New from Santa Cruz, CA

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Joined
Jun 24, 2022
Messages
10
Location
Santa Cruz, CA
Hi, I'm here because I'm interested in taking Amtrak back and forth from San Jose, CA to Seattle WA, where my cousin lives and one of my kids is planning to start school in the fall. The only Amtrak I've taken before was the Capital Corridor, which is a lovely ride through the Sacramento Delta. I am so new to taking Amtrak that I find a lot of it mysterious and somewhat frustrating: the website seems ... um ... less than optimal, and at Diridon Station I guess there's some kind of turf battle that prevents good signage for the Amtrak trains. I actually missed the train the first time I tried to take the Capital Corridor from Diridon (that was not fun).

I'm here basically trying to figure out the pricing and the purchasing, and how to buy tickets in advance so they'll be a reasonable cost but still be able to change them later if needed, especially for a 2nd person. Stuff like that.

At home I'm an advocate for public transportation, specifically rail transit. Santa Cruz County owns the historic SC Branch Line, and my nonprofit organization, the Friends of the Rail & Trail, just recently won an electoral ballot-measure fight to keep the line for transit as a rail-with-trail project instead of stripping out the rail line. So I do a lot of public education and rail transit advocacy work at home. I'm looking forward to spending more time in Seattle and riding around on their awesome light rail system.
 
Hi, I'm here because I'm interested in taking Amtrak back and forth from San Jose, CA to Seattle WA, where my cousin lives and one of my kids is planning to start school in the fall. The only Amtrak I've taken before was the Capital Corridor, which is a lovely ride through the Sacramento Delta. I am so new to taking Amtrak that I find a lot of it mysterious and somewhat frustrating: the website seems ... um ... less than optimal, and at Diridon Station I guess there's some kind of turf battle that prevents good signage for the Amtrak trains. I actually missed the train the first time I tried to take the Capital Corridor from Diridon (that was not fun).

I'm here basically trying to figure out the pricing and the purchasing, and how to buy tickets in advance so they'll be a reasonable cost but still be able to change them later if needed, especially for a 2nd person. Stuff like that.

At home I'm an advocate for public transportation, specifically rail transit. Santa Cruz County owns the historic SC Branch Line, and my nonprofit organization, the Friends of the Rail & Trail, just recently won an electoral ballot-measure fight to keep the line for transit as a rail-with-trail project instead of stripping out the rail line. So I do a lot of public education and rail transit advocacy work at home. I'm looking forward to spending more time in Seattle and riding around on their awesome light rail system.
Welcome to AU. If you have specific questions about particular Amtrak trains, please post those questions in the Amtrak Rail Discussion Forum. Thanks.
 
Thanks Pennyk. I got all my questions answered from searching so far, but if I can't figure something out I'll post there.

I just bought some tickets! Using the info gleaned here I bought advance tickets from San Jose to Centralia and then Centralia to Seattle a week later for me and my son, and got a great price, way less than flying or the cost of gas, and I'm comfortable that if I need to change the tickets I can get the vouchers and use them for later travel. I bought coach and will bring food. I played with the idea of the roomette on the overnight but decided to go as low-cost as possible instead.
 
Thanks Pennyk. I got all my questions answered from searching so far, but if I can't figure something out I'll post there.

I just bought some tickets! Using the info gleaned here I bought advance tickets from San Jose to Centralia and then Centralia to Seattle a week later for me and my son, and got a great price, way less than flying or the cost of gas, and I'm comfortable that if I need to change the tickets I can get the vouchers and use them for later travel. I bought coach and will bring food. I played with the idea of the roomette on the overnight but decided to go as low-cost as possible instead.
Did you quote the Roomette for 2? The fare for 2 in a Roomette is not double the fare for 1, because the accommodations charge is the same for 1 or 2, the 2nd passenger just adds the rail fare.

If your trip is a ways out, you may want to recheck the Roomette fare once a week or so. If they're not selling out, sometimes Amtrak will drop the price.
 
Did you quote the Roomette for 2? The fare for 2 in a Roomette is not double the fare for 1, because the accommodations charge is the same for 1 or 2, the 2nd passenger just adds the rail fare.

If your trip is a ways out, you may want to recheck the Roomette fare once a week or so. If they're not selling out, sometimes Amtrak will drop the price.
Hi Joel, the coach tickets for two people are $200 one way and the roomette is $700, so it's a big leap. Thank you for the tip about checking back in to see if the roomette fares have dropped. If I see the roomette fare has dropped for the way there or back, is it better to cancel and use the voucher to re-book, or to do the upgrade process? I made the mistake of purchasing my outbound tickets without being logged into the website, so although I did put my rewards number in it didn't link to my account so isn't listed in my upcoming trips. The return run is listed and shows the option to upgrade.
 
Hi Joel, the coach tickets for two people are $200 one way and the roomette is $700, so it's a big leap. Thank you for the tip about checking back in to see if the roomette fares have dropped. If I see the roomette fare has dropped for the way there or back, is it better to cancel and use the voucher to re-book, or to do the upgrade process? I made the mistake of purchasing my outbound tickets without being logged into the website, so although I did put my rewards number in it didn't link to my account so isn't listed in my upcoming trips. The return run is listed and shows the option to upgrade.
You can call Amtrak and ask that your Account # be put into your Rez so you get credit for the Points.

Just be prepared for a long wait, or opt for a call back if they are extremely busy as is currently the situation.Calling in the wee Hours( after Midnight EDT) is what sone of us do when they're not so busy!
 
If I see the roomette fare has dropped for the way there or back, is it better to cancel and use the voucher to re-book, or to do the upgrade process?
I haven't had much experience making changes, but personally I would trust a Guest Rewards agent more than the web site.

When you call Amtrak, be sure to call the Guest Rewards number rather than the public number, as the agents are more experienced and seem to be able to do things that are beyond the knowledge or power of the agents at the main call center. There's also usually a shorter wait time. Downside is that department has reduced hours since the pandemic; I think they're closing at 7 or 8 p.m.
 
@Bob Dylan, I did put my reward number in when I bought the outbound tickets (although I was only able to put it on my ticket not my 2nd passenger's ticket even though I paid for both). But since I wasn't logged in to the website when I bought the tickets, the purchase doesn't appear in my upcoming reservations. All I have for it is the receipt/ticket email. @joelkfla, Thank you for the tip about calling the Guest Rewards number!
 
Hi, I'm here because I'm interested in taking Amtrak back and forth from San Jose, CA to Seattle WA, where my cousin lives and one of my kids is planning to start school in the fall. The only Amtrak I've taken before was the Capital Corridor, which is a lovely ride through the Sacramento Delta. I am so new to taking Amtrak that I find a lot of it mysterious and somewhat frustrating: the website seems ... um ... less than optimal, and at Diridon Station I guess there's some kind of turf battle that prevents good signage for the Amtrak trains. I actually missed the train the first time I tried to take the Capital Corridor from Diridon (that was not fun).

I'm here basically trying to figure out the pricing and the purchasing, and how to buy tickets in advance so they'll be a reasonable cost but still be able to change them later if needed, especially for a 2nd person. Stuff like that.

At home I'm an advocate for public transportation, specifically rail transit. Santa Cruz County owns the historic SC Branch Line, and my nonprofit organization, the Friends of the Rail & Trail, just recently won an electoral ballot-measure fight to keep the line for transit as a rail-with-trail project instead of stripping out the rail line. So I do a lot of public education and rail transit advocacy work at home. I'm looking forward to spending more time in Seattle and riding around on their awesome light rail system.
I live in Santa Cruz and am a donor to FORT. (and very happy that measure D failed) My daughter and I take Amtrak regularly and I would be happy to help, answer any questions, or just chat about trips I've taken. Feel free to reach out in private messages.
 
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