I just made a couple of roundtrips in the NEC trying all the variations, and I agree with this assessment. The Amfleet coaches on the Regional trains are comfortable and IMHO their ride quality is equal to if not better than Acela. I know Regionals are moving a little slower, but the time difference for Acela is really only significant north of New York.

(donning flame proof suit) I don't know why anyone would fly NYC-PHL-BWI-WAS with Amtrak available. Might be a time advantage for BOS, but then we get into the subject of Logan airport, which is another thread.

Yesterday I was on an Acela set that had the WiFi test. Leaving NYP northbound, I was able to connect after leaving the East River tunnel. It stayed connected all the way to Route 128, with no outage. It was a bit slow at times, but certainly a great addition to the service.

Here's my take on the four classes available on the Northeast Corridor.

Regional coach: + Cheap. Wider seats, can stretch out if alone. - tends to be crowded at peak times, peak days, especially around holiday time. Ride isn't as smoooth. Slow. Small windows.

Regional business: + Less expensive than Acela. Wider seats. May get 2x1 configuration. Does not tend to be crowded even at peak times. If you like peacful surroundings, it is a good choice. - Ride isn't as smooth, slow. Small windows.

Acela Business: + Faster. Big windows. Ride is smoother. Internet access.- More expensive. Seats are smaller, can't stretch out if traveling alone. Tends to be crowded at peak times.

Acela First + All pluses of Acela business. 2x1 configuration. Mediocre food and wine. - Still more expensive.

For me, if time/timing is not of the essence, regional business is the right choice. I have never seen a full regional business car (admittedly haven't traveled the day before Thanksgiving in years, but do travel peak times around Christmas). If I want food and drink, I find that I can bring better food and drink than Amtrak can provide, and normally at a cheaper cost.

Notes: Ride is based on comparing like for like - center of car, not over the trucks. Internet access is assumed. I have not actually used it yet.

The Internet access is only in "test mode," and only on a few Acela sets. I used it the other day, and I had full-time connectivity from leaving the East River tunnel to Route 128. It was a bit sluggish at times, but was satisfactory.

My wife is doing a consulting gig in the DC area and just found out she needs to take the train next week to NY. She said her ticket was $560 - that is CRAZY.

She must be booked in a First Class seat at least one way, as the maximum round trip price is $442 in Business Class.

I prefer regional business to Acela business. I think the seats are more comfortable, it is often less crowded and more quiet, and there are not any seats that face backwards.

Having taken Acela hundreds of times over last couple years, and the regional a handful of times:

The #1 reason to take Acela is that its schedule is 100x more reliable than regional trains. Acela seems to get priority through the congested NE corridor tracks at least over regional trains, and is rarely late. If it's late, it's usually not by that much. In my experience, the regional trains are VERY late A LOT. If they are both on time, the regional trains are great value and only takes slightly longer but you just can't trust the schedule on the regional.

There are seat/ambience differences but those are minor at least to me and way secondary to getting me into Penn on time.

The only exception is NYP-NHV, where you can throw the rules out the window.

Actually, the rules there are very simple. NRO-NHV dispatching is controlled by MetroNorth, which doesn't prioritize the Acela over other trains. If a train misses its slot, it gets the next available slot, even if it means an express being put in behind a local.

Good to know. At the end of the day, I find they do a good job keeping Acela on time ^ but a lot less so for regionals :td:. YMMV!