Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the final decision is up to Amtrak. (For more on this subject, see
chapter 8, “When Things Go Wrong.”)
Should You Ride in Coach or in a Sleeping Car?
You'll have to make this choice before you book your train res-
ervations, and there are a number of factors to consider. With a
coach ticket, you'll ride in one of 50 or 60 seats in a standard
passenger railcar and 70 or more in a Superliner coach. If you
upgrade into a sleeping car, you'll be in small but private accom-
modations that include a bed to sleep in. There are other differ-
ences that we'll discuss in the next few pages, but the privacy and
the bed are the main ones.
For short trips, even if it's an all-day ride, traveling by coach
is a reasonable choice. For overnight journeys, the coach-versus-
sleeping-car decision becomes much more difficult. Essentially,
though, the decision comes down to cost versus comfort.
You Can Save Big Bucks in Coach Class
The biggest difference between coach and a sleeping car is cost.
Coach is cheaper—a
lot
cheaper. Depending on the time of year,
it's possible to travel coast-to-coast and back again for under
$500, as long as you ride in coach class. That same trip in a
sleeping car could cost $3,000 or more, depending on the type of
accommodations chosen.
Let's assume you're traveling during the first three weeks of
April between Los Angeles and Chicago on the Southwest Chief,
train 4. Here's how the cost of riding in a sleeping-car roomette
might compare with that same trip on the same train in coach.
Remember, this is a two-night trip.
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