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Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos)

Posted by New Flyer #857 on Sat Jan 31 13:21:03 2015

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So I tried to save you the click if you desire photos, but I want to share my experience and also help anyone who may have this on their bucket list but never got around to it come to a decision.

First off, it was Washington to NY, 7p.m. from Washington last night, Acela Express 2126. New York was also the terminus of the train (it was not continuing on to Boston).

At the time of booking, these were my options:
$52 total for NE Regional
$158 total for Acela Business
$277 total for Acela First

I would never do this again (First Class), but it was on my bucket list and am glad I did it once.

1) Club Acela: Not paradise per se but I'm glad it was available to me with a First Class ticket. The 6p.m. train was much more expensive online than the 7p.m. train so when at 5 I was done seeing Washington it was nice to be able to go in and just wait in a quiet environment with wifi and with the small snacks and beverages available. Union Station is indeed noisy and this was good for a quiet person like me.

I like that the exit doors of the lounge take you right toward the train (without having to walk back through the station) but the station announcement of the train came before they announced it in the lounge, which bothered me a bit. At the same time, the upside is that you didn't have to hear the announcements of all the trains leaving before yours (except the 6p.m. Acela and the Crescent train to New Orleans that was passing through).

PRO: Quiet and comfortable, light snack and drink without buying elsewhere

CON: I didn't appreciate that you couldn't bring outside food in. Why not? What if the station eateries are more your thing than the silly snacks they give you? If you're not giving us cocktails or alcohol the least you could do is let us go buy our own snack and eat it there. (Note: It is probably easy to sneak in outside food though. . .it didn't look like this policy was being enforced in any way). And that we didn't get to board the train earlier than everyone else. . .we should have been first on board.

2) Boarding

A walk in the cold to the front end of the train but I know that the First Class car belongs at one end of the train and not in the middle, so there's really not much they can do with this unless they offer you rides in an electric cart, which I know most of us including myself would have refused anyway. Once on board, I aimed as planned for the single seats (most others had the same idea as I had expected) and the attendant checked the ticket before offering any services (probably a good idea) but she took my mobile phone (e ticket), and placed it on the table to be scanned later by the C/R. She didn't say it outright but I could tell she didn't want me doing anything else with the phone until it was scanned (10 minutes into the trip). But I had my drink (white wine) in under a minute, long before the train started to move, and my Kindle Fire to keep me occupied. Wifi was decent.

PRO: Immediate greeting and service, luggage rack for all bags and coats to maximize your space, large table, two (!!) outlets for devices (good to ensure the e ticket doesn't go away)

CON: I wasn't expecting them to ask me to leave my phone in a particular spot on the table, and my first choice white wine wasn't available. You walk the length of the train to the First Class car but for a railfan that's not a big deal.

3) The Ride

Well as we all know, the time difference over the NE Regional is nowhere near worth the added price for Acela. Schedule says you save 35 minutes or so, WAS to NY, though in reality we saved less because we were 15 minutes late into NY due largely to construction work slowing everything down in Maryland.

I did see the Acela-priority-policy in action though. We passed by an Amtrak regional train (not sure which) around New Brunswick and it was slowing down, clearly to allow us to bypass and stop in Metropark ahead of it. It was going slow enough that I could tell it would have gotten to Metropark ahead of us ordinarily. I assume we were supposed to be way ahead of it had it not been for the Maryland construction.

When at the highest speeds, it was actually a little bumpy. The food and drink shook a little bit (though never leading to spillage). The bathroom was very spacious for a train and even had a coat rack.

But the service was phenomenal. They check on you every few minutes offering to bring you anything else, almost to the point when I wanted to tell them they didn't have to come back for 15 minutes or so (but didn't). The menu is small but I found what I wanted and it was good. Even if they could just add one option to the appetizer and to the dessert (just being told what's coming is tacky in my opinion) it would have helped a lot. And, of course, the downside to a faster trip is that you have less time to enjoy the ride, but what can you do?

PRO: Excellent, friendly service. Very good space, and bathroom. The high speed sections felt like high speed (as far as America goes).

CON: Very limited menu -- the entree options were good but I don't think it would be too big a deal like I said to add one or two things to the appetizer section and the dessert section. The car wasn't anywhere near full and they should have been able to store a little more food (and wine options) than what it seemed they had, considering the price of the ticket. (I overheard at Newark the attendant tell a passenger "this is my last one" for a Bailey's Irish Cream. Seriously?!)

A little humor: the Devils game (an overtime loss to Pittsburgh) had let out just as we were getting to Newark. A Devils fan approached the train with the impression that any train saying New York was good enough and he didn't mind buying on board. Our attendant, presumably experienced with this, was waiting outside the train telling everyone "fifty dollars" if you get on the train. I think the attendant also warned some people off at Metropark. The exterior signage on the train should probably read "reservations only" or something like that.

And some nitpicking: the PA system sound is ugly. I've heard some nice PA call sounds (the tone you hear before the C/R starts speaking) over the years and Acela's is terrible. Also, I expected the interior signage to be either automatic or immediately modified regarding the next stop. It wasn't. We were still approaching Metropark (per the signage) when we got off in NY.

I may think of more but I wanted to get this off to you all. . .have a nice weekend!

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(1337051)

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Re: Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos)

Posted by New Flyer #857 on Sat Jan 31 13:37:25 2015, in response to Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos), posted by New Flyer #857 on Sat Jan 31 13:21:03 2015.

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P.S. Feel free to ask any specific questions you may have about the trip.

FWIW I'm glad I did it. I will remember it for a long time. But I would never do it again on my own expense. I'd need at least half of it paid for by someone else or an emergency need to travel fast with no other tickets available.

Also, I would not travel on Acela business, from what I saw of it. If you're going to invest in a fun train trip, bring a friend, and book together in First Class. That's what I did and it worked great. It's a moment to remember (and never to do again).

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Re: Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos)

Posted by r33/r36 mainline on Sat Jan 31 13:43:45 2015, in response to Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos), posted by New Flyer #857 on Sat Jan 31 13:21:03 2015.

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52 bucks from DC to NY? in 2011 I had to pay 80 to ride Amtrak Regional from Philly to NYP. Then again I rode it in the Summer and you did this ride during a slow travel period so maybe that's the reason it was more expensive to travel a shorter distance.

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(1337055)

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Re: Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos)

Posted by New Flyer #857 on Sat Jan 31 13:45:20 2015, in response to Re: Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos), posted by r33/r36 mainline on Sat Jan 31 13:43:45 2015.

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It's only certain trains that are that low. Train prices vary even within a given day. Also, that is the lowest class. . .no changes, no refunds AFAIK.

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(1337059)

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Re: Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos)

Posted by Train2104 on Sat Jan 31 13:53:47 2015, in response to Re: Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos), posted by r33/r36 mainline on Sat Jan 31 13:43:45 2015.

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Fares vary heavily based on demand. The base fare DC-NY is $86 I think, with $52 available if you book more than 2 weeks in advance and the train isn't that full.

Amtrak does the occasional 3-day Regional fare sale. I got NY-Baltimore for $32 during one of these. No sales on Acela, unfortunately.

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(1337111)

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Re: Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos)

Posted by Jersey Mike on Sat Jan 31 17:00:56 2015, in response to Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos), posted by New Flyer #857 on Sat Jan 31 13:21:03 2015.

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I took two AX FC trips back when I had some 1st Class upgrade coupons I was given thanks to AGR Select Status. I managed to put away 7 drinks between NY Penn and Baltimore Penn.

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(1337333)

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Re: Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos)

Posted by WMATAGMOAGH on Sun Feb 1 15:25:15 2015, in response to Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos), posted by New Flyer #857 on Sat Jan 31 13:21:03 2015.

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The next stop indicator signs require a manual input to be updated after leaving each station. I've seen them say our next stop would be New Carrollton for the entire trip from DC to NY.

Originally, the Acela was to have automated announcements and the chime before the manual announcements would alert the crew to the fact something out of the ordinary was about to be announced. They never got the automated announcements working, thus the loud chime before the manual announcements.

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(1337337)

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Re: Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos)

Posted by New Flyer #857 on Sun Feb 1 15:36:58 2015, in response to Re: Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos), posted by WMATAGMOAGH on Sun Feb 1 15:25:15 2015.

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That's sad. Besides all of the other setbacks Acela has had to deal with it can't even have a basic automated-announcement system!

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(1337338)

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Re: Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos)

Posted by Nilet on Sun Feb 1 15:37:29 2015, in response to Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos), posted by New Flyer #857 on Sat Jan 31 13:21:03 2015.

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A walk in the cold to the front end of the train but I know that the First Class car belongs at one end of the train and not in the middle, so there's really not much they can do with this unless they offer you rides in an electric cart, which I know most of us including myself would have refused anyway.

I dunno, riding in the electric cart is on my bucket list.

Not for the Acela, though. I'mma do it for the Zephyr or the Empire Builder, when I'm carrying a long trip's worth of luggage the entire length of a long-distance train.

... but she took my mobile phone (e ticket), and placed it on the table to be scanned later by the C/R.

That's obnoxious. :(

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(1337376)

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Re: Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos)

Posted by Bill West on Sun Feb 1 18:02:38 2015, in response to Re: Review: Acela Express First Class Ride (No Photos), posted by Nilet on Sun Feb 1 15:37:29 2015.

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Thanks for the nice report Flyer.
I think the phone thing is a conundrum, letting people shut it off and put in their briefcase only to have the conductor ask them to take it out again wouldn't be smooth either. Maybe the attendant should just hand it back and mention that the conductor will also be asking to see it after they get going. Then again maybe she's using it as a sort of hat check to reveal ungreeted new arrivals, especially in case unknowing coach or business passengers have wandered in and seated themselves while she was busy.

Bill

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