Several Sleeper Questions

[TML]

Since I've only traveled on sleeping cars in Chinese trains, never on Amtrak's sleepers, I have several questions:

(1) If I purchase a room, am I guaranteed the entire room to myself, or should I expect a roommate?

(2) Who can configure the rooms to their daytime/nighttime settings? Is it possible to use the "nighttime" configuration for an afternoon nap?

(3) In real life, I am more of a night owl than an early bird (I often wake up after 10 am during my "free" days). In that case, is it likely that the train attendant will wake me up while I'm still asleep?

 

[Shortline]

Since I've only traveled on sleeping cars in Chinese trains, never on Amtrak's sleepers, I have several questions:

(1) If I purchase a room, am I guaranteed the entire room to myself, or should I expect a roommate?

(2) Who can configure the rooms to their daytime/nighttime settings? Is it possible to use the "nighttime" configuration for an afternoon nap?

(3) In real life, I am more of a night owl than an early bird (I often wake up after 10 am during my "free" days). In that case, is it likely that the train attendant will wake me up while I'm still asleep?

1. Yes, unless you booked the room with another passenger on purpose as in you are travelling together, you will have the room to yourself. They sell the rooms, not the bunks. It's all yours.

2. The Sleeping Car Attendent will usually turn it down while you're at dinner, unless you ask for another time. I, like you, am also a night person, so I usually just ask them to make up the top, then I can keep the bottom in day mode and climb up whenever I'm ready. They usually try and make them back up to day configuration while you're at breakfast, but yes, you can either ask them to put it down in the afternoon, or, just do it yourself. Its a simple operation. I usually just tell them to leave the top bunk down.

3. They won't bother you if the door is closed, and curtain pulled in my experience. You can also just tell them when you board, you sleep in. They'll be happy to not have to make yours up along with everyone elses at the same time, no problems there!

 

[AlanB]

3. They won't bother you if the door is closed, and curtain pulled in my experience. You can also just tell them when you board, you sleep in. They'll be happy to not have to make yours up along with everyone elses at the same time, no problems there!

This is true provided that the train isn't close to reaching its end point or your stop is coming up. But once the train is within an hour or so of its last stop, you can be guaranteed that the attendant is going to wake you up as they must change the linens before getting to the last stop.