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We have often discussed the pricing of Amtrak tickets. I have a specific example. The first week of October, I booked a round trip on the Capitol Ltd and Empire Builder, in roomette Pittsburgh to Seattle all the way, for later in January. Today, I entered the same trip, same dates, and the price had increased by $ 300. I was booked in Room 2 for the entire trip in October, so guess the load was light. I also booked Tue-Friday, and Mon-Thursday trips, and alternated with dates in today's checking. Chicago to Minneapolis is the only leg of the trip that has some sold out (for sleepers) on some alternate dates I checked.
I am looking forward to the trip, I have extra time so any scheduling problems aren't a worry. I also seem to be booked on the Capitol Ltd. on days that the diner-lounge is being added for review (just happened, I didn't plan it) so I will report by the end of Jan.
Posts: 76 | From: Steubenville, OH | Registered: Oct 2004
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You might check again in 2-3 weeks and see what you get. You may find the price has gone back down. I checked prices for my last trip a month before departure, but booked just two weeks before departure. The price when I booked was about $100 lower for a round trip than when I first checked.
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I have kept checking my trip in January on the Capitol Ltd and Empire Builder to Seattle. I booked in early October, the price increased by $ 300 by early November, and is now only "up" by $ 100 about two weeks away. The westbound EB from Chicago has no sleepers available any more for my dates. So, booking in Oct was the best course.
Interesting that the number of hotel rooms blocked for our conference in Seattle was not sufficient, so more rooms were obtained, mine is at Holiday Inn Express on Aurora.
Posts: 76 | From: Steubenville, OH | Registered: Oct 2004
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Quite a few years ago, I called Amtrak, during the month of January, for a round-trip reservation on the Coast Starlight from San Jose to Seattle. I reserved a delux bedroom and paid with a credit card. The tickets arrived, in the mail, a few weeks later.
In July, in the Amtrak station just before boarding, I was informed there was a price increase after I got the reservations in Jan. I had to pay a substantial differential increase for the Jan price vs. the price at the time of boarding in July. Is this sort of thing routine or typical?
Richard
Posts: 1909 | From: Santa Rosa | Registered: Jan 2004
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I also am like you in the sense that I like to see if I got a good deal. For instance I was able to score a $260 dollar ticket from San Jose-Lamy New Mexico and back and the fare now is $325. So I've found that the earlier you book the better the fare is. If you book later then the fare goes up based on availability. I have never seen it go down closer to the dates like the airlines.
But where Amtrak really shines is that you can get a ticket at the last minute even an hour or two before the train departs and have it paid for and pick it up at the station or Quicktrak machine. The airlines would charge dearly. But Amtrak might only be $50 or more than if you booked it earlier.
Posts: 259 | Registered: Jan 2005
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I took my round trip adventure from PGH to SEA on the Capitol Ltd. and Empire Builder. It was great! We were on time the whole way, even EARLY on the EB where we had to wait at stations because it was too early to depart.
Some notes: Ice at the beverage center of the sleeping car has ended, according to the attendant on the EB there were health issues with people using their hands to retrieve ice, so the ice is inside Room 1 (the attendant's room) and he/she retrieves it. This was true on both the Capitol and EB both ways. The Attendant seemed to use Room 1 as a "pantry" and slept someplace else.
It is impossible to predict which way the sleepers are "turned," and which way rooms will be facing. The sleepers on my trains were every which way, even the Seattle and Portland cars were reversed on the same train.
One sleeper on the EB was unrefurbished, even the refurbished ones are showing signs of wear, particularly the hard floor covering, the seams are not holding up and are patched and taped.
The food was excellent, but hard rolls and tough vegetables were served a couple meals on the EB.
This is my first train trip in January, but it was a lot of fun, light loads even in coach, and people seemed more chatty than when the train is overflowing with people.
And yes, that is a slow restoration of King Street Station in Seattle, the restrooms and entryway are done, I guess.
Posts: 76 | From: Steubenville, OH | Registered: Oct 2004
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Richard, I never heard of being forced to pay a fare increase once you had already paid for an agreed-upon price on Amtrak. Maybe this was something once done and discontinued?
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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Yukon, Soujourner is right. I have never had to pay more once I paid for my tickets. We get our tickets in Jan. for A trip west in Sept. By the time we leave the price has incressed a lot. That is one reason to buy early. If I were you I would check with Customer Relations. It seems to me that you have been had. Who told you to pay extra? My first impression is that someone is padding their pocket.
Posts: 1577 | From: virginia | Registered: Jun 2005
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The prices are not consistent with miles traveled and are too damned expensive for the lousy service that Amtrak offers much of the time. They should pay us to use Amtrak! After late trains, failed toilets, dirty bathrooms, broken locks on sleeping compartment doors, drafty compartments in winter, non-working air conditioning and some surly employees what did you expect I would say!!??
Posts: 287 | From: Palatka, FL, USA | Registered: Feb 2004
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I agree that, at least, sleeper prices are too high for the quality of service. I have to get a delux bedroom because the seats in the roomettes or econ sleepers hurt my back. Its a huge cost just for a round trip ticket from SJ to Portland or Seattle. Regarding having to pay a differential for the increase in sleeper prices from the Jan. ticket purchase and boarding in July, I have to think that it was a misunderstanding at my local, San Jose Amtrak depot office. Maybe Sojourner is right..possibly it could have been a temporary policy which was discontinued because of a howl of protests, no doubt. I should have written a letter to Amtrak, protesting, but never got around to it.
Richard
Posts: 1909 | From: Santa Rosa | Registered: Jan 2004
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Once you have paid for your ticket and have a confirmation number, you essentially have a contract, which I am pretty sure is legally binding. Thus anything you were charged beyond that was either the result of incompetence or fraud.
Some hotels in our area tried to do something similar a few years ago during a big local event. People who had reservations got calls that they would have to pay more or lose their reservations. The district attorney got wind of it and several hotels got into legal hot water. The DA made it clear that a hotel reservation was a legally binding contract. I assume its the same for Amtrak reservations.
Posts: 2649 | From: California's Monterey Peninsula | Registered: Dec 2000
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