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IrelandSimon Wilson's Amtrak shift comes with an upgrade request
The travel creator joins the Auto Train crew, trading passenger comforts for manifests, toilet checks and dinner preparations.
Simon Wilson
Story of Why this story? The video opened at a pace of 653,247 views a day, 17 times a normal first day on this channel (39,130).
I Got a Job on America's Sleeper Train
Video summary
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- 1:38Supervisor Joe lends Wilson a tie and introduces the paperwork needed before departure.
- 5:10Wilson carries manifests through the double-decker train to deliver them to crew members.
- 11:05Toilet inspections introduce him to the crew's hourly barcode-scanning check system.
- 12:00Rick requests a roomette upgrade, but Joe explains that onboard upgrades are no longer permitted.
- 15:21Rick reveals that he works for NASA, turning the conversation towards the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope.
- 18:25Wilson joins Monica for dining-car preparations before being offered the dinner announcement.
Simon Wilson arrives for his first Amtrak shift with a conductor's hat and a uniform shirt, but still needs to borrow a tie. Operations supervisor Joe supplies an equally important welcome: "And you're late."
In "I Got a Job on America's Sleeper Train", Wilson works aboard the Auto Train from Lorton, Virginia, to Sanford, Florida. The video drew roughly 356,000 views in nine hours, an unusually fast start for his channel. For a creator whose most-watched travel films include first-class trains, flights and cruises, this trip offers a different view of the service: he's helping provide it.
That means carrying passenger manifests through the double-decker train, inspecting toilets and learning the hourly barcode-scanning checks. Later, dining attendant Monica brings him into the preparations for dinner, and Joe offers him a turn on the intercom.
The neatest reversal comes when passenger Rick asks about upgrading from coach to a roomette. Wilson is suddenly on the receiving end of the sort of travel request viewers associate with him. Joe explains that the crew can no longer arrange onboard upgrades, but helps Rick find empty coach seats instead. The role reversal has become a talking point in the comments, alongside requests for more travel-related working shifts.
Even in uniform, Wilson finds time for a passenger conversation. Rick turns out to be an astrophysicist working on NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. A question about a better seat becomes a dining-car chat about space.
Published on Trari
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What viewers say
Someone asking Simon for an upgrade is proper full circle! Hilarious
@theinstantclassicchristiancageSee it on YouTubeHonestly.. this should be a new series where Simon does jobs like this that're around travelling and shows the behind the scenes of how everything and everyone works so hard. Awesome video & just like your time on the train, the video flew by without a pause!
@moistmansion6927See it on YouTubeSimon it was truly a pleasure having you on board. You can come and work for my crew anytime!
@joepoole1825See it on YouTube
5 more comments
Crew 1 baby!!! Simon you were awesome man, that was a good trip!
-Bryan@ZombiTheHomunculusPlaysSee it on YouTubeSpinoff YouTube channel idea “Simon Works!” Simon goes around the world doing odd jobs. Kind of like dirty jobs but with a new spin focused on travel related jobs.
@willdogsdroidSee it on YouTubeNow get a job overnight at a Waffle House.
@MJ-2797See it on YouTubeSimon with a tie what a lovely guy
@msf8See it on YouTubeIn a bad mood? just throw on a Simon vid, that positive energy is infectious.
@JayWhyBayAreaSee it on YouTube
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- Channel
- Simon Wilson
- Subscribers
- 2,270,000 ▲ 10,000 this week
- Channel views, last 7 days
- 7,016,510
- Channel views, pace per day
- 1,100,998 (on a normal day: 976,045)
- Video published
- November 4, 2026
- Video views so far
- 355,628 (less than a day online)
- Video views, pace per day
- 653,247
The numbers
The sleeper-train upload is running well ahead of Simon Wilson's usual opening pace. Its first-day projection is an estimate, not a completed day's views.
💡 Test your knowledge
Which space agency does passenger Rick work for?
Rick tells Wilson he works for NASA and discusses the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope.