Family Bedroom City of New Orleans?

Amtrak Unlimited Discussion Forum

Help Support Amtrak Unlimited Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Status
Not open for further replies.
M

Mom22

Guest
We are planning to take the City of New Orleans from Champaign, Illinois to New Orleans in late Jan. 2011. It will be me, my husband and our two daughters 8 and 10. The plan right now, after some research here and on the Amtrak site, is to book a family bedroom. Are there any huge negatives with this room that would make 2 roommettes a better choice?

Also, I am a little confused about refundability of the tickets. If I book now, but don't pick up the tickets yet, I get a refund without penalty? Could someone please explain this to me?

Thanks in advance for any help!
 
We are planning to take the City of New Orleans from Champaign, Illinois to New Orleans in late Jan. 2011. It will be me, my husband and our two daughters 8 and 10. The plan right now, after some research here and on the Amtrak site, is to book a family bedroom. Are there any huge negatives with this room that would make 2 roommettes a better choice?

Also, I am a little confused about refundability of the tickets. If I book now, but don't pick up the tickets yet, I get a refund without penalty? Could someone please explain this to me?

Thanks in advance for any help!
I like the family bedroom, and would recommend it if your daughters are short enough to fit in the smaller berths. It's on the lower level and quite private at the end of the card.

WRT refundability, you understand the rules precisely. If you book now, and don't pick up the tickets, you can get a refund without penalty out to a week before departure. After that I think that you either have to take a voucher for future travel.

EDIT: Here are the refund rules. Sleeping cars are listed under the third bullet.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I like the family bedroom. Two roomettes can sometimes be a little cheaper with the only advantage being two separate spaces if anyone needs/wants to be separated. The roomette windows are bigger, and I've always been able to get two roomettes opposite each other.
 
Be aware that the Family Room does have 4 beds - but 2 of them are ONLY 4'2" long! If your daughters are short enough to fit into them, it would be OK. But I would also compare the price of a Family Room to the cost of 2 Roomettes! (It may actually be less!)

And if you do decide to go for 2 Roomettes, CALL to reserve. The computer assigns the next 2 rooms in inventory - even if they're in different cars! An agent can pick any room available!
wink.gif
 
Be aware that the Family Room does have 4 beds - but 2 of them are ONLY 4'2" long! If your daughters are short enough to fit into them, it would be OK. But I would also compare the price of a Family Room to the cost of 2 Roomettes! (It may actually be less!)

And if you do decide to go for 2 Roomettes, CALL to reserve. The computer assigns the next 2 rooms in inventory - even if they're in different cars! An agent can pick any room available!
wink.gif
Thanks for all of the quick replies. Two roomettes are cheaper for the trip that we are contemplating booking. I thought that the family bedroom might be better laid out for us during the day. I am still weighing this choice, so if you have more input, please let me know! The Amtrak site lists the dimensions of the children's berths as 2'3" by 4'9" and 2' by 4'7". Are they actually shorter as a prior poster mentioned? Younger daughter is 4 ft, but older daughter is nearing 4 1/2 feet tall, so if the berths are only 4'2" I may need the roomettes. Of course, it is only one night and they sleep fairly curled up anyway.
 
I've stayed in the H-Room (opposite end of car), I guess the pros are

1. lower level close to exit at stops

2. " " " " Luggage rack

3. " " " " Showers & restrooms

4. no traffic going to other cars (ex - Observation/Diner)

The pros of upper level

1. Dont have to deal with stairs

2. higher view of scenery

3. less steps to the next car

4. closer to the coffee and juice set up

When all is said & done, I have had a blast on Viewliners & both levels of Superliners, roomettes & bedrooms. It's a great experience to me!!!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Be aware that the Family Room does have 4 beds - but 2 of them are ONLY 4'2" long! If your daughters are short enough to fit into them, it would be OK. But I would also compare the price of a Family Room to the cost of 2 Roomettes! (It may actually be less!)

And if you do decide to go for 2 Roomettes, CALL to reserve. The computer assigns the next 2 rooms in inventory - even if they're in different cars! An agent can pick any room available!
wink.gif
Thanks for all of the quick replies. Two roomettes are cheaper for the trip that we are contemplating booking. I thought that the family bedroom might be better laid out for us during the day. I am still weighing this choice, so if you have more input, please let me know! The Amtrak site lists the dimensions of the children's berths as 2'3" by 4'9" and 2' by 4'7". Are they actually shorter as a prior poster mentioned? Younger daughter is 4 ft, but older daughter is nearing 4 1/2 feet tall, so if the berths are only 4'2" I may need the roomettes. Of course, it is only one night and they sleep fairly curled up anyway.
I'm sorry, I was wrong about the lengths!
ohmy.gif
They are as you said.

I don't know how much cheaper they are, but it may be possible to get 2 roomettes right across the hall from each other. Either way, you'll have meals in the Dining Car included for all 4 of you!
 
You can't go wrong either way. I've done both with my family and preferred the two roomettes over the family bdr. We had two roomettes across from each other on the lower level. I liked the lower level because my daughter was 8 and we could keep an eye on her when she needed to use the bathroom. I'm an early riser so it was nice not to disturb the entire family when I would go get coffee or head to the lounge. It's easy to communicate across the hallway as well.
 
Three of us have done the family bedroom before. I am the shortest and my husband and daughter are taller than I am. I am 5-1 and I tried to sleep on the smaller beds and I had to sleep at a angle. Did not care for that much. If they are kids that curl up a lot, they may be all right.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top