Amtrak fares policy

[Anonymous]

Yes, Amtrak's sleeper accomodations are expensive, similar to a major city five star hotel. The same can be said for the diner.... Booking two people in the one sleeper reflects a value of half price each, and keep in mind that the fare includes the meals offered in the diner....

Imagine the costs of a sleeper on the two nights west of Chicago compared to the price of one night east of Chicago.....or the three nights on the Sunset Limited and the Texas Eagle when its connects to the Limited past San Antonio to Los Angeles...

The simple truth is that Amtrak doesn't have any problems booking its sleepers, even at this five star hotel price....One must book at least a month in advance to insure a sleeper....

Amtrak's coach prices refect the value of a coach seat in an airliner, its sleeper prices refect the value of traveling first class in an airliner....

I am also finding cruise fares interesting high too.....the prices of the cabins are doubled for double occupancy.....

[daveklepper]

Why not travel by daycoach during the day and stay overnight (YMCA's are economical and clean) tp break up your journey? I don't have the most recent schedule, but the problem might be Pittsburgh-Chicago or Buffalo-Chicago. But you might try something complicated. Like the day Adarondak to Montreal, overnight in Montreal, then a day train to Toronto, then overnight, then day to Sarnia, overnight in Detroit, then day to Chicago. Or possibly the Cardinal or Capitol via Washington, staying for some time at one of the more scenic areas on the route and get a night's sleep, spending one night sleeping in a reclining seat coach? Dave Klepper

[jeaton]

Depends a little on when you are traveling. Looks to me like summer peak travel times are about $200 more for the round trip than the fare say in October. Actually the very tight supply of sleeper cars (Viewliners) that serve that route are frequently sold out, even at the high prices.

[Anonymous]

As a railfan from Scotland, I was hoping to fit in the classic journey from New York to Chicago into my holiday until I visited the Amtrak website and saw the cost of a bed! I can book a sleeper from Inverness to London and return for less than $200 for a distance of 600 miles. I know they have their funding problems which has reduced available capacity, but surely it is better to fill berths than charge twice as much as a return fare from London to New York?