Onboard Upgrade from Roomette

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Two friends are taking #5/#30 from EMY to CVS leaving next Monday. They are sharing a roomette on both legs. One friend is in his eighties and about 6'3". (The other is much younger and shorter.) They have tried to upgrade to a bedroom on both legs (total three nights)but none are available. Amtrak advised them to try an onboard upgrade. Based on that, I gave them the following advice, but am now wondering if I could have provided better advice. Hence, I'd love any input y'all can provide.

Here is the advice I gave in an email, based on what I've read on this forum (I've never done an onboard upgrade myself):

"I suggest you let your SCA (Sleeping Car Attendant) know when you board that you’d like an upgrade and politely ask him if it’s possible to check with the Conductor. He may be able to pave the way for you once he understands it’s because you are such a big guy you’d really need a bigger room. The family room would be very nice, but it’s downstairs and would require going up and down to get to the lounge and dining cars. But even a standard bedroom upstairs will be roomier than the roomette.

 

Conductors are in charge of all accommodations once on board. They have to work with an extremely antiquated system whereby they contact Amtrak by phone to see if something is available and at what price. (The price should always be the lowest bucket.) Since the train originates where you are boarding, the conductor will be very busy with ticket work for at least the first couple of hours, and it’s best to leave him be. You then may then have to follow up with him/her throughout the day, as he/she will probably be busy again at SAC, and maybe a no-show will come up at some intermediate stop.

 

If you’re not successful initially, check again for the second night. Conductors have a lot of leeway in deciding whether to go to the trouble of booking a room, doing all the paperwork, and collecting the additional fare, so do try to stay on his/her good side. They’re not allowed to take tips, but if the SCA helps you, they can."

Was this on the mark? Or are there other factors to consider that I overlooked? Also, is it ever cost-advantageous to go for a second roomette rather than a bedroom, just to spread out during the day and so both parties can have the lower berth?

Any further advice would be appreciated. I'll be letting my friends know about this thread so they can follow it for themselves. Needless to say, they are excited about the trip, not having done sleeper rail travel for decades.

Many thanks.
 
You're pretty close to what I'd say. However, I'd include the following.

1. Wait to start this whole process until after the train has begun moving.

2. If you have a mobile phone start by calling Amtrak reservations and see what they say regarding availability. If a room is available ask what the on-board upgrade should cost.

3. Make sure you have the necessary payment ready to hand over. Cash and major credit cards work fine. Do not try to overcomplicate the upgrade with vouchers or other forms of payment. You want this whole process to be as smooth as possible for everyone involved. If for any reason you don't have enough there is nothing the conductor can do to further adjust the cost.

4. If the Reservations desk says they see no availability then you can still check with the SCA to see if anyone missed their train or moved to another room or what have you. The SCA may hold an unclaimed room for a stop or two but eventually they should release it and allow you to upgrade to it instead. If neither the SCA nor Reservations sees any rooms becoming available then the whole process ends here. No need to bug the conductor.

5. If the either the SCA or the Reservations desk does see availability then proceed to speak with the conductor as soon as possible. You want to get first chance at whatever room is available and being quick on your feet is the best way to ensure you're given first consideration. Even if he's busy you want to be sure he knows that you're interested in upgrading and that you've confirmed a room is in fact available.

6. Do not hesitate to enlist the help of the SCA or your mobile phone if the conductor shows too much hesitation to process your upgrade. Although the Conductor has the final say in most matters aboard the train he is still an employee of Amtrak and as an employee he is expected to follow company policy. Company policy is to sell you any available room at the lowest bucket.

7. Do not hesitate to go and find the conductor again if he stalls for too much time. Do not act rude or demanding. However, you also want to avoid acting too deferential. If the conductor senses that it will be easy to just blow you off he probably will. Try a middle of the road approach that is calm and reasonable but firm in your expectations.

8. If all else fails and no amount of reasonable discussion will get you any traction then you'll need to wait for the next conductor and start the whole process all over again.
 
2. If you have a mobile phone start by calling Amtrak reservations and see what they say regarding availability. If a room is available ask what the on-board upgrade should cost.
The agent on the phone will not know what the price for an on-board upgrade is. They have no idea. And since the price will be determined by when the conductor starts the process and where the train is at that point, and info provided by the phone agent would still be wrong. But a phone agent only sees the current price of the room as if you were still standing on the ground waiting to board.

3. Make sure you have the necessary payment ready to hand over. Cash and major credit cards work fine. Do not try to overcomplicate the upgrade with vouchers or other forms of payment. You want this whole process to be as smooth as possible for everyone involved. If for any reason you don't have enough there is nothing the conductor can do to further adjust the cost.
You cannot use a voucher onboard, only cash or credit.

4. The SCA may hold an unclaimed room for a stop or two but eventually they should release it and allow you to upgrade to it instead. If neither the SCA nor Reservations sees any rooms becoming available then the whole process ends here. No need to bug the conductor.
The SCA doesn't decide when to stop holding the room, that's the conductor's call.

George, I recommend having your friends let the SCA know that you are interested in an upgrade, but since they cannot currrently get an upgrade it sounds like the train is sold out. So unless there is a no show, there is no hope. I would also tell your friends to still speak with the conductor too. Especically since the SCA may not want to see your friends move to another car if a room opens up there, as they'd lose the tip. Frankly your friends should still give him something if the do move to a different car. Also remind your friends that conductors come & go, so they should check again after 8 to 10 hours.

5. If the either the SCA or the Reservations desk does see availability then proceed to speak with the conductor as soon as possible. You want to get first chance at whatever room is available and being quick on your feet is the best way to ensure you're given first consideration. Even if he's busy you want to be sure he knows that you're interested in upgrading and that you've confirmed a room is in fact available.
Be careful here, I've heard stories of conductors not being happy when confronted with the sure knowledge that there is an upgrade possible. If your attendant does it, not so much of a problem. But don't have your friends throwing that in his face.

6. Do not hesitate to enlist the help of the SCA or your mobile phone if the conductor shows too much hesitation to process your upgrade. Although the Conductor has the final say in most matters aboard the train he is still an employee of Amtrak and as an employee he is expected to follow company policy. Company policy is to sell you any available room at the lowest bucket.
Actually company policy isn't written that way. If there are several empty rooms, then the conductor is required to try to sell a certain amount. But if there are only a few left, not sure what the actual number is, the conductor actually is NOT obligated to sell the rooms. Yes, the smart conductor knows that selling the room means that Amtrak has a few more dollars with which to pay their salary, but some are so lazy as to not care.

Finally George, have your friends call and get their names on the waitlist for Bedrooms. Be sure that they can provide a number where they can be reached pretty much all day long, as Amtrak will only call once if a room does open up, before putting it on the market for sale if they don't connect.

And many people do book two roomettes, if the cost is less than that of a Bedroom or if they cannot get a Bedroom. The only cost advantage to waiting and getting a second roomette onboard is the low bucket price. But if they really want the space, do it now if there are still any roomettes left. Don't expect that they'll get roomettes opposite either. They'll be lucky if they can even get two in the same car at this point.
 
Maybe Alan's right. Maybe there is no hope. Truth be told I've never once been successful upgrading on-board no matter what I tried or who I spoke with. Nor has anyone I've ever seen attempt it been successful. Not back when I was a child and not now as an adult. Never. Not even once. And this was when the reservations system was claiming rooms are still available. Apparently actually doing your homework and having knowledge on your side only infuriates the staff all the more. Better to placate them by playing the fool I guess. My post was just my best guess at what might work, but maybe we'd be better off simply not asking in the first place. That way Amtrak doesn't have the opportunity to confuse and disappoint us by actively refusing our money. :excl:
 
Thanks Alan and Texas. You two are a great example of synergy - and of two heads being better than one. Texas, I'm guessing your last post is in jest; personally, I'm of the "Nothing ventured, nothing gained" school. As my daddy used to say, "You won't catch any fish if your line ain't in the water." Thanks again.
 
Maybe Alan's right. Maybe there is no hope. Truth be told I've never once been successful upgrading on-board no matter what I tried or who I spoke with. Nor has anyone I've ever seen attempt it been successful. Not back when I was a child and not now as an adult. Never. Not even once. And this was when the reservations system was claiming rooms are still available. Apparently actually doing your homework and having knowledge on your side only infuriates the staff all the more. Better to placate them by playing the fool I guess. My post was just my best guess at what might work, but maybe we'd be better off simply not asking in the first place. That way Amtrak doesn't have the opportunity to confuse and disappoint us by actively refusing our money. :excl:
I could have successfully upgraded on the EB in the summer of 2009, however chose not to do so.

My mom and I were in a roomette in the Trans/Dorm and a Bedroom was available. When the condcutor came by to lift our tickets, I asked him about the possibility and politely mentioned that I knew he was still busy collecting tickets and couldn't answer right away.

He couldn't have been more polite and promised that he would check on things for us as soon as he was done collecting tickets. True to his word, he came back shortly after our first stop Everett. He says, "I've got good news & bad news for you. The good news is that yes, there is a Bedroom available the whole way that I can upgrade you to. The bad news, you paid for this current room using AGR." I will admit that I was worried about the fact that we were on an award, but I had hoped that Amtrak would at least give us some credit for the roomette towards the upgrade. But alas, that was the bad news. We got zero credit towards an upgrade, so we would have needed to pay about $550 IIRC for the Bedroom and essentially would have thrown away the points used to get the roomette.

So we thanked the very nice conductor, who admitted that he wouldn't have gone ahead with the upgrade if he was in our shoes, and stayed with the roomette.

Judging from what I've seen, heard, and read, it seems about 75% of the time you'll get a conductor who will do the upgrade if indeed one is available. The other 25% you'll hit a conductor who for some reason just can't be bothered. And if you can bump into a sleeping car attendant who does have an empty room, enlisting their help will increase the odds that a bad conductor will do the work. And the sleeping car attendant will fight for you, since they want the tip.
 
Maybe Alan's right. Maybe there is no hope. Truth be told I've never once been successful upgrading on-board no matter what I tried or who I spoke with. Nor has anyone I've ever seen attempt it been successful. Not back when I was a child and not now as an adult. Never. Not even once. And this was when the reservations system was claiming rooms are still available. Apparently actually doing your homework and having knowledge on your side only infuriates the staff all the more. Better to placate them by playing the fool I guess. My post was just my best guess at what might work, but maybe we'd be better off simply not asking in the first place. That way Amtrak doesn't have the opportunity to confuse and disappoint us by actively refusing our money. :excl:
I could have successfully upgraded on the EB in the summer of 2009, however chose not to do so.

My mom and I were in a roomette in the Trans/Dorm and a Bedroom was available. When the condcutor came by to lift our tickets, I asked him about the possibility and politely mentioned that I knew he was still busy collecting tickets and couldn't answer right away.

He couldn't have been more polite and promised that he would check on things for us as soon as he was done collecting tickets. True to his word, he came back shortly after our first stop Everett. He says, "I've got good news & bad news for you. The good news is that yes, there is a Bedroom available the whole way that I can upgrade you to. The bad news, you paid for this current room using AGR." I will admit that I was worried about the fact that we were on an award, but I had hoped that Amtrak would at least give us some credit for the roomette towards the upgrade. But alas, that was the bad news. We got zero credit towards an upgrade, so we would have needed to pay about $550 IIRC for the Bedroom and essentially would have thrown away the points used to get the roomette.

So we thanked the very nice conductor, who admitted that he wouldn't have gone ahead with the upgrade if he was in our shoes, and stayed with the roomette.

Judging from what I've seen, heard, and read, it seems about 75% of the time you'll get a conductor who will do the upgrade if indeed one is available. The other 25% you'll hit a conductor who for some reason just can't be bothered. And if you can bump into a sleeping car attendant who does have an empty room, enlisting their help will increase the odds that a bad conductor will do the work. And the sleeping car attendant will fight for you, since they want the tip.
Tell your friends George that it is certainly worth a try to upgrade. I have been successful upgrading onboard to sleeper accomodations on the Crescent (from WAS), Capitol Limited (from CHI), and the Silver trains (from WAS and JAX). The upgrades were generally during the off season although the Silver trains were done in the summer as well.

The biggest obstacle I have experienced in the upgrade process was dealing with unmotivated conductors who just did not want to bother doing the upgrades. I always had to hunt them down after being told they would get back to me after reviewing the sleeper list. Even then I was able to get an upgrade once on a Silver after they were finished counting tickets and lounging in the cafe car.

Good luck to your friends.
 
Update..........I relayed everybody's advice to my friend, and I just received the following from him:

"Just called Julie and she connected me with an AMTRAK representative. I am NUMBER ONE on the wait list out of Emeryville and I got an upgrade to Bedroom from Chicago to Washington. Things could be worse. Thanks for everything, George."

I will suggest he let the SCA and conductor know he's #1 on the waitlist (if it doesn't come through before then), so they won't think he's just trying for a cheap upgrade on the sly. That way, they may be more motivated.

Thanks to all!
 
Heh, I wouldn't bet on the conductor even knowing that Amtrak has a wait list for rooms. Half the phone operators don't even seem to know it exists, or are just to lazy to put people on it and therefore claim that there is no list.
 
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