No, the 2,500 bonus points won't help with status. Status can only be earned based upon the points earned by riding Amtrak, and then only the base points count. Bonus points of any type do not count towards status, nor do points earned from other sources like the online mall or from say Hilton Honors. One needs to earn 5,000 base points each calendar year to maintain Select Status, and 10,000 base points to achieve/maintain Select Plus status.
I'm not sure I agree with that assessment. There was much arguing back and forth within Amtrak about that issue. The official policy is that, when using the upgrade coupon, one would *never* have to pay a higher bucket fare than booked (which, in many cases, would require a manual override). It was implied that you would have to lose the discount. However, this year, the upgrade coupons have a line that reads something to the effect of (going off of memory here since I don't have a coupon handy to check) "agent must not collect additional fare from original fare paid." That line would imply that even discounts such as AAA/NARP would not be forfeited when using the coupons.
You are partially correct, if one has made the correct reservation prior to submitting the coupon, then one does not have to pay for any increases in the pricing bucket system. However, if one fails to book a fare that is valid for the promotion, then all bets are off. Valid fares are as follows:
So AAA, NARP, and other discounts are not valid passenger types. And therefore I would believe that the agent would have no choice but to cancel the original reservation and make a new one at the prevailing price. I'm not even sure if the agent can tell what bucket the discounted fare was from, since it was discounted.
With Select Plus status you would get 150 AGR rail points. That amount includes 100 points for the ticket itself all of which would count towards status. The other 50 points represents the 50% bonus for Select Plus status and does not count towards status for the next year.
I agree. And this, along with the larger point allocation for Acela rides (Business Class 500, First Class 750 v. 2 points per $1) leads me to believe that AGR is designed for and targeted at folks who live in the Northeast and have the option of riding the train between Boston and Washington.
There is no doubt in my mind that the AGR program was designed to reward the frequent Business traveler on the NEC. Everything is geared towards that and was even more so when the program first came out. About two years ago Amtrak attempted to address that inequity a bit, when they came out with the 100 point mimum. Prior to that, it was really hard for a commuter on a non-NEC train to gain any type of status.
I'd say that you've got a very good chance that the points should be up before your trip. It shouldn't take more than 2 weeks for them to post, unless there is some problem. And even if you don't have your kit and new AGR card, your online account will show the new status once this trip posts and the AT trip will automatically accrue the bonus.
I think you have to wait until next year to get the benefits.
No, AFAIK, as soon as he qualifies he gets the status for the rest of this year, and for next year. It's a bit of a bonus that AGR gives out.
It seems to be hit or miss about getting the actual kit if you qualify during the middle of the year. Generally from reports that I've seen, the earlier in the year that you qualify, the better the chance that you'll get the kit. Most people that I've seen reporting, who qualified after September/October, did not get kits. If they qualified before that, generally they do seem to get kits.
Metropark = work a/k/a the thing I do for money. I went down to visit the East Coast office of a West Coast client of mine. The office is a very easy walk from the train station. In fact my primary contact has a very good view of the station from his office. If I had that office, my productivity would plummet. :lol:
