choice hotels and agr

[wayman]

AGR and Choice Hotels are supposedly partners. but when I checked in at a Quality Inn this evening, they couldn't find AGR in their computer system. neither could the national Choice Privileges phone rep, or her supervisor. they agreed that they should be partners and that all the literature said quite clearly that they were partners. but they couldn't figure out how, and told me to call back in a few days. they made it sound like I was the first person to ever call them about AGR.

have any of you had a normal, successful experience getting AGR for a Choice Hotels stay? any advice? thanks!

 

[Guest]

AGR and Choice Hotels are supposedly partners. but when I checked in at a Quality Inn this evening, they couldn't find AGR in their computer system. neither could the national Choice Privileges phone rep, or her supervisor. they agreed that they should be partners and that all the literature said quite clearly that they were partners. but they couldn't figure out how, and told me to call back in a few days. they made it sound like I was the first person to ever call them about AGR.
have any of you had a normal, successful experience getting AGR for a Choice Hotels stay? any advice? thanks!

I've stayed at Choice under their points program. I don't think that you can get both Choice points and AGR. If you are in the Choice points program you can enter your AGR number in an area where you state your preferences. Amtrak is towards the end of the list. It looks like you can only choose one preference.

This may not answer your question, but it could be worth joining the Choice program just to make the Amtrak choice up front.

 

[wayman]

AGR and Choice Hotels are supposedly partners. but when I checked in at a Quality Inn this evening, they couldn't find AGR in their computer system. neither could the national Choice Privileges phone rep, or her supervisor. they agreed that they should be partners and that all the literature said quite clearly that they were partners. but they couldn't figure out how, and told me to call back in a few days. they made it sound like I was the first person to ever call them about AGR.
have any of you had a normal, successful experience getting AGR for a Choice Hotels stay? any advice? thanks!

I've stayed at Choice under their points program. I don't think that you can get both Choice points and AGR. If you are in the Choice points program you can enter your AGR number in an area where you state your preferences. Amtrak is towards the end of the list. It looks like you can only choose one preference.

This may not answer your question, but it could be worth joining the Choice program just to make the Amtrak choice up front.

I am also enrolled in Choice Privileges. only getting AGR (not both AGR and CP) points is fine by me. but nobody I've spoken with at Choice Privileges or the hotel saw any option where Amtrak Guest Rewards was an option. And of course, this morning when I tried again at checkout both CP and AGR are closed for the weekend. so I hope this can be resolved on Monday.

I'm staying at a Comfort Inn tonight and the front desk agent who took my reservation had never heard of AGR but said she would look into it and hoped to know more by when I check in this evening.

I'm really surprised, given how clearly spelled out this partnership is, not only on AGR's website but also on Choice's website and in Choices brochures available at the front desk of their hotels. it's not a new partnership either, so far as I know. so is it instead a partnership that just ended?

 

[wayman]

AGR and Choice Hotels are supposedly partners. but when I checked in at a Quality Inn this evening, they couldn't find AGR in their computer system. neither could the national Choice Privileges phone rep, or her supervisor. they agreed that they should be partners and that all the literature said quite clearly that they were partners. but they couldn't figure out how, and told me to call back in a few days. they made it sound like I was the first person to ever call them about AGR.
have any of you had a normal, successful experience getting AGR for a Choice Hotels stay? any advice? thanks!

Follow-up with the answer after two Choice stays and phone calls with six different Choice Privileges CS reps! The reservations computer program at a hotel is different than the reservations computer program at the national 1-800-4choice. The latter has the option of multiple rewards program including AGR. The hotels themselves can only use Choice Privileges itself. This is contrary to the advertised "supply AGR member number at check-in", which will in fact never work. After 72 hours I can call Choice Privileges and retroactively connect my recent stays with AGR. And my reservation for tonight, made at the 1-800 number, went without a hitch.

Sheesh, that was needlessly complicated and frustrating, but perhaps my experience will help someone else.

 

[Tony]

I am not a Choice Privileges member, but I got AGR points for my recent stay at a Choice hotel, Comfort Suites. When I checked in, I gave them my AGR number, and I actually got double points in my AGR account.

From the Choice Hotels website:

• Earn 250 Amtrak Guest Rewards points* for qualifying stays at Choice Privileges locations in:United States Mexico
  
• Just provide your Amtrak Guest Rewards number at check-in
  

 

[inspiration100]

I am not a Choice Privileges member, but I got AGR points for my recent stay at a Choice hotel, Comfort Suites. When I checked in, I gave them my AGR number, and I actually got double points in my AGR account.
From the Choice Hotels website:

• Earn 250 Amtrak Guest Rewards points* for qualifying stays at Choice Privileges locations in:United States Mexico
  
• Just provide your Amtrak Guest Rewards number at check-in
  

Great! Thank you for the information!

 

[wayman]

I am not a Choice Privileges member, but I got AGR points for my recent stay at a Choice hotel, Comfort Suites. When I checked in, I gave them my AGR number, and I actually got double points in my AGR account.
From the Choice Hotels website:

• Earn 250 Amtrak Guest Rewards points* for qualifying stays at Choice Privileges locations in:United States Mexico
  
• Just provide your Amtrak Guest Rewards number at check-in
  

Great! Thank you for the information!

That's what the website says, but you can't actually supply your number at checkin at most choice hotels. Don't plan on being able to do that--instead reserve your room through the national 1800 number and give your AGR number then.

 

[The Metropolitan]

Sheesh, that was needlessly complicated and frustrating, but perhaps my experience will help someone else.

YES, it will!!!

I just booked the Clarion in Raleigh online on my "third try's the charm" for a North Carolina Amtrak trip in September.

Usually I might not have wanted to go through any lengths just for 250 points, but with this stay being the thing to give me the third "out" in the "Triple Play" promotion, it now equates to 1750 points for about $200!

I'll call Choice to get the AGR number added onto the Reservation I've already made.

 

[Tony]

That's what the website says, but you can't actually supply your number at checkin at most choice hotels. Don't plan on being able to do that--instead reserve your room through the national 1800 number and give your AGR number then.

That's what the website says, and I had no problems doing it at all. I didn't know that it was even possible to get AGR points when I made my reservation. I discovered it about two days before I left on my trip. I made a copy of the webpage to bring, just in case, but it wasn't even needed.

The desk clerk typed in my AGR number when I checked in, and it was on my receipt when I checked out. The hotel points actually posted on AGR before my Amtrak train points.