Enroll in the Amtrak Guest Rewards program at Amtrakguestrewards.com. The current point system awards two points for every dollar spent or a flat 500 points if your trip is between certain cities on the Acela Express high speed route. The 500 points are awarded for business class trips, but the amount increases to 750 points if you travel first class. Extra points can be earned by staying in select hotels, renting cars from select agencies or shopping online at key retailers.
Transfer miles from your Continental OnePass account. Continental allows direct transfer of miles between your airline account and Amtrak Guest Rewards at a rate of one mile per point. There is a catch. Miles must be transferred in amounts of 5,000 (5,000 miles for 5,000 points, 10,000 for 10,000).
Use a combination of programs to transfer miles indirectly to your Amtrak account. It is possible to transfer, for example, from American Airlines to Diners Club to Starwood Guest to Amtrak Guest Rewards. This is a three-step process of converting miles (American to Diners, Diners to Starwood and Starwood to Amtrak).
