Increase in points for three zones

[Trainut]

Has my memory really gone off the deep end? I thought that the Guest Rewards point rates were lower for bedroom and roomettes than they are now, have they gone up?

Any thoughts?

 

[Edgefan]

Has my memory really gone off the deep end? I thought that the Guest Rewards point rates were lower for bedroom and roomettes than they are now, have they gone up?

Any thoughts?

For as long as I have been an AGR member (2007) the redemption has always been 15K one zone/20K two zone/35K three zone for Roomette and 20K one zone/30K two zone/50K for three zone Bedroom redemtions. The only issue I've had was why the redemption jumps from 30K two zone to 50K for a three zone bedroom. It really is not an issue for me living in the midwest, as my redemptions can be accomodated to a two zone redemption anywhere in the country. I guess that's my "break" for not having access to the NE corridor deals that seem to be regularly available.

 

[the_traveler]

The only issue I've had was why the redemption jumps from 30K two zone to 50K for a three zone bedroom.

If you think about it, the cost is no more. 2 zones plus 1 zone equals 3 zones.

A 2 zone roomette costs 20,000 points and a 1 zone roomette costs 15,000 points. Add them together, and the total is 35,000 points - which is what a 3 zone roomette costs! A 2 zone bedroom costs 30K and a 1 zone bedroom costs 20K. Add them up and the total is 50K - which is what a 3 zone bedroom costs!

One good thing about this is that it allows a "free" stopover in DEN, ABQ or ELP! Also it allow me to be routed on the TE by booking KIN-ELP and ELP-PDX. Otherwise it doesn't allow the TE at all - only the SWC from CHI to LAX (including others).

 

[amamba]

The only thing that is annoying about the stopovers and the zones is that for me, I would love to do a stopover in CHI. But sadly PVD - CHI is two zones and then CHI - SEA is two zones, so for me to do a fun trip with stopovers it is really 4 zones. I wish they would give you some sort of different or discounted rate for that, but I can't really complain

 

[ALC Rail Writer]

It is designed so that all of the Western LDs are two zones, and all North/South runs are one zone... if you are doing a trans-con trip you'll have to pony up for a full third zone, as the difference between, say, SEA and CHI and CHI and WAS is sizable, while SEA and MOT and SEA and CHI have very little difference.

It has an unwanted side-effect of making all of the Eastern LD trains out of CHI two zones.

 

[Train2104]

It has an unwanted side-effect of making all of the Eastern LD trains out of CHI two zones.

Are you sure that wasn't by design? It doesn't seem fair as 959 miles for 2 zones is a lot less than 2000+ for the same number of points. Well, one can always book NYP (or WAS) - TOL and a separate paid TOL-CHI. When one stacks tickets like that, how does that exactly work?

 

[the_traveler]

The only thing that is annoying about the stopovers and the zones is that for me, I would love to do a stopover in CHI. But sadly PVD - CHI is two zones and then CHI - SEA is two zones, so for me to do a fun trip with stopovers it is really 4 zones. I wish they would give you some sort of different or discounted rate for that, but I can't really complain

Get a 1 zone award to TOL and buy a coach ticket to CHI from TOL!

Or if you were going coach anyway via the LSL, from PVD to BUF only costs 3,000 points, then BUF-CHI is IIRC ~$50 or less!

 

[ALC Rail Writer]

It has an unwanted side-effect of making all of the Eastern LD trains out of CHI two zones.

Are you sure that wasn't by design? It doesn't seem fair as 959 miles for 2 zones is a lot less than 2000+ for the same number of points. Well, one can always book NYP (or WAS) - TOL and a separate paid TOL-CHI. When one stacks tickets like that, how does that exactly work?

Oh of course it is by design, a good chunk of Amtrak's LD pax are transferring to other LD trains.

Now if I was John Q. Public and just wanted a no nonsense ticket from SEA to ALC, Amtrak would charge me for 3 zones, even though I'm only in the third zone for two hours.

The opposite logic makes sense too. A no-nonsense ticket from NYP to CHI is two zones, meaning Amtrak can pad their loss when I transfer to the Western LD trains if I am only going to MOT or ELP or the like...

 

[Devil's Advocate]

The only thing that is annoying about the stopovers and the zones is that for me, I would love to do a stopover in CHI.

Tell me about it! I wish so much that Chicago was allowed as a stopover. It doesn't even need to be a zone divider, just an accepted stopover point allowed in the rules for standard tickets and redemptions. Seems like it would benefit Amtrak as well by cutting them slack on late trains that miss their connections.

 

[Ispolkom]

Are you sure that wasn't by design? It doesn't seem fair as 959 miles for 2 zones is a lot less than 2000+ for the same number of points.

I used to think that the zones were designed specifically to force higher redemption values on the NY/Washington-Chicago run, but now I think the problem was more the City of New Orleans. If you had made Chicago a border city instead of Toledo, pretty much every stop on the City would also be a border city. Note that the boundary between central and western zones does use large cities (El Paso, Albuquerque, Denver) as border cities where possible.

In my case, the zones mean that I visit my mother in Minot more often. After all, an award trip to Washington costs the same number of points from Minot as it does from St. Paul, so if I travel west a few days before an east-coast trip, I get half of the St. Paul-Minot trip for free.

 

[ALC Rail Writer]

Not really, Ispolkom, take a look at any zone boundary and you'll find that they can move the line wherever it suits them. They don't have to draw the line directly on the CONOs route, and even if they did then they could make the zone boundary only apply to CHI and NOL, not to the intermediate stops. It isn't an issue of geography.

You also must take into account the map was written with the old system, notice that Fostoria, OH is a border city, as well as Pensacola, two cities that don't currently get Amtrak service. Pensecola is odd because it juts out pretty darn close to NOL, whereas TOL, Fostoria, CIN, and ATL fall just around the same place on the line-- Pensacola does not. Reason? Possibly to make sure that if/when we get NOL-MIA service, it is two zones as well. This also means NYP/WAS-NOL is two zones.

It isn't NYP/WAS to CHI it is the whole LD system outside the NEC. Anybody traveling to, or from, the NEC on an LD train (except the Silvers) will have to pay two zones no matter where they go West, unless they get off in a smaller area.

Keep in mind sleepers make up a tiny portion of AGR redemptions (the vast majority being NEC related), I highly doubt AGR ever put a ton of thought into this one.

 

[amamba]

The only thing that is annoying about the stopovers and the zones is that for me, I would love to do a stopover in CHI. But sadly PVD - CHI is two zones and then CHI - SEA is two zones, so for me to do a fun trip with stopovers it is really 4 zones. I wish they would give you some sort of different or discounted rate for that, but I can't really complain

Get a 1 zone award to TOL and buy a coach ticket to CHI from TOL!

Or if you were going coach anyway via the LSL, from PVD to BUF only costs 3,000 points, then BUF-CHI is IIRC ~$50 or less!

I need to go to the_traveler school of AGR before I book an AGR trip, clearly :lol:

 

[boxcar479]

I always use Dave as my go to guy for anything Amtrak/AGR So far the fee has been reasonable, I only have to clean the penthouse when it comes thru FTW And chase Jim Hudson out of the jacuzzi and back to coach :lol:

 

[the_traveler]

TTSOAGRK (the_traveler's school of AGR knowledge) costs 50,000 AGR points per semester to attend, if anyone is interested! And I'll even travel to your location! (On your points, of course!)

But you never know - the guru himself may be passing thru your town soon!

 

[jmbgeg]

TTSOAGRK (the_traveler's school of AGR knowledge) costs 50,000 AGR points per semester to attend, if anyone is interested! And I'll even travel to your location! (On your points, of course!)

But you never know - the guru himself may be passing thru your town soon!

I am spending two semesters' tuition equivalent (100,000 points) on my current trip. What was that candidate's quote in a debate: "AGR tuition is too damn high" LOL.