Amtrak’s Coast Starlight: America’s most beautiful train ride?
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Just read the article...nice read.
Does the question mark need to be in the title?
Does the question mark need to be in the title?
I suspect the author of the article put it there in recognition of the fact that beauty really is in the eye of the beholder. Without the question mark, the title becomes a simple declaration. But the question mark recognizes others may think a different route is beautifuler. :blink:
the_traveler
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The question mark needs to be there because opinions are subjective. Some may say the CS is the most beautiful, others may say the CZ is or the Cardinal or ... - thus the question mark.
Agreed regarding the "question mark" 
crescent-zephyr
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It's certainly one of them! While I pick the Zephyr personally the Coast Starlight is a very close 2nd and wins with variety of scenery for sure. Pacific Coast, San Francisco Bay, and Puget Sound. The mountains in Oregon, the vineyards, the Williamette River. One of my favorites in season is the sunflower farm between Sacramento and Emeryville.... Just lovely!
Plenty of those in North Dakota too. Then there's the overdose of purple you get from a few hundred acres of flax in bloom. With the right frame of mind, methinks beauty can be found anywhere and in most every thing. No pointy-ended cigarette needed!
crescent-zephyr
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I've never ridden the Empire Builder in either of those seasons I guess. Sounds lovely. I will say I very much enjoyed having breakfast on the eastbound Builder while watching Bald Eagles fish in the Mississippi. Doesn't get more American than that! Ha.
Barry only rode as far as San Jose. I doubt that he has ridden either of the trains that have even more beautiful scenery. The California Zephyr west of Denver and the Empire Builder west of Cut Bank are better IMO.
Devil's Advocate
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I would honestly have a really hard time picking between the Coast Starlight and the California Zephyr based on scenery alone. In the past the differing service levels, staff personality, and the parlor car access swung everything the Coast Starlight's way. Now that Amtrak is apparently resting their parlor cars, abandoning any pretense of premium service routes, and chasing the least common denominator across the board it's not quite as clear cut. That being said, the only time I've ever been aggressively shouted at was on the Zephyr, and it's hard to imagine the Starlight ever becoming worse than that.
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crescent-zephyr
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Devils Advocate. Agreed scenery is about a tie and Parlor Car would swing that tie. (for me personally the Rocky Mountains help for the zephyrs win, I am very partial towards them!)
I know you and I have had opposite crews on the Zephyr (me having mostly good crews), but my absolute worse experience on any Amtrak train was a few years ago on the Coast Starlight. Tricia the LSA and the worst ever waiter who got into an incredibly innapropriate argument with a woman in the dining car over breastfeeding. The language he used was beyond innapropriate.
But thankfully I have never seen either of them again (hopefully my e-mail helped) and my recent Trip on the Starlight this year was great.
I really hope you get a good Zephyr crew next time!
I know you and I have had opposite crews on the Zephyr (me having mostly good crews), but my absolute worse experience on any Amtrak train was a few years ago on the Coast Starlight. Tricia the LSA and the worst ever waiter who got into an incredibly innapropriate argument with a woman in the dining car over breastfeeding. The language he used was beyond innapropriate.
But thankfully I have never seen either of them again (hopefully my e-mail helped) and my recent Trip on the Starlight this year was great.
I really hope you get a good Zephyr crew next time!
Ahh, yes, Tricia! I have had her three different times on the CS and she was absolutely unpleasant all three times. My experiences with her alone drop the overall service I've had on the CS below that of the CZ.
crescent-zephyr
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3 Times!? I would jump! Not really... but I would take every meal in the Parlour Car and if that wasn't available I would have my SCA deliver dinner to my room.
On my trip this year I ate every meal in the Parlour Car anyways... I don't get to ride the Starlight much and I wanted to eat every meal I could in the Parlour Car, never know when they will go away.
On my trip this year I ate every meal in the Parlour Car anyways... I don't get to ride the Starlight much and I wanted to eat every meal I could in the Parlour Car, never know when they will go away.
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