When I used to live in the Midwest I couldn’t imagine a place in the U.S. that people would actually ride trains to get around. Then I spent some time working in New York and came to understand how that without a car Amtrak is a real boon to getting between cities on the East coast and an important part of the transportation infrastructure. Indeed, riding a train between cities such as New York and Boston can be much preferable to flying due to the lack of security hassle and more pleasant and comfortable ride.
Amtrak is nearly always cheaper than flying, especially with airline flight costs going up these days, but during heavy travel periods Amtrak can get pricey too. Weekend travel and holiday time travel tend to be the most expensive on Amtrak, with one-way tickets between the popular Boston to New York or New York to Washington D.C. journey sometimes costing over $100.
The good news if you’re a student is that there’s a way to get some cost relief. If you have either an ISIC card or Student Advantage card you can get 15% off the price of an Amtrak ticket. An ISIC card costs $22 + $3 shipping ($25 total) while a Student Advantage card costs $20 with a $2.50 charge for delivery ($22.50 total). Both cards are intended for college students or grad students only, high school students are not eligible. Either way, if you do the math for just one round trip that costs $300, the savings with either card is $30 and you’ve got your money back right there. The ISIC card and Student Advantage card can be used for various other discounts, so the value of each won’t end with just Amtrak.
How it works
In order to get the 15% student discount from Amtrak simply go to Amtrak.com and select a ticket, making sure it’s 3-days in advance of your planned trip (Amtrak won’t apply any ticket discounts within 3-days of a trip), in the dropdown for ticket type select either “ISIC” or “Student Advantage” depending on your card.
On the next screen it will show the discount applied.
Then on the following screen you will either have to sign in or purchase as a guest and enter your Student Advantage or ISIC card number.
After your card number is verified, you pay via credit card, and you’re done! You should select to pickup the ticket at the station as it is free, and to add to that, I’ve had the bad experience of getting an Amtrak ticket ahead of time and then losing it and then having to buy a new one, there are no ticket re-issues with Amtrak — that was a sore lesson learned.
When it won’t work
Amtrak has some limitations on when the student discount can be applied. As mentioned previously, you must book the tickets 3-days in advanced. The student discount is also not valid for the following items:
- Weekday Acela Express service (all business class express train on East coast)
- To connecting services provided by most other (non-Amtrak) carriers, including the Canadian portions of joint Amtrak/VIA Rail Canada service
- To upgrade accommodation charges (although the cardholder may upgrade his or her accommodations at the standard rate)
- In conjunction with any other multi-ride fares, or other discounts and promotions, except as may be specifically provided
Summary
If you’re living in an area where Amtrak has decent service and you need to travel home often, have friends in other cities nearby or just like to take rail trips, getting the Student Advantage or ISIC card is a no-brainer simply for this discount alone. Spend $200 on rail tickets and you’ve more than saved on the cost of the yearly card membership. Below are the links you need to get you on your way, happy travels!
Relevant Links:
