California Zepher train
 

thinking of taking the Amtrak Zepher next March while my husband is out of the country. Looked at the roomette and I think I would be hemmed in by being inn such a small room. Has anyone done this alone? 51 hours sitting in a seat does not appeal to me. They also have 1 bedroom suite which has it's own toilet and shower where as the roomette has neither. Quite a bit more $ but lots more room. and it includes your meals so no surprises there.

Anyone?

I travel in the roomette fairly often (LA to Seattle and back last month) and I've always found it adequate. when the beds are made, you don't have a lot of extra room but, for me, enough.

Meals come with all classes of sleeper service so you would get them whether you had a roomette or a slightly larger bedroom.

It seems to me a trade-off between the extra room and the extra cost and only you can prioritize that for yourself.

Whichever you choose, have a great trip. The scenery between Denver and Grand Junction and between Reno and Sacramento is superb.

For the money involved , I was quite happy with the roomette.
Seats ,like lounge chairs(facing each other) were quite comfortable. An attendant will arrange these chairs to form a very comfortable bed. Worked well for me even with 5"9'height.
The several toilets, with small basins, down the hall.
Meals are included and are seated before regular coach patrons..
One issue to be aware of: very limited space for luggage ..There is designated area for luggage on lower level...this where I placed my suitcase (little bigger than the "carry-on"type) I had a large tote & my case with laptop & my rather large purse... for the roomette area.Nice desk type shelf great for reading, paperwork etc.plugs for electronics and big window so can see the wonderful scenery.
The "Dome " car is also available .. seating there is "first come" .also usually a "snack-bar"car with coffee, tea, sandwiches ...Goodies....
Some of the trains have a "Lounge Car' with bar and afternoon wine and cheese..
Not sure if this is available on all trains..

For solo travel, the roomette is great. If you want all of your luggage in the room with you, you can put a suitcase up on the upper bunk. There is a narrow closet if you want to hang something in the roomette.
Last May, DW and I went from Winnemucca to Chicago in a roomette. The upper bunk was a little cramped but I managed to sleep up there using a CPAP for 2 nights.
The Pacific Parlor car is only on the Coast Starlight train which goes from Seattle to LA and return. These are old Southern Pacific cars that have the wine & cheese tasting for sleeping car passengers only.
If you decide that you may be taking some long trips on Amtrak, join Amtrak Guest Rewards (free) and earn points toward free travel. You can earn points by making online purchases with many major retailers. Amtrak also has a credit card that you can get 20K points for obtaining.
Our trip east on the CZ was free to Chicago. We rode in Business Class overnight to Erie PA and rented a car from there and earned points for out 11 day rental.
I've been riding on Amtrak and ViaRail since October 2001 (much of it in coach).
On the return trip to WNN we got back 7 hours late. It was truly not Amtrak's fault. A feed truck driver fell asleep at the wheel and dumped his load on the tracks a few minutes before the CZ got there. The good thing was that DW and I got showers while the train was not in motion.

I had the roomette, and during the day it's 2 seats, so you have more space, but it is tiny. You can keep the door unlocked, and maybe the passenger(s) across will keep their door opened.

There is also observation car with TV where you can sit and watch either TV or the view. 3 times a day you will go to the dining car, meals included.

Roomette has a shower - one per car. A small room to change, another with the shower - and you lock yourself in, complete privacy for 1 person. Towels provided. The toilet is shared.

You know that connecting bus to or from Emeryville is included, right? Don't know which way you go.

Please see your other thread:
http://www.fodors.com/community/trav...nia-zepher.cfm