# Amtrak's Chase Mastercard



## TraneMan (Mar 22, 2011)

I've been kinda going back and forth for signing up for this card... I one of these person who cut up all his credit card 10 years ago, and I did just get one from my bank last year for "What if" thing.

Seeing I can get better use of the points on Amtrak than "stuff" I can get from my bank I am heading towards getting this card and cut the bank's CC.

I've read mixed reviews about Chase service and wanted to see how they treated you guys.

I do have a small balance on my current card, can I transfer that balance onto the new card and "earn points"?


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## Bob Dylan (Mar 22, 2011)

:hi: Go for the AGR MC, it's a Chase card and lots of us use it for everything we can to earn AGR points. I've had excellent service from Chase through the years, have three of their Cards but now only use the AGR Card, the others are kept "just in case" I wanted to max out my AGR Card with a large purchase or extensive Trip. Cant speak to what kind of Bank they are, always get offers for $$$ to open a checking/savings account with them but have been with a credit Union for many Moons that Im happy with! IINM you WON'T get points for Balance transfers or Cash Advances, just purchases and Double Points on Amtrak!!!


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## TraneMan (Mar 22, 2011)

Thanks Jim.

I may look at it on Thursday when I am off from work, and read the fine prints. I was looking closer at the rewards, and What do they mean by "Zone". I am guessing for say I want to go to out west again Empire Builder, going out is "1 zone"?


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## Ispolkom (Mar 22, 2011)

TraneMan said:


> Thanks Jim.
> 
> I may look at it on Thursday when I am off from work, and read the fine prints. I was looking closer at the rewards, and What do they mean by "Zone". I am guessing for say I want to go to out west again Empire Builder, going out is "1 zone"?


It depends on where you go. Go here and click on "view the zone map"

Examples: St. Paul to Portland is two zones. So is St. Paul to Los Angeles via Portland. St. Paul to New Orleans is one zone. Chicago to New York is two zones, as is Chicago to Los Angeles.

Note that zone redemptions are one-way, but sleeper redemptions cost the same whether they are for one or two persons. If you wanted a round-trip St. Paul to Portland, it would be 40k or 60k points, depending on whether you wanted roomette or bedroom.


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## the_traveler (Mar 22, 2011)

First - No you do not earn points on balance transfers, only new purchases.

Second - As far as AGR awards, the US is divided into 3 regions or zones. the border cities are Toledo, CIncy, Atlanta, Wolf Point, Denver, ABQ and El Paso. Anytime you go thru a border city on your trip, you have to add another zone needed.

Examples:


Dallas to Chicago would be 1 zone, since you go not go thru a border city
Ft Worth to LA would be 2 zones, since you pass thru El Paso
SF to NY would be 3 zones, since you pass thru Denver and Toledo

You will also see a "Northeast Zone" - only consider that *IF BOTH* your origination point *AND* destination point are in that zone. Otherwise, it is in the Eastern Zone! (Boston to Buffalo are both in the zone but Atlanta to Washington only has Washington in the zone.)


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## printman2000 (Mar 22, 2011)

I have the Chase AGR card as well as the Chase Freedom card. I use the AGR card only for Amtrak purchases since I get the bonus points for them. I prefer the rewards I get with my Freedom card for everything else. A lot more options.

I would say it is worth it even if you only use it for Amtrak. But definitely worth it if you currently get no rewards.


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## frugalist (Mar 22, 2011)

If you have an excellent credit score, you can really rack up the AGR points with credit card signup bonuses. Here's a way to get about 100,000 points in 6 months (more or less, depending on what offer you can get for the AGR card).

First, sign up for a free Continental Airlines OnePass account. That's the airline's frequent flyer loyalty program. Then apply for the Chase/Continental OnePass Plus credit card. After your first use of the card, you will get a 50,000 OnePass miles signup bonus in your OnePass account. You can then transfer those miles to your AGR account for free. This card has an annual fee, which is waived for the first year.

Three months later, apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa. This card awards 1 Ultimate Rewards point per dollar spent on the card. After spending a certain amount (I think it's either $1000 or $3000) in the first three months, you will get a 25,000 UR points bonus in your UR account. You can then transfer those points to your AGR account for free. This card has an annual fee, which is waived for the first year.

Three months later, apply for the Chase/Amtrak Guest Rewards card. After your first use of the card, you will get a certain number of bonus points credited to your AGR account. The number of bonus points will depend on the offer you qualified for at the time you applied for the card. This card has no annual fee. As long as you hold this card, you will receive a 5% point rebate on all of your AGR redemptions for Amtrak travel. Also, as long as you hold this card, your AGR points will not expire. Without this card you have to take a paid trip on Amtrak at least once every three years to keep your AGR points from expiring.

If you have a spouse/significant other, then he/she can go through the same process and your household can effectively accumulate double the AGR points (each person will accumulate the points in his/her own account). You can travel together in a sleeper on a single award ticket.

There are other things you can do to accumulate AGR points without setting foot on a train, but these ideas should give you a good start. Take care of your credit. It's the key to free travel.

My wife and I have accumulated quite an assortment of Chase accounts over the past 15 months: 4 or 5 credit cards and 2 checking accounts each. We've found the customer service to be almost universally excellent. The only exception was with my very first credit card with them: the AGR MasterCard. We applied for the card with a promise of 16,000 bonus points, but only received 6,000. Chase said we would get the full 16, but AGR never backed down from their claim that we were only qualified for the 6. Now that I think about it, I guess the issue is with AGR and not Chase. Other than that, I've had absolutely no issue with Chase.


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## BobWeaver (Mar 22, 2011)

TraneMan said:


> I've been kinda going back and forth for signing up for this card... I one of these person who cut up all his credit card 10 years ago, and I did just get one from my bank last year for "What if" thing.
> 
> Seeing I can get better use of the points on Amtrak than "stuff" I can get from my bank I am heading towards getting this card and cut the bank's CC.
> 
> ...


I've had the AGR MC since 2007, and I have been very pleased with it overall. In my experience, Chase's customer service is superb, and many times I don't even have to wait in line when I call customer service to speak with someone. Every representative has been very friendly, and they do their best to accommodate any request I may have. I spend on my AGR MC as if it were cash, with the idea being that if I'm spending money, I may as well get some AGR points (1 point per $1 spent, 2 points per $1 spent on Amtrak purchases) off of it for future train use. The point never expire, can be used very easily, and the card has no annual fee.


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## The Journalist (Mar 22, 2011)

Chase is a good credit provider-most of their rewards cards don't have annual fees, which is unusual in my experience. I agree with Bob and frugalist about their service too-never had any issues and their agents are knowledgeable and polite.

Note that when you apply for the AGR card you're applying for a "World MasterCard," which is seemingly very hard to get. If you don't qualify for that you are then considered for a "Platinum MasterCard," which is apparently less prestigious or something. For reference, my credit score is in the middle 700's with completely clean history, I've gotten preapproved offers for an American Express Gold no-limit charge card, and I got the Platinum card. I imagine my very low income (I'm a working college student with no debt) probably contributed to not getting the World. I bring this up because the really high signup offers may require qualifying for World-it's not really clear.


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## TraneMan (Mar 22, 2011)

Thanks for the feed back everyone!


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## PaulM (Mar 23, 2011)

TraneMan said:


> I've read mixed reviews about Chase service and wanted to see how they treated you guys.


The Chase AGR card is the lone exception to my rule of never doing business with a bail-out queen. h34r: I've never had any problems with Chase regarding the card.

If I took all internet reviews at face value, I wouldn't get out of bed in the morning. :giggle:


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## amamba (Mar 23, 2011)

I have the world mastercard from AGR. Well actually my H has it and I just have a card with my name on it withe same account number. I am right now on an awesome 50k reward trip across three zones on the LSL SWC, and the CS. We just put our groceries, gas, and everyday purchases on the card and get thousands of points per month. Pretty sweet.


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## amamba (Mar 23, 2011)

dup post, sorry.


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## the_traveler (Mar 23, 2011)

See! It's so good that amamba had to post it twice!


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## Larry H. (Mar 23, 2011)

I don' t know an am wondering since I heard today that Chase announced it would be ending its Rewards Cards this summer? Wonder if that includes amtrak and if so how the points might be disposed of?


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## alanh (Mar 24, 2011)

Larry H. said:


> I don' t know an am wondering since I heard today that Chase announced it would be ending its Rewards Cards this summer? Wonder if that includes amtrak and if so how the points might be disposed of?


They're no longer going to give miles for _debit_ cards -- attached to checking accounts. There's been no notice about credit cards, and due to the different way they get paid for charge transactions, it's not likely to change any time soon.

You don't need to "dispose" of points. Once you earn them, they're yours even if you no longer have the card.


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## Larry H. (Mar 24, 2011)

Alan

Thanks for that. We are approaching just about enough for at least a one way first class fare in one or two zones and I would hate to see them yanked just when were almost there.

Larry


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## TraneMan (Mar 29, 2011)

I signed up for it and been approved! Wish I knew what they approved me for? Guess will have to wait for it show up in the mail.


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## Rider (Mar 31, 2011)

I got mine a couple of weeks back, they started me at $1,000 credit limit which for my purposes is fine, as I intend to keep it paid off as soon as charges are posted.

It's working great! Points, give me points!


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## RRrich (Apr 2, 2011)

Rider said:


> I got mine a couple of weeks back, they started me at $1,000 credit limit which for my purposes is fine, as I intend to keep it paid off as soon as charges are posted.
> 
> It's working great! Points, give me points!


Yeah, it really seems like something for nothing - and is completely legal & aboveboard :blink:


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## amtrakwolverine (Apr 2, 2011)

They give you 30,000 points cause they know that 9 out of 10 people who apply will be denied for the card.


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