Originally Posted by
littlemookie
Without knowing any more details about the 2 options you have (cash or points) I can give you a quick summary about what makes Amtrak unique among point programs.
If by unique, you mean good value I will agree with that, but it doesn't change the way you
should value a points and miles. Which is, to say how much would you be willing to pay in cash for an award ticket. Also, when booking awards you don't earn points including credit towards Select status.
Originally Posted by
littlemookie
1k Trips - These special routes may cost $50 a trip so spending the miles is prob. the best use in the program.
While this may be true 'Special Routes' are only in a few places in the country. I am not saying there aren't any $50 ones, I just only know of ones in the $20-30 range.
Originally Posted by
littlemookie
Sleepers - These are a large number of points but fit 2-4 people into an award which makes it an excellent value. This is only for people who take LD trains with sleepers. It's a great redemption for people who would take this type of train (as opposed to commuter type lines which is what is mainly found in the NEC which handles most of Amtrak traffic).
This is also true from a dollar standpoint. The family room can hold up to 2 adults and 2 children. This could be a really fun trip with a family, however how many people using their points for the trip would really pay anywhere near what the cost would be for a higher fare bucket trip?
Originally Posted by
littlemookie
NEC - For 3k you can redeem trips from Montreal - New York, New York - Washington and almost all points between the 2 cities. In peak times these tickets are $100+ which makes the 3k a great value.
This is true, I just took a 3,000 point NE trip from Washington, DC to Montreal. While I know NE trips in regional can cost $120ish from NYC-DC, i would never pay that. If traveling between the two cities, I frequently take the MegaBus from anywhere from $1-15. So maybe I would value a train ticket at $30 since it is more comfortable and a little faster. So If I cashed in a ticket from NYC-DC, I would only be getting $0.01 per point.
Originally Posted by
littlemookie
Also tickets are refundable as long as you don't print them out from the quik ticket machine (if you have printed it already then you need to mail the actual ticket to Amtrak which takes time).
This is true of cash tickets too, so i don't really see any difference or how this makes AGR special.
Originally Posted by
littlemookie
Few blackout dates and no capacity controls means you can book the emergency ticket with no hassle and no extra miles. There are no fuel surcharges or even tax.
Again this is a great perk of AGR, but it just needs to be calculated into the cost of travel. Airlines frequently have sales on flights about 10 days out if they are not filling up. Amtrak doesn't offer as much of this and prices almost always move in one direction the closer one gets to departure.
Originally Posted by
littlemookie
If any of my information is incorrect please correct me and feel free to add anything.
I don't think anything you said is factually incorrect, I just don't see how it changes the fact that you can only value a point as at the amount you would be willing to pay cash for the ticket. NOT the actually cash price of the ticket.
Originally Posted by
littlemookie
Back to the OP, the value of the points depend on if/what you want to use the points on, and the particular route you are taking. Most people take the same few routes and learn the ticket prices to arrive at their valuation. I would say .02 would be the lowest valuation for an Amtrak point. Use cash for any valuation under that.
I agree, for my travel patters AGR points are worth about $0.02, maybe $0.03.