Henry Littleton wrote:

A few weeks ago, I did a day return trip on the flagship Amtrak 'Acela
Express' down the Northeast corridor between New York Penn station and
Washington. The journey took 2h45m at 150mph, and the train consisted
of 4 Business (Standard here) coaches, 1 First coach and 1 very
pleasant Cafe (buffet) coach. The service provided by the attendant
in the First coach was fantastic with a range of complimentary snacks
and beverages throughout.

The return fares were as follows:-

Peak Business rtn fa £160
Peak First rtn fa £250

Now, compare this with Virgin West Coast from here in Euston to
Manchester. The journey time is very similar at 2h40m but obviously
the distance covered is far less than above.

Peak return fares with Virgin a-

Std Open rtn: £182
1st Open rtn: £280

Make your own conclusions, but who is better value for money? Before
anyone says Virgin have great Value fares, so do Amtrak on the Acela!

I discussed the crazy fares in the UK with some fellow passengers on
board and it was clear who offered better value for money (oh, and
better trains). Clearly, us residents of London have to put up with
ridiculous over-priced fares compared to the residents of another
capital (Washington). It's a mockery and just showed me how better
value other rail connections to capital cities overseas were compared
to London.

It has to be said though, if you pay full whack for first class trains
in the UK you need your head examined.

Virgin no longer seem to offer the giveaway Virgin Value First deals so
much (they were fantastic) but you can still get better deals than the
above.

I know your point is a valid one though, because a lot of people pay
that (business people for instance) and they get away with it.

Dan