Tips on getting Amtrak Rooms/Roomettes on the Cheap? (price, routes, cheapest)

[RunningNorm]

Hello, all!

I have been a frequent user of Amtrak over the years, but have always slept in the regular cars. I don't mind it too much, as I have learned to bring adequate food, entertainment, and adult bevy's.

But, the biggest problem I have with the regular cars is that since I normally travel alone, the conductors tend to pair me up with other males traveling alone. The last thing I want to do is curl up next to another male for a night's sleep.

So, does anyone have any tips/insider info on getting rooms or roomettes on the cheap? Any help/advice you have is greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

[Alaskan Mutt]

Unless things have changed Amtrak will offer an unknown amount of rooms at their lowest price. Once that number of rooms have been reserved the price goes up to their next level. Once the allotment at that price are booked they raise the price again to the next level. Thus to get the cheapest prices you need to book far in advance. If you are not locked into a certain travel date you might find lower prices simply by changing your travel date by a day or two. On routes that have more than 1 train a day you might find lower prices by taking a different departure time. The only other thing I can suggest is to check with the conductor when boarding to see if they have any unsold rooms. They might give you a break on price if there are several unsold rooms.

[SunGrins]

I found cheaper roomette rates by booking at least a month ahead and traveling on Monday or Tuesday (Southwest Chief). Flexible travel dates will open up some possibilities so go online and plug in different dates if you have that flexibility. I suspect that some of this is seasonal fluctuation and there may be less available in summer...I travelled in March.