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When one books a trip using Guest Rewards, can one break the trip with a night or two halfway across?
For instance, suppose I booked a trip from Chicago to Los Angeles. Would I be allowed to get off at Albuquerque for a day or two, then resume the trip? Or would that be treated as two separate trips?
buckeye59 Member # 15995
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Thanks again everyone. you all are so nice and helpfull. Due to all the great advice and my wife's desire to see some of Glacier national park we have modified our plan. Now we are thinking we will take the Empire Builder west to Glacier then stay in West Glacier for 2 nights. Then go on to Portland and rent a car for the week then fly home from Portland. We are thinking this way we can tolerate just riding in coach since we will only need to sleep wed night and thurs night. Does anyone know about the "Red Car" tour buses at Glacier. Mainly where would we have to stay to have access to them?
notelvis Member # 3071
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Henry,
I am about 99% sure that what you propose will be treated as two separate trips. If you're booking the roomette that would be 15,000 points for CHI-ABQ and then another 15,000 for ABQ-LAX.
Buckeye59, I'm attaching a link below (next post) with info about Glacier and booking the 'jammer' bus tours. I believe that you can book the jammer even if you are staying in unaffiliated lodging.
I would suggest that you reconsider on the Amtrak accomodation as sitting up two nights in a row might be a bit much. At least look at a room for one of the nights.... remember, meals in the diner for both of you are included with the room charge..... it's pay as you go in coach where three meals a day for two for the entire trip will add up faster than you think.
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The red jammer bus tours are a lot of fun. However, I suggest you book your jammer bus tour well in advance, at least for the peak summer months. Last year, I booked a tour, for July, about 6 weeks prior to departure and just barely was able to get the day and time I wanted. Possibly, one month in advance is all that is needed.
If you click on that link David provided, above, select "red bus tours" and you will get their phone number.
Richard
TwinStarRocket Member # 2142
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Buckeye59, have you perhaps jumped topics? Your original question was under a different topic, but it now has so many responses it has automatically generated a 2nd page. If you click on the number "2" after the topic "Questions from a Rookie", you will find the most recent part of the discussion you originally started. This topic is "Guest Rewards Question".
sbalax Member # 2801
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Henry--
Getting this back on topic, when I booked the Vancouver, BC/SEA/SBA trip last month I was told you could break the trip but only for a max of 24 hours and that you needed to depart on the next available train. So, in my case, we'll leave Vancouver at 5:45PM, spend the night in SEA and then board the SB Starlight the next morning. Other breaks would be in the two reward category.
Frank in gorgeously warm and sunny SBA
notelvis Member # 3071
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Frank -
Does the 24 hour break you speak of also apply when you are breaking a trip by getting off train 7 at, say, Glacier but then reboarding train 7 again 24 hours later? (or in Henry's case, Albuquerque?)
Your Seattle stop is neccesitated by changing trains and that is a still a single trip even if you must lay overnight to catch the next available train and that has always been allowed.
Getting off a train en route and then reboarding the same train a day later would represent a real loosening of the AGR terms since I last travelled....
Would also open up an entire new dimension to the AGR trips I might plan.
sbalax Member # 2801
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I suspect you are right about that David. I am changing trains and that is probably the key part of this.
Frank in still warm and dark SBA
notelvis Member # 3071
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I'll likely be talking this week with someone at AGR for tickets on trains 8, 27, and 11 in June.
I'll try to get some clarification on this question then.
Gilbert B Norman Member # 1541
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Attention all Point Chasers; even though concerning air travel, you'll love this Joe Sharkey column appearing in Tuesday's New York Times:
This year, I have abdicated my rank, though with fond memories of the good old days — when airplanes weren’t so full and elite status usually got you a free upgrade to first-class from a cheap coach ticket. Back then, I sometimes had top-level Platinum status on Continental Airlines. It was swell.
But then I considered, with the wisdom one achieves with advanced age, what I had had to go through to acquire that status. Oh, what a scramble used to ensue to hit those mileage-flown benchmarks by Dec. 31 to requalify for elite status for the coming year.
In December 2004, for example, to get the last 11,300 miles, I embarked on a two-day marathon, a cheap-fare itinerary arranged as a year-end mileage run. Mileage runs are trips intended specifically to rack up extra elite-status miles at the cheapest possible fare, with no regard to destination.
I made that mileage run in two exhausting days: Newark to San Francisco to Houston to Seattle to Anchorage, then to Seattle again and back to Newark. Yes, I earned Platinum for 2005, but I also earned derision from some sensible people, my wife among them, who wondered why any sane person would do such a thing.
notelvis Member # 3071
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Guilty sort of......
I do most of my gift shopping online at the Amtrak Guest Rewards Mall using my Chase AGR Master Card!
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