NYC to New Orleans without roomette??

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NicoleP

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Hello all!

I am planning a solo trip in June from NYC to Nola on the Crescent. The scheduled time for the trip is about 30 hours direct. I planned to get a roomette but my dates are not very flexible and right now the round trip coach price is $155 vs $765 for a roomette!

It seems crazy to pay that fare for just one night but have never done an overnight trip before and am wondering if 30 hours in coach is crazy. I will most likely fly before paying for the roomette but was really looking forward to the train ride.

Has anyone done this trip or a similar trip in coach? Am i going to regret my decision after hour 15??

Thanks in advance!
 
NicoleP said:
Hello all!

I am planning a solo trip in June from NYC to Nola on the Crescent. The scheduled time for the trip is about 30 hours direct. I planned to get a roomette but my dates are not very flexible and right now the round trip coach price is $155 vs $765 for a roomette!

It seems crazy to pay that fare for just one night but have never done an overnight trip before and am wondering if 30 hours in coach is crazy. I will most likely fly before paying for the roomette but was really looking forward to the train ride.

Has anyone done this trip or a similar trip in coach? Am i going to regret my decision after hour 15??

Thanks in advance!
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I've done MSP-SEA in coach more than once, and 20+ hours in coach on the Southwest Chief, and some shorter 12 hour + rides in coach.

Never taken the Crescent.

If you can sleep fairly well in a semi-recliner much wider than an airline seat, you should be good to go. The train food in the diner is relatively expensive, but OK.

Unlike airplanes, you can walk around, take some time in the diner or snack-lounge. You can bring your own food, if you want.

Others will follow up with comments on the food and the scenery.

Me, I'd do the Crescent NYP-NOL in coach no worries.
 
I've never done a sleeper and have taken cross country trips Pennsylvania to California three times and several others from Pennsylvania to Chicago and Pennsylvania to Florida. It's OK for me and I can deal with the cafe car food (I would recommend food that you don't need to refrigerate like cookies, crackers, chips, candy, etc) to keep you full. I wouldn't pay $600 for a room with meals for one day. You can spend a lot of time in the cafe car (lounge car in Superliners). This is where a cheaper sleeper option like the Silver Star would be nice to have.

In reality, traveling alone isn't fun. The roomettes are meant for two people so they are too expensive for most singles and if you travel coach you have to sit next to a complete stranger.
 
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I've done WIL-CHI on the Cardinal and NYC-CHI on the Lake Shore Limited in coach. It's fine for one night. I slept on and off but that's partly due to the excitement of the trip.
 
Ive gone coast to coast in coach - no issues what so and wouldnt hesistate to say a 30 hour trip would be fine. You might think you would want to have something to keep your mind occupied like a good book although Ive taken books on transcontinental trips and never got past the first chapter as I just gaze out the window and admire the ever changing scenary (some good some bad) and let my mind wander
 
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our answers may depend on your age and physical condition.

Many people in their 20s may not think twice about traveling in coach, whereas some of us in our 60s would not consider it at all.
 
For a one-night trip I have no problems traveling coach. What I recommend you do is to book coach now on your planned traveling date, then sign up for a "Fare Alert" from Amsnag. They will send you an email if there is a price drop on the sleeper supplement, and if it drops into your budget ballpark you can call Amtrak and upgrade from coach to sleeper.

ETA: This can be confusing to a first time rider. Amsnag quotes the rail fare (coach fare) and the sleeper supplement separately, while the Amtrak website adds them together. To get a correct quote from Amsnag be sure to add the appropriate number of rail fares (one for each adult, one half for each child) to their sleeper price quote.
 
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I used to be able to do coach over night as long as I had a place at my destination to freshen up after getting off the train. Now life has made over night in Coach too painful, airline redeyes are impossible as well and were never a problem. Remember the Crescent is a single level train so no SSL which is great traveling Coach on the Superliners, which means you may be in your coach seat more. A window with a pillow really helps with sleeping. Bring plenty of water and snacks to avoid the high cost in the café. Also, force yourself to walk the length of the train when ever there are long stops, or if the weather is poor, walk through all the coaches and café a few times to keep your muscles and joints limber.
 
Since the NYP-ATL leg of the Crescent has the heaviest passenger load and accordingly high bucket fares,check into riding Coach to ATL.(most of the trip South of CVS is in the dark)

You'll arrive into ATL @ Breakfast time, then roll thru Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and thru the swamps and across the Lake into New Orleans in daylight and have 3 Meals included with a Roomette.

Usually the Room Charges and Rail Fares ATL-NOL are one of the Best Bargains on Amtrak if nothing special is going in New Orleans.
 
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I generally avoid coach because I don't like sitting next to strangers for that long and really hate sleeping next to someone I don't know. It's just awkward, pure and simple. Plus, I can't sleep in a recliner, and the Amtrak seats don't recline as much (and aren't as padded) as a recliner you'd have at home. Add to that the noise of people snoring, walking around, opening snacks, typing on their laptops, whispering to each other, and kids whining/crying, and I get close to zero sleep. At best, I manage a catnap. I'm an extremely light sleeper, so even earplugs don't help.

That said, if I have to do it for one night, I can. That's happened when I don't have enough AGR points or the sleepers are sold out. I'm irritated and sleep-deprived when I arrive at my destination, but as long as I can take a shower and get a good night's sleep once I'm there, it's ok. Plus, even though I'm irritated and sleep-deprived, I still love the train and the scenery. I end up spending a lot of time in the lounge car to get some personal space and spend most of the sleepless nights reading. I don't regret any of those trips in coach, since the scenery and fun of being on a train make up for the sleepless night.

With a roomette, I still don't sleep as well as I do at home, but I get enough sleep to prevent myself from looking like a murderous squirrel the next day, and it's nice to be able to close the door and keep most of the noise out.

I would try to price out the overnight portion in a roomette. You can switch from coach to a room and then back to coach. That might help with the cost, and you'd get to have dinner and/or breakfast in the dining car, depending on where you switch your ticket. Even if it's just for the night and you miss the meal times, it's nice to have a private room with a door and a flat mattress for several hours.
 
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Atlanta to NOL is daytime so sleepers are very cheap - but you get 3 meals included (B, L, early D between ATL and NOL) for your money. One thing to consider is going overnight in coach to Atlanta and then a roomette to NOL. Will give you a chance to take a shower and, if you didn't get a good sleep overnight, you can request the SCA to make up the top bunk for sleeping. With this arrangement, you can sleep for a few hours in the top bunk, then come down and watch the scenery go by in your seat.

The experience and the meals may make it worth while.
 
I would have to disagree with post #3, solo travel is great! I am in my 60's, and like the freedom to go where I want, and change my mind en-route, without having to consider a travel companion's views.

As a single traveller, I find it easy to meet and chat with others on the train too.

If you travel from NYP to NOL in coach, you probably will be tired when you arrive, but it will be an interesting experience. Anyone can fly, not everyone has a long train ride to talk about...

Ed. :cool:
 
The Crescent has Business class seating now. They are the same seats as in coach but includes some drinks and likely a better overnight experience. Go to the "premium" listing (where Roomettes are) and toggle left or right to find Business class. On June 15 I found Business class for $75 more than Value coach ($230 vs. $155), from New York to New Orleans. I've heard reports that there have been few passengers riding Crescent Business class, likely because it is new and the ticketing is hidden and perhaps because the cost is more than coach (but a lot less than sleeper). Would definitely be a step up from coach.

I rode coach overnight when I was younger but would not want to now.
 
Definitely upgrade to business class for $75. Walk through the Crescent coach at 2am and you will see it was the best $75 extra you ever spent. You can thank me then.
 
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This question is best answered by a persons physical condition, age, needs and ability to sleep in a reclined chair. As you can see by the posts in this thread; some people are fine with a long trip in coach, others want the comfort of the bed in the sleeper while some creative folks take along a large blanket and set up a tent configuration around their seats during evening hours(only good if you have an empty seat next to you or are traveling with a companion).I would suggest trying a shorter trip in coach before embarking on an overnight journey.
 
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dlagrua said:
I would suggest trying a shorter trip in coach before embarking on an overnight journey.
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This is probably the best piece of advice for a newbie to train travel. I can normally do coach just fine for short trips, but in January I was on the Northeast Corridor from Philadelphia to DC, which is a pretty short trip. I was in coach, but it was pretty crowded and as soon as I sat down in my chosen seat, my seatmate gave off the "it would be so nice if you weren't sitting next to me" vibe. I'm not one to have to make a BFF with everyone I meet, but it's nice when you know you're not imposing on someone simply by being in close proximity to them. In short, it was one of the longest train rides I've taken. If I had to do it all over again, I would have gladly paid extra for Business Class (which, as others have indicated, is often sparsely populated).

Aside from that, SarahZ nails it. It really depends on one's own personality and ability to handle given situations. As noted, younger people are probably more adaptable to a long coach trip than older persons, as well as those who've done a fair amount of camping or unconventional travel previously.
 
Fwiw, I took an overnight trip on the CS from LAX to PDX in coach, and I regretted that decision. And I was 19 yrs old at the time!

Why the regret? Loud people, sitting next to a stranger, strange smells, a bathroom used by way too many people, concerns of theft while in the lounge or diner, and no privacy.

Since that experience, I decided to only travel in a Sleeper.

I just don't enjoy coach on a LD trip and will (gasp!) choose flying over a train trip for anything involving a night in coach.

However, Amtrak's LD Business Class service seems to do away with most of my concerns listed above. I'd be curious to try it.

Just my two cents.
 
Agree, if you have to do coach, try to be in BC. But keep an eye on the Roomette pricing which changes up and down almost daily as does availability. The roomette to me is the ONLY way to travel overnight. Have a great trip.
 
Welcome Nicole, I am glad you are considering taking Amtrak's Crescent from New York to New Orleans! I took this trip as part of a much larger, round the country trip on Amtrak, in 2013. I was by myself on this leg of the trip and I had a roomette. I had originally booked a coach seat to ATL and a bedroom just from ATL to NOL. After re-booking to spend one more day in NY, I was able to get a roomette all the way from NYP to NOL. I am really glad I spent the money. I got to visit Amtrak's Club Acela at New York Penn station during my layover at Penn. I was able to leave my stuff at the Club Acela and walk across the street to Macy's at Herald square to shop and have lunch. I was pre-boarded from the Club Acela by a private elevator and missed the coach boarding experience. The coaches were full on this train and there was not a single empty seat. The coaches remained full even after Atlanta and were also fairly loud every time I walked though.

Also,I can share that the service I received on the trip both from the SCA and the dining staff was among the best I have experienced on Amtrak and I would not have missed any of the meals and conversations with the other passengers.

I do ride coach on shorter trips and I had to take coach on one leg of this same trip on the Sunset Limited as the sleepers were completely sold out, well in advance, by a tour group. It also depends on the train. I have ridden the Lake Shore Limited from Chicago many times, I always get a sleeper, one time my sleeper had a mechanical and even then Amtrak put us all in a private coach car so it was fairly private. The Viewliner coach seats are not as comfortable as on the Superliner trains, like the Sunset Limited, there are fewer restrooms and they get dirty very quickly. I have paid for a roomette just from Albany to Boston largely due to the state of the restrooms. You might get a friend to come along and split the cost of the roomette if you can't afford it by yourself or at least spring for a business class seat, now that Amtrak offers that option on the Crescent. Good Luck!
 
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Yes, I have taken the "Boston Sleeper car" from Chicago to Boston and Boston to Chicago and also booked it just for the ALB to BOS sections during 8 of the last 9 years. Since spring of 2015 the ongoing track work at the Albany-Rensselaer Station has caused Amtrak to send the entire Lake Shore Limited from Chicago to NYP and to run a "stub-train" from ALB to BOS and back. I am actually on 449 to Albany right now as I write this. I look forward to the resumption of the standard Lakeshore Limited and the return of the Boston Sleeper car, hopefully by late fall of this year after the station/track work at Albany-Rensselaer is completed. Thank you.
 
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