Surprising Things About the Amtrak NextGen Acela Train

My curiosity within the new Acela fleet wasn’t random.

Whether or not within the US, Canada, or Europe, I favor to journey the rails. I’ve spent 100 hours on Amtrak trains in courses starting from coach to a private bedroom.

In 2022, I took the older Acela prepare between NYC and Baltimore in enterprise and top quality. So I used to be curious to see what the brand new vehicles have been like.

In comparison with a regular business-class ticket, the first-class reserving included perks like lounge access at some stations, a meal on board, attendant service, and a much bigger seat with extra legroom.

Most Amtrak trains look just like me. They’ve plain, steel exteriors with refined pink and blue accents and a cumbersome, boxy form.

So I used to be stunned after I noticed the brand new Acela’s daring pink, white, and blue exterior. It had a rounded roof, and the entrance was as smooth as a sports activities automobile. It jogged my memory of a rocket ship.

Subsequent to the older Acela mannequin on an adjoining platform, my journey seemed prefer it was from the long run.

At any time when I hop on a prepare, I ask myself the identical query: Am I in the proper automobile?

It may be robust to inform what class you are in whenever you board a prepare you have by no means been on earlier than.

The brand new Acela prepare had a intelligent answer to my typical confusion. The business-class vehicles had pops of blue coloring the headrests, signage, and even the toilet doorways. The only first-class automobile was stuffed with pink accents.

One of many traditional predicaments of prepare journey is the place to place your drink whenever you’re not sipping it. The rails are bumpy, and I’ve discovered that the shallow, concave circle in your common tray desk is not all the time supportive sufficient to maintain a beverage from falling.

It was a pleasant shock that the brand new Acela had pull-out cupholders on the again of the tray tables in each courses.

Not each Amtrak prepare I have been on has had WiFi, and those who did lacked a robust, constant connection. Nevertheless, the brand new Acela had 5G WiFi, and I used to be in a position to stream music movies on YouTube in crisp element with none lag.

Ordering a particular at a restaurant all the time makes me really feel somewhat lavish. So after I noticed a single dish framed within the heart of the menu in my first-class seatback pocket, I used to be excited and stunned. I would by no means seen a particular on an Amtrak menu earlier than.

The dish was charred Bobo hen with roasted acorn squash, a verde sauce, and a tough roll. The marinated hen was flavorful and paired properly with the candy squash.

It was the perfect meal I’ve had on an Amtrak prepare.

This final shock was a testomony to Amtrak’s dedication to upgrading prepare journey within the US. And I can not wait to see what they provide you with subsequent.