Back to the negative aspects of the trip, just for a moment, I did complain online to Amtrak. What could be their response? Gee, sorry you had a bad trip? Points or partial refund? Voucher towards another trip?
If it were my choice, I'd take points towards Amtrak rewards and/or a voucher. (lots of points, LoL!)
And how long does it usually take for them to respond? It's been just about a month now.
I took an ill-fated trip on the Empire Builder in June when we left Chicago four hours late, which really doomed the run from the start and arrived several hours late into Spokane. We were bussed from there to Seattle. On board the buses, an irate passenger was collecting others' contact information with the intention of sending a mass complaint letter to AMTRAK. Knowing "better", I waited until my return to Seattle, then called AMTRAK on the phone. When there is a problem (such as several years ago when a freight derailment at Cut Bank necessitated a bus bridge between Havre and Whitefish) which is not AMTRAK's fault, I am more forgiving. But in this case there wasn't one but two bad diners. The third was the charm, but it cost us four hours before we even left Union Station. Bottom line, they won't refund Guest Reward points, but will probably give you a voucher for whatever amount to be used within a year. At least that was my experience. I was satisfied with the amount and this was all done the day I arrived back in Seattle. I received the voucher within the week and will use it toward my next trip.
