Have you used the shower on the train? Next time I travel on the sleeper I'll be going classic and taking the shower at the station on the basis that the water will be hot. And it's cheaper.
The shower on the train is not luxury, it's the sort of affair you might find in a static caravan.
Although admittedly the en suite toilet was very useful.
I enjoyed my trip. The level of moaning on here is out of all proportion really.
To be fair a lot of the moaning is justified when it centres around either the cbr, or the small aspects which are absent on the Mk5s which had otherwise made the Mk3 travel experience much better. If Serco can get the design of the berths right and adjust the minor grumblings that contribute massively to passenger experience, and sort out the 'teething issues' which have been going on waaaay to long, then people will notice the major difference which the Mk5s provide. Admittedly there are areas where the Mk5s will never match the Mk3s, but the same goes vice versa, so I'd like to assume that
once if Serco get their act together then people will see the Mk5s on their merits, and not their shortfalls compared to the Mk3s. And to be honest, I'm struggling to do that just now.
Passengers tend to base their opinions on few negatives, rather than the huge positives. It's a habbit most of us have probably had at some stage. Where there's one negativity or difference, the whole thing's knackered. This is no exception with the Mk5s. Sort out the little stuff, and the rest will follow.
It feels like most negative reviews are following the same sort of pattern which justifies this. Something along the lines of;
"Food? Great. Service? Great. Shower? Adequate. Punctuality? Great. En-suite functioning? Great. Ride quality? Adequate. Comfort? Great. Sleep? Undisturbed. Space? Awful, can't move the ladder and the plug sockets and wifi didn't work. 1 out of 5, and I will not be back"
I have heard of people complaining of taps being either too hot or too cold on the Mk5s, without realising that there is an adjustable handle as opposed to two taps. Or people who expect a silent ride despite common sense dictating that it is simply unachievable when moving through cross country on Victorian alignments at 80mph. By all means complain where it's justified, but a few need to rethink their parameters. But at the end of the day, the one's who need to do this most is Serco.
