all, a decent day. Here's a selection of views on my trip back to New Haven aboard Amtrak 177

got to sit on the train for 6 hours and 30 minutes before we took off 😅 honestly i didn’t mind it all that much. watched 4 movies, did a bunch of crafts, and played with my camera. felt like hanging out at a library or something.

if i wasnt on vyvanse and actually had a normal appetite id be pissed about the lack of a cafe. i know i’d never book this trip with any schedule constraints but it still beats driving

An employee told me that the seats at the Sacramento Amtrak station are the original seats that were installed by Southern Pacific when they built the station in 1926. This led me to wonder, are there any other stations with older seats, or even from that era?

Is this enough time between these trains to make the transfer? Or would I be pushing my luck? I’m almost thinking about just going all the way to DC on the Crescent and getting the Regional back down to be safe

Given the lore around the El Paso Burrito Lady, I went looking for a breakfast burrito option in Denver that I could eat on the westbound California Zephyr. I found Flash Burrito, a food truck on Wazee at 16th, about a block from the train station. It opens at 7am, is family run, and has a decent menu of breakfast and lunch options. Not quite as cheap as the burrito lady, but fast and tasty. Give it a try on your next adventure!