Will you try for AGR status in 2016?

I only made select once. My trips are $28 RT, so it used to be 200. Now it will be 56. Definitely no way of doing that. And I have 30k points, once I redeem my one trip I'll probably never accumulate enough for another one because virtually 99% of my trips are LNC-PHL with the $28 RT.

In conjunction with the OTP collapse on various LD trains at inconvenient times (October 2014 for the Cap, for example) my use of the east-west trains has basically disintegrated. I'm now to the point that I use Amtrak on an almost exclusive north-south basis and Virgin America (or VIA Rail) on an East-West basis. I'd love to take Amtrak east-west some more, but for a host of reasons (I have Gold on VX and Premiere on VIA) the other options are simply more palatable.

Also, the CC situation ironically undermined any need to take Amtrak to the same extent: I can now get 40% of my TQPs for SE from my cards, so I only need to spend $5-6k on Amtrak for SE now (I functionally needed to spend about $9000-9500 before...I usually scooped perhaps 1000-2000 TQPs off of the 100-point minimum), and that $6000 spend nets me 43-44k points/yr (maybe a hair more depending on how some bonuses are calculated, if Double Days still applies, etc.). That plus the other $35k/yr spend on the CC getting me about 35-40k as well, so...I should probably be looking at somewhere in the range of 80-90k points/yr on Amtrak...

...and believe me, I can run up $6000 on Amtrak without too much trouble. Without getting into the nitty gritty of it, trips to Florida (either to duck high VX airfares out of WAS/NYC or for dedicated business purposes) should cover a majority of my TQP needs, with the remainder being trips to/from Washington and one or two Starlight, Cascades, and/or Montreal trips.

I know I'm so many standard deviations off of the "normal" customer and there are some oddities in my earning patterns, but it seems that when a comprehensive overhaul of a program results in the spend needed to earn status dropping by between 1/3 and 1/2 while spend costs generally rise, something is a bit off.

Devil's Advocate said:

rtabern said:

Unlike others on the forum I'm not mad at Amtrak or AGR folks.

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I don't recall a lot of anger toward Amtrak so much as general cynicism toward the perpetual dilution of loyalty programs and disappointment with AGR's choice of partnering with BOA.

rrdude said:

Would NEVER SPEND the "real cash" for an Amtrak LD trip in a bedroom. The cost-benefit ratio is just WAY out of whack.

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I'm actually kind of amazed how little we talk about how much Amtrak charges for long distance bedroom trips. I wonder if bedroom travelers realize they could fly first class for similar money or even less.

rrdude said:

Will it matter to Amtrak? Not one iota.

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That will likely depend on how much revenue rises versus how much passenger numbers decrease.

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Your point about First Class (well, domestic First) being on par with/cheaper than a sleeper ticket is fairly on point. I've basically "split the baby" on a lot of trips where I can by taking the train to Florida, meeting with a business partner for a day or two, and then continuing west out of MCO...and breaking even, cost-wise, on what a flight from WAS/NYC would have cost me. Being used to Amtrak's prices really saved me some sticker shock, but...then again, as I observed to someone around the time of that first trip, the prices I was used to on Amtrak for an LD sleeper ticket basically meant that I'd wandered out of the 1970s in terms of both pricing and service expectations and was looking at a lot of modern "economy" offerings as being cheap in all senses of the word.*

*The only time I've knowingly and willingly flown in something akin to Economy was when a friend and I took PEOPLExpress' inaugural flight PHF-BOS. I then spent the day taking two Acelas and the Meteor home (points run 4TW!) and my friend spent most of the day asleep before retrieving me from the Richmond train station. Bearing in mind this was a "stupidly deep discount carrier", we really did it because (1) it was an inaugural, (2) the flight was half-empty, and therefore (3) we didn't pay anything in the add-on fees and just switched seats once the sign went off. Since it was opening day, as we sort-of hoped, service was above what I'd expect from most carriers and there was a light breakfast buffet at the airport to promote things...and I've still got a travel mug from that morning from them. Then again, I remember taking my briefcase-with-laptop over to Amtrak and, having dressed up for the occasion, looking like I'd wandered out of the 1950s and onto the Acela.

Anderson said:

The only time I've knowingly and willingly flown in something akin to Economy was when a friend and I took PEOPLExpress' inaugural flight PHF-BOS. I then spent the day taking two Acelas and the Meteor home (points run 4TW!)...

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Had to check that you meant the 2010s airline using that name. Back in the days when the original PEOPLExpress was having inaugurals, there wasn't any such thing as the Acela -- or Amtrak points runs, for that matter.

trainman74 said:

Anderson said:

The only time I've knowingly and willingly flown in something akin to Economy was when a friend and I took PEOPLExpress' inaugural flight PHF-BOS. I then spent the day taking two Acelas and the Meteor home (points run 4TW!)...

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Had to check that you meant the 2010s airline using that name. Back in the days when the original PEOPLExpress was having inaugurals, there wasn't any such thing as the Acela -- or Amtrak points runs, for that matter.

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Thanks. I had no idea what I was reading. I just knew something wasn't right.

Devil's Advocate said:

trainman74 said:

Anderson said:

The only time I've knowingly and willingly flown in something akin to Economy was when a friend and I took PEOPLExpress' inaugural flight PHF-BOS. I then spent the day taking two Acelas and the Meteor home (points run 4TW!)...

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Had to check that you meant the 2010s airline using that name. Back in the days when the original PEOPLExpress was having inaugurals, there wasn't any such thing as the Acela -- or Amtrak points runs, for that matter.

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Thanks. I had no idea what I was reading. I just knew something wasn't right.

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Well, when the 1980s airline existed, I didn't! (Well, there's technically a 4-5 day overlap...I came into existence on 1/27 while they ceased to exist as a company on 2/1).

Anderson said:

Devil's Advocate said:

trainman74 said:

Anderson said:

The only time I've knowingly and willingly flown in something akin to Economy was when a friend and I took PEOPLExpress' inaugural flight PHF-BOS. I then spent the day taking two Acelas and the Meteor home (points run 4TW!)...

Click to expand...

Had to check that you meant the 2010s airline using that name. Back in the days when the original PEOPLExpress was having inaugurals, there wasn't any such thing as the Acela -- or Amtrak points runs, for that matter.

Click to expand...

Thanks. I had no idea what I was reading. I just knew something wasn't right.

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Well, when the 1980s airline existed, I didn't!

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Yeah, I was quite confused there for a moment. Just like the first time I discovered Pan Am had risen from the grave as a short line railroad.

Well, I have a bunch of LD trips planned for this year, but with the Surfliner loosing its 100 point minimum, its going to be much more difficult to get Select Plus for year 3.

The loss of 100 point minimums is n/a for me. Not enough trains. Not even a glimmer of hope for any kind of status under either program so I've never even looked at the details.

No anger toward Amtrak for the program changes; I'm surprised at the generosity of the LD zone awards in the old program. But naturally some of us are disappointed at the changes because they affect us negatively. Some people gain, some lose with the new program. It's mostly a loss for me, as I like the longer distance award trips. I haven't checked to see if using points for NOL would be a good deal under the new program; the last time I went, coach was all of $62.

I did get the new BOA card, although I didn't need another credit card. I still have some points left after booking my zone award trips for later this year. Undecided whether to try to gather more AGR or concentrate on using the Skymiles Amex in the future. Used Skymiles for the rt flights to catch the Zephyr and for rt flights to Texas last fall, so the Skymiles do come in handy for me from time to time.

I'm going to need to revise my answer above. I was initially planning to shoot for Select Executive this year; that's actually now slightly in question. Basically it comes down to (at this point) where I'm likely to land in terms of spending "organically" (e.g. without any major efforts one way or another). I'll probably spend enough on Amtrak to get near to SE regardless (I'm assuming 4 paid trips to Florida at about $800-900 each, plus DragonCon and a bunch of DC stuff).

I've begun "de-emphasizing" my AGR cards in my spending habits in favor of my Virgin Atlantic and Virgin America cards, and I'm giving some consideration to cutting at least one of the two later in the year (and possibly downgrading the other one as well). I'm seriously toying with getting a Starwood Amex as well or shifting a bunch of spending back over to my Chase Sapphire (ex-AGR) card.

For me, yes. I travel weekly for work and often have client meetings in DC and Boston. The TQP bonus will make it easier because my company lets us buy Acela (but not first class). Already at 2 round trips and have another one coming up on Tuesday. Was bummed about losing the min 500 TQPs for city pair, but the class bonus will make it up as I often book tickets 3-5 days before departure.

My travel plans will not likely change. With daughters in San Francisco and New York,

we burn the rails from Florida to NY & CA. I plan to attend the OTOL fests and the AU Gathering

later in the year.

The only reason I tried for Select Plus last year (which I did not reach) was for the lounge access, especially having heard that Select would not receive the two paper lounge passes as in previous years. Well, I finally have something nice to report about the new AGR, because when my Select packet arrived in the mail, there were two lounge passes in it!

They are good til the end of next February, so I will save them for if I go to Boston or DC this year (I used to use them at PHL, but I'm familiar with the station, the main waiting room is nice, and the Redcaps are very helpful, so leaving from the main hall is a stress-free experience and I don't really need the lounge there, although it is lovely).

I wonder if AGR got lots of feedback about this and decided it made no sense to cut out something that costs them nothing but would lose them a lot of goodwill.

Good news Patty!( for those of you on the NEC and other Corridors where there are lots of Trains and BC on most so Points are easier to rack up!)

Well, I didn't see anything in the mail yet, but I checked this morning and it looks like I got the soft landing from Select Plus to Select.

That is what I expect will happen to me next year, since I will now be amazed if I even make Select, after I canned the trip to Washington DC for the NARP meeting and changed over to travel by air due to low fares and saving an entire vacation day or two in the process.

I'm going to try to maintain S+ status at least this year. I front loaded about 800-1000 tqp in January before the change. I am planning 2 overnight Roomette trips this year, and I'm considering the credit card for the tqp bonus. But my main strategy is business class with the 25% tqp bonus. If you ride BC, you ge S+ with a $4K spend instead of a $5K spend.

The main benefit of S+ to me is the lounge, especially at DC and NY. Can't stand the crowds and cattle lines.

MARC Rider said:

I'm going to try to maintain S+ status at least this year. I front loaded about 800-1000 tqp in January before the change. I am planning 2 overnight Roomette trips this year, and I'm considering the credit card for the tqp bonus. But my main strategy is business class with the 25% tqp bonus. If you ride BC, you ge S+ with a $4K spend instead of a $5K spend.

The main benefit of S+ to me is the lounge, especially at DC and NY. Can't stand the crowds and cattle lines.

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I'm torn. I thought about trying to make it to S+ for the lounge access, but I can get the same access with United Club membership for much less that $5000 dollars in one year. I'm not taking the corridor trains as much this year since my clients are closer now and that is where the bulk of my points came from.

I'm presently at 3805 TQPs (1000 from the CCs, 2805 from travel). My best guess at the moment is that I'll manage to barely knock my way to SE this year...

...but a lot of that is down to the fact that I know I'll have a few paid trips thrown in (mostly to/from FL). It's quite possible I'll wind up far short (though the odds of not making Select Plus seem absurdly remote: At my present pace I ought to make it to about 8500 TQPs from travel by the end of the year; I should end up over the edge on the basis of another lone CC batch). A lot of the "sweet spots" are sort-of dead for me; though the TQP bonus for Regional BC is nice, that is now the only edge the Regional has on the LD trains heading south from DC (the Silvers now theoretically have wifi; before, the question was "Wifi or private room" but now that choice is moot since I can have both).

seat38a said:

MARC Rider said:

I'm going to try to maintain S+ status at least this year. I front loaded about 800-1000 tqp in January before the change. I am planning 2 overnight Roomette trips this year, and I'm considering the credit card for the tqp bonus. But my main strategy is business class with the 25% tqp bonus. If you ride BC, you ge S+ with a $4K spend instead of a $5K spend.

The main benefit of S+ to me is the lounge, especially at DC and NY. Can't stand the crowds and cattle lines.

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I'm torn. I thought about trying to make it to S+ for the lounge access, but I can get the same access with United Club membership for much less that $5000 dollars in one year. I'm not taking the corridor trains as much this year since my clients are closer now and that is where the bulk of my points came from.

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I thought about getting United Club membership, which I think is about $500 per year. However, with S+ I can get my wife or daughter in the lounge with me if we're traveling together. I believe (and maybe I'm wrong), but the United Club membership only gets the holder into the lounge. Besides, I almost never fly United, as BWI is my home airport, and when I fly, I usually take Southwest.

MARC Rider said:

seat38a said:

MARC Rider said:

I'm going to try to maintain S+ status at least this year. I front loaded about 800-1000 tqp in January before the change. I am planning 2 overnight Roomette trips this year, and I'm considering the credit card for the tqp bonus. But my main strategy is business class with the 25% tqp bonus. If you ride BC, you ge S+ with a $4K spend instead of a $5K spend.

The main benefit of S+ to me is the lounge, especially at DC and NY. Can't stand the crowds and cattle lines.

Click to expand...

I'm torn. I thought about trying to make it to S+ for the lounge access, but I can get the same access with United Club membership for much less that $5000 dollars in one year. I'm not taking the corridor trains as much this year since my clients are closer now and that is where the bulk of my points came from.

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I thought about getting United Club membership, which I think is about $500 per year. However, with S+ I can get my wife or daughter in the lounge with me if we're traveling together. I believe (and maybe I'm wrong), but the United Club membership only gets the holder into the lounge. Besides, I almost never fly United, as BWI is my home airport, and when I fly, I usually take Southwest.

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United Club members can access Club Acela with two guests, or spouse and all children under age 21. Note that United Club membership grants access to Club Acela only. It does not grant access to Metropolitan or other Amtrak lounges.

Bob Dylan said:

Sticking to my original post when the New and Unimproved AGR2.0 was announced, I will only make one LD Trip a year on Amtrak with AGR Points( already booked my AGR RT for October from Austin to Denver for the Gathering) with other trips involving driving, flying or Mega Bus!( much cheaper for short to mid-range travel).

I will spend the LD travel money I used to spend on Amtrak for a Winter trip on the Canadian which is still the best LD Train in North America!

My AGR points will come from using the BOA Credit Card for every day expenses and some travel expenses.( and I'll will no longer buy points when the promos are offered, they are now too expensive!)

My point runs on the Eagles to Taylor and Temple on Amtrak are History( how I made my Status), and my Annual Select or Select Plus Status is also a thing of the past.

As many have said, it was Great while it Lasted! I'll miss it!!!

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Will soon make a multi-stop trip back East, our first under under AGR 2.0,

Yes, I made a few runs between DAL - FTW to complete Select level, but no more.

Agree! VIA's Canadian is the best LD train in North America. Used the old AGR for the DAL-SEA and the BUF-DAL legs for 3 years in a row. Now will use Southwest Air to the West Coast to catch the Starlight, and then Southwest Air from Buffalo back to Dallas Love Field. I look forward to the Brightline in Florida, hopefully next year.

I've earned Select again this year. Only need a 3500+ to reach Select Plus but living in Nashville with no Amtrak service(thruway to St Louis is not Amtrak to me), I will not make it. I only have one trip remaining CZ Chicago to Emeryville followed later by CS Emeryville to LAX in October in Roomette - not enought for 3500 points. To Chicago and from Los Angeles is award travel from American Airlines.

Okay, this topic has been laid dormant, but I shall bring it to life once again. Although I just can't make AGR Select this year, I may barely be able to make that happen next year, once I manage to take 18 trips next year, with three of them in a sleeper and/or a few in CS Biz class (if that's still a thing next year). Never been gone Select or beyond just yet.

Against all odds, mainly due to TQP earned through the AGR card and the bonus TQP period aligning accidentally with my previously planned Acela trips, I managed to squeak in another year of Select+.