There is no Club Car on Amtrak! Or do you mean the Café Car or Dining Car, or on the Coast Starlight the Pacific Parlour Car (PPC)?jj29407 said:1345918577[/url]' post='389480']Can you travel from the sleeper car to the club car and how do you get back into the sleeper car?
Usually when I pass through the dining car during one of their busy periods, I make sure that none of the wait staff is in my path. If they are, I usually step aside to let them through. I've never gotten "evil eyes" from any employee there.The real-life answer is that if you wish to pass through the diner during peak dining hours, be prepared for a series of "evil
eyes" from the dining car staff.
Exactly -- you and me both don't get in the way of the working crew, and they appreciate us being considerate people. No problem, no delay. Basic politeness. We all can do that. We all mostly do do that - be considerate I mean.Usually when I pass through the dining car during one of their busy periods, I make sure that none of the wait staff is in my path. If they are, I usually step aside to let them through. I've never gotten "evil eyes" from any employee there.The real-life answer is that if you wish to pass through the diner during peak dining hours, be prepared for a series of "evil
eyes" from the dining car staff.
Are you holding a sign that says "Just passing through"? If not, then how does the staff know you're just passing through and not there to eat? They probably get enough people who do try to seat themselves to react that way with anyone who enters the diner. If I hadn't read this forum before my first LD trip (in a sleeper), I would not have known that I needed to be seated by the staff.Well obviously I try not to "get in the way." Duh.
I'm referring to my own experiences:
Enter the dining car...wait at the end for an appropriate moment to run the cattle chute...and get admonished
for blocking people behind us with reservations. Or get barked at as soon as we enter that we "must have a reservation,
we don't have any open seating right now." (Really, a reservation to walk through...didn't know that).
And of course the all-time favorite of dining car staff...when I enter the dining car, there's no one in the way, so I proceed
toward the other end... "YOU MUST WAIT AT THE END FOR US TO COME SEAT YOU!" Seriously, the way they react
sometimes you'd think I was trying to walk through an airport security checkpoint with my shoes on.
Now try doing all this with a young child in tow and you'll begin to understand why it's sometimes just easier to stay put
in the sleeping car.
A polite inquiry from the dining car staff would be preferable to an accusation of ignoring protocol. Your expectations may vary, of course.Are you holding a sign that says "Just passing through"? If not, then how does the staff know you're just passing through and not there to eat? They probably get enough people who do try to seat themselves to react that way with anyone who enters the diner. If I hadn't read this forum before my first LD trip (in a sleeper), I would not have known that I needed to be seated by the staff.
I've done it many times and never had a problem with the staff. I usually signal by waving my hand pointed straight away from me down the aisle instead of holding up my fingers indicating the number in the party, and they always seem to get it. Sometimes if a server is near me when they have a second, I say "just passing through".Are you holding a sign that says "Just passing through"? If not, then how does the staff know you're just passing through and not there to eat? They probably get enough people who do try to seat themselves to react that way with anyone who enters the diner. If I hadn't read this forum before my first LD trip (in a sleeper), I would not have known that I needed to be seated by the staff.Well obviously I try not to "get in the way." Duh.
I'm referring to my own experiences:
Enter the dining car...wait at the end for an appropriate moment to run the cattle chute...and get admonished
for blocking people behind us with reservations. Or get barked at as soon as we enter that we "must have a reservation,
we don't have any open seating right now." (Really, a reservation to walk through...didn't know that).
And of course the all-time favorite of dining car staff...when I enter the dining car, there's no one in the way, so I proceed
toward the other end... "YOU MUST WAIT AT THE END FOR US TO COME SEAT YOU!" Seriously, the way they react
sometimes you'd think I was trying to walk through an airport security checkpoint with my shoes on.
Now try doing all this with a young child in tow and you'll begin to understand why it's sometimes just easier to stay put
in the sleeping car.
When you need to get back to the sleeper cars, you should have your tickets ready to prove to the dinning car staff that you are indeed a sleeping car passenger.Can you travel from the sleeper car to the club car and how do you get back into the sleeper car?
I've made that passage many times, and never once felt that it was any kind of hassle at all. Jeez.Well obviously I try not to "get in the way." Duh.
I'm referring to my own experiences:
Enter the dining car...wait at the end for an appropriate moment to run the cattle chute...and get admonished
for blocking people behind us with reservations. Or get barked at as soon as we enter that we "must have a reservation,
we don't have any open seating right now." (Really, a reservation to walk through...didn't know that).
And of course the all-time favorite of dining car staff...when I enter the dining car, there's no one in the way, so I proceed
toward the other end... "YOU MUST WAIT AT THE END FOR US TO COME SEAT YOU!" Seriously, the way they react
sometimes you'd think I was trying to walk through an airport security checkpoint with my shoes on.
Now try doing all this with a young child in tow and you'll begin to understand why it's sometimes just easier to stay put
in the sleeping car.
RIGHT ON!Well obviously I try not to "get in the way." Duh.
I'm referring to my own experiences:
Enter the dining car...wait at the end for an appropriate moment to run the cattle chute...and get admonished
for blocking people behind us with reservations. Or get barked at as soon as we enter that we "must have a reservation,
we don't have any open seating right now." (Really, a reservation to walk through...didn't know that).
And of course the all-time favorite of dining car staff...when I enter the dining car, there's no one in the way, so I proceed
toward the other end... "YOU MUST WAIT AT THE END FOR US TO COME SEAT YOU!" Seriously, the way they react
sometimes you'd think I was trying to walk through an airport security checkpoint with my shoes on.
Now try doing all this with a young child in tow and you'll begin to understand why it's sometimes just easier to stay put
in the sleeping car.
Making eye-contact with staff and using common sense and timing have kept me from ever walking on egg shells in the diner... unless there were some underfoot that I didn't notice.RIGHT ON!Well obviously I try not to "get in the way." Duh.
I'm referring to my own experiences:
Enter the dining car...wait at the end for an appropriate moment to run the cattle chute...and get admonished
for blocking people behind us with reservations. Or get barked at as soon as we enter that we "must have a reservation,
we don't have any open seating right now." (Really, a reservation to walk through...didn't know that).
And of course the all-time favorite of dining car staff...when I enter the dining car, there's no one in the way, so I proceed
toward the other end... "YOU MUST WAIT AT THE END FOR US TO COME SEAT YOU!" Seriously, the way they react
sometimes you'd think I was trying to walk through an airport security checkpoint with my shoes on.
Now try doing all this with a young child in tow and you'll begin to understand why it's sometimes just easier to stay put
in the sleeping car.
I worked for Amtrak in the dining car. (decades ago,ugh) and I TRAVEL by Amtrak yearly, sometimes a LOT.
This goes on, and turns first-time riders off.
Why should the passengers have to "walk on egg shells" when simply passing thru the diner? They shouldn't.
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