Legacy Club: New BC Lounge in CHI?

[Ryan]

A poster in the "America's Amtrak" Facebook group posted a few pictures from a VIP reception at a "Legacy Club", saying that it was a new lounge for Business Class passengers in CHI.

It makes sense, since the Met lounge is so small - anyone have any details?

 

[Bob Dylan]

That looks like the "temporary" location in the Great Hall for the Metro Lounge from several Years ago while the current lounge was being rehabbed??

Hopefully the rehab plans for Union Station will get going in this Millennium, and will include a New Metro Lounge when the Amtrak ticket Counters are relocated as the original plan called for!

 

[Big Iron]

I could not find much on the internet about it. There was a mention in a Chicago Amtrak Train day flyer to gather at the "New Legacy Club" for boarding an excursion train they were running. The Amtrak website for CUS still had Metropolitan Lounge information.

 

[MrFSS]

A friend (AU member rtabern) is actually in the club right now for Train Day activities. He quickly sent me this picture.



He says they have converted (still working on it) a gallery space off the Great Hall to be this new area. And, if I understand him correctly, ANYONE will be able to use it and it will cost $20.00 per person to enter. It will evidently have a bar, too. Anyone at CUS for Train Day that can check further?

 

[Big Iron]

I'm liking where this is going. $20.00 for some refuge and, I assume, a cash bar should help a revenue hungry Amtrak.

 

[tp49]

Is it being run by Amtrak or is it being run by a private operator (the thought more like for example a Delta Club vs. an Amex lounge)?

 

[willem]

I was in Union Station Chicago today and asked about it. The Train Day volunteer told me that it is a business class lounge (except today, when it was a children's playroom).

It is in the southwest corner of the Great Hall (unless my directions got screwed up in the station). Just inside the Legacy Club, on the left (south), there is a stairway down. At the back (west) wall on the south side of the Club, there is a stairway going up. I saw no indication that anyone other than Amtrak runs the Club, but I wasn't looking for one.

I expect to be in Union Station tomorrow, but with less free time. Anything else I should try to learn?

 

[Tennessee Traveler]

I was in Chicago April 29 in business class and used the Metropolitan Lounge. There was no mention of a Legacy Club lounge.

 

[CHamilton]

leg·a·cy
ˈleɡəsē/
noun

1. an amount of money or property left to someone in a will.

adjective
COMPUTING

1. denoting software or hardware that has been superseded but is difficult to replace because of its wide use.

 

[SarahZ]

I will happily pay $20, considering BC back to Michigan is almost always 1) sold out or 2) expensive.

 

[Big Iron]

I was in Union Station Chicago today and asked about it. The Train Day volunteer told me that it is a business class lounge (except today, when it was a children's playroom).

It is in the southwest corner of the Great Hall (unless my directions got screwed up in the station). Just inside the Legacy Club, on the left (south), there is a stairway down. At the back (west) wall on the south side of the Club, there is a stairway going up. I saw no indication that anyone other than Amtrak runs the Club, but I wasn't looking for one.

I expect to be in Union Station tomorrow, but with less free time. Anything else I should try to learn?

Will BC passengers get to pre-board similar to sleeper passengers or will they just go to the coach boarding area when its time to board?

 

[Bob Dylan]

I will happily pay $20, considering BC back to Michigan is almost always 1) sold out or 2) expensive.

Good idea Sarah since the boarding lounges @_Union Station are a zoo!
So the $20 is for Coach pax and the General Public without tickets, while Biz Class pax get in Free right,?

And are Sleeping Car pax, United VIPs and Select + and SE allowed to use it for Free also??

 

[J-1 3235]

My understanding from briefly talking with one of the leaders of the Hard Hat tour I enjoyed yesterday was that this lounge will have an annual access fee (amount to join not specified), or a day pass for $20.

Another member of the tour group asked if it will be run by Amtrak, or an outside concern, and at the moment, an answer could not be provided.

It is not a BC or Metropolitan-style lounge, as anyone may pay to enter-Metra commuters or Amtrak passengers. At this time, I would not expect pre-boarding, etc.

IIRC, it will be open until early in June, with free access, though as of last night, the furniture had been moved back into place, but I saw no sign of the Bar.

I'll be in CUS again fairly soon, I'll report back with any news.

Mike

 

[Anderson]

Huh...interesting (and canny) concept. I can actually see a "Members' Club" of sorts (with a daily access option) being a real hit at a few other stations (WAS, PHL, NYP, and BOS come to mind). I know I'd happily pay for access depending on the amenities available...it would just be a matter of price (and operating hours, of course...if the hours in NYP were extended enough to make connections to/from the Adirondack comfortable? Sold!).

 

[Bob Dylan]

Thanks for the info Mike, it sure sounds like a privately run club, so Amtrak must be renting out the space!

Guess Amtrak regulars in Sleepers, S+, SE, Biz Class and United VIPs like jis will continue to use the Metro Lounge?!!

 

[jis]

United Club membership does not give access to Metro Lounge. It gives access only to Club Acela, that's it.

 

[willem]

A leader on a hard hat tour today said the lounge will not be run by Amtrak.

 

[tp49]

A leader on a hard hat tour today said the lounge will not be run by Amtrak.

Thanks, this answers the question I asked upthread. From what was said earlier I thought this could be the case but wasn't sure.

 

[Tennessee Traveler]

I was in Union Station Chicago today and asked about it. The Train Day volunteer told me that it is a business class lounge (except today, when it was a children's playroom).

It is in the southwest corner of the Great Hall (unless my directions got screwed up in the station). Just inside the Legacy Club, on the left (south), there is a stairway down. At the back (west) wall on the south side of the Club, there is a stairway going up. I saw no indication that anyone other than Amtrak runs the Club, but I wasn't looking for one.

I expect to be in Union Station tomorrow, but with less free time. Anything else I should try to learn?

Will BC passengers get to pre-board similar to sleeper passengers or will they just go to the coach boarding area when its time to board?

William, each time I have traveled business class (twice) we were pre-boarded just like the sleeper passengers. First time we actually did the sleeper passengers "kindergarten" walk from the back of the Metropolitan lounge. Last week we met at the front of the Metropolitan Lounge and were escorted through the Amtrak waiting rooms but pre-boarded ahead of the coach passengers.

I have no knowledge of the "Legacy Lounge" serving as a lounge for sleeping car and business class lounge. For now and foreseeable future, only the METROPOLITAN LOUNGE serves Amtrak "first class" passengers.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Chicago's Metropolitan Lounge is busy, ugly, and worn. The goofy CGA track monitors look ancient, the staff are often rude, and the basement location makes it feel down right claustrophobic. The benefits the Metro Lounge provides are useful only because the rest of the station is such an unmitigated mess. That being said the look and feel of this new Legacy Lounge has the potential to lift some money out of my pocket if they can manage to keep it from becoming just another tacky Metropolitan Basement Closet. If they can maintain an enjoyable experience that is expensive enough to keep the chairs free and atmosphere somewhat exclusive then I'd be genuinely interested.

 

[Manny T]

I visited the brand new Legacy Club in CUS today. It is up and running but, at the same time, seems like a work in progress.

Entrance to the beautiful, spacious facility is off the SW corner of the Great Hall.

Decor-wise, it is superb. First class all the way. High ceiling, spanking new furniture, plenty of outlets and lots of space.

There were coffee and tea and ordinary snacks available. No evidence of a bar (yet).

As far as I can gather the following is true:

1. Admission is $10 pp/per use.

2. The entrance fee applies equally to Sleeping Car Passengers and Select and Select Plus Members.

3. It is open to all Amtrak and Metra (commuter) passengers.

4. There is priority boarding (pre-boarding) from the lounge.

5. The Metropolitan Lounge remains in service for Sleeping Car Passengers and others entitled to use it for free.

6. I didn't notice a room for checking luggage (but I forgot to look).

So here's the rub: Sleeping car ("First Class") passengers--whose tickets can be quite expensive, as we all know--are served in the shabby bunker-like Metropolitan Lounge, while anyone, including a Metra passenger with a $5.25 ticket, can use the Legacy Club for $10. Of course a sleeping car passenger can also use the Legacy Club for $10--is this right?

Here are two alternatives for Amtrak to ponder:

1. Allow sleeping car passengers to use the Legacy Club for free.

2. Switch things: make the Legacy Club the new "First Class" lounge for sleeping car passengers and Select members, and allow the general public to use the Metropolitan Lounge for a fee ($10 or maybe 25 cents).

 

[willem]

The Legacy Club, as I understand it, is not run by Amtrak.

 

[Tennessee Traveler]

And I for one, do not consider the current Metropolitan Lounge dirty and dungeony and, in my experience, the lounge hosts and other Amtrak employees very pleasant. I don't need a Legacy Club to make me feel "exclusive".

 

[George K]

And I for one, do not consider the current Metropolitan Lounge dirty and dungeony and, in my experience, the lounge hosts and other Amtrak employees very pleasant. I don't need a Legacy Club to make me feel "exclusive".

Yes.

I don't have a need to feel "exclusive", but I like a comfortable chair in some nice surroundings. The availability of snacks is another thing that I enjoy. The Met Lounge is heads and shoulder above the waiting room for the coach pax.

My bride and I took Metra downtown on Tuesday AM, and we walked past the coach lounge which I pointed out to her. She was amazed, having been in the Met Lounge last March.

Then, we walked past the Legacy Club, and she asked me to explain it. I told her it was a place where you could pay $10 to board early, have a snack, and...what else?

 

[jebr]

Does it have more square footage than the Metropolitan Lounge, or does it just feel roomier because of the high ceiling mixed with less people there?