Roomettes - upper bed down, lower still stowed?

[mcott]

Hi all,

For my upcoming trip, I'm going solo in a roomette (CONO, then Crescent). Can they set the rooms so the upper bed is out, and the lower is stowed so that the chairs are still usable? Not concerned about bed size, I can sleep anywhere. Just wondering about slamming my head if I get up from a chair quickly.

TY

 

[AmtrakBlue]

CONO is tight (headroom) when standing, but I've heard the viewliners(Crescent) have plenty of room.

 

[SarahZ]

Yes, they can do this for you. It makes getting dressed much easier, and you can use the top bunk for storage when you aren't sleeping.

 

[AG1]

I am 6'2" and have no problem doing what you propose. The Viewliner upper bunk can be pushed up and down and locked in several heights while horizontal. The Superliner bunk is side hinged from the outside wall and less head friendly. It is either folded up or flat.

 

[Big Iron]

Hi all,

For my upcoming trip, I'm going solo in a roomette (CONO, then Crescent). Can they set the rooms so the upper bed is out, and the lower is stowed so that the chairs are still usable? Not concerned about bed size, I can sleep anywhere. Just wondering about slamming my head if I get up from a chair quickly.

TY

On the CONO you will not have much headroom in the roomette with the top bunk down. I'm 6'2" and while there is some headroom, if you get up quickly you will need a neck brace afterwards. As stated in another post, there is more headroom in viewliner roomette on the Crescent. For many that will reply here, myself included, the preferred way to use the viewliner roomette is to sleep in the top bunk and leave the chairs out and available. The viewliners are much roomier headspace wise.

 

[OlympianHiawatha]

On the Viewliner, all you need to do is have the SCA leave the Upper made up and as mentioned earlier you can easily raise it out of the way; just turn the handle on the bottom of the bed platform and push up on the platform until it locks into the next up position. That will give plenty of headroom.

 

[jebr]

Note that even on the Crescent/Viewliners, if the bed is fully down and you stand up fast, you may find yourself regretting that decision.

(I hit my head on a fully-down Viewliner bunk once when someone was taking a nap on the upper bunk and I was lounging on the lower bunk. Oww...)

 

[OlympianHiawatha]

When traveling solo in a Viewliner I always sleep in the Upper and leave the Lower configured for Daytime. Then I tease folks about having a 2 story Suite on Amtrak, with my Bedroom and storage attic upstairs and my Lounge and Restroom downstairs.

 

[amamba]

This is where being 5'0" has its advantages.

 

[Bob Dylan]

Totally agree about the top bunk on the Viewliners (Crescent) but the "coffin" (top bunk)on the Superliners is best used for storage and people you dislike! Sleep in the bottom on the CONO leg, you'll be glad if you do!

 

[mcott]

Totally agree about the top bunk on the Viewliners (Crescent) but the "coffin" (top bunk)on the Superliners is best used for storage and people you dislike! Sleep in the bottom on the CONO leg, you'll be glad if you do!

First off, thanks for all the replies, good info. As to the "coffin" effect, try a roomette on the Ocean from Montreal to Halifax - the bed slides out from the wall, and your legs are tucked under a bulkhead while sleeping. Interesting.

 

[SarahZ]

Totally agree about the top bunk on the Viewliners (Crescent) but the "coffin" (top bunk)on the Superliners is best used for storage and people you dislike! Sleep in the bottom on the CONO leg, you'll be glad if you do!

First off, thanks for all the replies, good info. As to the "coffin" effect, try a roomette on the Ocean from Montreal to Halifax - the bed slides out from the wall, and your legs are tucked under a bulkhead while sleeping. Interesting.

That's just a big pile of "nope". I can't sleep in the Superliner or Viewliner upper bunk, so there's no way I could handle that one.

 

[FormerOBS]

When the room is set up for daytime service, the mattress for the lower berth is stored in the closed upper. If the lower is set up for daytime use while the upper is set up for nighttime use, then the SCA has to find some place to put the lower mattress. If the car is entirely occupied/reserved, this can be a problem, especially if more than one passenger wants to do it this way. At times, I have removed the lower mattress and stored it in my own crew room, or placed it in the lower level luggage storage space on a Superliner; but there really isn't much extra space available. As always, talk it over with your SCA to arrive at a mutually workable solution.

Tom

 

[SarahZ]

When the room is set up for daytime service, the mattress for the lower berth is stored in the closed upper. If the lower is set up for daytime use while the upper is set up for nighttime use, then the SCA has to find some place to put the lower mattress. If the car is entirely occupied/reserved, this can be a problem, especially if more than one passenger wants to do it this way. At times, I have removed the lower mattress and stored it in my own crew room, or placed it in the lower level luggage storage space on a Superliner; but there really isn't much extra space available. As always, talk it over with your SCA to arrive at a mutually workable solution.

Tom

Could the passenger use the lower mattress on the top bunk (for extra padding), or is that forbidden?

 

[SP&S]

When the room is set up for daytime service, the mattress for the lower berth is stored in the closed upper. If the lower is set up for daytime use while the upper is set up for nighttime use, then the SCA has to find some place to put the lower mattress. If the car is entirely occupied/reserved, this can be a problem, especially if more than one passenger wants to do it this way. At times, I have removed the lower mattress and stored it in my own crew room, or placed it in the lower level luggage storage space on a Superliner; but there really isn't much extra space available. As always, talk it over with your SCA to arrive at a mutually workable solution.

Tom

Could the passenger use the lower mattress on the top bunk (for extra padding), or is that forbidden?

I think that would be a problem as the upper bunk is narrower than the lower. And is it just me or does the upper bunk redefine what a firm bed is?

 

[AmtrakBlue]

When the room is set up for daytime service, the mattress for the lower berth is stored in the closed upper. If the lower is set up for daytime use while the upper is set up for nighttime use, then the SCA has to find some place to put the lower mattress. If the car is entirely occupied/reserved, this can be a problem, especially if more than one passenger wants to do it this way. At times, I have removed the lower mattress and stored it in my own crew room, or placed it in the lower level luggage storage space on a Superliner; but there really isn't much extra space available. As always, talk it over with your SCA to arrive at a mutually workable solution.

Tom

Could the passenger use the lower mattress on the top bunk (for extra padding), or is that forbidden?

I think that would be a problem as the upper bunk is narrower than the lower. And is it just me or does the upper bunk redefine what a firm bed is?

Plus, on the superliners, there's not much room up there for your body w/o adidng extra padding.

 

[FormerOBS]

People have done it that way, Sarah. In fact, I've set it up that way for passengers. If there's a rule against it, I'm not aware of that rule. But the lower mattress is, indeed, larger; and its extra bulk does intrude into the limited available space. As for SP&S' point about the upper being "firm", have you ever looked under the upper mattress? There's nothing there but a hard, flat, plastic surface. No springs. The lower mattress is designed to be placed over the softer seat surfaces, so it can be thinner than the upper mattress.

Tom

 

[tommylicious]

It's very easy to just configure it yourself as often as you like during the trip. No more difficult than opening a car door.

 

[user 1215]

Top bed down and seats upright is my preferred configuration in both Superliners and Viewliners. Though, as everyone has pointed out, the Superliners are a bit tighter. That being said, I'm 6'0, 270 lbs and have survived.

I'm pretty ADHD when travelling and can only sleep in small chuncks. I love sitting in my seat at 3 AM watching the little towns pass by...

 

[NW cannonball]

I'm pretty ADHD when travelling and can only sleep in small chuncks. I love sitting in my seat at 3 AM watching the little towns pass by...

Me too. I love sitting in the tiny roomette space with the lights off so I can see outside, and watching the small towns and strange industrial places pass by the window.

 

[Dakota 400]

I'm pretty ADHD when travelling and can only sleep in small chuncks. I love sitting in my seat at 3 AM watching the little towns pass by...

Me too. I love sitting in the tiny roomette space with the lights off so I can see outside, and watching the small towns and strange industrial places pass by the window.

I agree! I have fond memories of doing this. The best being on the Eastbound EB in February, 2002. Left Seattle in rain, climbing into the Cascades, the rain changed to snow. During the night, the EB traveled through countryside with fresh fallen snow. Just absolutely beautiful!

 

[mcott]

Well, if I can build a little sitting area underneath the upper bed, and pass the night with scenery and "Breaking Bad" on the iPad, I might not even use the bed. Ten years after coming off overnights, I can still sleep anywhere, and in the right circumstances, wake up with the "beep" in the headset

 

[ManOfLeisureII]

It is very easy to raise and lower the upper berth. You could leave it down, but don't have to.

 

[neroden]

It is very easy to raise and lower the upper berth. You could leave it down, but don't have to.

I found the Superliner upper berths a little persnickety to move, but the Viewliner ones are REALLY easy to raise and lower; they're on rails with counterweights.

 

[Green Maned Lion]

Nathanial, you are either backassward or very weak.