Air travel is getting worse. (Europe, layover, airfare, bringing)
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Rodentraiser, this. And did you notice how big and comfy the seats are? Easy for sleeping too. I saw people using two seats to curl up on, so you have even that. Not to mention the dining car, snack bar, and observation car. I loved my Amtrak trips.
if you're going to be on the train for days.. I certainly hope they're nice comfy seats. I did Amtrak up the east coast, and.. It was nice.. cost of the ticket, overnight train ride.. It was decent and preferable to air travel. Now.. A 3 day trip cross country? Probably not. I'd rather be miserable for 3 hours
Quote:
Originally Posted by david0966
I hear ya! My last flight was several weeks ago from Baltimore (BWI) to Chicago O'hare on Spirit. Granted the airfare was $125 round-trip which was nice, however the overall experience was not good. Service was not very good and the legroom is extremely small. I definitely prefer international carriers. My G/F and I are going to Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Myanmar next February via Singapore Airlines (woo-hoo!). The best part was the round-trip fare was a little less than $1200 per person from Dulles to Singapore. Overall, I dislike flying most domestic carriers anymore, though JetBlue and Southwest aren't bad. I feel like a herd of cattle. Whenever I go to NYC, I always use Amtrak. Much more pleasant experience, cheaper and by the time you add going to airport, waiting around and flight time it isn't really much longer. Plus Amtrak drops me off right at Penn Station which is really nice. Unfortunately going to visit friends and family in midwest on train really isn't feasible. I just deal with it for the two hours or so.
I'm just curious about part of this.. What part of the service wasn't good? What service do they offer besides point A to point B? Throw a bag of chips and a half can of coke at you.. Try to smile vs walking around with a look on their face that shows they're making close to minimum wage and having to deal with people who have fewer manners than the common outside dog. What else is there?
Ticket agent? Well those are just kiosks now.. So, little to no interaction with people there. The person who scans your boarding pass and says "Have a nice flight".. Then the stews standing by the door saying 'buh-bye' as you leave..
I'll understand more if you're referring to a LACK of service vs bad service.. Though, personally, there's not anything I generally want or need someone around to provide a service. Other than them keeping me seated next to a travel companion.
I even have only good things to say about TSA agents that i've personally dealt with. Took a trip to KC about 4-5 years ago with an 8 year old who got selected for 'additional screening'.. Which.. Sure, you can look at that being as silly as can be, but.. TSA agent was overly professional and friendly and explained everything he was doing and why to the 8 year old, with me there with him, to make sure he didn't get freaked out or anything. I actually wish I had thought to get his name to actually send something to the TSA to compliment him on how well he handled it. If I recall, this might have been right after they had some big blowup at KCI involving a kid, so.. That may have been part of the reason.
Back when I was traveling for work, they'd do one way tickets for me because they didn't know when i'd get done and come back.. So, I wound up on a first name basis with a few at GSP because they had to do the extra screening for me every time.
if you're going to be on the train for days.. I certainly hope they're nice comfy seats. I did Amtrak up the east coast, and.. It was nice.. cost of the ticket, overnight train ride.. It was decent and preferable to air travel. Now.. A 3 day trip cross country? Probably not. I'd rather be miserable for 3 hours
I'm just curious about part of this.. What part of the service wasn't good? What service do they offer besides point A to point B? Throw a bag of chips and a half can of coke at you.. Try to smile vs walking around with a look on their face that shows they're making close to minimum wage and having to deal with people who have fewer manners than the common outside dog. What else is there?
Ticket agent? Well those are just kiosks now.. So, little to no interaction with people there. The person who scans your boarding pass and says "Have a nice flight".. Then the stews standing by the door saying 'buh-bye' as you leave..
I'll understand more if you're referring to a LACK of service vs bad service.. Though, personally, there's not anything I generally want or need someone around to provide a service. Other than them keeping me seated next to a travel companion.
I even have only good things to say about TSA agents that i've personally dealt with. Took a trip to KC about 4-5 years ago with an 8 year old who got selected for 'additional screening'.. Which.. Sure, you can look at that being as silly as can be, but.. TSA agent was overly professional and friendly and explained everything he was doing and why to the 8 year old, with me there with him, to make sure he didn't get freaked out or anything. I actually wish I had thought to get his name to actually send something to the TSA to compliment him on how well he handled it. If I recall, this might have been right after they had some big blowup at KCI involving a kid, so.. That may have been part of the reason.
Back when I was traveling for work, they'd do one way tickets for me because they didn't know when i'd get done and come back.. So, I wound up on a first name basis with a few at GSP because they had to do the extra screening for me every time.
It was one particular incident that irritated me. I was waiting to use the restroom when one of the flight attendants told me to sit down until one was unoccupied, and they were particularly nasty about it. I know many make an announcement prior about not congregating near the restroom, but never seen it taken this far. And it's not like I was in aisle seat, had to ask people to get up since I was in window seat. I've had bad experiences with Spirit in the past (lost my luggage and never found it), but since the price was good I booked it. However, I may not in the future.
Spirit is the only airline that I won't fly even if they are the cheapest, though by the time you add in their fees they rarely are the cheapest. The last straw for me was when they lessened the leg room, I'm 5'7 and generally don't have leg room issues but on my last spirit flight was miserable and it was just for a little over 2 hours, I can't imagine how people can deal with them for longer flights. Plus the thing that irritates me most is that they are the ones that started the nickle and dime trend. I can't completely blame them because consumers were the ones that accepted the fees because it seemed like we were just "paying for what we used" and that seemed fair. We got suckered to the tune of billions of dollars.
if you're going to be on the train for days.. I certainly hope they're nice comfy seats. I did Amtrak up the east coast, and.. It was nice.. cost of the ticket, overnight train ride.. It was decent and preferable to air travel. Now.. A 3 day trip cross country? Probably not. I'd rather be miserable for 3 hours
I thought the seats on Amtrak were very comfortable - roomy, they could be reclined without crowding, and there are little footrests on the seat in front of you that you can use, and you can raise them up too for stretching out. Where you get 3 seats on an airplane, you get 2 on Amtrak, so the seats are larger - and cushiony.
Spirit is the only airline that I won't fly even if they are the cheapest, though by the time you add in their fees they rarely are the cheapest. The last straw for me was when they lessened the leg room, I'm 5'7 and generally don't have leg room issues but on my last spirit flight was miserable and it was just for a little over 2 hours, I can't imagine how people can deal with them for longer flights. Plus the thing that irritates me most is that they are the ones that started the nickle and dime trend. I can't completely blame them because consumers were the ones that accepted the fees because it seemed like we were just "paying for what we used" and that seemed fair. We got suckered to the tune of billions of dollars.
I have a different reason for not wanting to fly on Spirit. They only fly into about 30 airports in the US. So if they have to have an unscheduled landing for any reason (a problem with the plane, a medical emergency, weather, etc.) it's very possible they may have to stop at an airport they don't normally service. That means the delay could take a day or more, while they replace equipment or crew.
I thought the seats on Amtrak were very comfortable - roomy, they could be reclined without crowding, and there are little footrests on the seat in front of you that you can use, and you can raise them up too for stretching out. Where you get 3 seats on an airplane, you get 2 on Amtrak, so the seats are larger - and cushiony.
I think Amtrak seats are very comfortable. But after about 8 hours, I was pretty tired of that seat. It wasn't as comfortable as when I first boarded. I can't imagine doing days in that seat!!
I have a different reason for not wanting to fly on Spirit. They only fly into about 30 airports in the US. So if they have to have an unscheduled landing for any reason (a problem with the plane, a medical emergency, weather, etc.) it's very possible they may have to stop at an airport they don't normally service. That means the delay could take a day or more, while they replace equipment or crew.
Well, there's more reasons than that, too.. Some locations Spirit only has a few flights a week (though I see this more with Allegiant) and if your flight is cancelled.. Take this example.. Allegiant flies between GSP and Orlando (Sanford) on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursdays. And it's one flight each day. Let's say you fly down to Orlando on Sunday, no problems.. But, the Thursday return flight is cancelled due to storms (A high likelyhood in the south in the summer).. You have to spend 3 more days in Orlando, on your dime, to get back home. Or, rent a car and drive back. Now.. That $100 fare doesn't seem quite as good. And, there's no guarantees you get on the flight in 3 days, because there's X number of other people who were bumped from your flight that they have to pack onto that 'next available flight'.. Of course, since 'legacy' carriers are going for $400 round trip.. Even if you do rent a car and drive back.. Might still come out ahead.
Spirit isn't AS bad, but can be.. I looked at them from ATL to LAS over the summer, but their rates were bad once you added in all the 'extras', like.. You know.. Flying on the inside of the plane. But, they have basically 6 flights a day from ATL to LAS.. Southwest had about 14.. So, if you got bumped, much better chance to get there the same day.
Quote:
Originally Posted by yandex
I think Amtrak seats are very comfortable. But after about 8 hours, I was pretty tired of that seat. It wasn't as comfortable as when I first boarded. I can't imagine doing days in that seat!!
The good thing about Amtrak is that you can get up and walk around the train.. And, a dual-edged sword is that when they stop at a station, which they seem to do every 20 miles or so.. Some of them are 15-30 minute stops, so, you can get out there and walk a bit. It would certainly be better than 3 days on a plane, but.. Hell.. 3 days straight in my comfy recliner would be hell.
Routes aren't the issue as much as time for travel, at best it takes 18 hours to travel from DC to Los Angeles, even factoring ample time to get to the airport a flight takes about 1/3 of the time. Even if we get to the point of having a high speed train system I don't see it being as efficient as flying for long distance travel. Also there is never going to be the ability to travel internationally by train, so we are always going to be dependent on air travel in some way.
True HSR works within destinations within a 300 mile radius of each other. Even so no passenger rail service anywhere in the world operates without some sort of direct or indirect government subsidy.
Well, there's more reasons than that, too.. Some locations Spirit only has a few flights a week (though I see this more with Allegiant) and if your flight is cancelled.. Take this example.. Allegiant flies between GSP and Orlando (Sanford) on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursdays. And it's one flight each day. Let's say you fly down to Orlando on Sunday, no problems.. But, the Thursday return flight is cancelled due to storms (A high likelyhood in the south in the summer).. You have to spend 3 more days in Orlando, on your dime, to get back home. Or, rent a car and drive back. Now.. That $100 fare doesn't seem quite as good. And, there's no guarantees you get on the flight in 3 days, because there's X number of other people who were bumped from your flight that they have to pack onto that 'next available flight'.. Of course, since 'legacy' carriers are going for $400 round trip.. Even if you do rent a car and drive back.. Might still come out ahead.
Spirit isn't AS bad, but can be.. I looked at them from ATL to LAS over the summer, but their rates were bad once you added in all the 'extras', like.. You know.. Flying on the inside of the plane. But, they have basically 6 flights a day from ATL to LAS.. Southwest had about 14.. So, if you got bumped, much better chance to get there the same day.
The good thing about Amtrak is that you can get up and walk around the train.. And, a dual-edged sword is that when they stop at a station, which they seem to do every 20 miles or so.. Some of them are 15-30 minute stops, so, you can get out there and walk a bit. It would certainly be better than 3 days on a plane, but.. Hell.. 3 days straight in my comfy recliner would be hell.
One of the worst things to happen to post WWII USA was the dismantling and or allowing to decay of the passenger rail system. We are now paying the price in that demand for rail travel in many areas of the USA is growing, but the infrastructure is either gone or cannot handle increased traffic. Either way it would take millions if not billions to put things back or right again.
In the old days crack express trains like the 20th Century Limited (NYC to Chicago) made few stops other than for coaling/water and exchange of crews. Once steam was replaced by diesel things could get better as only crew changes were required. Now of course while the trains are still diesel so much ROW is single track (second and third tracks removed) there isn't a way to run express service.
I know many make an announcement prior about not congregating near the restroom, but never seen it taken this far.
So you admit they made an announcement?? It is a FAA rule. Did the announcement not pertain to you??
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