A Real Missed Opportunity: Lack of an AGR Portal Partner

Over the past two years, I have really got into rewards travel with credit cards. Between Chase and Amex, I've collected probably 300,000 points and taken two trips so far.

I was looking to do some traveling recently and it hit me, I can't do anything with AGR.

I can book travel on a variety of airlines using Amex or Chase's travel portals, and I can pay with points or pay with cash.

Or I can transfer Amex or Chase points to a variety of airlines or hotels and book rewards directly with the airline or hotel.

IMO, I think Amtrak would benefit from being a partner to one of these portals, esp on the Northeast Corridor where they are competing with bus companies.

Mr. Primrose, when using rewards points, don't you have to fly when there have been two Blue Moons in the month and a whole bunch of qualifiers that make that one look straight forward?

I'm a member of United's plan, but I've never redeemed anything for my use. When checking in, it's much easier to remember your account number rather than your confirmation number. I've seen others holding up their phones at the boarding points, but I'm just not into that kind of stuff.

I've been traveling overseas annually of late running up some 25K of them each trip; I just donate the points to one military welfare charity or the other. Makes me wonder if Amtrak has ever approached any charity if they would accept points donations.

But I'm also in plans for four major hotel chains; those I use - they either have a room, or they do not. That's straight forward enough for me to understand.

I am confused... why can't you do anything with AGR? you can book reward trips, which is what I am precisely doing this coming Monday and have done before a number of times already

I agree.

Amtrak USED to allow Chase rewards points to be converted into Amtrak points and maybe vice-versa.

While the AGR program is generous, it’s really made for people who travel frequently on the Northeast Corridor. Lounge access and upgrades that don’t work for sleeping car space are useless on, say, trips between two stations on the long-distance network.

As a frequent flyer (I have top-tier status on one network airline), I’m constantly focused on ensuring that I get enough points to requalify, and it takes so many Amtrak points to book a sleeping car room that getting Amtrak points from a few trips is not an incentive. So if Amtrak did allow points to be transferred to American Express or Chase or an airline program, or, better yet, a trip on Amtrak to generate elite-qualifying points on an airline, that would be great.

Maybe Amtrak should have tie-ins with airlines only in certain routes; for example, Delta might like to offer SkyMiles on trips to or from American Airlines hub cities, American could offer Loyalty Points on trips to Atlanta; etc.

Amtrak pre-covid gad 30-32 million passengers per year, Southwest Airlines alone had 128 million passengers per year in 2020. That's four times more passengers with just one airline. Imagine how much more the airline passenger count was if we sum upped all of them?
Why should an airline frequent flyer reward program reward customers using the competition vehicles?

Mr. Norton, you are missing out. Gone are the days of that. I've booked two rewards flights on United this year and both were nothing but pleasant. I booked a flight over Memorial Day weekend to Nashville and a flight over Thanksgiving break to Albuquerque. I got direct flights to and from Nashville both at reasonable hours from Dulles. I had to layover at Denver due to no airline flies direct to ALB from the east coast but both flights were still reasonable hours. The airlines just use variable demand pricing now for rewards. Better flights do cost a few more points, but sometimes it is worth it, and sometimes you find great deals if you can be a little flexible.

I'm not suggesting that United allow me to use my United Miles on Amtrak, what I'm saying is this.

Amex, Chase and Citi all have their own rewards currency. Amex has Membership Rewards Points, Chase has Ultimate Rewards points and Citi has Thank You points.

I just booked a hotel in New York via Chase's portal. The hotel was $300 for 2 nights. I had the choice to pay $300 dollars, use 30,000 Ultimate Rewards Points, or create a combination of the two, and use both points and money.

Or

I could have transferred Chase rewards points directly to my Marriot account and booked directly through Marriot.

Amtrak has no mechanism for this to occur.

You have to remember that a co-branded card makes money in the pennies per transaction. But, it has to make money for the bank.

My guess is Amtrak simply doesn't have the volume to make a card currency like Chase, Amex or Citi offers worthwhile for the issuers.

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Amtrak has a co-branded card though. Lots of these companies do.

United has 4 co-branded cards with Chase that earn United Miles, or you can use one of Chase's cards to earn Ultimate Rewards to transfer to United.

Read what I wrote. Sure, they have a co-branded card with the First National Bank of Omaha, but FNBO does not offer a currency equivalent exchange program on the same level as what the big three offer.

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gprimr1 wrote: ↑Sun Dec 25, 2022 12:47 pm Mr. Norton, you are missing out. Gone are the days of that.

Mr. Norman, I presume.

Wow Mr. Primrose, I've been overseas (Salzburg) eight times in the past nine years. Seems like all the bonuses you get for Business Class (I couldn't survive that long a flight looking at the curtain) it's something in the range of 22k points per journey. Thanks for telling me the Blue Moon days are over (a few standup comedians also need be told), but I'm glad to have done my part to help veterans and their families who have sacrificed far more serving our country than I was ever called upon to do during my service.

Now I have a friend (yes; I have them) who "never pays for flights". She just collects points on one card or the other from living her life and uses them to visit her daughters in Reno and Atlanta (a third lives locally) and her Niece (a TV personality) in El Paso. But the routings she is offered on American (RNO-PHX-sit six hours for a red-eye-ORD) are not exactly nonstop (let's not get into her Southwest horror stories).

Gilbert B Norman wrote: ↑Sun Dec 25, 2022 3:33 pm Now I have a friend (yes; I have them) who "never pays for flights". She just collects points on one card or the other from living her life and uses them to visit her daughters in Reno and Atlanta (a third lives locally) and her Niece (a TV personality) in El Paso. But the routings she is offered on American (RNO-PHX-sit six hours for a red-eye-ORD) are not exactly nonstop (let's not get into her Southwest horror stories).

Considering the complete meltdown that happened over the Christmas weekend (Southwest getting the brunt and won't recover until practically next year) I think a ton of people will have those stories -- one was interviewed on my local news this morning, as BWI is a major Southwest hub.

That aside, I would agree Amtrak should have some sort of card-to-service deal. Take Amex (disclosure, I have an Amex Blue to pay down). Deals I can add to the card come from... Uber, Mandarin Oriental, Turo, Park & Fly, and the "Waldorf Astoria, Conrad, and LXR".

Yeeeeaaaaahhhhh. Amtrak better get on that to promote more bookings.

Not only that, I can take those savings and apply them in various forms (from cash back to gift cards). Amtrak could tie into travel gift cards here.

Nobody is saying "Use United points on Southwest" for example. Nobody is saying "use a dedicated branded card's features for some other competing brand." Those cards are basically loyalty cards. No, it's stand-alone cards to travel companies. That is what Amtrak should get on.

Last I heard, my friend Carol is in El Paso, along with her daughter celebrating Hanukkah with the Grand Niece. Considering everything going on in El Paso at present, the station wasn't about to let her go anywhere (and if she wants to make journalism a career, what a chance to cover hard news instead of celebrating a Hippo's birthday at the zoo ).

I have a co branded Hilton card. It saves me serious money

The more I look at Amtrak, the more I realize it needs to abandon the LD service and support NYC, DC, Florida, Chicago and LA. Amtrak, in my neck of the words, is a vitamin, one a day, not viable transportation.

All I know is I'm not about to put up with the crud some "points guy/gal" must. When I get on a flight, it is on the date, time. and class of service I choose. The same applies with Amtrak, should I again have the occasion.

There was one time Carol and her now-deceased husband had to put with ORD-RNO on United points. Try this one on for size: ORD-MSN-SUX-DEN/DEN-RNO. As I recall on the return, they did get RNO-DEN/DEN-ORD.

"That did it" for United.

On one journey I know of, she was able to "persuasioneer" her way on to an RNO-ORD nonstop on points. But then, she was Director of Development at a client of mine child welfare agency, so I guess that a stock in trade of her's.

I'm sorry volks, but "I can't see it". On that point, about two months ago, my Sister did JFK-LAX/LAX-SYD and return (Business Class) on United. I suggested she sign up for their plan. She "couldn't be bothered". So I guess "shun points" runs in the family!!

Mr Norman,

With Hilton, I’ve found “brownouts” based on peak date prices, but I’ve not found a hard blackout thus far.

With Southwest (and I understand you’ll never use it), I typically get one hops KC to anywhere.

With Amtrak, without their shuttle from KC, if I want to go to Northern California, I have to find a safe place to park my car in Omaha before leaving. Also, in KC, you have to pay for parking, or take Uber. (No, not a full ditto at KCI, several hotels will park for the duration for a one night stay). Amtrak is no longer a viable option.