Amtrak Gift Cards

Are you searching for the perfect gift for the traveler in your life? Or perhaps you want to save up for a trip and need a way to do so? Consider giving Amtrak Gift Cards! Available in both physical and digital formats, these gift cards make great presents for friends and family or even as a treat for yourself. They are also available at various other retailers.

Be aware that several Facebook scams exist that claim to offer Amtrak gift cards. The article provides more information about how the scam works and provides the basics of Amtrak gift cards.

Amtrak Gift Card Basics

Here are the gift card basics:

Give the gift of Amtrak Gift Cards.

A great way to help travelers is to help them travel more, and you can do that with a gift card.

Sometimes, they can be a good gift for yourself because you can use them to save up for a trip. That way, you have to spend that money on travel.

Amtrak gift cards have advanced significantly in ease of use since I started, for they are more flexible.

In the past, gift certificates were available only at Amtrak stations or by phone. You needed to either call or visit a staffed station to redeem them. Additionally, these certificates had cash value, which meant you would lose your money if they were lost.

Today, you can store gift cards in your Amtrak account and then use those credits, even if you no longer have the card.

Where Can You Buy Amtrak Gift Cards

You can purchase these cards either physically or digitally, and the right one is the one that works best for you or the person you are giving it to.

Be aware that Amtrak and Amtrak Vacations are separate entities, and transfers between them are not possible. So, be careful when purchasing gift cards so people get what they need.

Physical Cards

Physical gift cards make great presents. You can include them with a greeting card or letter, or hand them to someone in person. 

You can purchase physical gift cards from Amtrak or other vendors online. Amtrak can send your gift card with a personal message to you or your traveler for free. For an additional fee, Amtrak will expedite the shipping. 

For those who prefer the traditional shopping experience, Amtrak gift cards are also available in select physical stores.

Places To Shop For Amtrak Gift Cards

A few places that sell Amtrak Gift Cards (these can change at any time)

Digital Gift Cards

Amtrak offers fun digital gift cards in different designs, including route-specific cards. An ecard could be lovely if your traveler plans a specific route. 

When you purchase an e-gift card from Amtrak, the recipient will receive an Amtrak-branded digital copy via email. While Target and other retail locations can also send digital cards, the messages may vary depending on the retailer’s rules and availability.

If you wish to send one my way, I don’t have any particular preferences. 

How to get a discount on Amtrak Gift Cards

Who doesn’t like a good deal? Amtrak does not run deals on these cards (or at least I have not seen any sales other than scams), but there are a few ways to save.

If you have a Target Circle Card, you receive 5% off when you use it at checkout, which applies to both physical cards bought in-store and digital cards purchased online. Sometimes, stores offer gift card deals, so keep an eye out for them. If you use your Amtrak Credit Card, you can earn points when purchasing travel for others.

Where can you use Amtrak Gift Cards?

Amtrak gift cards can be used for Amtrak travel only, both online, in person, or over the phone.

Currently, gift cards cannot be used for onboard purchases, and it is unclear whether they can be used at Amtrak ticket machines.

What to do when you receive a gift card

If you purchase or receive a gift card, you can save it in a “safe place,” which is not a good option for me, or you can store it in your Amtrak account.

To store them in your Amtrak account, log in, and from there, you can store them under the payment section. Then, when you are ready to book your next trip, they are already there waiting for you!

If you store them electronically, you may be unable to use them at stations. You can also visit the Amtrak website to check your gift card balance. To do so, visit this page.

Amtrak Gift Cards have a limit on the number of tickets that can be purchased.

One of my readers recently informed me that you can only use a certain number of Amtrak gift cards per transaction.

They tried to use eight at a time and were unable to do so, which leads me to believe that you can use up to six per transaction.

If you have more than six cards, you may need to split them up and buy two one-way trips instead of a round trip; often, round trips are not a deal.

Amtrak Gift Card social media scams

Buying Amtrak gift cards from Amtrak or an authorized retailer is a safe option. 

However, some people take advantage of our desire for a good deal. Occasionally, I see ads on Facebook or other social media platforms claiming to offer Amtrak gift cards for $1 or less. Beware—these are scams! 

These groups often aim to steal your personal information, credit card details, or scam you in some other way. So, it’s better to be cautious and avoid them. Amtrak does not sell gift cards for a dollar or at other reduced prices. 

What To Look For

You can check in a few ways. If they are running a contest, you will find it on the Amtrak website.

These sites will try to spoof Amtrak.com. One way to check if the page is legit is to click on the logo in the upper left-hand corner. This logo should take you to the Amtrak home page; if it doesn’t, you are not on Amtrak’s site.

Also, the photos of trains are often not of Amtrak trains but stock photoshopped with Amtrak logos.

Doing a little digging can also raise red flags. For example, the faux Amtrak page states that this is only valid for US residents, but when you examine the people who claim to have won, they were not from the US, even if they have current or real profiles.

Often, the people “leaving reviews” abandon their Facebook profiles.

If a gift card deal were a legitimate offer, I would share it with you on my email list. You can sign up for it at the bottom of this post.

Kev’s thoughts about Amtrak Gift Cards

I received a few Amtrak gift cards from friends, which were easy to use and give. Not long ago, Amtrak had a somewhat archaic paper gift certificate system, and you could only redeem the gift certificates at staffed stations.

These new cards are more convenient and valuable for travelers.

If the traveler in your life enjoys riding the rails, these cards will be a welcome gift! They are also excellent gifts for your favorite travel blogger (that’s me, right?)!

If you receive an Amtrak gift card and aren’t sure how to travel on Amtrak, fear not; I’ve got you covered!

Check out the Riding Amtrak Page as a starting point for your next Amtrak adventure. If you like what you see, you can follow my work in other ways. To stay informed about new stories, sign up for my email list below.

Safe Travels!
Kev

03172020