Choosing Roomettes on SWC

[Mr2nr]

So I wanted to book another Roomette on the SWC for my mom and wanted it beside our Family Room (15). On the phone the representative said it would be twice as much to book 14 even though it was available. So I just let it auto select 6. Why is Amtrak so money hungry? Wouldn't they want to group people together? He stated that we could ask if the room was filled and change the day of the trip and he said it would probably be all right. So now if it is occupied we will ask whoever is using it to move? Kinda seems stupid they don't have this figured out instead of just overcharging people for a nice convenience especially booking four months in advance.

 

[cpotisch]

They're not supposed to charge you for picking a different room. Call back and try with a different agent. This is an example of an Amtrak agent not knowing policy; not a case of Amtrak being (particularly) money hungry.

 

[bratkinson]

They're not supposed to charge you for picking a different room. Call back and try with a different agent. This is an example of an Amtrak agent not knowing policy; not a case of Amtrak being (particularly) money hungry.

You're 100% correct, cpotisch! 

Don't be afraid of calling back to get an agent that 'knows their stuff'.  I always request #14 when traveling on a Superliner.  Based on the keying I hear while they check its availability, I suspect they first make the reservation and take whatever room it gives, then do a 'modification' to change it to #14.

For what it's worth, I 'modified' a reservation for April when I saw the roomette price on the Crescent had dropped over $200.  I called, and they 'modified' the reservation to a different room number...#1!!!  I took the agent less than a minute to change the roomette number AND issue a voucher for the difference!

 

[niemi24s]

And precisely where can that Amtrak policy (stating that all Roomettes available for a particular booking at a particular point in time are priced at the same bucket level) be found - in writing.

As far as I'm concerned, if nobody can provide a reference to that written policy then it's nothing more than a verbal policy (at the very best) and as such is no better than a whim of the agent on the phone.  

 

[cpotisch]

And precisely where can that Amtrak policy (stating that all Roomettes available for a particular booking at a particular point in time are priced at the same bucket level) be found - in writing.

As far as I'm concerned, if nobody can provide a reference to that written policy then it's nothing more than a verbal policy (at the very best) and as such is no better than a whim of the agent on the phone.  

To which I respond, where can the "policy" that they are tied to specific rooms be found in writing? I'm working backwards from USA-RAIL agents' propensity for trying to charge nonsense fees for things (modifying reservations, checking a bag from a different station than I'm ticketed out of, etc) and the fact that plenty of agents have been able to switch rooms for free. Also remember that prices are often affected significantly by the amount of time left until departure, so how would room numbers factor into that? And consider the fact that assigning specific rooms for specific buckets would seriously reduce the ability to maximize capacity.

So can you give me a single reason why they would allocate prices to specific rooms?

 

[PVD]

More simply, the determination of pricing policies would be internal documentation, not likely to be public. A company rarely has a reason or duty to explain in a public manner how it arrives at a pricing model. The parameters by which rooms are priced are programmed into the reservation system at the direction of revenue and marketing management. Our information is based on reports from regular users as well as people who have inside knowledge. Those on the inside should not be expected to put their positions in jeopardy by providing proprietary information. 

 

[Triley]

To which I respond, where can the "policy" that they are tied to specific rooms be found in writing? I'm working backwards from USA-RAIL agents' propensity for trying to charge nonsense fees for things (modifying reservations, checking a bag from a different station than I'm ticketed out of, etc) and the fact that plenty of agents have been able to switch rooms for free. Also remember that prices are often affected significantly by the amount of time left until departure, so how would room numbers factor into that? And consider the fact that assigning specific rooms for specific buckets would seriously reduce the ability to maximize capacity.So can you give me a single reason why they would allocate prices to specific rooms?

You don't always have to be so argumentative and always be "right"... He only said that unless he has the policy in writing he doesn't expect much.

Maybe Steve can correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe there's anything official in print internally that confirms or denies this policy. So it IS in fact a verbal policy.

 

[Amtrakfflyer]

The end result is like airlines once you buy a ticket unless you want to have the airline assign you a seat it costs anywhere from $8 to $89 to choose your own coach seat on a plane (Yes there’s some free seats but fewer and fewer as time goes on).

I usually have luck requesting Amtrak  to change me to a roommette downstairs but it’s not always the case.

With the closing of Riverside res in mind (that’s today right?) it’s time Amtrak updates there online reservations system to allow you pick your own room from a map of available rooms like the airlines do. In my case at least it would save 5-10 calls a year to their 800 number. It’s not rocket science but then again what is.

 

[Acela150]

You don't always have to be so argumentative and always be "right"... He only said that unless he has the policy in writing he doesn't expect much.

Maybe Steve can correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe there's anything official in print internally that confirms or denies this policy. So it IS in fact a verbal policy.

Here is what I can tell you. And I'm going off what I remember. I don't think there's a policy that says if you want Room 14 instead of Room 4 you have to pay an upcharge. BUT.. ARROW will tell you if the pax needs to pay more. So it's really up to the computer not the agent. 

 

[Mr2nr]

So ya I called again and got it worked out had to make sure it was the right car though as they was going to put her in another car first lol.  It just boggles the mind that you pay for first class and get treated like coach lol. (Presumptuous *** emoticon goes here)

 

[cpotisch]

So ya I called again and got it worked out had to make sure it was the right car though as they was going to put her in another car first lol.  It just boggles the mind that you pay for first class and get treated like coach lol. (Presumptuous *** emoticon goes here)

What do you mean "pay for first class and get treated like coach". Sounds like you got this sorted out, so I don't quite see what you have to complain about at this point.

 

[Mr2nr]

What do you mean "pay for first class and get treated like coach". Sounds like you got this sorted out, so I don't quite see what you have to complain about at this point.

The fact that I had to call in twice to get it done. I've all ready spent 2K$ on rail service within the month you would think they would let me choose the room I want without all the hoops.

 

[cpotisch]

The fact that I had to call in twice to get it done. I've all ready spent 2K$ on rail service within the month you would think they would let me choose the room I want without all the hoops.

Again, some Amtrak agents don't know what policy is or how to do certain tasks. It's certainly annoying, but I don't think you can say that Amtrak itself is treating you particularly badly.

 

[VTTrain]

Again, some Amtrak agents don't know what policy is or how to do certain tasks. It's certainly annoying, but I don't think you can say that Amtrak itself is treating you particularly badly.

They didn’t say that they were treated badly.  They said that they weren’t treated as if they were first class. Since they had to make multiple phone calls, it’s hard to argue that.  

 

[me_little_me]

I've run into the same issue. I've asked for a supervisor and eventually get transferred to an agent that knows how to do it and that person does it without a problem.

 

[Inlander]

They're not supposed to charge you for picking a different room. Call back and try with a different agent. This is an example of an Amtrak agent not knowing policy; not a case of Amtrak being (particularly) money hungry.

Yep in the last two weeks I have dealt with 4 different passenger agents via phone from Australia just to make some bookings. One didn't know how to process a payment ,another one transferred me to Amtrak vacations( who informed me they were a separate company and couldn't process my payment and transferred me back agin) 2 delays holding on the phone for over 20 mins each time.  Another one didn't know how to make the bookings using a USA rail pass. I sent two emails that took them a week to reply to and they gave me an invalid email address to reply to. They have done everything to discourage my travel.

 

[cpotisch]

Yep in the last two weeks I have dealt with 4 different passenger agents via phone from Australia just to make some bookings. One didn't know how to process a payment ,another one transferred me to Amtrak vacations( who informed me they were a separate company and couldn't process my payment and transferred me back agin) 2 delays holding on the phone for over 20 mins each time.  Another one didn't know how to make the bookings using a USA rail pass. I sent two emails that took them a week to reply to and they gave me an invalid email address to reply to. They have done everything to discourage my travel.

Amtrak email addresses and USA-RAIL agents can indeed be a bit disastrous, but these experiences seem particularly bad. :unsure:  What was the invalid email address they gave you?

 

[Acela150]

Yep in the last two weeks I have dealt with 4 different passenger agents via phone from Australia just to make some bookings. One didn't know how to process a payment ,another one transferred me to Amtrak vacations( who informed me they were a separate company and couldn't process my payment and transferred me back agin) 2 delays holding on the phone for over 20 mins each time.  Another one didn't know how to make the bookings using a USA rail pass. I sent two emails that took them a week to reply to and they gave me an invalid email address to reply to. They have done everything to discourage my travel.

Booking the rail passes is very hard. I can almost promise you that the agent that didn't know how to do it was someone in the new outsourced call center in Florida. Same with payment processing. And honestly that's one of the easiest parts of the job. Agents are trained to call a supervisor when they need to book a USA RailPass and don't know how to do it. 

It seems that Mr. Anderson and the board have really done some damage on the reservations front. Folks in Riverside and Philly really know what they are doing and it seems that the new Florida folk are poorly trained and don't know what to do when it comes to a simple transaction. Which IMO is bad for business and would make me look elsewhere. 

 

[Inlander]

There are a few of us train fans down here and it takes a lot for us to stop trying but I was prewarned about the issues with the call centre. The real damage will be done to the goodwill of the average non train fan traveller.

 

[Inlander]

Amtrak email addresses and USA-RAIL agents can indeed be a bit disastrous, but these experiences seem particularly bad. :unsure:  What was the invalid email address they gave you?

This is the one they gave :" If you prefer, you may call our International Sales Department at215-856-7924 or 212-630-6400 during regular business hours(Monday-Friday) or you can contact our International Sales Departmentat [email protected] [4]. "

 

[cpotisch]

This is the one they gave :" If you prefer, you may call our International Sales Department at215-856-7924 or 212-630-6400 during regular business hours(Monday-Friday) or you can contact our International Sales Departmentat [email protected] [4]. "

Yep, that's what I thought, since in the past couple weeks, that email address has actually been complained about by two different Australian guest users. :huh:

 

[Cho Cho Charlie]

I've all ready spent 2K$ on rail service within the month you would think they would let me choose the room I want without all the hoops.

Is there really a flag in Amtrak's reservation system, that would alert an agent to this, and to treat the passenger better the rest of us?

 

[Acela150]

Is there really a flag in Amtrak's reservation system, that would alert an agent to this, and to treat the passenger better the rest of us?

No.

 

[bratkinson]

No.

I recall talking with an agent about two months ago and in the course of the conversation, she specifically mentioned my AGR status.  So they at least know I'm a frequent rider.

On the other hand, could there be/would there be a 'this customer is a jerk' indicator or open comment line on their screen?  I'd have to say 'maybe'.  The handful of computer programs used by customer marketing/sales reps I've encountered have significant open comment areas.  My salesman big brother showed that capability to me 20+ years ago.  He used it to 'remember' the customers family member names, hobbies, etc.  However, for someone without an AGR number, they would have no clue if the caller is a jerk or a good guy as there could be 100s of people named William Smith that call the Amtrak 800 number.

 

[Acela150]

I recall talking with an agent about two months ago and in the course of the conversation, she specifically mentioned my AGR status.  So they at least know I'm a frequent rider.

On the other hand, could there be/would there be a 'this customer is a jerk' indicator or open comment line on their screen?  I'd have to say 'maybe'.  The handful of computer programs used by customer marketing/sales reps I've encountered have significant open comment areas.  My salesman big brother showed that capability to me 20+ years ago.  He used it to 'remember' the customers family member names, hobbies, etc.  However, for someone without an AGR number, they would have no clue if the caller is a jerk or a good guy as there could be 100s of people named William Smith that call the Amtrak 800 number.

There is nothing that describes a caller. As an agent you have the ability to see their information from past reservations, complaints that were handled by Customer Relations, AGR Status, and a few other things.