How we traveled in First Class by train from New York to Boston for a great price

Due to the happy confluence of a work trip and a summer sale on Amtrak Acela tickets, Paola and I had the good luck to travel together to Boston. Only this time, we did it in First Class!

For the longest time, I’ve received 12-hour upgrade coupons from Amtrak. They have two big stipulations:

• They can’t be used to upgrade rewards travel, i.e., you have to pay for all tickets
• They must be applied by phone no more than 12 hours in advance

I sometimes see if they can be applied to upgrade from Coach to Business Class on the Empire Service, but by the time our trip rolls around, business class is usually sold out. As a result, I have 11 expired upgrade coupons in my account.

This time would be different. We were traveling on Acela, on which standard tickets are Business Class. This means that any upgrade is from Business to First Class.

So, twelve hours before our 1:29pm departure, I called 1-800-USA-RAIL, Amtrak’s reservation center. Yes, I called in the middle of the night. Unfortunately, this upgrade requires a call as it can’t be done in the app, even though it appears that feature is available. After 40 minutes of reading out coupon codes and waiting and waiting, we were successfully rebooked in First Class.

First Class offers several perks:

• Access to the brand new Metropolitan Lounge overlooking the concourse in Moynihan Train Hall
• Pre-boarding onto a separate First Class train car
• Larger seats and tables, and, most amazingly
• A full meal

Below is a run-down of these perks.

Moynihan’s Metropolitan Lounge

The Metropolitan Lounge in Moynihan Train Hall in New York is the crown jewel of the Amtrak lounges. While early in its operation it offered pre-packaged sandwiches and light snacks, it now offers a fresh salad bar and warm sandwiches, as well as coffee and drinks all served on real china. All items are complimentary except for alcoholic drinks. The lounge offers a balcony view of the light-filled, marble-clad concourse.

Pre-Boarding

Lounge customers are called for pre-boarding in advance of notice to the general public and you are escorted by an Amtrak usher from the entrance of the lounge directly onto your train.

First Class Car

Once at the train, you are ushered into your own First Class car, which has its own spacious seats and attendants.

Upgraded Seating

Unlike Business Class, which is all 2-seat pairs or 4-seat tables, First Class has some single seats and 2-seat tables. We were lucky enough to change our seats once onboard via the Amtrak app to sit together at a 2-seat table. All Acela tickets are reserved seating, which can be modified in the app.

Meals

Amtrak’s recent marketing touts their new menu, which features plates designed by famous Philadelphia restauranteur, Stephen Starr. Shortly after departure we were offered refreshments and our choice of meal. We had sparkling water and juice, and then for the meal I chose baked manicotti and Paola had a fruit and cheese plate.

Everything was excellent. Not only was it delicious, it was served on real Acela-branded china. This meal surpassed anything I have ever had on a plane, though to be fair this was our first time traveling first class in anything.

After lunch in the lounge and an dinner on the train, we arrived full and relaxed at our destination, Boston South Station.

Conclusion

While we lucked out and scored two tickets for $59 one-way on this route, normal Acela First Class tickets appear to start around $216 from New York to Boston. The trip itself is a bit less than 4 hours in total. Coach fares, in comparison, start at $41 and roughly 4:30 on trip length.

If Acela First Class fits your schedule and budget or you’re able to snag a deal like ours, I highly recommend it for travel between any cities on the Northeast Corridor between Boston and Washington, DC.