EB from MSP to SEA

[alben]

I am planning a rewards trip from MSP to SEA. I realize that the train is dual numbered as 7/27. My understanding is that when the westbound EB reaches Spokane, WA in the middle of the night, that the train is taken apart, i.e. split in two, where 7 goes to Seattle, and 27 goes to Portland, OR.

My question is the booking of a bedroom. The Amtrak website (and amsnag) lists the rooms kind of oddly. As in:

7 - (Coach Fare Price) + Bedroom option prices

27 - (Coach Higher Fare Price) + Bedroom option prices

7 - (Coach Higher Fare Price) + Bedroom option prices (lower price)

So is it the "first" 7 I want to book on for the Bedroom as it is the same bedroom compartment all the way from MSP to SEA?

What is the "second" 7 all about? Does it mean you have a coach seat from MSP to Spokane, and you only get a bedroom for the small jaunt from Spokane to SEA?

 

[jb64]

For an awards trip, you have to call AGR to book and I would hope they would book you in the same room all the way. What the above scenarios represent is 1) same bedroom all the way to Seattle (7) and 2) bedroom to Spokane (27) then switching to a bedroom in Spokane to continue on to Seattle (7). It wouldn't make you ride coach to Spokane and then only get a bedroom there..

 

[Ryan]

What day are you looking at?

Either way, the second option treats 27 and then 7 as two different trains. You can book coach/coach, bedroom/coach, coach/bedroom or bedroom/bedroom (in two different rooms with a move in the middle of the night).

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

It's a rewards trip so just book one Bedroom all the way. If you actually had to pay money then things get interesting, but others already explained.

 

[oregon pioneer]

To simplify:

If you are on train #7, you are in the section that is going to Seattle when they are taken apart. If you are on train #27, you are in the section that is going to Portland. There are both coach and sleepers in BOTH sections. To stay in the same car all the way from MSP to SEA, select an option that only includes train #7.

 

[Shanghai]

Yes, Train #7 is the train to Seattle, therefore if you choose #7, you should be able to

stay in your bedroom all of the way. Sounds like a nice trip.

 

[Train Rider]

Did that trip last summer in a roommette. Perhaps one of the most relaxing vacation trips I have had.

 

[Blackwolf]

From a train-riding perspective, as in trying to get as much train time as possible in a trip, and not just to get from point A to point B aboard the train, there are two options here. Not to confuse you of course, but since you're doing this as a redemption trip there is no extra cost between both choices.

#7 would take you straight to Seattle after the train splits in Spokane. You will have the diner as part of this consist, meaning full meal service is available at breakfast before your arrival. You would get into Seattle in the morning.

#27 would take you to Portland; there is no diner but sleeper passengers get a cold boxed breakfast. At Portland, you would have a few hours wait before taking the northbound Cascades Talgo train to Seattle in Business Class. Portland has a quaint and relaxing Metropolitan Lounge for you to use for the wait, and if you're interested, Wilf's is the really good restaurant located inside the station. Full bar and great drinks there too! You would get into Seattle in the afternoon.

 

[yarrow]

From a train-riding perspective, as in trying to get as much train time as possible in a trip, and not just to get from point A to point B aboard the train, there are two options here. Not to confuse you of course, but since you're doing this as a redemption trip there is no extra cost between both choices.
#7 would take you straight to Seattle after the train splits in Spokane. You will have the diner as part of this consist, meaning full meal service is available at breakfast before your arrival. You would get into Seattle in the morning.

#27 would take you to Portland; there is no diner but sleeper passengers get a cold boxed breakfast. At Portland, you would have a few hours wait before taking the northbound Cascades Talgo train to Seattle in Business Class. Portland has a quaint and relaxing Metropolitan Lounge for you to use for the wait, and if you're interested, Wilf's is the really good restaurant located inside the station. Full bar and great drinks there too! You would get into Seattle in the afternoon.

will agr let you choose between msp-pdx-sea and msp-sea? pretty nice if they do

 

[Blackwolf]

From a train-riding perspective, as in trying to get as much train time as possible in a trip, and not just to get from point A to point B aboard the train, there are two options here. Not to confuse you of course, but since you're doing this as a redemption trip there is no extra cost between both choices.
#7 would take you straight to Seattle after the train splits in Spokane. You will have the diner as part of this consist, meaning full meal service is available at breakfast before your arrival. You would get into Seattle in the morning.

#27 would take you to Portland; there is no diner but sleeper passengers get a cold boxed breakfast. At Portland, you would have a few hours wait before taking the northbound Cascades Talgo train to Seattle in Business Class. Portland has a quaint and relaxing Metropolitan Lounge for you to use for the wait, and if you're interested, Wilf's is the really good restaurant located inside the station. Full bar and great drinks there too! You would get into Seattle in the afternoon.

will agr let you choose between msp-pdx-sea and msp-sea? pretty nice if they do

If you present your desire openly to go via PDX, and have an agent who will book accordingly, the answer is yes! But you have to specifically ask for it, and hope the agent is not a stickler for one of AGR's famous "rules" we cannot predict!