Frequent flyer miles, good deal?

[BigDUSA 71]

Many questions are asked about which airline is better. I've flown all over the world on alot of different airlines. Back in the cheap seats they are all the same. Some may offer seatback video. United offers 5" of extra leg room in ecomony plus and that's about it as far as differences go. Eva deluxe is different but you pay more money.

 

If you are only comming to LOS once or twice and you don't travel that often by air then try priceline.com for cheaper fares.

 

If you plan on comming to LOS on a more frequent basis then fly one airline and join their program. I fly with United they are part of the Star Alliance group. I get frequent flyer miles on any member airline and I'm a premier executive that means I get the extra legroom and I get double miles when I fly with United. I pay for two trips and the third one is FREE. I've flown to LOS four times free. My daughter has flown twice free. The only thing I pay for is the tax.

 

I have flown on other airlines to Los. One time Cathay Pacific had a CRAZY fare of $156.USD r/t from JFK to BKK. Northwest had a fare of $330 from Philly to S'pore. If I get a really cheap fare I will fly someone else.

[partyanimal 0]

I just booked a United flight about a half ago.  I've flown them before and like the idea of being able to have my choice of six movies.  

 

Before this trip I have about 28K miles, afterward I'll have 48K.  BigD, Does this qualify me for any extra legroom or perks?

 

I'll try to get to the airport early to request a seat by the emergency exit since I'm a tall guy.

[landy2a 0]

Denny,

I am a member of Qantas frequent fliers and earn points at the rate of one per air mile and  a minimum of one per dollar using my visa card. Each flight also earns a minimum of 1000 points no matter how short the flight is.

 

Since 1999 I have used points for 3 return flights Brisbane / Adelaide, 1 return flight Brisbane / Hong Kong, 1 return Brisbane / Bangkok in Nov 03 and have enough points left for another Brisbane / Bangkok return.

 

Like you if someone has a crazy cheap fare I forgo the points.

 

John

[expat67 5]

My last trip from Atlanta to BKK cost me $149.00 round trip. I had all kinds of room.

[kjvegas 2]

I only fly Evergreen Deluxe and I always get at least one free upgrade on the long haul flights.  I just returned from LOS 1 1/2 weeks ago and I go 2 free upgrades on the long haul flights.

cheers

kj

[jte 1]

Party Animal,

The bonus depends on how many miles you FLY in a calendar  year Once you have flown 25000 miles you get a 25% bonus and after you fly 50,000 you get a 100% bonus. That means next year I'll get over 40,000 miles  per trip!( I am taking 1 more trip this year from the end of December 'till the 11th of Jan. ). This trip ( just finished dammit!) I was able to request and get (out of 6 segments) 2 emergency exit and 1 economy plus seat. I have just earned over 25000 miles (49000 for 2 trips but who's counting!) and can now book the economy plus seats at the lowest price.

Jim

[partyanimal 0]

I called United and told them once I'm at Narita I'll have 25K so can I then be upgraded to conomy Plus.  Surprisingly they said yes and said they would fix it it their computer.  As a result I was just able to book great seats even on the JFK to Narita segement.  Got the first row aisle seat in Economy Plus.  

 

Not saying this will work for everyone with around 19,000 miles but worth a shot.

 

So based on this 25% bonus I'll try to get the extra 25% on the Narirta-BKK, BKK-Narita, and Narita-JFK segments.

 

But i have an even more important question for you guys thst know the ins and outs of United.  Supposedly I can cancel this "nonrefundable" ticket and get back all my money except 150 bucks.

 

This is important because if in the next couple months I have a steady girlfriend I may have to cancel my pussy hunt. Don't all boo at once!  At least since we're in cyberspace you can't throw a chair at me!

 

Do you know if this is true, that I can get cash back minus 150 or if I have to rebook?  Suposedly today they verbally told me I could have cash (actually a chargeback to my credit card) and put that in their records.

[BigDUSA 71]

partyanimal,

 

Couple of days after you arrrive in BKK call United in BKK and have them update your frequent flyer record and have them book your premier ecomony seats. Don't know about the other question. Airline policy changes day to day. Hope your able to make the trip.

[partyanimal 0]

Even though I only have about 19,000 miles now I talked them into letting me book Economy Plus seats, so I have some great seats on all four legs of the trip.

 

Just got off the phone with United and they reassured me that if I were to cancel let's say the day fefore the flight I'd have to a year of my booking date sometime in Sept of 2004 to either exchange the ticket for a more expensive ticket or get all my money back minus 150 bucks.

 

The implication of this is if one sees a great fare and you have a feeling fares will go way up, and you think you'll probably go, you can lock in that fare and only be at risk for 150 bucks.  This also applies for China Air except the 150 penalty is only 100. I suspect this 150 penalty might also hold for Northworst and other American carriers but I'm not sure.