ruud

is it possible to use a ticket for a reserved train on an unreserved train on the same date and between the same cities? in other words, if i miss the reserved train i bought a ticket for, and the next train is unreserved, can i just board it or do i have to get my ticket exchanged at the counter?

GoAmtrak

I presume you're talking about reserved and unreserved Regionals. The answer is absolutely YES, but usually not the other way. Keep in mind, though, that a current promotion is being offered for a 20% discount on unreserved Regionals for a limited time. Book your tickets at Amtrak's web site and enter promotion code V822.

Happy rails!

ruud

yes, i was indeed referring to regional trains in the northeast corridor. thanks for your answer.

DivMiler

If I bought a ticket on the (reserved) Pennsylvanian, but decided to take a (unreserved) Keystone train on the same day, can I just give my ticket to the conductor with no problems? Or do I have to exchange it at the station? Can I use it on a different day?

the_traveler

I really don't know, since most of the Regionals I ride are reserved, but I would say yes. I also think you could use it for another day - if that day's train was unreserved. However, you could not use a ticket for a reserved train on the 13th for a reserved train on the 16th without going to the ticket window and getting a new ticket.

ibrandsguest

I've even used reserved tickets on different reserved trains (e.g., a 12pm Acela Express ticket on the 11am train) and haven't had a problem. Reserved tickets seem to be more expensive than unreserved ones so Amtrak shouldn't care- you're the one who overpaid.

ClimbGuy

they should have required you to refare your ticket. All NEC trains are now all reserved. AlanB can correct me if I am wrong but the only train I can think of that runs on the same route as a unreserved train is the Pennsylvanian and the Keystone. The Pennsylvanian is all reserved for the entire length of the train. The Keystone is unreserved from HAR-PHL if you have a ticket on the Keystone between HAR and PHL and miss it and the next train is the Pennsylvanian you'll need to see the attendant and get a new ticket and may have to pay extra.

DivMiler

Well, I purchased a Keystone ticket for Harrisburg (HAR) to Lancaster, PA (LNC) and a return on the Pennsylvanian LNC to HAR for travel both ways this Friday, for an excursion detailed in another thread. The return price for the Pennsylvanian and the Keystones were the same, so I figured that I couldn't lose if I bought the Pennsylvanian ticket.

ClimbGuy

Yes and no, if you bought a Pennsylvanian ticket with an AAA discount and then wanted to switch to the keystone you would lose the discount because you wouldn't be buying the ticket for 3 days in advance. The Pennsylvanian operates on the fare bucket system so the fare starts off the same price as the Keystone but then can go up in price as more tickets are sold. So a more likely situation would be that you buy a keystone ticket and then want to take the Pennsylvanian which may cost more.

DivMiler

Now I'm confused. I did use a AAA discount today to buy the tickets. Are you saying (in my situation with the return ticket on the Pennsylvanian) that I couldn't just give a Keystone conductor my Pennsylvanian ticket on Friday and that I would have to pay the difference between the AAA rate and the prevailing unreserved Keystone rate?

The price was $9 - 10 % = $8.10 on the return for the Pennsylvanian and the Keystones.

ClimbGuy

Ok so the keystone conductor may accept the Pennsylvanian ticket, but you should be using an unreserved keystone ticket. Officially you should trade in your Pennsylvanian ticket for a Keystone ticket. If the original fare you paid was $8.10 ($9-10%) and then you got a new ticket with a full price of $9. You would need to pay the difference in fare or $.90 because you can't use the AAA discount since your not buying a ticket 3 days in advance.

DivMiler

Ah. So instead of getting a ticket that could be used practically anytime on Friday I purchased a ticket that officially could only be used on one train. I outsmarted myself.

Luckily, it's only 90 cents that I might have to pay. As long as the AGR points post properly, no problem.

ClimbGuy

In the future you should consider buying both a Pennsylvanian and a Keystone ticket. As long as you don't print the tickets you can get a full refund even after the train has left. While it doesn't make a big difference on a $9 ticket if you are going from HAR-NYP it come be a bigger difference. The difference is a combination of the fact that you lose the ability to use discounts like AAA or Student Advantage and the fact that the fare buck will be at its highest right before the train leaves.

I will be taking the Pennsylvanian or the Keystone on the Sunday after thanksgiving one of the few periods where the keystone switchs to all reserved. I have bought three tickets for my return in case my flight is delayed. If I miss my original train connection they next few trains could be sold out leaving me stranded at the train station. This happened to me last Thanksgivings luckily a flash of my Select+ card in the Club Acela got me a ticket on a sold out train. A perk that I think should be official and system wide.