This is the ClubAcela lounge for Amtrak in Union Station in Washington D.C. where you can relax before, after or during stops on before, after your choo-choo trip. There are others in Boston, NYC, Philly, etc. and each one is unique and this one checks all my boxes. We've been here sveral times over the years and we always appreciate the service, comfort and amenities here. My honey was just there a few days ago, but my last layover was a few months ago. There was one trip when my sweetheart wasn't feeling well and she was able to stretch out on a couch which was a godsend. Coffee, tea, water, soft drinks and snacks are complimentary and there's lots of comfy chairs and couches throughout. I appreciate the ability to check in your bags so venturing out into the station is made easy. ClubAcela is available to Amtrak customers traveling in First Class or sleeping car accommodations, Single-Day Pass holders, Select Plus and Select Executive members can bring immediate family members traveling together, or one, non-family guest. Bottom line: It's convenienly located near the platforms so you can relax and enjoy the comfortable, quiet lounge seating, complimentary non-alcoholic beverages, snacks and free WiFi, it's a great place to chill between trains, recommended!! read more

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This Club Acela is "iffy". Sometimes you encounter a very helpful attendant others not so much. That alone can affect your view. The lounge does have seating and I have not run into overcrowding issues. The food is strictly packaged goods; nothing fresh and if you care about your body you would be better off to leave them. read more

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For Club Acela DC I suppose it depends what you are comparing it with. Certainly compared to the grand NYC new Acela Club it pales and seems more like a bus terminal. Customer service varies from the pleasant and helpful to rude staff. There is a soda machine and a bag of chips but that is it for food offerings. There is some decent seating and you can get fairly direct access to the trains. read more

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Large and quiet with plenty of seating. It's a much better place to wait than out in the Union Station hallway but that is about the best that can be said. The staff at the desk isn't unfriendly but seem to work at their own pace. Free WiFi but so slow and spotty as to be nearly worthless. The coffee is surprisingly good, but you have to know the secret: to dispense, push the button that shows a POT of coffee. The button with the CUP of coffee icon doesn't work. Snacks are desultory muffins wrapped in plastic, potato chips, and popcorn. A few apples that looked well past their prime. The club has a soda fountain but the OJ was empty at 11am. There are a few stacks of free newspapers here and there. Overall, better than nothing but not an impressive lounge. A more pleasant choice for waiting would be to spend a few dollars on coffee or food and sit in one of the restaurants. read more

ClubAcela - Airport Lounges Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Well this is my first time taking an Amtrak train. Likewise my first experience in an amtrak lounge. While not loaded with amenities, it is clean and the employees are extremely helpful since I have many questions. There is a small snack station with small bags of popcorn, cheeseits, and a nut trail mix. There is a small soda station with Pepsi, diet pepsi, ginger ale, and lemonade. There is warm water and juice in bottles. The coffee and ice were broken. The lounge area has seats nicely spread out in a modern look and 2 TVs with local news on. There are departure TVs as well. When it's time for your train, there is a big announcement and you are taken to the train. I'd come again. read more

ClubAcela - Airport Lounges Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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In the 1980s I spent a lot of time in Union Station as I went to college here and would take Amtrak back home. After the renovation, it is a beautiful station and considering Biden's love of Amtrak, I thought the lounge would be beautiful. And I have to admit, the only other lounge I've been in was three weeks ago at the lounge at Moynihan Hall on NYC. They set the bar high. I have a 7 hour layover and based on my experience there, I figured no problem. Like NYC, they should have a large selection of sandwiches and salads, which were quite good by the way. Nope. All they have here are potato chips, packaged danish and muffins and a variety of drinks. I can't walk around well and after what another passenger just told me, the restaurants I've seen here, all fast food or fast casual, is outrageously expensive. So no real dinner for me. The staff seems very nice but the WiFi took several minutes before it allowed me to log on, the air conditioning alternates between the warm side of comfortable and a bit oppressive especially when you put on your mask. Within 90 seconds I have to take it off to catch my breath. Basic things like the outlets are in major disrepair. read more

ClubAcela - Plug looks unsafe to me. - Airport Lounges Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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Ok no free beers, buffet or anything but for some crackers/pretzels and soda/coffee; however, they have these wonderful two side doors- one heading east and one west which let's you board most of the trains ahead of time - and, if you have seen those long serpentine lines for general boarding, this privilege at Union Station is priceless. I don't like this gentrification but don't mind this little perk for the true road warriors. And yes, a cleaner restroom inside - which is also a perk if you have used the main restrooms at Union Station. Sorry, the Wifi still sucks - at least it did on this particular day. Since my train was waiting for an engine, I explored this place a bit more. They actually have two conference rooms (see pic) with speaker phones (see pic) which can hold a meeting for about 8 people! It's FCFS but you can reserve ahead. And, get this, you can invite non-members as attendees as long as the host is a member. There is a limit of 2 hours on reservations. read more

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Very quite lounge. At first I was impressed. The mice seem to highly recommend it. See photo and uploaded video interview. read more

ClubAcela - First class mouse enjoying the lounge - Airport Lounges Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

I am Amtrak's biggest fan. Seriously. I can sleep like a baby and/or get tons of work done on the train, and I love how convenient everything is on the Northeast corridor. When I got a free upgrade to First Class on Acela, I decided to actually get to Union a little (gasp!) early to check out the ClubAcela Lounge. The lounge is located between Gates D and E. It is endearing in a rundown, dated kind of way. There is free WiFi that seems to be a bit faster than the general WiFi throughout Union but, otherwise, it is nothing special. They do not allow you to bring in any outside food so thankfully (heavy, heavy sarcasm) they serve you delicious SaraLee's pastries! Also, as of March 2018, their only refreshment is very stale coffee. This is in no way comparable to a standard airline lounge so leave your expectations at the (scratched and squeaky) door. Apparently you can pay for ClubAcela access which, if you glean anything from this review, spare yourself. Instead, spend that money otherwise and head over to the Chipotle on the main floor (not the basement, they're stingy with their servings), grab yourself an infant-sized burrito, set up at a table, and await your train while engaging in people watching. read more

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Three stars strictly for the employees who are always polite and helpful. I use this club at least a couple of times a month. The only benefit is the ability to get away from the crowds and the cleaner bathroom. The decor needs a complete redesign and the snacks/beverages likewise need a lift. I hear they're planning on replacing this club with a new Metropolitan Lounge a la NYC and, if that's true, it can't come soon enough. read more

solid lounge. not sure it is worth the regular price, but we got it because they confirmed our reservation without noticing that they'd cancelled our first train months before. they got us on the next train & gave us lounge access. relaxing. nice. read more

Amtrak passengers with a same-day ticket (departing) or ticket receipt (arriving) in First Class or sleeping car accommodations can access Club Acela. United Club members (such as myself) with a valid United Club card may bring in up to two guests or their spouses and children under the age of 21. Additionally, United Global First or United BusinessFirst passengers with a flight coupon or boarding pass with a segment in United Global First or United BusinessFirst can also access the club . ClubAcela provides a quiet atmosphere where passengers may wait for their trains or unwind after detraining, which is what I did today for my morning arrival and late afternoon departure within the same day. The club itself is not as nice as most other airport clubs. This club is definitely dated. Complimentary non-alcoholic beverages and snacks, such as when I arrived in the morning were Sara Lee cheese danish and mild coffee. I am a Starbucks guy, but, what the hell this coffee is for free. There is a Starbucks just outside the club if I ever needed a real caffeine fix. When I arrived on my return they offered prepackaged pretzels and Pepperidge Farm Goldfish crackers. Complimentary wireless internet access, free local phone calls, fax and photocopy service, newspapers and periodicals, live television are also provided. But today I arrived earlier than my normal 5pm return so the normal outside line to change tickets had about a 20 minute wait. Well Club Acela provides attendants to assist with reservations, ticketing, local entertainment needs and in my case a change for an earlier Northeast regional express, which costs me an additional $32. Well worth the change and no waiting on lines. ClubAcela lounges are located in the following stations: Boston, New York - Penn Station, Philadelphia - 30th Street Station and the Washington, DC - Union Station. read more

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Just being able to pre-board the Acela and get settled before the unwashed masses fight for seats makes membership worth it. The club looks like it hasn't been remodeled since the day it was opened. A very early 90s doctor/dentist waiting room style pervades. That's sad with the rest of Union Station getting a huge facelift. Wifi barely functions and AT&T cell phones are 1-2 bars. About the only snacks are Pepperidge Farm goldfish with mini-pretzels on special occasions. There is no bar, just self-serve soda and coffee. Don't plan to spend much time here...just enough to pre-board. read more

ClubAcela is located inside of Union Station and is a bit of an oasis to get out of the noise and grind of Union Station and find a quiet place to work or relax. I got in due to my United Club membership. Make sure you carry your physical United Club card with you. The lady at the front desk allowed me in after showing my digital United Club card on my iPhone, but advised me in the future to bring it with me. I hung out for a bit and finished my cup of coffee. When the announcement is made for your train to board - there is a separate exit out of ClubAcela for folks using it - so you don't have to go back out into the main terminal and get in line. Great feature for travelers! read more

7:00 am on a busy Thursday and not even open. Ridiculous. For the ridiculous amount paid for an Acela ticket, they could at least open the lounge at the posted times. read more

Clean, and comfortable, but not that spacious though (-.5 star). It's a wonderful respite from the rest of the station. Another -.5 star for not letting you bring outside food into the club...not all of us want to sit out in the crowd to eat!! The snacks inside are also lacking, with usually only goldfish or pretzels, or muffins and danish packages for breakfast. read more

Clean, comfortable unassuming space amidst a sea of turbulence known as Union Station. Complimentary food, drinks and periodicals is a nice touch....even if one cannot eat food purchased elsewhere, secure baggage is available. Members must ring the doorbell to be buzzed in, but the check-in process is effortless (just flash your ticket). As an alternative, one could choose to sit just outside the club doors with the homeless. This space exceeds the "you get what you pay for" standard - that's all I needed (I don't travel Amtrak for their club facilities). read more

ClubAcela - Airport Lounges Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Entering with reasonable expectations is the key to enjoying your time here. This IS NOT an airline club. It is a quiet and clean place to spend some time waiting for your train. It is also an amazingly efficient way to get onboard the train since you get to board early and avoid the endless line in the regular waiting room. Contrary to most reports I have had very friendly attendants at the check in desk and when boarding the train. Expect packaged food (from the center of Costco), fountain soda and some coffee. read more

everything you have come to expect (and not expect) in this slightly run down faculty. it was disappointing to be informed that after general boarding was announced our attendant informed us we needed to exit the club and join the end of the extremely long line to board. this is the first time at this club that i wasn't escorted to the track ahead of general boarding. read more

I had a very negative experience with ClubAcela. I typically use a Red Cap and just wait in their area in the station, but since I had an upgraded ticket decided to check ClubAcela out. After I was buzzed in, no one welcomed me. The receptionist was looking at the computer & no one else is was around. When I finally said "hello" as I assumed I should check in, she plainly stated "hold on" and didn't even bother to look up. This set the tone for the entire experience. When she finally looked at my ticket, she said, I could help myself to refreshments and I'd be called to board when my train arrived. I made the mistake of looking at the large baskets of snacks on the counter that another receptionist had brought over; she snapped "You're snacks are over there" pointing to a table just a couple feet away. No one explained where I could store my luggage; I had to ask. When it was time for my train, I wasn't sure where to go, so asked the receptionist where the "East Doors" were. She looked annoyed and stated, "Around the corner. The ones that say East Doors in big letters." This was not visible from where I had been sitting and I found her response incredibly rude. To make matters worse, when I got to the East Doors (about 3 minutes after it was announced) my usher/escort was gone!!! The only reason I'm giving this 2 stars is that I got a glass of ginger ale and a Twix bar for free. I would've enjoyed a Kind bar more, but apparently those snacks weren't for me!! A kind Red Cap directed me to my train after I got left behind; Red Caps always get 5 stars from me!! read more

Very dated with a boring selection of snacks. No outside food allowed. The furniture and pictures look straight out of the 90's or an episode of Seinfeld. Two TV's, one with CNN, and the other playing the gospel channel, plus multiple departure tv screens. Plenty of furniture. Free WiFi. Free coffee and tea, and soda. Very lacking for people paying higher train ticket prices. It is quiet and away from the public if you have to do business work. Staff was very friendly. read more

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Not the best Club Acela I've been to. Not really clean, very dated. Snacks were pitiful. The area hadn't been refilled and it was only 11:30 on a weekday, so who knows how long it really had been sitting out there. No announcement of priority boarding, so I ended up missing that. It's so much nicer inside Union Station, there isn't much of a benefit to being in the lounge here. read more

For what it is, it's not too bad. Decor is certainly below the level of most airline lounges but it's way more comfortable and cleaner than waiting at the gate area. One advantage is that you can board directly from the lounge and avoid the 200 yard line that starts forming a half hour before departure. This means you'll probably get first pick of the seats if your train originates here. They also process ticketing here if you're Select Plus and seem to be much faster than anyone doing it out front. More importantly, the bathrooms are immaculate. There are a couple of snacks (like bags of pretzels), a coffee machine, soda fountain, a couple of TVs, and newspapers. Most likely you're not arriving more than an hour early to catch a train so it's adequate enough. These are also probably the friendliest employees in the Amtrak system so that always makes the wait much more pleasant. read more

The Acela Club at Union Station needs a few lessons on customer service. I frequent the club once a week and the service is always spotty. Asking the "agents" at the front desk to do anything beyond scanning your Guest Rewards card is seen as an inconvenience. The two "agents" that work the weekday afternoon shift do nothing but gossip and try to avoid extra work. I understand that the club is a perk, but have some respect for your frequent customer. Typical Amtrak - lazy, inefficient, and out-dated. read more

The Washington Club Acela is located near the gates in the middle of the concourse at Union State. It is Amtrak's first class lounge. Acela Express First Class ticketholders, passengers traveling in sleeper service on long distance routes, Amtrak Guest Rewards Select Plus member, and Continental Airlines President Club members. The lounge is modeled of off airline style lounges. It differs in a few major areas, for one there is no bar and the food offerings a bit more limited then what can be found is most airline lounges. Second, the décor isn't as sleek as most of the airline counterparts. Unlike airline lounges with views of the runways, this lounge is windowless, then again it can be hard to hold this against Amtrak. One of the best benefits to the lounge access is the clean bathrooms. It seems like public use Amtrak station bathrooms are a usually a magnet for homeless people and drug users. In my countless visits to the lounge, they were always clean. Another great feature of the lounge is the free use of conference rooms. Just call in advance and you can hold a meeting there free of charge. I view this as one of the best perks, even when you aren't traveling. read more

The ladies manning the desk are friendly, helpful, proficient, and accommodating! If you get there early they might be able to get you on the earlier train. Given the volume of people who travel each day and take these trains I am grateful for the extra comfort given to frequent travelers like myself. It is clean and comfortable. Of course an update would be nice but it serves its purpose and it gets lots of traffic. The drinks and a few snacks are fine make the up keep easy to maintain and the tracks are super close. read more

What a waste of space. 7 AM on a weekday, no coffee, a basket of vending machine quality muffins... all it does is keep you out of the main station. They could do so much better, it would be easy, since they're doing nothing now. Zero stars. read more

Love the private waiting room for the members. And a place to leave your luggage safely. Excellent customer service. The furniture can use a facelift though. read more

Washington DC Union Station Club Acela- we are traveling Amtrak cross country and have access to the Club Acela lounges. Couldn't find much info ahead of time so here's my input. Decent place. Friendly people. Minimum snacks, breakfast time was about 10 individually wrapped blueberry muffins, lunch time, very small pkgs of pretzels or goldfish crackers. Coffee /sodas/ hot and cold water in cups. Space for relaxing was large and ample. Furniture : warn. To leave baggage for the Day was easy and rather safe. Right next to the check in desk is a room (8x10?) you walk in and set your luggage down. We brought sandwiches in from the station, could not eat them in the lounge(!)- we had to go back out to union station to eat them. All in all I'd use again and recommend. read more

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I thought I can have lunch here, but I was not able to do it. no outside food permitted. The staff of the club is much more polite than other general Amtrak employees. Let you early boarding. Feeling the room like in 1990s. read more

ClubAcela - No outside food! - Airport Lounges Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

This place is a time warp of sorts. Dated. Uncomfortably dated. Pre-boarding is a treat but apparently that's Acela only. I'd actually have to admit that there are plenty of other spots preferable in Union Station than this. Staff is great, hence the two stars. read more

Union Station's Club Acela is dated and no longer offers as many free snacks as it used to. While Amtrak should invest in upgrades, it is definitly worth stopping in before your train leaves if you are a first class passenger on Acela Express or a sleeping car passenger on one of their long distance trains. There is a back door out of the club which allows for priority boarding onto the trains without the hassle of waiting in line at the main gates. If your aim is to get a single seat on the Express beware that folks start lining up by the rear doors about 20 minutes before departure. While you cannot bring in outside food, they do have a soda fountain and generally have a tray of packaged pasteries/ pretzels/ cookies. You can also leave your bags in the lounge if you are traveling the same day and don't want to have to carry them around the city with you. read more

So, it's comfortable and convenient...gets a little crowded from time to time. But way nicer than sitting outside the gate for trains. Other benefits: soda machine and little bags of Goldfish. You have to know where ClubAcela is located, there's very little signage...it's like gaining access to a speakeasy, so that's kind of fun. I think it's between Gates D and E (if that's not the exact location, it's not too far away)....large double wood doors. There are two conference rooms...I've never used them, but they look like standard issue conference rooms...could be convenient in a pinch. Oh, the rest rooms are much nicer than the loo's in the main terminal. Basically, if you're expecting an American/United type lounge, you might be disappointed. However, there is a HUGE benefit to access to ClubAcela: once inside, you're invited to board the train about 15 minutes before the crowd at the outside gate (lines for evening trains in Union Station start 45-60 minutes before the train departs). The early boarding benefit is well worth the price for admission for a train that doesn't have assigned seats and are often at full capacity. read more