Texas Eagle Reservation Changes for Jan 2012--Quesions!

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river

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Fairly new with Amtrak travel. Did do one trip last year in a roomette and loved it, so planned another, longer trip for this winter. Wanted to get away from the cold and snow, so decided to take a 3 night trip on the Texas Eagle. I planned this months ago, so got low buckets for my hubbie and me--2 roomettes across from each other. We wanted the extra room, lower berths for sleeping, and two-sided views.

So, this morning, I was checking our end of January 2012 trip from Chicago to Los Angeles on the Texas Eagle. We are currently reserved for: CHI-STL coach; STL to LAX in two roomettes.

We were so looking forward to a relaxed, quiet experience in our roomettes for the entire trip. Now, it appears that track work is being done (another poster is also discussing this right now, I see) and now we have a bus bridge (that's what they call it?) from Longview TX to Fort Worth TX--right in the middle of our trip. I was so looking forward to staying on the train the entire time, so am a little disappointed.

And I can't really change our trip dates, as we have already have purchased our airline tickets home. And not sure how long track work will be done either, of course.

I am actually thinking now of saving a little money and just sharing one roomette with hubbie from STL to Longview, since it's only 12 hours--approx 8pm to 8 am. We won't have any need to have views on both sides of the train if it's dark for the entire trip. And then we'll get our 2 roomettes from Fort Worth to LAX as previously planned.

A little disappointing, but oh, well. We'll deal with it. Suggestions? Reassurance about the 5 hour bus trip? Will we be able to board the train in Fort Worth as soon as we arrive? Will be get breakfast on the train before boarding the bus at 8:30 am? Obviously we won't get lunch--or will boxed lunches be provided when we arrive?

Thanks for any and all insights!
 
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Since LAUS is your final destination, switch to Southwest Chief and avoid a bus?
 
I would recommend against giving up the one roomette from STL to Longview. Each of you will have the lower bunk and more space to move around in to get ready for bed.

If you are traveling coach from Chicago to STL on the Eagle, I would recommend upgrading to a roomette. Your dinner will be included.

The bus bridge does stink, but it is not the end of the world. You may get into Fort Worth early, and then will be able to eat a nice lunch before getting back on the train. You will have a full day and a half on the train. The ride from San Antonio to El Paso is interesting and relaxing.
 
I considered doing the Southwest Chief--actually did that trip about 15 years ago in coach--NEVER AGAIN in Coach!-- I chose the Texas Eagle to have 3 nights instead of 2 nights, which the SW Chief would be--and wanted to do the warmer, more southern trip. I know the views are beautiful on the SW Chief, but I can see all the snow I want and more, where I live. I want a break from it! ;) Also, the roomettes on the SW Chief are not low bucket anymore for sure, so it would be more expensive for us.

I considered getting roomettes from CHI, but they are much cheaper if we wait until STL. Also, the train departs from STL at about 8 pm, so I am assuming we will get dinner out of STL.
 
The Bustitution is disappointing, for sure, but I would bite the bullet & keep your plans as scheduled. You'll be in FTW around 1:30 pm & back on the rails again!!!

Have Fun
 
Yeah...if the train is late into STL, you might not get dinner on that leg (at least, not included). I know that they held a spot for me when I boarded in STL, but if the train had been late I would probably have been out of luck.
 
I am anxious to find out what the "Texas Eagle-South" train consist is/will be. Since it essentially is a day train, will it even have Sleepers (not counting the Sunset Through Sleeper)? I'm guessing it will be more of a stub train since Amtrak probably cannot spare equipment to run "Double Eagles."
 
OlympianHiawatha said:
I am anxious to find out what the "Texas Eagle-South" train consist is/will be. Since it essentially is a day train, will it even have Sleepers (not counting the Sunset Through Sleeper)? I'm guessing it will be more of a stub train since Amtrak probably cannot spare equipment to run "Double Eagles."
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There will be a Texas Eagle set trapped south of Fort Worth, running back and forth, so it should be normal equipment.
 
OlympianHiawatha said:
I am anxious to find out what the "Texas Eagle-South" train consist is/will be. Since it essentially is a day train, will it even have Sleepers (not counting the Sunset Through Sleeper)? I'm guessing it will be more of a stub train since Amtrak probably cannot spare equipment to run "Double Eagles."
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Indications are that 1021/1022 and 1421/1422 will still have at least one sleeper as per the reservation system.
 
I just asked the conductor if we were bustituting in the morning @ Longview. He said no and wasn't aware of plans for the near future. I haven't read the other thread about this work detail but at least its not this trip. Of course we aren't to Longview yet!!

In the long run I'm with OlympiaH... My main concern is getting my RR French Toast in the morning .
 
Yes, I see that the bustitution's last scheduled day is Jan 31, 2012--the day our trip starts.

Wondering if we will get breakfast on the train before the bussing starts at 8:30 am.

I am already seeing we may miss dinner (if the train into STL is late) the evening before. Then if we miss breakfast and lunch on Feb. 1 because we are being bussed, that would be an issue for us since we are paying for sleeper accomodations.

Could that possibly happen?
 
If the bustitution extends over meal hours, Amtrak will generally pass out free sack lunches to everyone on the bus.

Also, remember that if you are bustituted, you should contact Amtrak's customer relations people afterwards. Especially if you paid for a sleeper, you should be able to get compensation in the form of a credit voucher good for future travel.
 
What if you buy a ticket after the reservations system has already been updated to show a bus bridge? Is it still OK to seek compensation of some sort? Or does Amtrak already discount trips that contain planned disruptions?
 
Texas Sunset said:
What if you buy a ticket after the reservations system has already been updated to show a bus bridge? Is it still OK to seek compensation of some sort? Or does Amtrak already discount trips that contain planned disruptions?
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I would still definitely try it. I don't think Amtrak adjusts the fare structure in situations like that.

Besides, most bus bridges are likely to result in a substantially delayed arrival, which is in itself a valid reason to contact Customer Relations.
 
OK, I decided I'm not dealing with the bus and the questions around whether we will get to eat in the dining car or not.

I switched gears completely for our trip. We are now leaving a day earlier. We are taking the California Zephyr to San Francisco. We are staying overnight in SF and taking the Coast Starlight to LAX the next day. I always wanted to do this trip too. Got low bucket on a BEDROOM from CHI to EMY, I believe--it was only $588. Then we are sharing a roomette for the day trip on the Coast Starlight. Only two hundred dollars more total for our trip with NO hassle (I hope!) and great views. So glad we made the switch! We will do the Texas Eagle another time.

.
 
Yes, thanks! We may see a lot of snow, but it is definitely better than bussing, uncertainties, and sack meals. Reservations are all switched! Necessity is the mother of invention! :)
 
river said:
OK, I decided I'm not dealing with the bus and the questions around whether we will get to eat in the dining car or not.

I switched gears completely for our trip. We are now leaving a day earlier. We are taking the California Zephyr to San Francisco. We are staying overnight in SF and taking the Coast Starlight to LAX the next day. I always wanted to do this trip too. Got low bucket on a BEDROOM from CHI to EMY, I believe--it was only $588. Then we are sharing a roomette for the day trip on the Coast Starlight. Only two hundred dollars more total for our trip with NO hassle (I hope!) and great views. So glad we made the switch! We will do the Texas Eagle another time.

.
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That kind of thinking is out of the box........ and right into the scenery :p Great call IMO Enjoy. Should be a great trip!! !
 
You will absolutely LOVE both trains!!! And you are lucky because the SSL will be much less crowded on the Zephyr
smile.gif
 
I'm excited about our new plans~thanks for everyone's positive comments about my change! Also glad I checked our reservations this morning--this was prompted by another poster talking about the Texas Eagle bussing issue. Didn't hear a word from Amtrak about the bus bridge--and don't know if I ever would have. I would have been mightly disappointed if I found out about the bus bridge at the last minute. Knowing as immediately as I did, it allowed me to make changes while buckets on other trains were still low. Grateful for the heads up here on this forum!
 
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