Hadden didn’t feel the perks of Amtrak’s first class — including lounge access, meal service, and more space — were worth the additional $152 she paid in February 2022.
Hadden’s breakfast on a first-class Amtrak Acela ride in August 2022.
Joey Hadden/Insider
Hadden rode first-class on an Amtrak train from NYC to Baltimore in February of 2022. Two weeks before her trip, she booked a standard Amtrak Acela ticket for $121 and spent an extra $152 to upgrade to first class.
While Hadden thought the chairs in first class were big, they were stiffer than she expected.
She didn’t think her meal, a fruit plate with a croissant, in addition to lounge access and a larger seat, was worth the ticket price.
“Much like our airline peers, Amtrak pricing strategy is influenced by several factors — demand, departure, seasonality, route, city pair, class of service, and other market conditions,” a representative for Amtrak told Insider.
