The reporter has sampled five Amtrak booking types — coach, business class, first class, roomettes, and bedrooms.Joey Hadden/Business InsiderI've spent enough time on Amtrak trains to know that more expensive doesn't always mean better.And the best deal isn't always the cheapest.I figured out which upgrade is most worth it.I travel by train every chance I get.Over the past five years, I've spent roughly 154 hours crisscrossing the US on Amtrak trains, and each time, I've had a different experience.I've lounged on a couch in a private bedroom with a full bathroom, transformed two seats into a bunk in a 20-square-foot cabin called a roomette, and received complimentary meals in the dining car on overnight trains.I've also saved money in coach and upgraded to business and first class on shorter rides.In total, I've sampled five different booking types on 10 trains from the Northeast to the Southwest. One premium seat offers the best value for the upgrade.I spent $50 on a four-hour ride in coach, the most basic seating car.Joey Hadden/Business InsiderIn May 2025, I took the Amtrak Cascades train from Vancouver, British Columbia, to Seattle. For the four-hour ride, I rode in coach, where seating was first-come, first-served.Coach has the smallest seat of all the classes, but it's still pretty big and comfy, especially compared to a basic economy flight.Like on a plane, the seats reclined, and the seat backs had tray tables and storage pouches. Each row also had power outlets and overhead reading lights.I've taken three business-class Amtrak rides.Joey Hadden/Business InsiderIn 2022, I spent $120 on a two-and-a-half-hour ride in business class on Amtrak's Acela train from Baltimore to New York City.Unlike regular Amtrak trains with several coach train cars, the Acela fleet has only business and first-class seating.The Acela is also faster than Amtrak regional trains. My trip from Baltimore to NYC was 20 minutes shorter than it would have been on a regular Amtrak train.A few months later, I booked a 10-hour ride on an Amtrak Maple Leaf train from NYC to Niagara Falls, New York. I paid $168 for a business-class seat, which was $100 more than a coach booking on the same train.Three years later, I paid $180 for a business-class seat from NYC to Washington, DC, on the new NextGen Acela train that launched in August 2025.All of them included a roomy seat and a complimentary drink.Joey Hadden/Business InsiderA representative of the train line told Business Insider that business-class perks on all Amtrak trains also include fully refundable rides if they're canceled before departure and a 25% point bonus on Amtrak Guest Rewards.The business-class seats were wider than the ones in coach, but they weren't significantly more comfortable on the first two rides, in my opinion. The seat on the NextGen Acela was wider and much cozier than the others. None of the tickets included a meal or in-seat service like the higher-tier cars.Overall, the bookings didn't have as many perks as I expected in a premium cabin.While I wouldn't upgrade to business class on most Amtrak trains, I would still book a seat on the Amtrak Acela train again. I think it's worth paying a little extra to save time and arrive at my destination sooner than I would on a regional train.I've booked two first-class seats on Amtrak trains.First-class seats on the Nextgen Acela train.Joey Hadden/Business InsiderThe Acela is Amtrak's only train with first-class cars. I first experienced it in 2022 on a two-and-a-half-hour trip from NYC to Baltimore that cost $270.I rode in first class again on Amtrak's NextGen Acela train in 2025. My ticket cost $450 when the fleet was just weeks into service. More recent pricing shows $275 for the same booking three weeks in advance.Both included a meal, access to station lounges, and an even larger chair.Joey Hadden/Business InsiderAs a New Yorker, part of the allure of a first-class ticket for me was having access to Penn Station's Metropolitan Lounge, a quiet waiting area for select Amtrak customers with comfortable seats and free snacks.First-class passengers and those traveling in roomette and bedroom accommodations get in for free on the day of their trip, while other passengers can pay $50 to access the club.Anyone traveling from Philadelphia, Boston's South Station, and Washington, DC, also has access to a lounge. But 10 other stops on the Amtrak Acela don't offer this perk.On both trains, the first-class seats were larger than those in business class, but I didn't find them significantly more comfortable.First-class tickets also come with a complimentary meal and in-seat service. I found that the food was significantly better on the second ride.Although first class had more perks than business class, comfort on the ride is the most important thing for me when traveling by train. And while the first-class seats were larger than the business-class seats, they weren't upgraded enough to justify the price, in my opinion.Howeve
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