FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - Acela pricing, travel times increasingly uncompetitive

Nov 10, 2023 | 9:24 am

#1

Adelphos

Join Date: May 2011

Location: NYC (LGA, JFK), CT

Programs: Delta Platinum, American Gold, JetBlue Mosaic 4, Marriott Platinum, Hyatt Explorist, Hilton Diamond,

Posts: 5,116

Acela pricing, travel times increasingly uncompetitive

I moved to Stamford, CT from NYC about a year ago and looked forward to taking Acela/Amtrak more given the convenience of the Stamford station. However, recently it seems like Acela is at least $400 one way (either to DC or Boston) at a minimum. In contrast,

LGA to either BOS to DCA ranges from $200 to $300, and in some cases, as low as $150 on a variety of airlines
American Airlines runs a lot of frequencies from HPN to DCA at sub $300

These flights are all under an hour. It takes me 45 minutes max to get to LGA, and less to HPN. You save time and money by flying.

When Acela was in the $200 to $300 range, it could make sense. Now I can’t justify it - paying more for 4 hour train journeys seems tough

Any thoughts?

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