# How Hot is a Roomette?



## jeffgbailey (Apr 19, 2021)

Taking my first trip with my wife in a roomette from Atlanta to Philadelphia in late June. Are the rooms reasonably cool or should I expect to be hot?


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## SarahZ (Apr 19, 2021)

It really just depends. I've always found them to be cool in the summer, if not bordering on cold (and I say that as a Michigander). Some people need a light jacket or cardigan if they are sensitive to cold.

I did have one trip where the windows faced south most of the day, so the rooms on that side warmed up like a greenhouse. The attendant couldn't turn the air down because those on the north side of the car would have frozen. He told us we could sit in the empty rooms on the north side, as long as we kept them nice and clean.


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## bratkinson (Apr 19, 2021)

Being that you'll be riding the Crescent, which is Viewliner equipped, being too hot or too cold won't be a problem. Heating/cooling controls in each roomette are far better than those on Superliners out west (and the Capitol Ltd)

If it gets too hot/cold, simply adjust the thermostat as desired. Opening the sliding vents along the bottom of the window and turning up the two small fans above and below the thermostat will speed the change in room temperature.


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## Asher (Apr 19, 2021)

Be prepared for cool. Can't do much about hot.


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## Asher (Apr 19, 2021)

bratkinson said:


> Being that you'll be riding the Crescent, which is Viewliner equipped, being too hot or too cold won't be a problem. Heating/cooling controls in each roomette are far better than those on Superliners out west (and the Capitol Ltd)
> 
> If it gets too hot/cold, simply adjust the thermostat as desired. Opening the sliding vents along the bottom of the window and turning up the two small fans above and below the thermostat will speed the change in room temperature.


Just my experience. I almost froze in the top bunk of a viewliner due to a faulty thermostat and being to dumb to close the curtains in the winter.


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## flitcraft (Apr 19, 2021)

Climate control is not Amtrak equipment's strong suit, at least not today, if it ever was. I remember a SCA with a sense of humor who, in giving us the 'tour' of the bedroom, referred to the 'placebo temperature controls.'

I wonder how the Viewliner II cars are in that regard. I would hope they'd be better, though it may be a long while before I find out for myself.


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## Devil's Advocate (Apr 19, 2021)

SarahZ said:


> The attendant couldn't turn the air down because those on the north side of the car would have frozen.


Why not turn down the heat and give out extra blankets? Telling hot folks they can use two rooms only works when there are extra rooms. It's almost like Amtrak has no idea how temperature works or that mammals are hotblooded.



anumberone said:


> Be prepared for cool. Can't do much about hot.


In the summer you can bundle up but in the Winter the HVAC is stuck on Beach as you roll through the Rockies.


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## SarahZ (Apr 19, 2021)

Devil's Advocate said:


> Why not turn down the heat and give out extra blankets? Telling hot folks they can use two rooms only works when there are extra rooms. It's almost like Amtrak has no idea how temperature works or that mammals are hotblooded.



The air was on, not the heat. He’d already had complaints, despite offering blankets. 

The car was only 25% full, if that, so thankfully it was pretty easy to move to the other side for the day.


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## Devil's Advocate (Apr 19, 2021)

I guess the solution for folks who fear a hotbox (on Superliners) is to book opposite rooms since staff seem to favor the complaints of cadavers over functioning circulatory systems and you cannot depend on every train to be mostly empty.


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## caravanman (Apr 19, 2021)

My own impression is that I often find the air con makes the trains too cool for my tastes. There are controls in the roomette, but they don't always work exactly as expected. Folk sometimes stuff the air vents with paper towels to warm up.
I don't think you should worry too much about being hot, but do report back to us!


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## Asher (Apr 19, 2021)

Devil's Advocate said:


> Why not turn down the heat and give out extra blankets? Telling hot folks they can use two rooms only works when there are extra rooms. It's almost like Amtrak has no idea how temperature works or that mammals are hotblooded.
> 
> 
> In the summer you can bundle up but in the Winter the HVAC is stuck on Beach as you roll through the Rockies.


 Huh?


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## Ryan (Apr 19, 2021)

Which part, specifically, is confusing?

If you're cold, you can easily add a layer. If you're hot, your options are pretty much limited.

Despite that, Amtrak seems to err somewhere between "a little warm" and "OMFG I'm on the surface of the Sun", particularly in wintertime when they get a little overeager with the application of the heat.


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## Devil's Advocate (Apr 19, 2021)

anumberone said:


> Huh?


On Amtrak Superliners the interior temperature tends to be rather cold in the summer. In these cases I can easily bundle up or turn on the heater, which is the only functional part of the room controls in my experience. In the winter Amtrak tends to vary from warm to hot but there is no practical method for working around an overheated room and I have been miserable more than once because the SCA refused to make adjustments. That being said I defer to folks more familiar with Viewliners for advice with the Eastern fleet (applicable to the OP).


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## Dustyroad (Apr 25, 2021)

Hi. I'm not trying to steal the main subject of this post. But has anyone had experience with the temperature of a roomette on the Southwest Chief in Sept? I am hoping the knobs for controlling the temp will be working in my roomette if it gets to warm for me.
Thanks for any replies.


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## tx_philly_traveler (Apr 25, 2021)

anumberone said:


> Just my experience. I almost froze in the top bunk of a viewliner due to a faulty thermostat and being to dumb to close the curtains in the winter.



I rode the Cardinal at the depth of arctic tundra temps this past January (and doing it against next week)... Viewliners are really good with controlling temps. For nice and toasty I found that lowering the top bunk and sitting beneath it and opening the vents with the thermostat up went to super nice and toasty mighty quick. Also can get to frozen the same way as you did (go up top near the vent). From what I could tell, the cars have two or three AC units pumping to a corridor duct that then services the rooms and the bathrooms then goes out. In winter these are off and just venting to the outside and the heat is equivalent to baseboard heating.

The Superliners can sometimes be a bit more challenging. I don't particularly like frozen but some do, and on my last summer ride on the Texas Eagle in the height of summer I had the AC on full but the inside temp was probably 76 or so; not to where I would notice.


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## Dustyroad (Apr 25, 2021)

The Superliners can sometimes be a bit more challenging. I don't particularly like frozen but some do, and on my last summer ride on the Texas Eagle in the height of summer I had the AC on full but the inside temp was probably 76 or so; not to where I would notice. 

That info is very helpful for me. Thanks for posting in the previous reply.


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## Sauve850 (Apr 25, 2021)

bratkinson said:


> Being that you'll be riding the Crescent, which is Viewliner equipped, being too hot or too cold won't be a problem. Heating/cooling controls in each roomette are far better than those on Superliners out west (and the Capitol Ltd)
> 
> If it gets too hot/cold, simply adjust the thermostat as desired. Opening the sliding vents along the bottom of the window and turning up the two small fans above and below the thermostat will speed the change in room temperature.


Ive ridden Viewliner 1 sleepers (bedrooms and roomettes) at least 30+ times over many years. 3/4 of the trips the temps have been fine. Other times hot or cold depending on the season. Never had much luck at all with a functioning thermostat when needed. I always travel any Amtrak train prepared for hot, normal or cold temps.


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