I'm traveling round trip PVD to NYP in a couple weeks in First Class on the Acela, and would appreciate any tips and help you all can provide on negotiating and navigating the stations. I only go by train about once a year, and find it confusing every time.
My first question is: am I guaranteed a seat? I've had to stand often on past Acela trips, and I'm wondering if First solves this. It would be great to have no pressure to fight the crowds to get to the train ASAP when it arrives.
Track assignment scrum: Particularly in NYP, I hate the silly scrum to get to the right track, which is assigned at the last minute. I found this:
http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/...ng_secret.html
Is that still good advice? What is the official name of that intermediate level with the green monitors? Is it "Lower Level"? Anything else you can suggest?
At NYP, what tracks would a Northbound Acela be on? (So at least I can narrow down my options). For instance, is it only going to be 7 or 8, which share the same platform? Or is it not that easy...
Regarding PVD and NYP, which end of the train has the First Class car(s)? And therefore, which way do I want to go when I get on the tracks? (Even in PVD, I always get confused as to which way is southbound, and often go to the wrong end of the train.)
And thanks to Mod for referring this several years ago:
http://jasongibbs.com/pennstation/
it's incredibly helpful.
Thanks in advance for your help.