Armani

I recently completed a trip from Cincinnati to Martinez on the Cardinal and CA Zephyr in bedrooms (using points thanks to Continental airlines). I found the bunks on the viewliner to be much more comfortable than the superliner. Not only did the viewliner have higher ceilings and window on top bunk, but I found the mattress padding to be thicker and much more comfortable. The upper bunk is also longer and wider. Has anyone else noticed these difference?

I wish Amtrak would use thicker pads on the superliners. These can be very hard for two night trips.

hi55us

Yea, huge difference. I hope any new superliner sleepers they order are like the viewliners. The Superliner equipment is much older and it's definitely showing it.

Armani

The biggest difference I noticed was in the thickness of the pads. Those on the superliner aren't much thicker than workout mats.

saxman66

I usually prefer the upper bunk on the Viewliners as well. I'm just trying to figure out why Amtrak gives 4 pillows in the Viewliners and only 2 pillows in the Superliners. I usually like to sleep on two Amtrak pillows because they are too thin, plus have one to hold.

BBarber

Few slight differences. 1st off is the height. Viewliner is single story and Superliner is double. Viewliners allow you to walk the length of the train on the ground level, while Superliners require you to be on the second story. Viewliners also have a toilet in the rommettes I believe and the Superliners do not. The major and my favorite difference is that Viewliners have a 2nd window in the roomettes above the ground window. It really does help make it a bit less claustrophobic if you are the unlucky person who has to sleep up there. In the Superliners, because they don't have the second window, it almost feels like you're in a coffin. Lastly, I am pretty sure the consist of the actual trains themselves differ as one is primarily for long distance (SL) and the other is not (VL). I rarely get to ride the Viewliners because I live in Ohio and always go out west when I ride the train.

BobH

Deluxe Superliner rooms have bath rooms, the economy ones don't.

Also, on a Superliner equipped train, all the boarding etc is on the lower level, so if it's cold outside or whatever.......

Bob H

BBarber

Now I just have to figure out how to get "status" with Amtrak. "Qualifying tier points" are very difficult to determine. (Even after reading T&C/s) Amtrak fails to differentiate partner promotions such as: Samsonite, Gas Company, Flowers, etc...and "qualifying tier points" Almost all rewards programs I know of, make it crystal clear as to what qualifies and what doesn't. Thankfully I called them before I bought 10 "Samsonite luggage tags @ $5 apiece" to claim the 1,000 points per purchase. I did get a 40% bonus on purchased points. I love Amtrak, but it is blatantly obvious why they are hemorrhaging money... For $565 dollars, I just purchased 21,000 points (including bonus) That alone, is enough for a 2-zone roomette (bare in mind that paying with points, only one seat fee is charged and both get their meals comp'ed during the duration of the trip)

EX: November 13, 2015: [CHI-SEA] in a roomette, via Texas Eagle [65 hours long] connecting to Coastal Starlight via LAX to SEA [34 hours long] is currently priced at $1,406 dollars. Furthermore, the roomette on the Texas Eagle includes a total of 8 "comp'ed" meals PER PERSON and the Coastal Starlight includes a total of 6 "comp'ed meals PER PERSON. Combined....... That is a staggering 28 meals that Amtrak is providing (not to mention the Coastal Starlight menu in the Pacific Parlor Car for sleepers is a tier up above all other Amtrak routes) Now to be generous... Lets just say at $15 dollars a meal (some of the dinner entrees on Amtrak are upwards of $25 each)
28 meals at $15 each is $420 dollars. So the $565 dollars I paid to Amtrak for the points to purchase the 2-zone redemption plummeted to $145 dollars. Clearly, what they pay for the food and what they sell it for are two different things; however, I think the point has been made. To conclude, I love Amtrak and I am happy to give my tax dollars to help keep it afloat. BUT........ I have been struggling for work since I was laid off; meanwhile, some "genius" who probably doesn't know a damn thing about Amtrak, is making 6 figures a year salary because on paper, his/hers Harvard degree looks so pretty... Ahhhh the joys of government... Put them in charge of the Sahara and we will run out of sand in two months.... Maybe the saying is true regarding jobs.... It's not what ya know, but who ya know.... Could sure use one of those in my life!! Hahahaha

AlanB

Amtrak stopped using those names many years ago. Today there are Bedrooms (the former Deluxe rooms) and Roomettes (the former economy rooms).

AlanB

I would think that a train that goes more than 1,000 miles is a long distance train. And the Silver Star & Meteor, along with the Crescent & Cardinal, all cover more than 1,000 miles using Viewliner sleepers. Only the Lake Shore Limited has a run under 1,000 miles, but at 959 miles, I think most people would still consider that a long distance.

Only actual paid travel on Amtrak earns "status" points.

And yet, the AGR program is one department at Amtrak that actually does earn money for Amtrak. It's my understanding that they more than cover their expenses and pay for the rides that their members partake of. Without AGR, Amtrak would actually lose more money than they currently do.

Yes, it can seem like a bargain depending on when you price your room. But pick the right time and I'm sure that you'll be able to find that same trip for far less cost than what you quoted.

BBarber

1) [I] "Yes, it can seem like a bargain depending on when you price your room. But pick the right time and I'm sure that you'll be able to find that same trip for far less cost than what you quoted.
Yesterday 8:53 pm"[/I

****Amtrak is primarily "bucket based fares" similar to a hotel. The rates open at a predetermined price and fluctuate based on vacancies. IE: When you go to book a long distance route, with all roomettes, and it just so happens that while making your reservation, one of your legs is a "bedroom" instead of a roomette. Out of curiosity, you change it back to a roomette, only to find out that the price is actually greater than if you had kept the, typically more expensive "bedroom" It is HOTEL101..... If all your economical rooms are filled and the suites are empty, you upgrade the economical rooms (which those guests are thrilled) and that frees up the cheaper rooms to sell to those who would otherwise find another property because of the price. That said, I am confident when I say, "the price for sleeper accommodations on Amtrak, are without a doubt, influenced by two things. 1)How many sleepers are vacant. 2) What specific types of sleepers are vacant. HENCE: The term----- "Peak Season"

2) Only actual paid travel on Amtrak earns "status" points.

Per the AGR website:
"BENEFITS OVERVIEW
Whether you're new to the program or a well-traveled member, Amtrak Guest Rewards has a program tier to enhance your Amtrak experience. By earning TQPs Tier Qualifying Points throughout a calendar year, you'll qualify for more points, more perks, and more rewards like free Amtrak travel.
Tier Qualifying Points (TQPs) earned in a calendar year count toward your tier and are earned by traveling on Amtrak and during special promotions."

****Please note the "during special promotions" Does buying with their "partners" constitute a "special promotion"? Yeah.... Your guess was as good as mine... Especially because they don't even touch on it as it pertains to the [T&C's]

3) I would think that a train that goes more than 1,000 miles is a long distance train. And the Silver Star & Meteor, along with the Crescent & Cardinal, all cover more than 1,000 miles using Viewliner sleepers. Only the Lake Shore Limited has a run under 1,000 miles, but at 959 miles, I think most people would still consider that a long distance.

**** I was referring to the "consist of the train. Long distance trains [Superliners] have more cars in the consist. IE: Superliners will have a couple dome cars, dinner cars, etc....Thus suggesting, because Viewliners tend to be for short distance, it is quite common to not be able to get a reservation for dinner, unless you are in a sleeper. [They have a smaller consist] That was all I was saying.... I was not disputing the distance, I was just stating that the consist will differ as it pertains to "Superliner" and "Viewliner" Lastly, a Superliner could never go east because of their height. It would not be a friendly road to say the least.......

I appreciate your comments, but I think you took it all wrong. I was not being aggressive whatsoever. Moreover, I stand by everything I said, including my love for Amtrak. It is just a DAMN SHAME, like everything the government gets their hands on, fails miserably! Too many chiefs and not enough indians.... It does not take a nuclear physicist to comprehend how ... backwards their entire program is. Who in their right mind would buy a $1,000 dollar, all they way up to a $3,000 dollar ticket, when they can purchase the points and/or transfer the points from another program??? You can holler til you are blue in the face, but that still doesn't help the insanely overpaid morons who probably sit around a $50,000 dollar mahogany table "making decisions"

AlanB

Amtrak is entirely bucket based. And revenue management places X number of rooms into the first bucket, second bucket, etc. But they can and do adjust the number of rooms in any given bucket based upon the two things you mentioned, along with consideration of two other factors; namely holidays and how far away is the departure date of the train.

Amtrak used to call up people several years back offering a chance to pay for a reduced price upgrade to a Bedroom if enough hadn't already sold. They have since discontinued that practice however to my knowledge.

Special means that they announce a promotion that allows one to earn status points outside of the normal rule. It does happen occasionally, but I can recall only a few such promotions.

That's not true at all. Sorry! For example, the Lake Shore Limited is a single level train using Amfleets & Viewliner cars. It runs with 3 sleepers, 1 diner, 1 cafe car, and typically 6 coaches; for a total of 11 cars not including baggage cars.

The SW Chief runs with 2 Superliner sleepers, 1 Trans/Dorm with 6 revenue rooms, 1 diner, 1 cafe car/Sightseer Lounge, and 2 coaches; a third is added during peak seasons. That's 8 cars total.

Even the Silver Meteor runs with more cars than the SW Chief and the Capitol Limited for that matter. The Meteor runs with 3 Viewliner sleepers, 1 diner, 1 cafe/lounge, 4 coaches regularly and a 5th seasonal.

The CZ Zephyr has 7 cars all the time, plus 2 extra cars are added seasonally. Only the Empire Builder and the Coast Starlight have consists that rival the Meteor and the Lake Shore.

Actually the reason it's harder to get into the diner on the single level trains is because 1/3rd of the car is given over to the kitchen thus reducing the seating area. On a Superliner the kitchen is downstairs which allows for the entire upper level to be used predominantly for seating.

The best that single level dining cars can seat is 48 people. The Superliner dining cars can seat 72 maximum.

The Capitol Limited goes east to DC using Superliner equipment. The Auto train runs from just south of DC to Florida using Superliner equipment. The Cardinal used to run with Superliner equipment when it terminated in DC.

Actually, outside of the NY City tunnels and the Baltimore tunnels, Superliners could pretty much run anyplace in the east. Perhaps in a few spots the overhead wires would need to be moved, but predominately the cars could run on most of the NEC save those tunnels. I'm aware of Superliners being operated into Philly from the west and into Albany, NY.

The real problem in the east is that Superliner's aren't compatible with high level platforms and many east coast stations only have high level platforms.

I didn't think you were being aggressive at all. Sorry if my reply made it seem like that.

Unless you are Select Exec, most people can't buy enough points in 1 year to take multiple trips. And while I don't know exact numbers, I do know that the bulk of the inventory is sold via payment. I say at best, on average, maybe 25% of the rooms on any given train were purchased using points.

Compared to most CEO's Mr. Boardman is a pauper. He makes a fraction of what most CEO's get. And he has no stock options and no golden parachute awaiting him when he retires.

That's not to suggest that Amtrak's management isn't bloated and that it doesn't have problems with people making decisions who have no idea about the reality and impact of their decisions. But that's true in most companies too. It's not unique to Amtrak at all.

What is unique for Amtrak is that it has more than 500 people sitting in Congress who also think that they know what's best for Amtrak and they love to micro-manage. Then they make things worse by never passing a long term plan for Amtrak that they stick to and most times not passing a budget on time.

Imagine trying to buy a car and take out a 5 year loan when your boss won't tell you if your salary will go up or down next year, or even remain the same.