Acella First Class

[amtrakmichigan]

I am sketching out a trip for the fall that would include a ride on a Acella express train from Boston to Metropark. Two reasons I picked an Acella is first, I never rode on the Acella yet, and second the price isn't much more then a "regional" with the added Business Class.

My question for those that have rode in First Class on Acella Express, is the extra $58 from Boston to Metropark worth the extra fare over the Business Class? I know they don't have dining car food on these trains, so what type of meal are you served? I haven't decided if I should take the "what the hell" attitude and treat myself, or am I throwing my money away more or less for First Class.

Thanks for your input.

 

[AlanB]

Jamie,

First, there is only one "L" in Acela, not two. :lol:

Next, personally I almost never ride Acela in Business class. In fact I think that I've only done that once. I for one do think that it's worth the extra fare for First Class service. Of course each person sees the cost vs. convenience differently.

Here's a quick rundown of the perks.

If you are indeed leaving from South Station, then riding in First Class would entitle you to use the Club Acela lounge. The lounge, similar to the Metropolitan lounge in Chicago, is a nice place to hang out. In fact it's even better than the Chicago lounge. Everything is nice and new, there are computers to use and you get to pre-board ahead of the BC pax.

Now once in the FC car, you have much wider seats than BC, since seating is 2 & 1, not the normal 2 & 2. One gets complimentary newspapers and headphones. Then of course you will be served a meal at your seat.

The quality of the food IMHO is not bad at all. It's not like that which you might get from a dining car, but it is far better than anything I've ever been served on an airplane. I even had a few occasions where the food from the dinning car was worse than that which I've been served on the Acela Express.

They use convection ovens to heat things, not microwaves. Breakfast tends to be a bit more meager than lunch or dinner. Lunch & Dinner both include a snack plus desert. Additionally dinner comes with a small salad and a roll. All drinks are also complimentary.

This includes a rather decent selection of alcohol, from wine to beer to hard liquor. So for example, if I were on a dinner run from BOS to NYP, I'd probably have at least 3 maybe 4 glasses of wine. Figure most restaurants charge at least 5 bucks for a decent glass of wine, so I'm drinking almost 20 bucks worth of that $58 accommodation charge.

You are served at your seat, with a real silverware (not plastic), cloth napkin, glass dishes and glasses (cups). They usually offer a pasta dish, a chicken dish, and a red meat choice. It varies from train to train, so there is no real way to predict what you might see and they change the menus every few months too.

Finally one other thought on your pending trip. If you have an Amtrak Guest Rewards account and are therefore collecting points, you may wish to consider the following regardless of which class you ride in.

BOS-MET is not one of the special city pairs on the NEC. Certain pairs of cities on the NEC offer bonus points for traveling on Acela. If you ride Boston to NYP you would get 500 points for BC and 750 for FC. If you ride BOS-MET, based upon fares for tomorrow at 11:00 AM, you would get 232 points or 2 times the fare of $116.

Booking two BC tickets, one BOS-NYP would cost $92 and NYP-MET for $38, would cost you 14 bucks more out of pocket. But you would get 528 points on your GR account. Obviously First Class would get you even more points and I'd probably say that if you do decide to go FC from BOS - NYP, that I'd still move to the BC section for the short ride from NYP to MET.

 

[battalion51]

I rode First Class from New Haven-Penn Station a few years ago on Acela. It was a short trip, and a pretty cheap one too, but it was well worth it IMHO. My cup (and can) of Soda were always full, I had a pretty good breakfast, a newspaper and felt really pampered. Even more so than in a Sleeper.

 

[amtrakmichigan]

Allen, Thanks for your opinion and the time to type all that out. I am not good with spelling, but I am suprised at myself for spelling Acela wrong, so thanks for correcting me so I won't look like an idiot in the future :blink:

Is the meals served only at meal times like on a dining car, or are they served at anytime you request?

Also you made a comment about drinks, that made me think of something else. All Amtrak information that I have read basically says you are served "A beverage". Which with this wording would make one think you are allowed 1 and you pay for the rest. From what you said it almost sounds like a free bar. Obviously one wouldn't want to make a fool of himself by drinking a case of beer. So do they keep bringing drinks as long as you wish then? Just wanted to confirm that part.

 

[AlanB]

Allen, Thanks for your opinion and the time to type all that out.

You're quite welcome.

I am not  good with spelling, but I am suprised at myself for spelling Acela wrong, so thanks for correcting me so I won't look like an idiot in the future   :blink:

Hey that's why we put erasers on pencils and the backspace key on the keyboard. :lol:

Is the meals served only at meal times like on a dining car, or are they served at anytime you request?

Sorry, I should have anticipated this question. No meals are not served like they are in a dining car at a particular time. Typically you would get your first beverage and snack, shortly after leaving your boarding station, depending of course on just how full the car is.

In your case, again assuming that you boarded in South Station, you should have your first drink/beverage shortly after passing the Route 128 station, if not before.

Your meal would typically follow shortly after that. As a general rule, I'm usually eating by the time the train reaches Providence, RI. I've had a few ocasions where I thought that the crew was either very slow or the car was extremely full and I wasn't served until after Providence.

The crew normally tries to feed you as soon as possible after you've boarded the train, with preference going to those who are detraining first. For example on the run from NY to WAS, my food will come after those who are leaving at PHL have been served. Again though, I'm usually eating by Philly, but may not finish until after leaving Philly.

You can request that they serve you later in the trip if you like, but be warned it is possible that they could run out of some selections depending on how busy the train is. They will almost always still have something to feed you with, but the more popular dishes can run out.

Also you made a comment about drinks, that made me think of something else. All Amtrak information that I have read basically says you are served "A beverage". Which with this wording would make one think you are allowed 1 and you pay for the rest. From what you said it almost sounds like a free bar. Obviously one wouldn't want to make a fool of himself by drinking a case of beer. So do they keep bringing drinks as long as you wish then? Just wanted to confirm that part.

That beverage line sounds more like what they say for Business Class on non-Acela/Metroliner trains and for sleeper pax. In the case of the Acela's & Metroliner's, if you are in first class they will serve you if you ask. I suppose that if you appeared very drunk or started to become unruly, that they might refuse you a drink.

But otherwise, if you ask for it, you'll get it. As I mentioned before, I'm basically a wine drinker. I've gone from Boston to NYP many times and I usually go through at least three glasses of wine, sometimes four, plus at least two if not three bottles of water. All served without question. I could probably even get a fifth glass of wine, but then I'd probably need a redcap to roll me off the train and take me to my hotel. Five glasses of wine is almost a full 750 ML bottle of wine and that's a lot to drink in three and half hours.

Since beer has less alcholic content than wine, assuming that it didn't fill up your stomach, they'd serve you five beers if you asked for them. I've also seen them bring a guy four Johnny Walker Black's in one trip. They don't usually question you, unless like I said you appear to be in trouble or you are creating trouble.

Ps. Other than a tip, the FC crew won't take any money from you. I usually give 5 bucks when I'm served a meal with alcohol. If they really cater to my every whim, and I never run dry, then I'll bump that amount even higher.

However, if you really do want to spend money, then you'll have to walk to the cafe car where they'll be happy to take your money. Plus the food won't taste as good, since it's closer to typical am-cafe food.

 

[Bill Haithcoat]

Others have arleady given you the details, but just let me say my two rides on the Acela were within a few days of each other. I went n.b. from WAS to Boston first class and s.b from Bos to NY business class and the first class was truly worth it, I can say that as I had only a couple days difference between the two trips, so my memory was fresh.

 

[amtrakmichigan]

Thanks Bill and Alan, that helps me a great deal! It sounds to me that it's well worth the extra $58. If my buddy and I decide to do the trip, then we will upgrade to First Class. Thanks again !