shuttercookie

We'll be taking the Cascades from Seattle to Vancouver round trip next spring for a cruise. Got a bunch of questions if anyone has time for answers:

- How early should we check in for morning train?
-What are the chances for getting seats on the coastal side of train?
-Does getting there earlier increase chances of better seats (booked business class).
-We will be traveling with carry-on luggage on the plane to Seattle. Is there overhead storage over the seats on the train?
- What is the best way to get from train station to the cruise terminal area?

Thanks!

AlanB

If memory serves, the conductors start assigning seat about a 1/2 hour before departure. The line however may well start to form even before that time. The BC line however is much shorter than the coach line.

Regarding seats, it may come down to train orientation. I think that the single seats were on the coast side the time I rode it. And yes, being first in line does increase the odds of getting better seats.

Plenty of room in the overhead luggage racks for anything that the airlines will permit as carryon's. And the train still does offer checked baggage. You basically claim your bags on the platform and then go through Canadian customs.

And good choice with booking BC, as they are allowed off the train first and therefore get to the customs line first and typically get through faster because of that.

As for getting from the station to the dock, cab or Vancouver's Sky Train. The Amtrak station is about 1 block from the Sky Train station.

shuttercookie

Thankyou Alan!

seat38a

DSC00771 by Brian H, on Flickr

BC gets a short line plus priority through customs from what I heard. We were going south but here is the Seat Assignment line for Vancouver. The coach side gets LONG.

shuttercookie

Great photo! Makes me glad we sprung a bit more for business class.
Just got passports this week so that trip will be our first experience with going through customs, a bit nervous about it.
Last time we went to Canada 30 years ago, they counted our kids and waved us through!

Points Scrounger

I'm resurrecting this thread to confirm what an acquaintance told me yesterday, not a B.S. blowhard guy at all, but was adamant that a business class ticket now gets admittance to the lounge in Portland. Was he lucky or is this new policy?

FrensicPic

As for getting from the station to the cruise terminal, you might check out the cruisecritics.com Alaska board. That type of question comes up from time-to-time.

fairviewroad

That is the stated policy. Lounge is open to BC passengers with same-day (arrival or departure) tickets. I've not had a chance to test it in PDX since the last time I went through there with a BC ticket, I was on a thru-train and did not enter the station.

Something to bear in mind: The lounge is only open 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. That means it is closed for 4 out of the 6 daily Cascades departures from PDX.

Points Scrounger

I usually take the one around noon.

Points Scrounger

Bumping to add that I'm in the lounge now. I asked the attendant how long business class Cascades passengers have had access: "About a year." That would track fairly well with business class tickets getting bonus points.

hi55us

It should be noted that "business class" has a pretty wide variation on Amtrak, most BC tickets do not include lounge access (none of the northeast trains include it and I'm pretty sure the midwest corridor does not include it). They have started selling access to the Club Acela in Boston, but it's not worth the $20 if you ask me...

AlanB

Actually, a BC seat on the Surfliners will get you access to the Met Lounge in LA and BC on any train out of Chicago will get you access to the lounge there.

Additionally, BC on the Coast Starlight will grant you access to the Seattle, Portland, and LA lounges.

At this point its pretty much only on the NEC, where BC would overwhelm the lounges, that lounge access is not included.

Points Scrounger

Seattle has a lounge?

AlanB

They were supposed to be getting one with the rebuild/remodel; guess it either hasn't opened yet or they dropped it from the plans. I thought I had heard that it was open, but Amtrak.com says no.

nineworldseries

Have a short trip booked in a couple weeks from PDX to Vancouver WA - it's a 15 minute trip outbound and a 50 minute trip returning! Is this all due to schedule padding? If we leave on time from VAN, should I expect to get back to PDX super early, or will they wait to get into PDX "on time"?