Squeakz2001
Service Attendant
So, after a stay in Kissimmee, hubby and I boarded the Silver Meteor again in Kissimmee on June 12. When the train came, we went to our car, but no one was there to open the door. This should have been an indication of what was to come. We walked to another sleeping car and boarded there. On our way to our room, our attendant was walking down the hallway, right past us! We made our way to our room, and about 1/2 hour later, the conductor came by and took our tickets. We asked him if we had an attendant and told him that we hadnt seen her yet, and he told us that he would send her by. So we decided to go to lunch. Lunch took 15 minutes to get us seated, then another 20 minutes to get our order taken, another 20 to get our food, and we wont even talk about dessert. It was extremely slow and we were not happy.
When we got back to our room, we discovered that the 90 year old man in the room across from ours likes to talk. So needless to say, we had lots of company. After about 2 hours on the train, we finally met our attendant- Flora. That was the first and last time we had any interaction with our attendant.
We reserved a dinner time for 6pm. Again, we had to wait a long time to be seated, and an even longer time to get our orders taken. 45 minutes! We were late getting into DC, so we ate breakfast on 98, and it was really good! Once again, our attendant was not in the car when we detrained, and we had to get off in another sleeping car. It was horrible. Needless to say, she didnt get a tip, and AMTRAK got a call from us about that leg of the trip. I never want to ride that train again.
After some time exploring DC and a brief stay in the first class lounge, we were on the Cardinal. We were greeted by our attendant, Charles, as soon as we boarded. We booked a bedroom, so we were happy to have a bigger room than the roomettes we traveled in before. The food service had less selection than the other trains, but it was much quicker and more friendly. Plus, it had only one lady cooking the food- so they did a great job! The only complaint I had about that train, was that I couldnt find the attendant when I had a question about where we were our timing. Our call button was on over an hour, and nothing. My husband finally went around the train and found the conductor to ask him. He said that our attendant was sleeping and he was supposed to wake him up 30 minutes before we get to the next stop.
When we called AMTRAK to let them know the good and bad parts of the trip, they gave him a $200 gift certificate that expires one year from now.
But all in all, it was a good experience. Hubby is already looking for places to go on our next trip- possibly around Christmas time.
To Florida and back,
Kim
When we got back to our room, we discovered that the 90 year old man in the room across from ours likes to talk. So needless to say, we had lots of company. After about 2 hours on the train, we finally met our attendant- Flora. That was the first and last time we had any interaction with our attendant.
We reserved a dinner time for 6pm. Again, we had to wait a long time to be seated, and an even longer time to get our orders taken. 45 minutes! We were late getting into DC, so we ate breakfast on 98, and it was really good! Once again, our attendant was not in the car when we detrained, and we had to get off in another sleeping car. It was horrible. Needless to say, she didnt get a tip, and AMTRAK got a call from us about that leg of the trip. I never want to ride that train again.
After some time exploring DC and a brief stay in the first class lounge, we were on the Cardinal. We were greeted by our attendant, Charles, as soon as we boarded. We booked a bedroom, so we were happy to have a bigger room than the roomettes we traveled in before. The food service had less selection than the other trains, but it was much quicker and more friendly. Plus, it had only one lady cooking the food- so they did a great job! The only complaint I had about that train, was that I couldnt find the attendant when I had a question about where we were our timing. Our call button was on over an hour, and nothing. My husband finally went around the train and found the conductor to ask him. He said that our attendant was sleeping and he was supposed to wake him up 30 minutes before we get to the next stop.
When we called AMTRAK to let them know the good and bad parts of the trip, they gave him a $200 gift certificate that expires one year from now.
But all in all, it was a good experience. Hubby is already looking for places to go on our next trip- possibly around Christmas time.
To Florida and back,
Kim
I'm glad that it wasn't all bad, even if Flora was a no show. :angry: You may or may not get any satisfaction, but next time you hit an attendant like Flora, head for the dining car and find the LSA. He/she is the person who is taking money from the coach pax, and report the attendant to the LSA. A good LSA will give the attendant an earfull, a bad one won't and nothing will change. But you can always try.
