We just booked a rt for Mar/Apr and only had enough points to pay for the car. We use our Amtrak MC for everything we can. No mortgage so it's just everything except taxes, home projects and a couple of auto pay utility bills, but it does add up using it for cruises, hotels, groceries, restaurants, etc. We have stayed in bedrooms for the last 6 or 7 trips and had the entire trip on points, but since we're also going this Nov, we didn't have enough points. Also, the AT now gives a senior discount for 65+ on the rail fare portion, but not the room or car. DH will be 67 in July and I'll be 65 by March next year so we both qualified which in a way sucks lol. While we have enough airlines points to fly for free, we'd need a rental car and since we're doing cruises before, we'd have to get to Port Canaveral also. It's just less hassle to go on the train. We're also staying at Shades of Green after both trips.
As for wi-fi, it works pretty well most of the trip considering the train is a moving target and cell towers are spread out, but there are holes in spots.