Amtrak

I recently to the Acela from Wilmington to New York City. I was shocked and disgusted with the cleanliness of the train and especially the bathrooms. This is an expensive service and Amtrak should do better.

I use Amtrak several times a year to go to/​from Newark Penn Station to Baltimore, Washington, DC, Philly, etc. It’s a very convenient & stress free way to travel, when you either don’t want to drive or don’t want to deal w/​parking when you arrive at your destination.
Prices are good, especially if you have AAA & book a AAA rate at least 3 business days prior to departure & if you can travel on specific non-​peak trains. Times are accurate & punctual for the most part & the conductors are friendly.
My only issues are: (1) I’ve noticed that the last 2 times I traveled neither train had a café car on it — 9:45am train & no coffee on it — OBSCENE; (2) trains are relatively crowded if you are not getting on at the first stop & sometimes it is extremely hard to find a seat.
Other than that, a good civilized way to travel.

Easily one of the worst experiences of my life. The train personnel does not monitor seating, so although the train was not filled to capacity I had to stand till New York & hold my luggage .
No one moved to allow me a seat, but they did stare while I stood.
Highly unorganized, not comfortable in any way and if you plan to sleep bring a sheet… the upholstery is filthy.
Bolt bus is the best thing going to Boston

This was my first time riding on the AMTRAK system and I had an awesome time. My round trip was on time. It was very comfortable, relaxing and the bathrooms were surprisingly clean.

By far the most civilized form of public transportation. All hail the inventors of the quiet car. I love the quiet car– you can sit and not be disturbed by some sales dude trying to close a deal or a bored lady chatting and chatting and chatting with her girlfriend. Just peace and quiet.
FREE INTERNET. PLUGS! Huzzah, thanks for supporting the modern traveller — the airlines must be jealous. Amtrak has a new iphone app which is now on my top 5 favorite apps of all time, I like it even more than angry birds. Yes, I said it, better than angry birds. You can buy your ticket, and you don’t need to print anything or pick up a ticket at the station, super easy and super convient.
The food on Amtrak commuter lines is not amazing, but it will do if you are hungry. By far the best thing in the dinning car is the booze. The longer rides with sleeper cars has a clear upgrade on food. It’s nice to grab a beer, and sit in the quiet car and actually relax on the trip home.
No lines, no security craziness where you have to get undressed and harassed just to get on, no extra charges for bags. I wish I could high speed train to every meeting. I’ve written the president about investing in high speed trains, but he has not gotten back to me on it yet. I will let you know when he does.

1. Their representatives are pretty helpful. I’ve had two face to face experiences with people at Newark Penn Station and New York Penn Station. The lady at New York Penn Station was even willing to let me look on my phone to find my Amtrak Guest Rewards when I was exchanging a ticket — even though it was rush hour! Hollah! Unfortunately I couldn’t find it and was a bit paranoid about angry commuters killing me so I said no thanks.
2. AMTRAK, YOU ARE A LAP OF MODERN LUXURY.
3. And expensive as shit.

Let’s see now? My wife and I want to go from ny to fl. We do not want to groped or scanned on a plane so we decide to try taking a train. 27 hours does not seem that bad. after all trains have decent food a bar car and lounge. RIGHT? WRONG!
The food was all microwaved and inedible. Unless you want to pay fine dining prices for fast diner slop. Burgers? Microwave. Pizza? microwave. Oh well we can go to the bar car? NOPE! No bar car just beer or wine in little bottles for big bucks.
Upgrade for a little private room? 3times the cost of coach seats! Almost a thousand bucks. Want to have a smoke? Get off the train and be treated like terrorists for 10 minutes with only five smoking stops on the silver meteor going to Florida from ny.
you are herded like cattle away from the train and told to hurry up and smoke.
Well the entertainment was not so bad. We had a nice boxing match between a hulking dangerous college kid and a semi– handicapped older escaped mental patient. now that was fun! ALSO you cannot sleep at all with people walking back and forth to the snack bar that seemed to NEVER close. BUT! The showers were nice. Even if they were in your seat. you see the cars LEAK! Everywhere! Hope for no rain or else. Want to be tortured? Take the train!!, NEVER AGAIN!!!

Not bad…
I have a love-​hate thing going on with Amtrak. I love it because it’s convenient, comfortable, and fast, but it can be really expensive. Sometimes the costs of the tickets (NYC to Washington, DC route) can hit $ 300 if I’m buying them late (prices go up with time) and I think to myself, «I could take a flight for cheaper than this!» However, trains are obviously more convenient since there’s no security check-​in and more reliable, as far as time (since trains are less effected by things like weather delays and backed up runways). Same thing goes when you compare it to the cheaper option of Boltbus or Megabus. The bus can be as cheap as $ 2, but you can encounter traffic and end up at your destination much later than you want. So if you think your time is worthless, then you’ll always opt for the cheaper option.
I love the Harry Potter-​esque element; the food car is what makes me think of HP. The food is not so great but I don’t mind because I usually just pack myself a snack. I know better than to pay for overpriced, mediocre transport food.
Be mindful of the monitors and announcements before you board the wrong train. I’ve never had issues and I hear the conductors yelling, «THIS IS NOT A NJ TRANSIT TRAIN. THIS IS AN AMTRAK TRAIN,» over the loudspeaker so if you hop on the wrong train, your fault.
I love the outlets because I can charge my iPad and phone if necessary. The outlets are located under the window. It’s annoying sometimes because sometimes the person sitting next to me wants to plug in and the cord will be draped across me, which can be inconvenient.
All-​in-​all, I’ll continue to use Amtrak because of its convenience factor. Plus, the frequent user program is pretty beneficial.

Everybody here has reviewed Amtrak as a mode of transportation but I’m here to discuss a matter close to my heart… eatting! You can do it but be afraid,… be very afraid!
Simple stuff like the cheese and crackers can’t be screwed up. It can’t spoil either sinces it is plastic cheese in plastic wrap… no artisanal goat cheese here.
Sandwiches…iffy at best. I’ve has some that were still a bit frozen in the center and I’ve had others where the microwave worked its weirdness and crisped some parts and left the others fine. That was the story with my dog today. Great dog on a crispy bun???
First class on the Acela is an interesting experiance. I had a very braised beef that while cooked to death was edible. The wine also flwed freely so while not a gourmet endeavor was liveable.
It kind of sad. Good food or at least palatable food can be had on modes of transportation. I’ve had decent meals on trains in Africa for goodness sake. The Eurostar is better than airline food. Amtrak is trying but it stilll has a way to go… eat before you go or after you get there.
By the way… as a mode of transportation on the North East corridor I’dgive it 4 stars… most of the time.

Amtrak can suck NJs ball sack! The conductors on the trains who are in charge of the opening and closing of the doors can all go to hell. I am so infuriated by my evening, and I owe it all to one man. This mans actions started a chain of events that led to my evenings demise.
My evening was ripped in half by the amount of time we waited for the following train, which didn’t come. We then bought tickets to the NJ transit that we later found out wasn’t due to arrive for another 45 minutes. As we attempted to run up and down 2 extremely long flights of stairs, the Amtrak conductor of another train told us that we would not be able to buy tickets on the actual car.
The evening was spent on public transportation for the most part. I don’t like New Jersey, their public transportation and the complications they caused me and my group.

Amtrak gets you where you need to go, and for those who are traveling along the eastern seaboard, it’s a pretty easy trip.
I’m currently traveling along the Newark — Philadelphia route and have experienced the regional, keystone, and acela trains. Here are my reviews:
Regional: Super crowded! Lots of people already boarded at NY Penn Station, so by the time the train gets to NWK, you can barely find a seat.
Keystone: Not as crowded as the Regional, but you’ll still have to share a seat with someone.
Acela: What a rip-​off. You pay at least 2−3x the price of a regional/​keystone ticket, and it only saves you 10 minutes of travel time. The seats are a little nicer because the trains are newer, but overall, I was expecting more from this overhyped Amtrak offering.

Conductor: For those of you who got on the wrong train, you know who you are, you can get off this train and wait for the one directly following us. Just make sure it’s your train before getting on it this time, okay hun? Next stop New York!
Amtrak. You rock. I like your sassy conductors. I like how they publicly embarrass people like me who just jump on trains assuming it’s theirs because it just so happens to arrive at the scheduled time (seriously when does that happen). But really. I’d like to thank them for making sure I didn’t go to Ohio or something. No offense Ohio.
I’ve been consistently taking the train to and from Boston for the past 5 years and It’s only been late twice or thrice. And even then, they made up for time. Fug busses (see reviews for Lucky, Fung, and Grey). Oh. and if you’re a frequent traveler don’t forget to enroll in their rewards program. I’ve earned a couple round trip fares and a magazine subscription. For those that feel the need for speed. try the Acela (a little more than 4 hours between Boston/​Newark). During the holidays I recommend taking the Acela (slightly fancier/​bigger seats) or a jump into the quiet car to avoid the craziness.