Coast Starlight first time questions?

[Brent]

My wife and I have a big anniversary coming up this year and decided to do something different and take the Coast Starlight on an overnight trip up the coast. This will be our first experience taking a train overnight and only our second trip ever so we had some questions. I was able to find most of them by searching the forums but had a few I wanted to clarify a little.

Trip details – We are traveling in late March. We are flying into Los Angeles, spending the night then boarding the Coast Starlight in the morning heading to Seattle. We have booked a roomette for the trip. In Seattle, we will spend a 2 nights before flying back home.

1. The train leave Los Angeles Union Station at 10AM. Will they serve lunch on the train or should we plan to get food before boarding?
2. We are certainly hoping to enjoy the views on the trip. I noticed the Pacific Parlor Car is being removed. Will there be a lounge car that will allow us to look out the windows? It seems like I saw something that indicated there would be but I wanted to verify if this was the case.
3. How crowded should we expect the train to be in late march?
4. How close are the bed dimensions to what is listed? I’m 6’6” and the roomette details say the lower berth is 6’6”. Should I plan in advance for an uncomfortable trip or is there some wiggle room with the dimensions?
5. Ideally we would like to be on the left (coastal) side of the train. Based on what has been posted here, it sounds like we won’t know what side that will be until the day of the trip. We were also assigned a roomette (#11) on the lower level of the sleeping car and I think we would ideally like to be higher up so we are above the brush and small trees along the tracks. My question is, should we try to change rooms now and hope we get the side with the ocean views or do we wait until the day of and try to change at the station? Also, are we wrong on wanting to be on the upper level or is there some reason we should try to stay on the lower level?

Thanks in advance for taking a few minutes to assist some newbies! We appreciate any advice or suggestions you have to offer. Everything posted in the past topics has been very helpful in some of our planning so far and we are very excited!

 

[the_traveler]

I wish you an early congratulations on your anniversary! You’ll love the trip!

Lunch will be served after departure from LA. There will not be a PPC, but there will be a Sightseer Lounge. As far as the bed dimensions, they are the size. I know you’re taller than I am (6’0”), but I pretty much lay my feet flat out and have room.

I would call Amtrak now to see if you can MODIFY (not cancel and rebook) your reservation to an upper level room! If you wait until boarding, it’s possible for all the upper level rooms to be sold. If the agent tells you that the room change will result in a fare increase, ask for a supervisor. Some agents may not know how to do a change without a fare increase.

 

[KmH]

Late March is still low season.

However, the Coast Starlight has many passengers that only ride the train for part of it's route, which is why the average is that some 1200 people ride the CS daily (450,000 per yr).

But for fiscal 2017 the average load factor for the CS was 56%.

See page 7 - https://www.amtrak.com/content/dam/projects/dotcom/english/public/documents/corporate/monthlyperformancereports/2017/Amtrak-Monthly-Performance-Report-September-2017-Preliminary-Unaudited.pdf

Amtrak trains are more likely to be at or close to capacity on a daily basis during high season, say mid-May to mid-September.

So during your trip how crowded the train is is going to vary depending where on the route the train is.

The train is likely to be the least full at the beginning and end of your trip.

 

[tomfuller]

After you get settled in your roomette, someone will come to get your reserved time for lunch. Try to get a noon seating which gets you in the dining car through

the scenic part before you get to Santa Barbara about 12:30. Near Carpenteria, there is no road between the tracks and the ocean. On the other side you will see

the devastating effects of the Thomas fire and the flood/mudslide that followed.

When you are done with lunch, check the sightseer lounge which will be the next car from the dining car.

 

[Lonestar648]

Congratulations on your anniversary and taking this special trip.

Lunch will be served by reservation, the LSA will come to each room in the Sleepers to take reservations. First seating will be noon.

Definitely MODIFY, not change, your reservation for an upper room (1-10). If the agent wants to change you more ask for a supervisor or politely hang up and call back for a different agent. Many are very experienced know exactly how to handle your request, someone new may not.

The width of the room is 6'6", with the seat back down, the width is probably an inch or so shorter, so you will be taller than the available width by a couple inches. Now I usually lay on my side with my legs bent to prevent the rocking of my body. If you do this, you may be ok.

 

[Brent]

Thanks to all of you for your responses! All of this information is very helpful! We are looking forward to the trip!

 

[KmH]

Note: LSA = Lead Service Attendant. The person in charge in the dining car.

 

[Rover]

Here's a YouTube video uploaded the other day by Paul Lucas, that's good at explaining what to expect with a roomette on the Coast Starlight. Hope you enjoy it.

 

[ms garrison]

Here's a YouTube video uploaded the other day by Paul Lucas, that's good at explaining what to expect with a roomette on the Coast Starlight. Hope you enjoy it.

Brings back wonderful memories of our trip from LA to SF, Dec 2017 to celebrate our 50th anniversary. We booked a roomette even though we didn't spend the night on the train-just wanted to have access to the parlor car. LA union station was decorated for Christmas-really beautiful.

And a plus was the Uber driver who took us; he was from Morocco and gave us a lot of interesting info about his tribe (Berbers) and their history.

 

[flitcraft]

Some time back, Eva Hoffman wrote some terrific guidebooks to some of the Amtrak routes, describing the landscapes traversed and the local history of the places passed through. You can now buy e-book versions of them for smartphones, tablets, Kindles and the like--and they really add to the fascination of the journey. Check out this link: http://rtabern.com/blog/2018/04/16/...w-available-in-travel-friendly-e-book-format/

 

[Lonestar648]

We always try for a noon reservation and hope we can be seated on the ocean side for photos. Also, we take our time eating, plus always have dessert, thus have the window during some of the most scenic part. Unfortunately the Sightseer car gets filled quickly and some Coach passengers camp out in the chairs or booth for the entire trip.