I travelled business class on Amtrak's high-speed Acela train and thought it was worth paying extra for a quicker journey

I recently spent three hours in business class on the Acela Amtrak train from Baltimore to New York City. I had a decent experience that left me thinking I'd do it again.

Acela is an Amtrak express train on the East Coast with only business and first-class seating. My trip from Baltimore to NYC took two hours and 25 minutes — about 20 minutes faster than a regular Amtrak train.

Previously, I've spent 60 hours on Amtrak trains between Miami and NYC, but this was my first trip on an Acela train. Between Miami and NYC, I travelled in Bedroom and Roomette accommodations, which cost hundreds more than my Acela ticket.

Two weeks before my trip, I booked a standard, business-class Amtrak Acela ticket for $121. A coach ticket on a regular Amtrak train costs around $62, according to a search on Amtrak's website for February — the same month I traveled — next year.

I got to Baltimore's Penn Station at around 3 p.m. for my 4:29 p.m. train on a Tuesday afternoon.

It was my first time leaving from Baltimore's Penn Station, and I couldn't find any outlets to charge my phone, so I picked up a puzzle book from the newsstand inside to pass the time.

At 4:15 p.m., I made my way down to the platform to wait for my train.

The train arrived three minutes late at 4:32 p.m., and I boarded immediately, ensuring I was on the business-class car.

As I boarded the train, I noticed that the seats looked larger than those on other trains I had been on in the past. They also seemed to me to be closer together than seats on other trains I'd been on.

Since the seats were big, I thought they'd be comfy but they were stiffer than I expected.

For the first couple of hours, I had plenty of room with an empty seat next to me. But when someone sat there towards the end of my ride, I felt crammed.

But I had adequate legroom. Below me, a footrest pulled out from the seat-back chair.

Above me, as with every other Amtrak I'd been on, there was a reading light, although I didn't use it since my trip was during the day.

Next to my feet, there were two outlets to charge my devices, which I appreciated since I wasn't able to charge my phone at the station in Baltimore.

A tray table pulled out from the back of the seat in front of me so I could work on my laptop.

There was also a seat-back pocket, but it was only large enough to fit my puzzle book. It seemed to be around the same size as the seat-back pockets on other Amtrak trains I'd taken, though.

The train ride felt bumpy to me the whole time, which I expected since I've traveled on Amtrak trains before.

I enjoyed looking out the window while catching up on podcast episodes.

I got a little hungry, but there was no food service in business class, so I made my way to the cafe car. It was a bumpy walk.

The cafe had tables and stools, or you could take your food back to your seat.

Similar to other Amtrak trains I've been on, the menu in the cafe car had a wide variety of options from salads and sandwiches to cheeseburgers and hot dogs, but I wasn't that hungry, so I got a cheese and cracker plate for $5.75.

It was decent and filled me up for the price.

Overall, my business-class experience on an Amtrak Acela was decent and affordable. I'll probably take an Amtrak Acela next time I'm traveling around the Northeast because I think it's worth paying a little extra to save time.

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