cheapest student rail travel

Amtrak Offers 15% Student Discount on Routes Nationwide

WASHINGTON – Great deals are now available for students looking to get away during the summer, travel home, see friends, or return to campus. Amtrak can help students reconnect with friends, rediscover America and explore places off the beaten path with its new student discount. Students between the ages of 17 and 24 can receive 15% off travel throughout the national network. Available at amtrak.com/student-discounts , the offer is valid through December 30, 2021.

Parents can send their students on Amtrak with peace of mind knowing that Amtrak is a fun and safe way for students to travel. In fact, a number of cleaning, contact-free, and convenience measures have been implemented into every part of the customer journey, including:

• When searching for travel, customers will see the percentage of seats sold that adjusts next to each route as passengers make reservations. This will give customers the opportunity to book a train that is less crowded. If capacity exceeds comfort levels, customers can change their ticket without incurring a fee. There are also no middle seats, making the ride more relaxing and spacious.
• All trains are equipped with onboard filtration systems with a fresh air exchange rate every 4-5 minutes.
• Federal law requires all customers and employees to wear a mask at all times while onboard trains and in stations, regardless of vaccination status or state or local laws. Refusing to wear a mask is a violation of federal law; passengers may be subject to penalties under federal law, denied boarding, removed from the train and banned from future travel in the event of noncompliance. For more information, visit:  amtrak.com/coronavirus .
• Customers should not travel when experiencing  COVID-19 symptoms  or when they meet public  health criteria for quarantine .

To apply this discount, visit amtrak.com/student-discounts or enter code V814 when booking a trip on the Amtrak app. Terms and conditions may apply.

Valid student identification must be presented upon request. This offer is valid for sale through December 30, 2021 and valid for travel between May 19 and December 31, 2021 on most trains. Reservations are required one day prior to travel. The discount may not be available on all trains on all days.

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About Amtrak®

For 50 years, Amtrak has connected America and transformed transportation by modernizing train travel, and building for the future. Amtrak will continue to play an important role in the national transportation network for the next 50 years and beyond by operating a safe, environmentally efficient and fiscally responsible business by providing travelers with an experience that sets a new standard. Book travel, check train status, access your eTicket and more through the  Amtrak app . Learn more at  Amtrak.com and connect with us on Twitter , Instagram , Facebook and LinkedIn .

Amtrak offering 15% student discount through the end of 2021

Today, Amtrak announced a 15% student discount to students between the ages of 17 and 24. The discount is valid for most travel booked by Dec. 30, 2021, for travel commencing by Dec. 31, 2021. The discount can be applied to regular adult rail fares, and valid student identification must be presented upon request.

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That said, there are a few restrictions to keep in mind:

• This offer is valid for Acela Business class or Coach seats only.
• Discount is not valid on upgrades to Acela First class , non-Acela Business class and sleeper cars.
• Discount is not valid on Missouri river runner, Hiawatha service, Wolverine, Blue Water, Pere Marquette, Lincoln service, Illini, Saluki, Illinois Zephyr, Carl Sandburg, Pacific Surfliner, San Joaquins, Capitol Corridor, Keystone, Pennsylvanian, and 7000-8999 thruway series.
• Seats may not be available on all trains on all days.

Students can take advantage of the discount by booking through this page on Amtrak's website or by entering discount code V814 on the Amtrak app.

Related: Best credit cards for college students

This student discount can lead to super cheap fares on some routes. For example, you can book Chicago to New York for just $90 one-way in coach this July.

Or, you can book Washington D.C. to Boston one-way for $34 in coach or $69 in Acela business class in August.

Unfortunately, the route restrictions make it difficult to use the student discount on shorter local routes. This is puzzling to me as many colleges are along these routes. For example, Amtrak's Illini service connects Chicago to Champaign-Urbana and Carbondale, home to two of the largest public universities in Illinois.

Related: The complete guide to Amtrak Guest Rewards

Bottom line

It's great to see Amtrak offer a generous discount to students through the end of the year, despite the restrictions. It's a great way to encourage post-pandemic travel for students and offer them a cheap way to travel to and from campus on applicable routes. If you're eligible for the discount, see if taking Amtrak is a viable option for your summer travel.

Feature photo by Zach Honig / The Points Guy

How to Land Some Serious Student Travel Discounts

Take Advantage of Your Age and Score Tons of Student Travel Discounts

If you're between 12-26, the travel industry considers you a student traveler and that means you're eligible for student travel discounts. Travel companies from Rail Europe to Greyhound to YHA offer student discounts, so if you're planning on taking a trip, you'll likely find a way to save money. Discover which of the different options is best for you. 

Student Travel ID and Discount Cards

Several student travel ID cards, like ISIC , exist, and they can provide student travel discounts on everything from travel to books and movies. Flashing a student travel ID card at sightseeing sites around the world can often earn you a student travel discount, even if no student travel discounts are advertised. If you're going traveling, definitely pick up a student ID card before you go. Even if you have to pay $20 or so for the card, you'll easily make that money back over the space of a year. 

Student Airfares are Cheaper Than Cheap

Student airfares are generally available to student travelers under 26 who are enrolled in school. To sign up for them you'll typically have to sign up with an email address from a college.

Student airfares may give you huge discounts over regular airfares—studenf flights are usually cheaper than alternative flights on Skyscanner. Student airfares are also generally far more flexible than regular tickets. STA and Student Universe are two examples of student travel agencies offering true student airfares, and it is recommended that you look at both if you're planning on taking a trip. 

Train Discounts for Students

Eurail and Amtrak are among the many train companies offering student travel discounts. Rail Europe provides a straightforward way to find and buy European train passes on Eurail trains at a student travel discount. In the U.S., Amtrak offers some promotions for student travelers however, discounts are now regional rather than across the board. National trains, like the UK's train systems, may limit student travel discounts to locals (buy a UK Eurail pass instead).

Bus Discounts for Students

Student travelers can grab a 20 percent  discount on Greyhound , with a Student Advantage Card. Hop-on, hop-off bus services like Busabout, the European bus service, offer promotions but are really geared toward student travelers, to begin with, so are already affordable. Cheap buses , like Chinatown buses or Boltbus, may offer specials in the United State at times, but, again, are so affordable that you'll likely choose to travel with them anyway. Be sure to book Boltbus as soon as you know your travel dates, as the price only increases as you get closer to your travel date. 

Student Accommodation Discounts

Student accommodation discounts are hard to find, as hostels don't really offer discounts to travelers unless you'll be staying long-term (longer than a month.) Having said that, hostel discount cards do exist and promotions can be found in the off-season (i.e. winter in Europe). 

YHA and HI offer a discount card for travelers that entitles you to a small discount, and the Nomads Hostels discount card gives you $1 off each night you spend in one of their hostels -- not huge discounts, but could end up saving you money if you'll be traveling for a decent amount of time. For more information check out this list of hostel discount cards . 

If you're not a fan of hostel chains, you may want to stay in a hostel anyway. We've seen dorm beds offered for as little as 50 cents a night in Pakse, Laos to just $20 a night in Sydney, Australia, so there are always going to be affordable options for budget travelers. If you need to save money, dorm rooms are definitely the way to go. 

If you're looking to spend as little as possible on accommodations and don't fancy the idea of a hostel, there are several options for student travelers.

First, take a look at  Couchsurfing , which will be the most affordable accommodation option you have open to you: it's entirely free! Through couch surfing, you'll be able to spend the night on a local's couch, saving you money on accommodations and giving you a more authentic insight into the place where you're traveling. It really is a win-win situation. Make sure to check out your host's reviews before requesting to stay in a place, as you'll want to make sure you won't be putting yourself in an unsafe situation. 

Alternatively, if your cash is running low, but you prefer a little more comfort when you travel, housesitting could be the way to go. Housesitting is just what it sounds like: you get to watch someone's house (and likely their pets) while they're out of town, and in exchange, you get free accommodations. As a student, it might be tough to get on the housesitting lists, as owners do like to hire people with renting/owning a property experience, but if you can get great references, give it a go. 

Spring Break Deals

Spring break is a great time of year to take a trip if you're under 25, as plenty of companies will be offering student discounts for the month! Groupon usually has some great spring break deals for students, and STA Travel can always be relied on to help you save money. 

If you can't find a package that grabs you, you could create your own spring break deal using student airfares and affordable accommodation, like hostels. 

Be Aware of the Student Discount Label

Before you jump at a student discount, make sure to spend a few minutes doing your research to see how legitimate they truly are.

Some student discount packages are just normally priced deals that have been repackaged as a "student deal." In order to find out if you're grabbing a bargain or not, shop around on the price to see what else is out there. If you find a cheap student airfare, for example, head to a travel  aggregator , such as Skyscanner , to see if you're actually saving money or if you'd be better off just grabbing a flight with a budget airline. It always pays to to do some research over assuming you're going to be saving money. 

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