Review: Amtrak Northeast Regional New York to Boston in Coach

Background & Booking

On my trip from New York to Boston, I booked a ticket on Amtrak’s Northeast Regional, since I live much closer to Penn Station than any of the New York City airports. 

On the New York to Boston route, there are the Acela trains and the Northeast Regional trains. The time difference between the Acela and Northeast Regional vary based on the schedules. Generally, the Acela can save about 30 minutes in travel time compared to the Northeast Regional for the little over 200-mile New York Penn to Boston South Station route. This Northeast Regional I booked was scheduled for 4 hours and 20 minutes, and I booked the Acela in the return direction which was 4 hours flat.

Amtrak prices do fluctuate a lot and get much more expensive last minute. I booked this train about 3 weeks in advance, and I got a ticket for $29 for the lowest-priced ticket. On the day of departure, it was about $140.

On the Northeast Regional, there are Coach and Business Class cabins. The Coach class doesn’t allow seat reservations, while Business Class does. I didn’t find Business Class to be worth the extra premium, as the seating configuration stays the same at 2-2, and other than more legroom, the only thing you get is free non-alcoholic refreshments from the cafe car.

Bid-Up

Amtrak has a program called BidUp where you can place a bid to upgrade your reservation to a higher cabin. For the Northeast Regional, the upgrade would be to business class, the lowest bid I could enter was $52 to have a chance to upgrade my coach seat to business class (the highest bid was $74). Since the lowest bid was almost double my actual ticket price, I passed.

Route & Stops

• New York, NY – Moynihan Train Hall (NYP)
• Stamford, CT (STM)
• Bridgeport, CT (BRP)
• New Haven, CT – Union Station (NHV)
• New London, CT – Union Station (NLC)
• Kingston, RI (KIN)
• Providence, RI – Amtrak/MBTA Station (PVD)
• Route 128, MA (RTE)
• Boston, MA – Back Bay Station (BBY)
• Boston, MA – South Station (BOS)

Departure & Finding A Seat

My train was scheduled to depart at 12:37 PM. It was planned to arrive at the station at 12:12 PM, but it surprisingly got in 4 minutes early at 12:08 PM. I got to the station around 12:15 PM, and there was a large line already formed at the track entrance in the Moynihan Train Hall. At 12:17 PM, they started the boarding process and let everyone go down the escalators to the track level.

I love Moynihan Train Hall, and there are plenty of food options to grab a snack or a meal if you’d like to before getting on the train.

I entered the train around the Cafe Car, which is at the center of the train, as all the previous cars had a decent amount of passengers. The Cafe Car offered some booth-style seating that could fit 4 people. I didn’t utilize the Cafe Car this trip as I had lunch a home before heading to the station.

After passing the Cafe Car, I passed a car that had single seats here and there, but no empty rows available. The next car I passed did have a set of 2 that was empty, so I quickly snagged it. I ended up getting lucky and the seat next to me remained empty the whole ride.

We left promptly on time, and about an hour into the ride, staff members came by to collect trash.

Seat & Journey

The Northeast Regional Trains are in a 2-2 configuration, regardless of whether you’re in Business Class or Coach Class.

I found the legroom to be pretty spacious, and there is a tray table that folds down from the seat in front of you. Some seats face each other with a table in between which could be good for families or friends.

My journey was relatively pleasant, and although the Wi-Fi did not work at all during the journey, I was able to use my phone’s data plan to tether to my computer. The seats have two power ports at the window, so if you’re in the aisle seat, you’ll have to reach over to the window to get a power port which could be a bit awkward. If you want an aisle, you should probably bring a long cord in case.

Someone commented that the bathrooms were very smelly in our train car. Thankfully I didn’t need to use the bathroom, so I didn’t experience it. However on my return trip to Acela, I did use the bathroom and it was fine, so perhaps it was just a bad day.

Interestingly to me, unfortunately for the other passengers, one party missed their stop as the train stopped for 1 minute at a smaller station and they didn’t know. And, someone across the aisle from me boarded the wrong train direction and had to get off at the next stop (45 minutes later) and backtrack. Definitely stay alert since the announcements aren’t the best at Amtrak, and don’t be afraid to ask for help!

We arrived at Back Bay station at 4:48 PM, and it would be 6 more minutes to arrive at Boston South Station which is where the train terminates. I got off at Back Bay since the hotel I was staying at, the Fairmont Copley Plaza, was just a short walk away.

The Verdict

Overall, I had a solid trip on the Northeast Regional New York Penn to Boston route, and I would consider taking it again. The seats were comfortable, and I got lucky that no one sat next to me. But, it was unfortunate that the Wi-Fi did not work. I really like taking Amtraks and I hope the investments in infrastructure help make it better.

Have you taken Amtrak’s Northeast Regional New York to Boston route before? How was your experience? Comment below!

Cheers,

Ty

Have any questions? I’ve also started working with a travel agency, Fora Travel, and can assist in booking hotel stays or planning trips. Comment below or email me at takeofftotravel@gmail.com. You can also view all my other posts here! Thanks for stopping by!