Seat Hogs in Sightseer Car

[Lonestar648]

As far as saving a seat, it can be as short as a couple minutes, like when I forgot my camera and went to my room to get it and returned, probably 5 minutes at the most. But then there are those who don't like anyone seating near them so the seat is saved for their imaginary friends. When we went through Glacier NP last summer, the SSL was over flowing, and yes at least 1/3 never looked at nor cared about the beauty passing them by, just their little digital screens. There are many on each train you appreciate the beauty outside, but are unable to take it all in because of these folk that believe they are entitled to as many SSL seats as they want because they purchased a ticket.

 

[BCL]

My main issue was once around 10 PM on the CS, someone decided to meet a new friend to have a conversation in our coach car. The lights were dimmed and nearly everyone was trying to sleep, but they prattling on for a half hour. In that case I wouldn't care how much of a seat hog the were in the lounge car. That may even be the ideal time for them. Grab a table and don't just stand there over this guy's seat talking while others are trying to sleep.

 

[Dakota 400]

Love all these experts on how the bladder works.

Exactly. It would be ridiculous to implement any rule reducing maximum continuous usage of the lounge to less 3-4 hours, yet many people have to use the bathroom once an hour or more. This is especially true on the train, where there is a large elderly population as well as many people drinking large amounts of fluid. Any policy that did not allow someone to get up from their seats for a mere five to ten minutes to use the bathroom could even be argued as a form of discrimination.

Agreed. And telling whoever's saving them a seat that "I'll just sit here until they come back" deals with that situation well enough, I think. If whoever's gone comes back in five minutes or so, I'd give them back their seat.

I like your response! Have you ever had any push-back by doing so?

 

[the_traveler]

Why? :huh:

What could they say to dispute your offer to give up the "saved" seat "when they return? :huh:

 

[Dakota 400]

Why? :huh:

What could they say to dispute your offer to give up the "saved" seat "when they return? :huh:

I understand what you are saying. But, we seem to be living in a time when some little "something" some guest does or says results in an unpleasant situation for all concerned. Re: recent episodes on more than one airline flights of various airlines.

Is Amtrak immune to this type of traveler?

 

[the_traveler]

Amtrak travelers are they best! They take after the_traveler! :giggle:

 

[BCL]

Why? :huh:

What could they say to dispute your offer to give up the "saved" seat "when they return? :huh:

I understand what you are saying. But, we seem to be living in a time when some little "something" some guest does or says results in an unpleasant situation for all concerned. Re: recent episodes on more than one airline flights of various airlines.

Is Amtrak immune to this type of traveler?

No. There have been fights and self-entitled passengers.

 

[OlympianHiawatha]

There should absolutely be no saving of seats for any reason. If you have to use the bathroom you have been there too long. There should be signs indicating this policy so there can be no arguments.

I don't agree. If you're enjoying a beverage and feel the urge, then two minutes would seem reasonable.

What would help on this is if the LSA downstairs left the restroom open. I have rarely been on a long distance where it is actually open.

 

[Maverickstation]

Here is what Amtrak has to say:

Sightseer Lounge/Café

So basically Amtrak says nothing when it comes to rotating in and out of a car like the SSL.

Then again when Amtrak places the Great Dome on a train, like it did late last Summer on select runs The Downeaster, it posts pretty straight forward

policies about the dome being a special service that pax are supposed to rotate in and out of.

The Conductor also announced this policy prior to the dome being opened (about 1/2 hour into the trip), but alas a large group of foamers took up residence

and refused to rotate, even after the conductor asked them to.

My spouse and I were able to sit in the dome from Wells to Portland after I challenged one of the foamers who sat in the dome reading a book.

I challenged the guy who had the nerve to say that he was keeping his seat to show Amtrak the high demand for the dome car.

After a few choice words, our bookworm foamer had the good sense to move.

Ken

 

[Bex]

I took the CZ last summer and the EB the summer before, both at the height of tourist season. I visited the sightseer car several times on both trips and I literally never was able to get a seat. They were always 100% taken or saved by someone whose companion had just gone to the bathroom or to get a bite. From visiting more than once in an afternoon I could see that some people had been there for hours. Both trips I finally gave up. It was pretty disappointing.

 

[Bob Dylan]

There should absolutely be no saving of seats for any reason. If you have to use the bathroom you have been there too long. There should be signs indicating this policy so there can be no arguments.

I don't agree. If you're enjoying a beverage and feel the urge, then two minutes would seem reasonable.

What would help on this is if the LSA downstairs left the restroom open. I have rarely been on a long distance where it is actually open.

Locked downstairs Bathroom in Cafe=No need to Clean it!

 

[Sauve850]

On my long distance trips I will go to the lounge car late afternoon for a beverage or snack. Most times I can find a seat and stay for only a short while. I have met many really nice people in in SSL but there is always a certain amount of trash there too. Makes it hard for folks to find seats. Sometimes lots of loud music and rowdiness. Its changed a lot over the years. The situation needs improvement.

I go back to my bedroom close the door and enjoy the view just as much.

 

[tricia]

Love all these experts on how the bladder works.

Exactly. It would be ridiculous to implement any rule reducing maximum continuous usage of the lounge to less 3-4 hours, yet many people have to use the bathroom once an hour or more. This is especially true on the train, where there is a large elderly population as well as many people drinking large amounts of fluid. Any policy that did not allow someone to get up from their seats for a mere five to ten minutes to use the bathroom could even be argued as a form of discrimination.

Agreed. And telling whoever's saving them a seat that "I'll just sit here until they come back" deals with that situation well enough, I think. If whoever's gone comes back in five minutes or so, I'd give them back their seat.

I like your response! Have you ever had any push-back by doing so?

My response was more hypothetical than actual, at least where Amtrak is concerned. Usually I'm in a roomette when traveling LD/overnight. The time I most often go to the lounge car is VERY early AM, to look out the big windows as the sun comes up. Aside from a few overnight lounge lizards, there are usually not a lot of people there then, so rarely difficult to find a seat.

Traveling on VIA Rail with my very elderly father, on several occasions I've moved jackets etc from seats in the lovely dome car so we could enjoy the view. Never had any push-back beyond dirty looks when the folks who'd "saved" their seats came back. Amply outweighed by the smiles of other passengers in the car, in response to finding my dad a seat.

YMMV. Middle-aged women (I'm one of them) are generally considered harmless, and often invisible in our culture. Sometimes considered possibly crazy when we do open our mouths. This encourages me to take the lead in situations where others might encounter more push-back.

 

[Rockymtnchris]

On my April '17 CZ trip I heard way more announcements about the SSL car and seating than I remember from my May '15 ride. There were more specific reminders this time that the seating was for ALL passengers and that there was to be no "saving" of seats for any longer duration than it would take to go to the lower level for a fast snack or beverage.

Having been able to enjoy the daylight portions of my 2015 westbound trip with my father, I pretty much avoided the SSL altogether last month except long enough to verify that some of the individual seats do indeed swivel, to address a topic of another thread.

 

[JoeRids]

At the end of the day, SSL seats are advertised as unreserved seats first come first serve, so if someone wants to camp out all day, there really isn't much Amtrak or anyone else can do it. Don't forget this could also be a function of coach traveler (s) whose seats are in an undesirable section of the coaches (next to a screaming baby or some other loud passenger), or a single traveler forced to sit with an uncomfortable stranger. I think Amtrak did a dis-service putting tables on the upper level (this was originally intended for some kind of quick food service that never got off the ground). It took away many of the "swivel" seats that were used for individuals and pairs; in fact I never had a problem getting SSL seats until after these tables were built.

With regards to the saving of seats, as stated above you have every right to occupy an unused seat, unless that seat is truly occupied by someone using the rest room or going downstairs to get a snack. However, this backfired a bit on a trip I took on the Starlight in 2013. I saw an unoccupied seat with laptop computer in it, and asked the guy next to me if it was being saved. He said, "no, the people haven't been back in over 20 minutes". So, I sat down for about an hour watching the Starlight pass through Cascade summit, but I thought it strange someone would leave a laptop unattended. Eventually, two people DID come back and advised me they were travelling together but there were no pairs left together in the coaches, so the conductor said they could sit there until a pair opened up. They were in the diner having breakfast, which is why the seats were vacant. At that point, I promptly moved and felt bad for moving their stuff...

 

[Lonestar648]

Having seats saved for about 90 minutes is beyond being right back. Also, leaving their laptop opened the door for misunderstandings for the person touching it. I think it was inconsiderate of this couple to keep two other people from being able to see the beauty of the Cascades and be offended anyone would touch their things after being gone an hour half. How was anyone to know if they would return being gone so long. You shouldn't feel bad that you moved their things. You got to see some of the sights you wanted to see, that they were watching from another car while holding two seats in the SSL.

 

[BCL]

Having seats saved for about 90 minutes is beyond being right back. Also, leaving their laptop opened the door for misunderstandings for the person touching it. I think it was inconsiderate of this couple to keep two other people from being able to see the beauty of the Cascades and be offended anyone would touch their things after being gone an hour half. How was anyone to know if they would return being gone so long. You shouldn't feel bad that you moved their things. You got to see some of the sights you wanted to see, that they were watching from another car while holding two seats in the SSL.

It doesn't sound as if anyone was offended. I kind of understand how it is when a couple or family can't be together at their seats for whatever reason. I personally wouldn't leave any expensive electronics anywhere, but I'm paranoid. I'd probably use clothing. I had my laptop bag with me whenever I left my seat, and even made sure it was next to me while sleeping.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

A lot of train passengers are in the group of people 20 to 40 years old that seem to believe they are owed certain rights and benefits without further justification - the Entitlement Generation.

What "entitlements" do Americans aged 20-40 actually enjoy, exactly? Free or low cost higher level learning? Nope. Guaranteed vacation? Nope. Mandatory sick time? Nope. Pensions? Nope. Profit Sharing? Nope. Job Security? Nope. Social Security? Doubtful. The one thing they almost had, namely better access to lower cost healthcare, is about to be taken from them. The real Entitlement Generation seems to be the narcissistic Baby Boomers who happily took more than any generation before them only to vote against leaving anything for anyone else.

 

[Ryan]

A lot of train passengers are in the group of people 20 to 40 years old that seem to believe they are owed certain rights and benefits without further justification - the Entitlement Generation.

What "entitlements" do Americans aged 20-40 actually enjoy, exactly? Free or low cost higher level learning? Nope. Guaranteed vacation? Nope. Mandatory sick time? Nope. Pensions? Nope. Profit Sharing? Nope. Job Security? Nope. Social Security? Doubtful. The one thing they almost had, namely better access to lower cost healthcare, is about to be taken from them. The real Entitlement Generation seems to be the narcissistic Baby Boomers who happily took more than any generation before them only to vote against leaving anything for anyone else.

Hey, it's not all negative! We're entitled to crushing debt and the inability to pay for the kinds of things that our parents were able to 40 years ago.

OK, so maybe it is all negative...

 

[Palmetto]

Put two Sightseer Lounges on the Western trains. Problem not solved, but lessened. [i know: fantasy.]

 

[ehbowen]

Put two Sightseer Lounges on the Western trains. Problem not solved, but lessened. [i know: fantasy.]

Reverse-engineer the Pacific Parlour Cars, and put them back on the assembly line so that you can so equip every Superliner train (including the new trains we all know we need!). I think CAF could handle that....

[How's that for fantasy? ]

 

[railiner]

A lot of train passengers are in the group of people 20 to 40 years old that seem to believe they are owed certain rights and benefits without further justification - the Entitlement Generation.

What "entitlements" do Americans aged 20-40 actually enjoy, exactly? Free or low cost higher level learning? Nope. Guaranteed vacation? Nope. Mandatory sick time? Nope. Pensions? Nope. Profit Sharing? Nope. Job Security? Nope. Social Security? Doubtful. The one thing they almost had, namely better access to lower cost healthcare, is about to be taken from them. The real Entitlement Generation seems to be the narcissistic Baby Boomers who happily took more than any generation before them only to vote against leaving anything for anyone else.

Looks like New York is going to have free college tuition for families earning under 100k ....

And free day care "pre-pre-K" for three year olds....

 

[railiner]

Put two Sightseer Lounges on the Western trains. Problem not solved, but lessened. [i know: fantasy.]

I like that idea...one for coach, and one for sleeper's, like on the CS...

 

[Lonestar648]

What is the inventory of SSL? You would need four additional just for the CZ.

 

[CCC1007]

What is the inventory of SSL? You would need four additional just for the CZ.

Four? I thought it was six sets.