XFed2001

How much would you value a Sapphire point relative to a Amtrak Reward point? I want to buy a one-way AutoTrain car/roomette ticket in October. With a AAA discount, the Amtrak cost/fare is $703. I would have to redeem 30,000 Amtrak points to pay for the ticket. I can transfer 30,000 Sapphire points to my Amtrak Rewards account. I appears, simplistically, that the points would be worth about $.0234 per Amtrak point. Not too bad considering I earned some of the Sapphire points at 2:1 ratio. Any other valuations you can think of would be appreciated.

usbeef

I do my own valuations on a per person basis based off the relevant flight cost.

For example, I redeemed 40k points for a roomette to Seattle and back thru Portland, and there are two of us in the room. Flights for two runs about 600 for both of us, but then I also throw in a $200 "subjective comfort" valuation for amtraks favor. Incidentally, that gives me an approximately $.02/point valuation, in line with yours.

OZ Man

40,000 point sign on if you can spend $2000 in 3 months with a 1-1 trade ratio as you are aware +7% end of year bonus. A lot better than the AGR credit card. The saphire card while it has a $95 fee you can transfer all your ultimate rewards to Amtrak (but not the other way). That $95 fee is also 1st year free and allows you to transfer all the points you earn from the freedom card which has the 5% cash back quarterly bonuses creating the AGR credit card a "pathetic" credit card. I only keep it for the 5% discount on reward redemptions. A trip across the country at a 1-1 ratio would be $350 but I have noticed 2 people in a roomette will cost upwards of $2,600+ causing it to have a great return ratio. It is 35,000 points to take the train across the country. I Hope that helps.

GoAmtrak

As mentioned, Chase SP is great for the sign-up bonus, annual bonus, everyday spend, general travel spend, and the other bennies. While the AGR Chase card isn't too exciting, it's fee-free and good to keep on hand for 2x earning on Amtrak purchases (including on-board food & beverage). There's also the 5% rebate on AGR redemptions.

At peak times, long-distance sleeper value can easily exceed 4-5 CPM. Besides that, there are some sweet spots out there for Special Routes. I just redeemed at 3.5 CPM for an intra-California trip (2,850 points for a $100 round-trip itinerary). I also looked at a $140 trip that would have made for a 4.9 CPM redemption.

XFed2001

.... for your opinions and comments.

goriajk

Well said. That's how I'm using my AGR Mastercard - it helps me with the free trips on The San Joaquin and Surfliner - Joe Goria near LAX