<p>My D got a mail offering to buy a Student Advantage card from the Residence Hall Association. It looks like some kind of discount card. Any opinions on whether it's really worth buying? Thanks.</p>
<p>I got the same thing in the mail. I wonder if @maryversity could chime in. </p>
<p>My son had one during his undergraduate years (class of 2013). He traveled on Amtrak between college and home. I think he got a 10% discount. The card paid for itself with the purchase of 1 or 2 tickets. The card does offer discounts on other things as well but he was never organized enough to use it.</p>
<p>Bump - is this card worth the cost for most students? $45 for 4 years or $20 for one year.</p>
<p>I never got that card… is that for selected students only?</p>
<p>@astrogirl - I don’t know. It just showed up in the mail. My D is going to skip it.</p>
<p>If you have AAA, then you also get discounted fare on Amtrak. The key is that you only get the discount by booking in advance (don’t recall minimum booking window) so not good for last minute decisions to come home. However, if you plan in advance and that is your preferred method of travel and don’t have AAA, it might be worthwhile. The point is that as @nursekay says, you have to be organized enough to use it. There are lots of bus options for less money per trip - just obviously more of a time commitment because subject to traffic conditions that trains are not. The travel time from CP to DC train or bus station is same. @astrogirl, if you didn’t get the offer via mail you can sign up for one on your own online <a href=“http://www.amtrak.com/student-discount”>http://www.amtrak.com/student-discount</a></p>