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Originally posted by GrandmaLinda:
I haven't booked the trip yet but my fare is based on a roomette with 3 beds which is supposed to be suitable for 3 adults.

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Uh, I think we need to clarify Amtrak's room terminology.

A Roomette is a very small room suitable for one or two persons. There is no way it could be suitable for three*. It contains two seats that face each other. The lower seats fold out to make one bed, and a second bunk folds down from above to make a second bed. The Roomette was, until recently, called a "Standard bedroom."

A Bedroom is capable of supporting up to three people. It contains a long sofa style seat and an armchair. The sofa unfolds into a fairly wide bed that can sleep two small to average sized people who want be very cozy. An upper bunk folds down from the top for another single bed. The Bedroom also has a private toilet/shower compartment and a sink. Until recently it was called a "Deluxe Bedroom." A partition between two Bedrooms can be opened to make a suite.

If you were to get Roomettes, you would require two Roomettes, preferably directly across the hall from each other. This can be requested from an Amtrak agent. Opposite room pairs are 3&4, 5&6, 7&8, 9&10, 11&12, 13&14. 11-14 are on the lower level. If you get a Bedroom, you would only need one. Bedrooms are assigned letters instead of numbers, A-E. A is slightly smaller than the others.

The Family Bedroom mentioned earlier is room F.

*As an aside, my family took two Roomettes (then caled Standard Bedrooms) to Denver a few years ago. Upon our descent out of the Rockies we actually managed to cram all four of us into one room to see the sights. Don't try this for an entire trip.

All rooms have windows.

Have you seen this page: http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?cid=1080080554190&pagename=Amtrak%2Fam2Copy%2FTitle_Image_Copy_Page&c=am2Copy Click the links to the Superliner rooms (The first group of rooms listed). Each page has a virtual tour that shows each type of room in both daytime and nighttime configurations. They also show room dimensions.

I have fit my 2 children into the lower berth in a roomette. It works if they don't mind sharing a 2' 4" wide bed. Day use is close to unbearable for 3 in a roomette, as there is little floor room between the two facing seats. It works if you spend days in the lounge. The 3rd person did not get the free meals in a roomette.

The family bedroom has the most space, and is the one I'll go for again. It also has 2 little work tables, so each child can have her own space to color or do Leggos, which can become VERY important at times. The bathroom is down the hall, but it is much less utilized than the upper level one, so it is not such a big deal. The deluxe bedroom was fine during the day, but very cramped at night. My mattress kept sliding off and making even less of the cramped floor space. On the other hand, one of my kids had diarrhea one night, and it sure was convenient having the bathroom inside the room with us. The standard bedrooms were a bust, in my opinion. We were on the upper level, and the common toilet got incredibly filthy and stinking. Both girls kept wanting to stay together, so either me or my mom tended to have three in our tiny room. We weren't across the hall from each other, as our ticket agent had told us we'd be. The train was hot. I felt claustrophobic, and I usually don't. The idea of a 2-bedroom suite, which Amtrak seems to be promoting more these days, sounds grand, but the price is way out of my league.