Review: First Class Amtrak
It was a good thing I took the train – the Acela – from NYC to Boston last night not only because trains are one of the few modes of transportation that are actually enjoyable, but also because the snow storm felled the airports.
But …
Pitney-Bowes sprang for the extra $50 for first class, so I tried it. Conclusion: Save your money. I couldn’t see any physical difference in the first class car except that it was conspicuously filthy. Yes, they give you a mediocre meal. Yes, you get free liquor, but you’d have to drink a lot more than I do to make it worthwhile.
You do, of course, get to hobnob with the superior class of people who travel first. Why, I was seated between a Wall Street tycoon who peppered his witty conversation with valuable trading tips and a Raja who kept us entertained with mystical feats of prestidigitation.
(Ok, actually, I sat across from a guy who worked for ABC and was jacked into his iPod for the entire trip lest he have to acknowledge the existence of his fellow travelers.)
My point isn’t to whine that oooh I wasn’t sufficiently pampered, poor poor me. I’m just saying that there’s nothing in Amtrak’s first class car to be envious about.
I took a coach seat on the Acela RT Bos-NY in the summer. It’s clean, well-designed, comfortable, fast (except from New Haven to Penn Station, of course) and offered what I considered Real Luxury: more-than-decent coffee (with free refills!) and an outlet at my seat to plug in a laptop. For not much more time than I’d spend in total getting from my house to mid-Manhattan via Logan, and lots less money. Top THAT, USAirways!
I heartily agree. Amtrak beats airlines handily. On the other hand, this gives room to the airlines to beat Amtrak handily when it comes to first class: airline coach is so shitty that it’s actually insulting, so airline first class can actually mean something.
Rediscovering tire chains–
I bought some tire chains and went out last night to see an old (girl) friend who I haven’t seen in 20 years. Coming home at 2:30 AM, I was the only one on the highway, but with my tire chains, I was truly lord of nature. You can only go 30-40 mph, but without them, I would not have been able to go at all!
First class in India and Thailand is a little cabin entirely to yourself, with personal aircon and a guy who comes around with your dinner.
Now *that’s* luxury!