Next Generation Sleepers?

[Cho Cho Charlie]

I was watching this video on CNN, and was wondering even though this is on-board an airplane, whether these designs could positively influence the next generation of rail sleepers.

What do you think? Would you enjoy a sleeper roomette or bedroom that looked like these?

http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2012/01/19/n_singapore_suites.cnnmoney/

 

[grounded flyboy]

Very comfy. Do you think $30.000 would get you all the way from NYP to Chicago ?!?!?!

 

[Oldsmoboi]

At this point I would just be happy with a thicker AmBlanket and deeper Ampillows.

 

[Blackwolf]

At this point I would just be happy with a thicker AmBlanket and deeper Ampillows.

Bingo. Do these two things and you would have improved the Sleeper experience greatly. The reality is, while the airline suite is all nice and modern and shiny, passenger rail has been doing this for over 70 years. Could Amtrak benefit from a more 'stylized' and less dated appearance inside their roomettes/bedrooms? Absolutely! I would be incredibly surprised to find that the new Viewliner cars are identical to the older sleepers in terms of style. We will have to wait and see, though!

 

[Cho Cho Charlie]

I guess I'm the only one who saw the basic similarities. Two chairs facing each other. A snack tray that can be opened up between them. Shades that can be pulled down over the inside isle windows for privacy.

Though, the bed folding out from the wall, and going over the chairs, rather than the chairs themselves turning to a bed, seemed interesting.

 

[the_traveler]

Very comfy. Do you think $30.000 would get you all the way from NYP to Chicago ?!?!?!

It's only about 1/3 of the way cross country, so I wouldn't pay more than $10,000!

Hey - maybe that's why they're increasing the points needed for a bedroom award! Maybe Amtrak will offer these starting in April!

If so - the bedroom is certainly worth another 10K!

 

[Ispolkom]

The March issue of Trains has a picture of a new Viewliner roomette mockup. The accompanying article says that it is claimed that the new Viewliner modules will be built so well they won't rattle. We'll see.

 

[Just-Thinking-51]

Why do the walls not go all the way up. Sure short people will not be able to see into your sleeper, but for that price I want some real walls. So people can not look down on me while I sleep.

Is there any reason, other then stopping people from join the 30,000 mile club. You know safety issues?

 

[Oldsmoboi]

Why do the walls not go all the way up. Sure short people will not be able to see into your sleeper, but for that price I want some real walls. So people can not look down on me while I sleep.

Is there any reason, other then stopping people from join the 30,000 mile club. You know safety issues?

Knowing what people do today, I don't think that short walls will be any hindrance. That said, I still need to join the Steel Wheel club. :lol:

 

[Cho Cho Charlie]

Why do the walls not go all the way up.

I thought it had to due with air flow and pressure. And that the aluminum tube that is the aircraft is constantly bending and flexing.

 

[the_traveler]

Why do the walls not go all the way up. Sure short people will not be able to see into your sleeper, but for that price I want some real walls. So people can not look down on me while I sleep.

Is there any reason, other then stopping people from join the 30,000 mile club. You know safety issues?

Knowing what people do today, I don't think that short walls will be any hindrance. That said, I still need to join the Steel Wheel club. :lol:

JT - That must be a BIG plane!

Most planes only fly at 30,000 to 35,000 FEET!

O - Hopefully, someone else will be there too!

 

[Oldsmoboi]

Why do the walls not go all the way up. Sure short people will not be able to see into your sleeper, but for that price I want some real walls. So people can not look down on me while I sleep.

Is there any reason, other then stopping people from join the 30,000 mile club. You know safety issues?

Knowing what people do today, I don't think that short walls will be any hindrance. That said, I still need to join the Steel Wheel club. :lol:

O - Hopefully, someone else will be there too!

Well my partner would be rather disappointed if he didn't join the steel wheel club at the same time I did, otherwise I probably wouldn't need to unpack my bags when I got home.

Unfortunately, I'm the one that travels all the time for work and he stays home only traveling for vacation. Our vacations are typically to Germany, so his rail travel is only ICE, no Amtrak involved....

on the other hand... there is the 300kph club.

 

[afigg]

Why do the walls not go all the way up.

I thought it had to due with air flow and pressure. And that the aluminum tube that is the aircraft is constantly bending and flexing.

Could there also be security reasons for the open walls? Don't want possible terrorists to have a completely private room in which to assemble their weapons? Although, those rooms would be only for terrorists with one heck of an expense account. Air flow and safety considerations are probably the main reason the walls don't go all the way to the ceiling.

Seriously expensive sleeper rooms, though. For the 1/10th of 1% crowd, I would guess.

 

[Alphacow]

I've flown in those seats before and they are very comfy. In terms of comparing them to a roomette, the roomette has more privacy but is slightly less comfortable. This ignores things such as the LCD monitor and the great service from the flight attendants, or the generally better view out of a train. But it's really comparing apples to oranges, as you probably won't be taking a train from the US to Asia anytime soon or any other route this seats fly on.

And no, I didn't spend $30k on a flight to do so :lol:

 

[Blackwolf]

Personally, if I were to spend 30 Kilobucks on a one-way ticket to Asia, I'd be getting a private balcony stateroom aboard the Queen Mary 2!

Then again, perhaps I'm a touch odd on my travel preferences.

 

[Phil S]

Basically, I'm pretty happy with the roomettes in the rebuilds. My main complaint currently is that, when the lower bed is down, it's hard to sit in bed and read because there's this huge empty space along the back wall under the head rest. I fill it in with pillows and a backpack but that seems like it shouldn't be necessary. Lack of control of airflow and heat, and the rattles, seem to have been solved in the rebuilds. Sure, I'd love to have even 4 inches more room between bed and door, and I'm sure a lot of people would like to have 6" more length but those issues don't sound so easy to fix, at least not w/o increasing prices substantially.

 

[Hanno]

At this point I would just be happy with a thicker AmBlanket and deeper Ampillows.

And I might add a thicker mattress for the upper bunk and a sheet that fits the mattress. On my last Superliner trip (Auto Train) I could not keep the sheet in place (appeared to be too small) which added to the challenge of getting rest during the night.

 

[cirdan]

Personally, if I were to spend 30 Kilobucks on a one-way ticket to Asia, I'd be getting a private balcony stateroom aboard the Queen Mary 2!

Then again, perhaps I'm a touch odd on my travel preferences.

I couldn't agree more

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Personally, if I were to spend 30 Kilobucks on a one-way ticket to Asia, I'd be getting a private balcony stateroom aboard the Queen Mary 2! Then again, perhaps I'm a touch odd on my travel preferences.

I couldn't agree more

I'm guessing that as difficult as it may be to explain a $30,000 flight on your corporate travel card it's probably easier than trying to explain a cruise. If your $30,000 flight ended with a $100,000,000 contract then maybe it's no big deal. If your multiple week cruise meant you never even made it to your meeting in the first place you might find the QM2 to be a much cheaper prospect than hiring a good lawyer. :lol:

 

[Blackwolf]

Personally, if I were to spend 30 Kilobucks on a one-way ticket to Asia, I'd be getting a private balcony stateroom aboard the Queen Mary 2! Then again, perhaps I'm a touch odd on my travel preferences.

I couldn't agree more

I'm guessing that as difficult as it may be to explain a $30,000 flight on your corporate travel card it's probably easier than trying to explain a cruise. If your $30,000 flight ended with a $100,000,000 contract then maybe it's no big deal. If your multiple week cruise meant you never even made it to your meeting in the first place you might find the QM2 to be a much cheaper prospect than hiring a good lawyer. :lol:

Thats where the 'personal' part of the equation comes in! But much in the same thread as the recent uptick in sleeper prices aboard Amtrak, if this airline can make a market charging those prices and have people paying for them, then more power to them! BUT, for $30,000 and the time to do it? You could go on quite the trip for two: Travel from California to New York aboard bedroom sleeper on Amtrak, take the QM2 across the 'pond' to England, and travel the rails eastbound across Europe and Asia to your destination in Singapore. Might even have some cash remaining after it was all said and done, too!

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Thats where the 'personal' part of the equation comes in! But much in the same thread as the recent uptick in sleeper prices aboard Amtrak, if this airline can make a market charging those prices and have people paying for them, then more power to them! BUT, for $30,000 and the time to do it? You could go on quite the trip for two: Travel from California to New York aboard bedroom sleeper on Amtrak, take the QM2 across the 'pond' to England, and travel the rails eastbound across Europe and Asia to your destination in Singapore. Might even have some cash remaining after it was all said and done, too!

I wonder how many people actually pull $30,000 out of their own bank account for something that only lasts a few hours. If I did I think I'd pair a somewhat simpler A-bucket round-the-world ticket with the same Singapore Airlines network (minus the A380) and use the leftovers to help pay for several long train journeys. I guess I just don't see the appeal of a long boat trip myself. Flying over a huge ocean is boring enough. Watching it up close doesn't sound any more appealing to me. :lol:

 

[Bob Dylan]

Thats where the 'personal' part of the equation comes in! But much in the same thread as the recent uptick in sleeper prices aboard Amtrak, if this airline can make a market charging those prices and have people paying for them, then more power to them! BUT, for $30,000 and the time to do it? You could go on quite the trip for two: Travel from California to New York aboard bedroom sleeper on Amtrak, take the QM2 across the 'pond' to England, and travel the rails eastbound across Europe and Asia to your destination in Singapore. Might even have some cash remaining after it was all said and done, too!

I wonder how many people actually pull $30,000 out of their own bank account for something that only lasts a few hours. If I did I think I'd pair a somewhat simpler A-bucket round-the-world ticket with the same Singapore Airlines network (minus the A380) and use the leftovers to help pay for several long train journeys. I guess I just don't see the appeal of a long boat trip myself. Flying over a huge ocean is boring enough. Watching it up close doesn't sound any more appealing to me. :lol:

:hi: Ditto Chris! Anyone who ever did a WestPac Cruise will agree with this one! The Pacific is best viewed from a Beach, especially with a Cool Drink in Hand!!

 

[Ryan]

Never did a WestPac, but I've done 5 Atlantic crossings, and loved every one of them.

Of course, when you're riding in one of these, being bored is the last of your concerns.

 

[nferr]

Makes Amtrak private compartment travel seem like an absolute bargain. And I would hate not having the walls go all the way up. I would wake up half the first class passengers from my snoring alone! Love the Amtrak roomettes.