amamba
Engineer
Just got back home from another very nice weekend trip down the NE corridor on the Acela. Since I know I don't have time for a LD trip anytime soon, I decided to book this trip with points. I booked an $11 ticket from PVD - BOS, and then did two 10,500 point redemptions so that I could ride first class on the acela both ways.
The 66 arrived a few minutes early in PVD, which is pretty standard, and I quickly boarded and grabbed a seat. The coach was packed with basically every seat filled. The train dwelled for about five minutes and then we were off to Boston. One of the conductors came through greeting many of the commuters from PVD by name, and mentioned that this was his last day and he was being switched over to an acela route. Many of the pax said they would miss him! This guy was so warm and friendly and seemed to really enjoy his job. While he said he was excited about being on the acela route, he said that he would miss his regulars.
We arrived in BOS right on time and I headed right over to the Club Acela. There were no other passengers in the club, and the attendant printed out my ticket for me and said that she would radio for a redcap to assist me. Joe came into the lounge about 10 minutes later, grabbed my bags, and said he would bring me out to the trainset at about 8:45 AM for our 9:15 AM departure. He was true to his word, and brought me out to the train. I was the only person in the club acela the entire time I was there and the passenger load was very light on the acela out of BOS, and was light through NYP and the entire route. I snagged a single seat and had my first cup of coffee before we even left the station. I was disappointed to see that the menu was the same one during my trip the previous week to NYC and back since I think it is the weakest of the four right now in rotation. The attendants were friendly but were not as proactive on drink refills as some other crews that I have had on the train. I had the french toast for breakfast and the caramel pork for lunch. We arrived in WAS a few minutes late, and when I stepped off the train, there were a few redcaps on the platform. Perhaps the most interesting thing about this trip was that there was a woman traveling with a service animal on the train and it was a beautiful Alaskan malamute.
Once in WAS, I decided to take the VRE to my friend's house in Crystal City. I had never been on the VRE before so thought it would be fun. I checked the monitors and saw the gate and track number for my train, but I couldn't figure out where to buy a ticket. I wandered around Union Station for a while and finally asked at the info desk. It would be nice if they would put up some signs or something indicating that the VRE kiosks are only near the VRE tracks and not where the amtrak ticket sales are. Anyway, once I figured out where the kiosks were, I bought a ticket for $6 and boarded the train. I was thrilled to see that these were new gallery cars which I hadn't been on previously. Only a handful of people were in my 4:10 PM train from Union Station, but we picked up a bunch of pax at L'Enfant and there was a giant crowd waiting to board when I detrained in Crystal City. Also no one ever checked my ticket - I am not sure if that happens later down the line?
This morning I took the 2252 back north. I arrived at about 10:20ish in WAS and rushed over to the Club Acela. The attendant printed my ticket, I took a seat, and in just a few minutes we were boarding directly from the lounge. A very nice redcap assisted me down the platform with my bags, and when we got to the car I was thrilled to see that Mr. Johnson was the lead attendant in the FC car. I have been on his train before, and he runs a tight ship with great customer service. Luckily a new menu was out as I was pretty tired of the caramel pork! This train left WAS on time at 11:00 AM, and Mr. Johnson came through the car offering coffee & juice. I thought we might get lucky and get breakfast, but sadly it was time for lunch. I decided to try the tex-mex chicken meatloaf, but it was pretty dry and flavorless. I do not recommend this dish. Luckily the rest of the choices on that menu are pretty good, so I opted for the arugula salad out of NYP. Mr. Johnson provided exceptional service, and when we detrained in PVD, Mr. Johnson carried my bags off the train for me.
I am getting very spoiled with my acela FC trips. It was so much more pleasant than flying.
The 66 arrived a few minutes early in PVD, which is pretty standard, and I quickly boarded and grabbed a seat. The coach was packed with basically every seat filled. The train dwelled for about five minutes and then we were off to Boston. One of the conductors came through greeting many of the commuters from PVD by name, and mentioned that this was his last day and he was being switched over to an acela route. Many of the pax said they would miss him! This guy was so warm and friendly and seemed to really enjoy his job. While he said he was excited about being on the acela route, he said that he would miss his regulars.
We arrived in BOS right on time and I headed right over to the Club Acela. There were no other passengers in the club, and the attendant printed out my ticket for me and said that she would radio for a redcap to assist me. Joe came into the lounge about 10 minutes later, grabbed my bags, and said he would bring me out to the trainset at about 8:45 AM for our 9:15 AM departure. He was true to his word, and brought me out to the train. I was the only person in the club acela the entire time I was there and the passenger load was very light on the acela out of BOS, and was light through NYP and the entire route. I snagged a single seat and had my first cup of coffee before we even left the station. I was disappointed to see that the menu was the same one during my trip the previous week to NYC and back since I think it is the weakest of the four right now in rotation. The attendants were friendly but were not as proactive on drink refills as some other crews that I have had on the train. I had the french toast for breakfast and the caramel pork for lunch. We arrived in WAS a few minutes late, and when I stepped off the train, there were a few redcaps on the platform. Perhaps the most interesting thing about this trip was that there was a woman traveling with a service animal on the train and it was a beautiful Alaskan malamute.
Once in WAS, I decided to take the VRE to my friend's house in Crystal City. I had never been on the VRE before so thought it would be fun. I checked the monitors and saw the gate and track number for my train, but I couldn't figure out where to buy a ticket. I wandered around Union Station for a while and finally asked at the info desk. It would be nice if they would put up some signs or something indicating that the VRE kiosks are only near the VRE tracks and not where the amtrak ticket sales are. Anyway, once I figured out where the kiosks were, I bought a ticket for $6 and boarded the train. I was thrilled to see that these were new gallery cars which I hadn't been on previously. Only a handful of people were in my 4:10 PM train from Union Station, but we picked up a bunch of pax at L'Enfant and there was a giant crowd waiting to board when I detrained in Crystal City. Also no one ever checked my ticket - I am not sure if that happens later down the line?
This morning I took the 2252 back north. I arrived at about 10:20ish in WAS and rushed over to the Club Acela. The attendant printed my ticket, I took a seat, and in just a few minutes we were boarding directly from the lounge. A very nice redcap assisted me down the platform with my bags, and when we got to the car I was thrilled to see that Mr. Johnson was the lead attendant in the FC car. I have been on his train before, and he runs a tight ship with great customer service. Luckily a new menu was out as I was pretty tired of the caramel pork! This train left WAS on time at 11:00 AM, and Mr. Johnson came through the car offering coffee & juice. I thought we might get lucky and get breakfast, but sadly it was time for lunch. I decided to try the tex-mex chicken meatloaf, but it was pretty dry and flavorless. I do not recommend this dish. Luckily the rest of the choices on that menu are pretty good, so I opted for the arugula salad out of NYP. Mr. Johnson provided exceptional service, and when we detrained in PVD, Mr. Johnson carried my bags off the train for me.
I am getting very spoiled with my acela FC trips. It was so much more pleasant than flying.
Still think the Acela Menus and Drinks are a better choice than the Cafes on other Trains, but at a dear Price when the Regionals are Low Bucket! As to the VRE ticket thing: there is a thread on trainorders.com that mentions that they are cracking down on fare jumpers, one woman was found to have an unvalidated return ticket and was fined $200!!! I havent ridden on VRE, I used to ride the Metro and Amtrak when I lived in the WAS area, but supposedly there are Large Clear signs on the Platforms reminding everyone to Validate their tickets Before they board, and that Inspectors, both Uniformed and Undercover, Will be checking! :excl:
