Most luxurious Amtrak train ever?

[MARC Rider]

Even the regular Heritage fleet equipped regular Amtrak trains of the 1980s seem luxurious compared to today, such as the Montrealer and Broadway Limited. Certainly better food although the traditional dining on the western trains have brought that back.

I don't know. I remember some of the heritage coaches. Some of them were comfortable, but very worn out. Some were not so comfortable, but still worn out. The only heritage sleeper I ever rode was a slumbercoach, which had an OK ride, but wasn't that comfortable, and you wouldn't call it luxurious. The Amfleet2 and Superliner coaches are much nicer by comparison. The food in the old dining cars may have been "cooked to order," but while it was better than flex dinning, I wouldn't say it was some sort of great transcendental gourmet experience.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

How were the sleepers back then ?

The "Heritage Sleepers" were the old traditional roomettes and bedrooms. The original roomette had room for only 1 passenger. It was a seat by a window facing the toilet with a sink in the corner. At night, the bed came down from the wall and covered the toilet. The positive is the bed was an actual bed with a mattress.

I personally prefer the Amtrak Roomette design as it feels less claustrophobic to me. While I wouldn't call either "luxurious" a modern superliner or viewliner II roomette is certainly more luxurious than the traditional heritage roomette.

The Heritage Bedrooms were about the same as the Amtrak bedrooms.

 

[Joe from PA]

It's all relative. To me, the biggest "luxury" will be not having to wear a mask...anywhere.

 

[TheCrescent]

How were the sleepers back then ?

I took Heritage sleepers in the 1970s on the Southern Crescent (very few memories, and that wasn't Amtrak) and on the Crescent in the 1990s.

They were old and seemed old. I think that they had a slot where you could put your shoes to be shined, although I doubt that Amtrak actually offered that service.

Viewliners are better.

 

[Maglev]

How were the sleepers back then ?

Amtrak's Heritage sleepers were very worn and stained. As can be seen in the diagram below, there were two different types of Bedroom--with two chairs or a long couch. I don't know about anyone else, but I much preferred the two-chair layout, because you could sit and look at your partner without as much neck-twisting. The rooms are shaped differently, and the two-chair design felt more spacious. Also, the Bedrooms did not have a shower.


https://www.californiazephyr.org/exhibits/equipment/coaches/10-6/

I think that they had a slot where you could put your shoes to be shined, although I doubt that Amtrak actually offered that service.

This compartment was incorporated into the Superliner I's, at least the Bedrooms. There is a small door on the floor of the closet that opens to the corridor, still visible today but sealed shut.

 

[Northwestern]

I would vote for the coast starlight. It was the only train with a first class lounge car. It was called the Pacific Parlor car. There was a short time when there were extra amenities too. I do not remember I'm the details on those.

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I find it hard to put the words "luxurious" and "Amtrak train" in the same sentence. I do agree that the Coast Starlight with the Pacific Parlor car might have been the best overall experience. I never took the Hoosier State but I would have liked to.

The Pacific Parlor car was fun and very popular. I took it several times, and enjoyed the wine and cheese plate as the great scenery rolled by. The only complaint, and I'm not a wine snob, but the wine came from WA and OR vineyards. The only brand I liked was "Columbia Crest". I think some Amtrak trains (possibly the Zephyr and others) serve Kendall Jackson wine, which is fairly inexpensive but good and from Calif (I'm prejudiced). I rode a few private passenger trains before 1971. The quality of service was really going downhill, but I remember the food aboard was still excellent. I can't get over the loss of the CS Parlor Car. It really decreased the onboard experience and I can't buy Amtrak's reason for its discontinuance. I thought, at least at one time, the westbound Empire Builder served champagne but I'm not sure.

Richard

 

[crescent-zephyr]

“I thought, at least at one time, the westbound Empire Builder served champagne but I'm not sure.”

They did. They also had a free wine tasting on 1 day of the trip. I remember it being very fun (and I won a bottle of wine at the trivia contest!).

The Starlight, Empire Builder, and Capitol were also the 3 trains that had the “real” China and glassware. (Yes, I know it’s not technically China.)

 

[omaha]

A good way to see what sleepers were like is to visit Omaha's Durham Museum in the former Union Station. They have three passenger cars on display inside the museum that you can walk through---a 1924 Pullman sleeper with an observation lounge, a 1949 Southern Pacific lounge car, and a 1956 Union Pacific sleeper with sections, bedrooms and roomettes.

 

[tgstubbs1]

It looks like the Silver Meteor had luxuries few trains have. Color television, movies, and BINGO!

 

[jiml]

A good way to see what sleepers were like is to visit Omaha's Durham Museum in the former Union Station. They have three passenger cars on display inside the museum that you can walk through---a 1924 Pullman sleeper with an observation lounge, a 1949 Southern Pacific lounge car, and a 1956 Union Pacific sleeper with sections, bedrooms and roomettes.

Adding to roadtrip "bucket list" - thanks!

 

[Palmland]

A good way to see what sleepers were like is to visit Omaha's Durham Museum in the former Union Station. They have three passenger cars on display inside the museum that you can walk through---a 1924 Pullman sleeper with an observation lounge, a 1949 Southern Pacific lounge car, and a 1956 Union Pacific sleeper with sections, bedrooms and roomettes.

Here are a few photos of the lounge car, a heritage bedroom and roomette. Note the cutaway mattress so you could stand up in a roomette with the door closed. Handy if you need to raise the bed to use the toilet. With the lid down it was a handy footrest as it was designed for only one passenger. To keep this sort of on topic, the use of the heritage sleepers until mid 90's was decidedly more luxurious than Viewliner roomettes if only for the thicker mattress.

 

[jruff001]

Even the regular Heritage fleet equipped regular Amtrak trains of the 1980s seem luxurious compared to today, such as the Montrealer and Broadway Limited. Certainly better food although the traditional dining on the western trains have brought that back.

The Heritage sleepers were getting nasty. (Ever look under a roommette mattress on one of those and see the decades of nastiness down in the springs? OTOH at least they HAD springs!) Viewliners are much nicer IMO.

Heritage vs Amfleet II coaches are pretty much a toss up.

The layout of the Heritage lounge cars was nicer than today's lounge cars though.

 

[TheCrescent]

Amfleet lounge cars are not upscale and I get depressed when I see how nice pre-Amtrak lounges were. Even a stylish design helps a lot.

 

[Maglev]

I think the Superliner Sightseer Lounge cars are fairly luxurious and have great windows. In the olden days, the upstairs bar made it easier to imbibe without navigating the passage to the dungeon between drinks, and of course a better menu (or just stocking what is on the menu) is nice.

What kind of special amenities were on Amtrak's Auto Train in the Heritage era?

 

[tgstubbs1]

Sounds like a nice trip.

 

[jpakala]

When we took the Super Chief in 1964 we at one meal were seated in the Turquoise Room because the dining car was full. We had it to ourselves and all the food & service on that trip was impeccable. Santa Fe's ads in magazines featured the turquoise & silver inset in the wall above the table for two in that end of the Room.

 

[Seaboard92]

As would plenty of pre-Amtrak railroads. From food freshly cooked onboard, white linen tablecloths and real silverware on the Southern Crescent…to no dining car and Flexible Dining today? And didn’t the Super Chief even have a private dining room before Amtrak?

They weren't the only train on that market that offered private dining. The City of Los Angeles also had the "Gold Room" under the dome in the dome diners.

To comment on the heritage versus Viewliner Roomettes as someone who owns a Heritage Fleet car the size of the roomette is actually 100 percent the same. The only difference is the bed construction because the bed falls down from the wall as a Murphy Bed. Whereas the Viewliners utilize two seats that fold to make a bed that you lay that flimsy mattress on. Then the top bunk drops down a track from the roof.

In theory you could do that in a heritage roomette with some modifications to the seating.

 

[cassie225]

Real lamps in the lounge cars. Wow

 

[Burns651]

Does the Hoosier State count as run by Amtrak? It was completely swell on every level. The business class service was impeccable, the meals were first class, and there was an observation/diner car where you could sit for the entire journey. Once I went down after my meal to sit in the seats reserved for business PAX and it was completely empty. When some coach folks came in, they removed them. I mean, if you are going to run "first class" type services, and charge a premium for it, then this is the way it should be done (Amtrak are you listening?). Give the people who pay some value and exclusivity.

The fancy aspects of the train were provided by Iowa Pacific. Unfortunately that lasted only 19 months.

 

[Burns651]

As would plenty of pre-Amtrak railroads. From food freshly cooked onboard, white linen tablecloths and real silverware on the Southern Crescent…to no dining car and Flexible Dining today? And didn’t the Super Chief even have a private dining room before Amtrak?

They might have been horrified, but not enough to be willing to keep losing buckets of money by running the trains themselves.

 

[tgstubbs1]

When we took the Super Chief in 1964 we at one meal were seated in the Turquoise Room because the dining car was full. We had it to ourselves and all the food & service on that trip was impeccable. Santa Fe's ads in magazines featured the turquoise & silver inset in the wall above the table for two in that end of the Room.

A lot different than current dining.

 

[tgstubbs1]

From food freshly cooked onboard, white linen tablecloths and real silverware on the Southern Crescent

This is probably impossible today.

 

[Seaboard92]

This is probably impossible today.

View attachment 27205

His name was Louis Price and unfortunately he died while making those breakfast muffins on board the Southern Crescent at Shipman, VA.

Here is a link to a story about him. Apparently President Carter wanted him to come cook in the White House for him but he wouldn't go.

https://www.nytimes.com/1978/12/26/archives/he-even-brought-his-own-pots-and-pans.html

 

[SP&S]

Oh to be on the Coast Starlight, in the Pacific Parlour Car, the friendly car attendant has just sold me a bourbon rocks, and I'm enjoying it sitting in one of the swivel chairs watching the world go by. Even though the car was a little tattered I loved it. This was luxury, Amtrak style.

 

[MARC Rider]

Back around 1975 or so, I was booked on the Champion from Baltimore to New York in coach. Same price as an unreserved seat on the northeast regional - equivalent train that I had planned on riding. But what I got was a long-distance coach with an incredible amount of legroom and that reclined to almost lie-flat. I would say it was about the most luxurious coach ride I've ever had, and it certainly beat the coaches I rode on the Broadway Limited in 1973.