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Shirley Shiver

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I have been strolling through this forum and find it very informative. I was wondering if anyone could and would be so kind as to give me any "tips" on traveling from the Boston area to DC. I am traveling alone with my children, I don't know if I should travel at night on a sleeper car or what train would be the least crowded, most comfortable and well, the safest :) Thank you
 
There are multiple departures from Boston to Washington starting at 5 in the morning up until 10 at night. Regional trains offer Coach Class and Business Class and the trip takes about 8 hours. Acela Express trains offer Business Class and First Class and total trip time is about 6 1/2 hours with a top speed of 150 mph. The Federal is an overnight train which departs Boston at 10pm and arrives in DC at 7:30 the next morning. This train offers Coach Class, Business Class, and First Class Sleeping Car accomadations. All trains have a Cafe in where passengers can purchase a variety of drinks, snacks, and light meals. Business Class passengers on the Regional trains receive complementary non-alcoholic drinks and First Class passengers on the Acela Express have a presonal car attendant who will serve complementary drinks, full course meals, snacks. Sleeping Car passengers on the Federal receive free items from the Cafe car, personal attendant who will help you with your luggage and convert your room into day/night accomadations, and a shower is located at one end of the car.

Regional Coach Class has 74 seats per car, two on either side of the isle, with restrooms at one end, and overhead luggage racks.

Regional Business Class has 60 seats per car, two on either side of the isle, with restrooms at one end, foot rests, rail phone, and overhead luggage racks.

Acela Express Business Class has 70 seats per car, two on either side of the isle, with restrooms at one end, foot rests, rail phone, and enclosed luggage bins.

Acela Exprees First Class has 44 seats per car, in a 2-1 configuration, restrooms at one end, foot rests, rail phone, and eclosed luggage bins

Federal Coach Class - see Regional

Federal Business Class has 45 seats per car in a 2-1 configuration, restrooms at one end, foot rests, calf/leg rests, and overhead luggage storage.

Federal Sleeping Car is of a Viewliner type. Two levels of windows in every room. Standard rooms have two facing seats which convert into a bed at night and another bed drops down from the ceiling. Each room as a toilet and sink. Deluxe Bedrooms have a large sofa that converts into a wide bed at night and another bed folds out from the wall, there is also an inclosed toilet/shower, and a vanity.

I'm sure others can add on to this and make changes. :)
 
Thank you for those stats! I am guessing that one train is as good as another depending on what upgrades you pay for....I wonder would you know anything about the best time of day to travel or should I just expect a packed train and be delighted when it does not turn out that way?

Many thanks
 
Fridays through Sundays you will usually find the Regionals packed. During the weekdays, the Acela Express trains are usually pretty full in the morning and afternoon. Expect sold-out capacity between New York and Washington. There is actually one thing I forgot to mention, is that some Regional trains are unreserved which means you are not garanteed a seat (but you will most likely get one as you are boarding in Boston) and reserved which means you are garanteed a seat and once you are in a seat the conductor will give you and you children a seat check so no one else can sit in your seat. Also the Regional trains use older Amfleet equipment from the 1970's, but trust me you would not know if I didn't tell you as most cars have been refrubished. Regionals reach a top speed of 125 mph as well. The Federal also uses Amfleet equipment, but the Sleeping Car is from a 1996 production model (the Viewliner). Acela Express trainsets are the newest members of the Northeast and were built in 1999.
 
Shirley,

Safety wise it really won't matter what train you are on. The time of day has little to do with how safe an Amtrak train is. If anything I would be more concerned about the hours you are getting to and from the stations. While neither station is in a really bad area, you probably don't want to be wandering around outside either station after say 10:00 PM or before 7:00 AM.

Now your luggage should be safe in the luggage racks. However don't leave electronic games, cameras, and things like that lying around if you go off to the cafe car. Also never leave your purse or any money at your seat or in your luggage, take that with you no matter what train you choose.

Now if cost is an issue, then you would probably want to opt for a Regional train as they are the cheapest. If you want a little more luxury, then go for Business Class on an Acela Express. If money isn't a concern, then either opt for First Class on the Acela or try a sleeper on the Federal.

Most comfortable would be one of the following in order from least to most. Acela Express (Business Class), The Federal (Business Class), Acela Express (First Class), The Federal (Sleeper). The last two offer meals for free. The last three qualify you as a First Class passenger and while they cost the most, they also include the most. They also allow you access to the Club Acela Lounges in both Boston & DC.

These lounges are a nice quiet refuge in the often-bustling train station. They have nice plush chairs, conference rooms, computer terminals, newspapers, TV's, free soft drinks, juices, coffee, tea and clean safe bathrooms. They also allow you to board your train before the rest of the masses.

While the Federal can offer you a bedroom, please don't be fooled it's not the Ritz. The bedrooms are not huge, but they are comfortable and it's an interesting way to travel. Although some people do find it hard to sleep on a train, while others find themselves rocked to sleep. Everyone is different.

First Class on the Acela Express train offers you meals (two if you want them, one between Boston & NY, the other between NY & DC) served to you at your seat. These are hot, decent meals and not your typical airline food. There are typically three choices on the menu. The seats are also much wider and roomier than on most trains. In fact most trains have two seats on each side of the isle. First Class has two seats on one side of the isle and one on the other side.

Again let me remind you that going First Class is the most expensive option, but it does come with some perks.
 
Many thanks Alan...I will rule out the regional trains....It seems I can't go wrong on the Federal business class but I am going to check the rates for the Acela, the sad part is they don't let you apply any discount codes to it and traveling with 3 kids... I don't want to pay a fortune .Do you know if the federal is usually very crowded or all trains usually this way?
 
One more question (I promise) is the Federal a regional train with the same specs for the business class as any other regional train?

Grateful
 
Shirley Shiver said:
One more question (I promise) is the Federal a regional train with the same specs for the business class as any other regional train?
Grateful
Click to expand...
Basically, Yes, I don't know of any significant differences.

Click Here for the page on the website for the Federal.
 
Actually, the Federal uses an ex-Metroliner Club (First Class) with extra wide seats (2 on one side of the isle, 1 on ther other), foot rests, leg rests, and the seating area is seperated by a snack bar (which will not be in use as it is only used when the car is Metroliner service) making a more comfortable atmosphere. Unlinke Regional Business Class, on the Federal you will receive a small air-line style pillow and light weight blanket. I'm not sure if Business Class will sell out or not as it depends on the day of travel, but since you boarding at the origiin (Boston) you should have know problem finding seats (44 per car).
 
The Federal Sleeper is a Viewliner that is found throughout the east coast system, and offers Standard, Deluxe, and Accesible rooms.
 
Many thanks to all, I've learned so much and will gladly post a note regarding my train travels from Boston to DC. coming up in June. There are just so many train numbers to choose from coming out of Boston it's almost crazy.
 
I know I have the same problem down here, 98, 92, 90, 97, 91, 89, it's craziness man!
 
Shirley,

It's always hard to say if a specific train will be sold out or not. If you are traveling mid-week, then you are probably safe. If you are traveling on the weekend then the odds of a sell out go up. However, if you are traveling in Business Class (BC) then you are always guarenteed a seat.

As Amfleet mentioned, there is a considerable difference between BC on the Federal and BC on a Regional or an Acela Express. On the Federal in BC you are getting much nicer wider seats. You also gain the pillow and blanket, to help you sleep better. Additionally you will recieve breakfast for free and you get the use of the First Class lounges in DC and Boston.

Now remember of course that the Federal is an overnight run, so you will be sleeping in your chair on the train. However that can save you the cost of one night in a hotel in DC.

As for discounts, Amtrak is currently offering 25% off most Regional trains, if you book on-line. Use code H315 to get this discount. Note it's not valid for travel on Friday's and Sunday's, nor is it valid on the Acela Express.

If you take the Federal, then use code H327. This will save you 30% off the regular fares.

Next if you travel on the weekend and you have a AAA card, then you can save 10% off on the Acela Express trains.

Finally all discounts are only of what Amtrak calls the railfare. Railfare is the price of a regular basic seat. If you travel in BC, First Class, or sleeper there is no discount on the accomodation charge. You still get the discount on the railfare, but you pay full price for the accomodation.
 
Amfleet said:
and the seating area is seperated by a snack bar (which will not be in use as it is only used when the car is Metroliner service) making a more comfortable atmosphere.
Click to expand...
Actually that's not true. The cafe is staffed and it serves only the Business Class passengers and the sleeper passengers. Coach passengers have to use the regular cafe car.
 
The Acela Regonal Business class car I rode in last fall had 60 seats, and was VERY comfortable and modern lookin, I just wish it had the larger Amfleet II style windows. This car also had an area in the rear of the car where a table folds down as well as 2 seats and creates a little "confrence" area, pretty neat. It also had a nice railphone, though cell phones I would say pretty much made that obsolete. The bathroom in this car was also about 200% better then the orignal Amfleet bathrooms, this one was bigger, better lit, and just more attractive overall! From what I understand though most business class accomidations are the seats located in an Amcafe and the full business class cars such as the one I rode in are quite rare. The Capstone coaches looked very nice as well on the train, but they were more cramped over all then business class. They also didnt have the railphone or "confrence" area and the fabric used in the seats also looked a bit different. But from my experience, almost any Amtrak car provides quite a nice ride, the worse riding one I have ever been on was the Horizon cars between Chicago and St. Louis, but traveling in the corridor you dont have to worry about riding in one of those boxes.
 
Actually, the Capstone Business Class cars are not rare on the NEC. All Regional trains have a seperate car for Business Class, it is the MWC (Midwest Corridor) trains where Business Class is shared with a Cafe.
 
I should also add that Concept 2000 (Metroliner) Coaches are also used for Regional Business Class. They have everything the Capstone 2001 Business Class does except the conference tables.
 
Well since I've only sampled one run of the Federal and one of the first at that, I can't promise that they will always run the way that I saw the train.

However in my case, the business class car was a former Metroliner Club Car. Now when it comes to the cafe car I'm not real sure just what they are doing. My train ran with an AmCafe car behind the baggage car. It was followed by three coaches, and then a former Metroliner Full Dinette. Pulling up the rear was the business class car and the Viewliner sleeper.

I'm not sure if both the dinette and the cafe were in use or if just one of them was used.
 
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