Booking Error 192A - Incorrect inventory? For 24 hours?

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desertflyer

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I'm trying to book DAL-LAX on TE 421 departing this Saturday, Sep 30. One roomette has showed as available for the last 24 hours, but every time I try to book it I get the error 192A that the inventory has changed and the train is now sold out. I called Amtrak and they claim there is nothing they can do, although they're not sure why they keep getting an error when booking as well. After 24 hours you would think the website would catch up.

Is there a room that is for some reason not filled? I really need to get on this train and I don't want to do it in coach. Do I just need to get a better agent?
 
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My iphone app shows a roomette available for the 44 hour journey for $699. Or you can fly there in about 3 hours for $73 on Alaska and several other airlines.

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The best advice always seems to be to ask to speak to a supervisor if the agent can't figure things out. No guarantee, mind...

Is it worth checking out booking as two separate sections up to and from where the Sunset Limited is joined?

Ed.
 
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It might mean that the same room is not available for the entire trip. For example, room 13 is available from Dallas to San Antonio, but not available from San Antonio to Los Angeles. Room 8 is available from San Antonio to Los Angeles. Some agents can see this and book it for you, others can't or won't.

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If I want to pay $699 for a roomette to LA, then it's Amtrak's loss that I can't book it. That makes sense that it's two rooms across the trip. I don't feel like changing in San Antonio, or finding an agent willing to book it. Thanks for the excellent responses!
 
If I want to pay $699 for a roomette to LA, then it's Amtrak's loss that I can't book it. That makes sense that it's two rooms across the trip. I don't feel like changing in San Antonio, or finding an agent willing to book it. Thanks for the excellent responses!
The price one could understand. Changing to a different room...even in a different car...why would this be a deal breaker? It takes five minutes.
 
If changing on San Antonio causes on to get off 21 and wait in the station for 1, that's a deal breaker because the rooms are in two different cars. Switching rooms in the same car is no big deal.

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It might mean that the same room is not available for the entire trip. For example, room 13 is available from Dallas to San Antonio, but not available from San Antonio to Los Angeles. Room 8 is available from San Antonio to Los Angeles. Some agents can see this and book it for you, others can't or won't.
In my experience this answer is most likely correct, at least based on the information provided so far.

If I want to pay $699 for a roomette to LA, then it's Amtrak's loss that I can't book it. That makes sense that it's two rooms across the trip. I don't feel like changing in San Antonio, or finding an agent willing to book it. Thanks for the excellent responses!
Yeah, Amtrak isn't a details oriented customer satisfaction kind of business. It's really more of a do it yourself and best of luck style volunteer organization where each passenger is expected to figure it out on their own. Which is probably why Amtrak Unlimited was created.

If I want to pay $699 for a roomette to LA, then it's Amtrak's loss that I can't book it. That makes sense that it's two rooms across the trip. I don't feel like changing in San Antonio, or finding an agent willing to book it. Thanks for the excellent responses!
The price one could understand. Changing to a different room...even in a different car...why would this be a deal breaker? It takes five minutes.
Booking a trip that needs to be split between two or more rooms could take an hours to find an agent willing and able to make it happen. Changing rooms in San Antonio would likely kick you off the train for hours in the middle of the night.
 
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If I want to pay $699 for a roomette to LA, then it's Amtrak's loss that I can't book it. That makes sense that it's two rooms across the trip. I don't feel like changing in San Antonio, or finding an agent willing to book it. Thanks for the excellent responses!
I just checked and one roomette on the 421 $660.00 on 09/30/17 . Book it Danno!
 
If I want to pay $699 for a roomette to LA, then it's Amtrak's loss that I can't book it. That makes sense that it's two rooms across the trip. I don't feel like changing in San Antonio, or finding an agent willing to book it. Thanks for the excellent responses!
I just checked and one roomette on the 421 $660.00 on 09/30/17 . Book it Danno!
Unless I'm mistaken that is exactly what the OP is trying to do. Except the Amtrak booking system is unable to complete the sale and the Amtrak staff are shrugging their shoulders rather than finding out precisely where the transition needs to take place so they can combine two rooms into a single booking.
 
I've tried calling a couple more of times now and the last agent said it doesn't even show a room available so I guess I just need to cut my losses, or keep checking. Amtrak.com still show one as available.

I'm actually trying to travel DAL-LAX-OKJ, total price for two is almost $1,100. I guess Amtrak is just trying to save me some money haha.
 
This might be a stupid question: are you releasing it from your cart before calling?
 
If I want to pay $699 for a roomette to LA, then it's Amtrak's loss that I can't book it. That makes sense that it's two rooms across the trip. I don't feel like changing in San Antonio, or finding an agent willing to book it. Thanks for the excellent responses!
I just checked and one roomette on the 421 $660.00 on 09/30/17 . Book it Danno!
This will probably be accurate right up until the point where a booking attempt is made and the "Confirm Purchase" button is hit. Then, odds are the payment page will reload with a "Problem With Availability" error message.

This has happened to me on several occasions, and upon calling the reservations center, am invariably informed that a particular room is available between the city pairs I've tried to book, but as mentioned earlier, is not the same room between the city pairs.
 
I've tried calling a couple more of times now and the last agent said it doesn't even show a room available so I guess I just need to cut my losses, or keep checking. Amtrak.com still show one as available.
I would suggest to keep checking, first online, and perhaps once a day with an agent. I faced a similar situation a few weeks ago trying to book accommodations from FMG-SLC, with a reservations agent being unable to tell me why a roomette was showing as available when everything appeared to be booked between the city pair.

As time of departure drew nearer, I discovered that a Family Bedroom opened up and for slightly less than the previously available unavailable roomette. I snapped it up and was able to get from Point A to Point B on the day of my choosing.
 
This might be a stupid question: are you releasing it from your cart before calling?
Yeah, the computer may think that its holding that (last) room for somebody who is in the middle of booking right now, so it tells the agent there are no rooms available.
Placing a room in your cart on Amtrak.com does not actually lock the room or prevent someone else from purchasing it unless and until you click [PURCHASE], at which point whoever clicked first will get the room and anyone else will receive an error message saying the inventory has changed.

I've tried calling a couple more of times now and the last agent said it doesn't even show a room available so I guess I just need to cut my losses, or keep checking. Amtrak.com still show one as available.
I would suggest to keep checking, first online, and perhaps once a day with an agent.
Would there ever be a point where you'd say the OP has finally done enough and now it's Amtrak's problem?
 
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Would there ever be a point where you'd say the OP has finally done enough and now it's Amtrak's problem?
Not if I wanted to get on that particular train and avoid either 1) driving instead of common carrier or 2) the greatly reduced pressurized tube-in-the-air fare, with complimentary TSA intimate massage and boarding process hokey-pokey lessons.
 
Placing a room in your cart on Amtrak.com does not actually lock the room or prevent someone else from purchasing it unless and until you click [PURCHASE], at which point whoever clicked first will get the room and anyone else will receive an error message saying the inventory has changed.
That's good to know. Thanks!
 
I do not know about you, but I would be mad if I had a room in my cart for $249 but by the time I entered my name and credit card information I find out that my credit card is being charged $634! :angry:
At the time you click purchase the price in your cart is compared to the current price and if they're different you'll receive a warning and have a chance to try again at the new price.
 
I've tried calling a couple more of times now and the last agent said it doesn't even show a room available so I guess I just need to cut my losses, or keep checking. Amtrak.com still show one as available.

I'm actually trying to travel DAL-LAX-OKJ, total price for two is almost $1,100. I guess Amtrak is just trying to save me some money haha.
So, it gets even more complicated! As a final chapter to this saga, can you let us know how it all turns out? Hope you find an exceptable way to get from Dallas to Oakland!
 
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Hey everyone, thanks for all of the suggestions and interest. I was tired of checking and I really didn't feel like driving or flying back to the bay area. I booked a room Austin-Los Angeles-Oakland and it surprisingly worked. So then I booked DAL-AUS and it worked, but was unsurprisingly a different room number. Both are in the same car (of course since train 421 is just one car).

The biggest downside to this is I had to pay more than the price I was being quoted for the entire trip DAL-LAX-OKJ. As always I'm looking forward to the trip.
 
I would have booked DAL-AUS in coach, and then when you board ask the Conductor and you may be allowed to occupy the room. Or at least to put your bags in that sleeper’s luggage rack.
I thought of doing that, but I really didn't want there to be a problem with baggage since I'll have a lot of bags.
 
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