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The third time’s attempt is a charm!
I have wanted to experience the Amtrak Coast Starlight sleeper car, but due to COVID-19, I had to cancel the reservation. Then Amtrak canceled the route due to a fire in California for my second time’s reservation. For the third time, I finally had the opportunity to maximize Amtrak points to experience the Amtrak sleeper car/roomette from Los Angeles to Seattle.
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| Amtrak Coast Starlight Sleeper Car/Roomette |
| Table of Contents [show/hide] |
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Check-In & Amtrak Metropolitan Lounge Access
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| Amtrak Metropolitan Lounge at Los Angeles Union Station |
If you have a mobile phone and have your ticket saved there, you do not need to go to the check-in counter to get a boarding pass. You can go straight to the Amtrak Metropolitan Lounge at Los Angeles Union Station if you have time to relax and enjoy refreshments inside the lounge before boarding.
Access to the Amtrak Metropolitan Lounge is complimentary when traveling in sleeping car accommodations such as the roomette.
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Amtrak Red Cap Service
You can also access the complimentary Amtrak Red Cap Service When traveling in a roomette. The service is useful if you do not want to walk to the train track. You can request the complimentary Red Cap Service, a go-cart vehicle to take you to the train track where your Coast Starlight train departs.
You can either request the Red Cap Service at the station itself or inside the lounge at the station.
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| Amtrak Red Cap Service |
Amtrak Coast Starlight Roomette
After boarding, you go to your assigned roomette and get yourself situated. The roomette is small, so it may not be ideal if you have multiple bags and want to store them inside your roomette. We were traveling with just one carry-on luggage and could store it on the side by the seat.
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| Roomette Walkway |
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| Limited Space Inside Roomette |
Two seats inside the roomette face each other, and those seats can be turned into a lie-flat bed. You can always ask the sleeping car attendant to help you make that bed. The top bunk bed can be put down to make a bed, and together, it becomes a bunk bed. You can also ask the sleeping car attendant to help make your room when you are up and going in the morning.
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| Amtrak Roomette Seats Facing Each Other |
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| Top Bunk Bed |
The Amtrak sleeper car/roomette is a practical room, but the space is extremely limited. It may be a little hard to enjoy sitting inside the room if you are claustrophobic. We enjoy going to the viewing car to sit and enjoy views because the space is much bigger and the atmosphere is better. Simply put, we mainly use the roomette to lay down and sleep for the 34 hours long journey from Los Angeles to Seattle.
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| Amtrak Roomette Top & Bottom Beds |
Here is a quick overview of the Amtrak roomette:
- Two seats face each other and can be turned into a flatbed
- The roomette is really small
- The roomette layout is a bunk bed configuration
- The top bunk bed is really tight. If you are claustrophobic, you may not like it.
- A sliding door
- A narrowed closet with hangers
- A few coat hangers here and there
- Curtains
- Only one power plug-in outlet
- Light and music controller
- Two pillows, blankets, and pads are provided
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| Amtrak Roomette |
Amtrak Coast Starlight Roomette Vs. Bedroom
Amtrak Coast Starlight roomette is small, so small that it’s hard to change clothes if two people simultaneously stand inside the roomy. I can’t imagine Amtrak roomettes are suitable for claustrophobic travelers.
With that being said, if you are looking to experience Amtrak sleeper cars and you want larger space rooms, you should consider getting the Amtrak bedroom instead of the roomette. The bigger bedroom has an ensuite bathroom and can sleep up to 3 people because the lower bed can be turned into a double bed.
To better explain the comparison between the two Amtrak sleeping car accommodations, check out the videos below.
Amtrak Roomette
Amtrak Bedroom
Amtrak Coast Starlight Dining
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| Amtrak Coast Starlight Dining Car |
Your meals are also included when traveling in Amtrak’s sleeping car accommodations such as the roomette or the bedroom. While the Amtrak Coast Starlight roomette’s ticket price is not low, remember that you also receive one night’s stay, and meals are included.
The journey between Los Angeles and Seattle takes at least 34 hours one way with one overnight. So you can expect the following dining services:
- Day 1: Lunch and Dinner
- Day 2: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
Dining can occur in your roomette or the dining car, and we prefer the dining car. During our time traveling on the Amtrak Coast Starlight, here’s how the dining process works:
- Dining reservation time is required for lunch and dinner services.
- Breakfast first comes, first served.
- The dining car attendant goes around the rooms and asks for reservations once before lunch, after boarding, and around 3:30pm for dinner reservations.
- Dining is done by group number and time slot.
- You do not share the dining table with other travelers.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, travelers were expected to share the dining tables with other travelers, but that changed during our trip. Each roomette is assigned a table based on the reservation time.
As far as drinks go:
- Non-alcoholic drinks are complimentary and only available in the dining car
- For alcoholic beverages, you can receive only one complimentary drink during lunch or dinner, and the rest you have to pay.
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| Amtrak Dining Reservation |
Amtrak Coast Starlight Dining Car Menu
I was impressed with the Coast Starlight dining car menu, especially the three-course dinner menu. Upon seated, the dining car attendant would come to your table and ask for your room and sleeper car number before taking your order.
The food tastes surprisingly better than I expect. You can pick lunch and dessert for lunchtime, and you can pick an appetizer, an entree, and a dessert for dinner.
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| Philadephia Cheesecake and Carrot Cake |
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| Green Chile Cheese Tamale & Lobster Crab Cake |
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| Pan-roasted Chicken Breast |
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| Tortellini With Pesto Cream |
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| Grilled Atlantic Salmon |
Rather than me trying to type out all the menu items served in the dining car, look at the menu pictures below.
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| Breakfast & Lunch Menu |
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| Dinner Menu |
Restroom & Shower Rooms
The restroom and shower rooms in the sleeper train cars are separated.
The shower room offers complimentary towels and packaged bar soaps. I recommend you bring a pair of slipper shoes with you because the floor can be scary in a shared shower room. If you are out of towels, just ask the sleeping car attendant for more. Plenty of restrooms are available in the sleeper cars.
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| Shower Room Towels & Bar Soap |
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| Shower Room |
It’s worth mentioning that if you stay in the Amtrak bedroom instead of the roomette, you can enjoy the ensuite bathroom and toilet. I find the ensuite bathroom convenient, but they are small, and I dislike taking a shower and getting the toilet all wet.
Shower Room Video
Viewing Car
The viewing car is 3 cars away from the sleeper car. The roomette is small, so we liked to go to the viewing car to enjoy the scenery through large glass windows.
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| Coastal View |
The seats in the viewing car are community seats; therefore, they are first come, first served only. You share the seats among all other passengers on the train regardless of the class of service.
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| Amtrak Coast Starlight Viewing Car |
Amtrak Roomette Tips
Traveling via rail in the sleeping car accommodations can be a bucket list for some. Therefore, it is understandable when you want to truly maximize your time on the train. Here are some tips when it comes to Amtrak roomette:
- Roomette can be accommodated up to two people.
- All roomette’s ticket price includes both overnight stay and all meal services.
- Take advantage of the Amtrak Metropolitan Lounge and the Amtrak Red Cap Service.
- Don’t bring too many bags because the roomette space is very limited if you want to store the bags in your roomette.
- Bring a pair of slipper shoes to walk around the shower room. Towels and bar soaps are provided.
- Make sure to be available in your roomette for reservations to ensure you get a preferred dining time. The dining car attendant goes around the rooms and asks for reservations once before lunch, after boarding, and around 3:30pm for dinner reservations.
- The viewing car is first come, first served. Sharing is caring, so it is ethical that you do not save seats and are willing to share seats with other travelers.
- When traveling from Los Angeles to Seattle via Coast Starlight, eat breakfast before boarding because breakfast is not served on your first day.
- If the roomette’s ticket price is too high for you, be flexible and book well in advance. Also, consider earning Amtrak Guest Rewards points to use for booking (more below).
Redeeming Amtrak Guest Rewards Points For Roomette
Amtrak Coast Starlight ticket prices fluctuate like airfare, and the sooner you book, the lower your price. The Amtrak sleeper cars or roomettes are very popular, and thus, the demand can be high. So plan well to secure the ticket price and ensure sleeper rooms are not sold out for the date you wish to travel.
If the roomette’s ticket price is too high, remember that you can also use Amtrak Guest Rewards points to redeem. That’s exactly what I did when I purchased the roomette’s ticket between LA and Seattle using Amtrak points earned by signing up for an Amtrak credit card.
Amtrak Guest Rewards points prices vary by ticket price, meaning that the more expensive the ticket price is, the more points are required for redemption. Redeeming Amtrak points for sleeper cars can provide great value for your Amtrak points because you get a train ride and overnight stays, and all meals are included.
- Sign up for Amtrak Guest Rewards if you have not done that.
- Check how many points are needed for an Amtrak sleeper car journey for your desired date. Be flexible, and you may find less expensive ticket prices; thus, fewer points are also needed.
- Go to the Amtrak website.
- Provide your search parameters and make sure the Use Points option is selected.
- After figuring out the number of points needed, start accruing Amtrak Guest Rewards points through an Amtrak credit card’s sign-up bonus points or purchase Amtrak points when promotional offers are available.
Is this true? If I book a roomette (the tiny room) for myself, I might be sleeping with an unknown person?? Who decides who is in the tiny bunk bed?
Hi Deborah, no the roomette is all yours.
Really enjoyed going from LAX to TAC on the Coast Starlight. Thank you for your good review.
The top bunk is not only tight, but it is also quite hard and uncomfortable, as there is no extra mattress pad like on the bottom bunk. After my trip, I wondered if it was an oversight to put one on the bunk by my porter, but I can tell from your pix that it is standard not to have one. Just linens on a naugahyde bench. I will bring an egg crate mattress next trip.
As you stated, the food is wonderful! I've taken the Coast Starlight several times, but this was my first overnight (went to the Bay Area a few times, and Central California) and have always love he meals served.
The only other complaint are the folks who slept on the benches in the Observation Car and all about the floor, instead of sleeping in the Coach Car assigned seats. I felt uncomfortable coming into their "sleeping car" and attempting to enjoy the sunrise whilst folks were snoring about. Really odd and I feel, unacceptable. Hopefully they have stopped this practice. January 2020.
@princesslaura, that’s insane regarding the observation car. We didn’t go to the observation car after sundown, so we did not know if that was the case on our train too or not. However, that sounds terrible and very inconsiderate.