Mar 9, 2015, 6:33 am
Last edit by: Gnopps
*** MOD NOTE: Please do not remove ***
A friendly reminder that Flyertalk is not a marketplace, and nothing may be offered (or solicited) for sale or barter within the general forums - which includes offering vouchers for free. For those with sufficient posts and length of membership, trading/exchange is allowed solely within Coupon Connection, and then only in accordance with the specific rules of that forum.
Please do not attempt to solicit, sell or trade upgrade vouchers within this forum. Posts will be deleted and the members concerned potentially subject to disciplinary action. **Please note that this includes directly using the PM system to do so without first posting in Coupon Connection**. Thanks for your co-operation.
A friendly reminder that Flyertalk is not a marketplace, and nothing may be offered (or solicited) for sale or barter within the general forums - which includes offering vouchers for free. For those with sufficient posts and length of membership, trading/exchange is allowed solely within Coupon Connection, and then only in accordance with the specific rules of that forum.
Please do not attempt to solicit, sell or trade upgrade vouchers within this forum. Posts will be deleted and the members concerned potentially subject to disciplinary action. **Please note that this includes directly using the PM system to do so without first posting in Coupon Connection**. Thanks for your co-operation.
Criteria
- You must be travelling on A3 or OA metal - codeshares are not included.
- The original ticket must be issued on either A3 (390) or OA (050) ticket stock.
- Only revenue (paid) tickets, in fare classes other than U, P & T on a GoLight fare basis, can be upgraded, but not redemption tickets.
- All flights on the ticket must be on A3 or OA metal.
- There must be award availability in I-class for the upgrades to clear. You can check this by logging in to M&B then going to https://en.aegeanair.com/milesandbon...t/spend-miles/ The results page will initially be a calendar. To see Business availability, you have to click through to the next step. (You can also use a free or paid tool such as ANA website, UA website (looking for saver award space), Aeroplan, AwardNexus or ExpertFlyer to check for availability.)
- One coupon per person per journey leg is required - so, for example, TXL-ATH-SKG and return via the same route would require four coupons per person.
- Anyone can be upgraded using the coupons - you do not have to be travelling on the same booking or even the same plane.
Procedure
- Call A3 to request the upgrade. The phone numbers are listed at https://aegeanairlines.custhelp.com/ (most of them should go to the same call centre in Greece).
- If successful, a new ticket will be issued (with a new number). The PNR will remain unchanged.
- You are liable for any extra taxes applicable to Business Class (e.g. APD from the UK). Sometimes this gets charged, sometimes it doesn't - if it's due and you're not charged because the agent forgets, you've just been lucky.
- If there's no immediate I-class availability, you can ask to be waitlisted for upgrade. The ability to waitlist was reported to have been removed in August 2016, but was again possible in September. Check with the agent - option available on May 2018.
- in case you requested to be waitlisted for upgrade and want to check if the customer care agent made the changes on your booking you can check the reservation on checkmytrip.com (click here), the leg you requested the upgrade will be shown here as ”Waitlisted”.
- If you wish to upgrade one segment of a multi-segment trip (e.g. XXX-ATH-YYY) and there is availability on the leg you wish to upgrade, you may still have to be waitlisted due to married segment issues. The process of clearing the waitlist is somewhat confusing and may result in frustration due to the availability seeming to disappear but in reality, this may mean that the segments have been "unmarried" and the availability has been allocated to your reservation. See post 2272 and the update in post 2294 for more details.
Benefits
- No matter what the fare basis of the original ticket, you receive full Business Class benefits after upgrade.
- This includes lounge access (useful if you're upgrading someone other than yourself who has no status, or if you've run out of Silver lounge vouchers) and full baggage allowance (it applies for first leg as well, in case you are upgraded only on the 2nd leg of your trip - confirmed on the etix).
- Because the ticket books as a redemption, the free car hire is not included.
Mileage/segment earning
- You will earn at the underlying rate of your purchased ticket in economy, not at a business class rate. Because status miles are awarded, this also counts as a segment for re-qualification purposes.
- The flights may credit automatically, but may take longer to credit than tickets that have not been changed. They may also credit as 0 miles, and later change to the correct rate. If the flights have not credited properly after a few weeks then calling A3 will rectify this rapidly.
Expiry
- The vouchers expire at the end of your membership year - they do not carry over, even if status is retained. A new set is issued every year.
- It is the date when you use the voucher that matters. It can upgrade a flight that takes place after expiry as long as you apply the voucher before.
- On upgrade from Silver to Gold, any remaining Silver upgrade coupons expire, but they are replaced by four Gold ones which expire at the end of the Gold membership year.
BEWARE
- Once you have upgraded your seat, your ticket will be reissued. Suddenly, this ticket may be VERY expensive to change. If, for instance, you later decide to travel on a different date, you will probably be required to rebook into Business, even if Economy was available for new bookings. A3 will charge you the difference from your original Economy fare to a NEW Business fare. Plus fees, taxes and whatnot. Update 18/08/2021: this appears to no longer be the case, as an upgraded ticket was changed and the underlying Economy fare was used for the upgraded segments. The coupon was "removed" from the old dates and "reapplied" to the new dates.
- Coupons will not be returned/reinstated. Once a coupon is applied, it is gone for good (the T&Cs printed on the coupons allow for date and time changes, but not route changes).
- If you want to provide your coupons to upgrade a friend's travel, it is advisable to call in yourself. Your friend can call in if they know your name, birthdate, M&B-number and the email address associated with your account. That means: Anyone who knows these particulars can use your coupons without your knowledge. They do NOT need the coupon numbers.
- Crediting upgraded segments to another program will likely fail, as it will be reported as I-class. It may be possible to retro-claim the miles.
Seat upgrade coupons
Jun 21, 2017, 9:01 am
#1426
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Netherlands
Posts: 4,279
Application rules for Connecting flights
Hi all,
Coming back to the use of the coupons for connecting flights. This is the response I received from Customer Service.
"You may use your coupons for upgrade when the stock ticket number is ours[390/050]. In addition, when one reservation contains two or more segments, pure Aegean or Olympic flight, then you need to upgrade all flights, so as to use your coupons. "
So, it seems what I interpreted from the Wiki is correct. It's a pity though especially if you want to optimize it's usage.
Cheers!
Coming back to the use of the coupons for connecting flights. This is the response I received from Customer Service.
"You may use your coupons for upgrade when the stock ticket number is ours[390/050]. In addition, when one reservation contains two or more segments, pure Aegean or Olympic flight, then you need to upgrade all flights, so as to use your coupons. "
So, it seems what I interpreted from the Wiki is correct. It's a pity though especially if you want to optimize it's usage.
Cheers!
Jun 21, 2017, 11:41 am
#1427
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Wedged somewhere between BTS and VIE ✈
Programs: Star Alliance Gold (A3 Gold), Oneworld Emerald (BA Gold), Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,338
Hi all,
Coming back to the use of the coupons for connecting flights. This is the response I received from Customer Service.
"You may use your coupons for upgrade when the stock ticket number is ours[390/050]. In addition, when one reservation contains two or more segments, pure Aegean or Olympic flight, then you need to upgrade all flights, so as to use your coupons. "
So, it seems what I interpreted from the Wiki is correct. It's a pity though especially if you want to optimize it's usage.
Cheers!
Coming back to the use of the coupons for connecting flights. This is the response I received from Customer Service.
"You may use your coupons for upgrade when the stock ticket number is ours[390/050]. In addition, when one reservation contains two or more segments, pure Aegean or Olympic flight, then you need to upgrade all flights, so as to use your coupons. "
So, it seems what I interpreted from the Wiki is correct. It's a pity though especially if you want to optimize it's usage.
Cheers!
Why did they change this?
Jun 23, 2017, 8:17 am
#1428
Join Date: Dec 2009
Programs: A3*G, Marriott Gold, Hilton Honors Gold, Radisson Rewards Premium
Posts: 851
Jun 26, 2017, 6:46 am
#1429
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: C2, BTS, VIE
Programs: A3 *G, AA Exec Plat Pro, Accor Silver, IHG Plat, HH Diamond, PP
Posts: 321
Is it possible that some destinations dont have golight? For example CAI, where the lowest option is saver? Does that mean that mean that all trips to CAI (for example) are upgradable? (if there is space availbility)
Jun 26, 2017, 8:22 am
#1430
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Wedged somewhere between BTS and VIE ✈
Programs: Star Alliance Gold (A3 Gold), Oneworld Emerald (BA Gold), Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,338
Flights to Egypt, Iran and Kuwait don't have GoLight fares. You should be able to upgrade the lowest Saver fares (it worked for me!).
Jun 27, 2017, 4:12 am
#1432
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Netherlands
Programs: A3*G
Posts: 132
I just talked to an Aegean agent and asked about this new "all-or-nothing" rule. She said that they may change the rule again in the next few days..(reverting it back)? So there is hope, let's all ask them about it whenever we need to talk to them!
Jun 27, 2017, 4:38 am
#1433
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: SKG
Programs: A3*G, FRECCIA ALATA CLUB
Posts: 54
Example, each flight from SKG-ATH usually runs 8 Business seats (2 rows). I would assume 2 of these would be available for award upgrade (say even more).
ATH->Europe runs a number of routes, imagine trying to use your upgrade voucher and be stuck on the internal leg waiting list or no availability at all !
It would be acting like a bottleneck. They need to seriously think about that.
Jun 27, 2017, 7:46 am
#1434
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Wedged somewhere between BTS and VIE ✈
Programs: Star Alliance Gold (A3 Gold), Oneworld Emerald (BA Gold), Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,338
I still think somebody has got their wires crossed because I booked RHO-ATH-VIE this morning and when I phoned up to upgrade I was asked which flight I'd like to upgrade. As it happens I upgraded both because I have coupons to use up before I requalify for Gold, but there is nothing written in the T&Cs on the coupons themselves or anywhere else on the website.
If this new rule were true it makes no sense generally, and I think (and hope) that some agents are a little rusty with their understanding of the rules.
If this new rule were true it makes no sense generally, and I think (and hope) that some agents are a little rusty with their understanding of the rules.
Jun 27, 2017, 11:02 am
#1435
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: C2, BTS, VIE
Programs: A3 *G, AA Exec Plat Pro, Accor Silver, IHG Plat, HH Diamond, PP
Posts: 321
Actually, today I was upgrading my VIE-ATH-CAI trip, I am traveling with my GF, and the outcome is quite interesting and somehow beats the new segment rule:
1, VIE-ATH, only 1 upgrade seat left, upgraded my GF, I am on waitlist
2, ATH-CAI, both upgraded
3, CAI-ATH, both upgraded
4, ATH-VIE, no upgrade seat left, both waitlisted
In the end, if the waitlists dont clear, It may very well be, that only 1 segment will be in upgraded, thus conflicting the rule.. The agent had no problem just uprading the available legs..
1, VIE-ATH, only 1 upgrade seat left, upgraded my GF, I am on waitlist
2, ATH-CAI, both upgraded
3, CAI-ATH, both upgraded
4, ATH-VIE, no upgrade seat left, both waitlisted
In the end, if the waitlists dont clear, It may very well be, that only 1 segment will be in upgraded, thus conflicting the rule.. The agent had no problem just uprading the available legs..
Jul 1, 2017, 2:05 pm
#1436
Join Date: Oct 2014
Programs: BA Bronze, A3*G
Posts: 12
Hello all. I just tried for the first time using my upgrade coupons for flights MAN-ATH-BEY-ATH-LHR, leaving 11th July and return on 20th July. The Aeroplan search engine and Aegean's own search engine showed availability in I class on the ATH-BEY-ATH-LHR legs - the MAN-ATH is an all-economy flight so nothing there. The Aegean agent stated that there was no availability but did put me on the waitlist for the other three flights. Am I missing something? My understanding was that availability in I class meant that an upgrade with the coupons was possible.
Thanks very much.
Thanks very much.
Jul 2, 2017, 3:59 am
#1437
Moderator: Aegean Miles+Bonus
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: AMS / ATH
Programs: AFKL Plat, A3 Gold
Posts: 7,338
Its not quite clear what is going on. A few people have reported what you are seeing (I availability but not upgrades available), however personally I have always been able to upgrade when I class was available. In fact I have asked them once and they specifically said that the only limitation was I class availability.
I know that doesn't help you right now, perhaps what you could try is call back and try one more time. If they again mention that upgrades are not available you could specifically ask about I class availability. Perhaps they do not see I class, or perhaps they also check some different parameters for the flight.
I know that doesn't help you right now, perhaps what you could try is call back and try one more time. If they again mention that upgrades are not available you could specifically ask about I class availability. Perhaps they do not see I class, or perhaps they also check some different parameters for the flight.
Jul 2, 2017, 4:57 am
#1438
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: PAS, Paros Greece
Programs: A3 *G
Posts: 1,369
I'm not really familiar with Aeroplan so I usually check upgrade availability by searching for business class redemptions directly with A3. This method does indeed show that 'I' class IS available on your dates.
I would try calling tomorrow - in "normal" office hours. Several people have reported having problems getting upgrades at weekends (but I'm too lazy to find the posts) - indeed some have been told to call back in office hours because "the Miles and Bonus department have to deal with it themselves". Maybe the agent you spoke to just couldn't deal with upgrades at that time and didn't want to explain.
I bet if you call on Monday it will all go through right away. Also, if you are allowed to upgrade ATH-BEY even though MAN-ATH cannot be upgraded then that would debunk the rumour about all legs of a journey having to be upgraded, so feedback would be most welcome. On the other hand, maybe the agent couldn't see availability for exactly that reason.
I would try calling tomorrow - in "normal" office hours. Several people have reported having problems getting upgrades at weekends (but I'm too lazy to find the posts) - indeed some have been told to call back in office hours because "the Miles and Bonus department have to deal with it themselves". Maybe the agent you spoke to just couldn't deal with upgrades at that time and didn't want to explain.
I bet if you call on Monday it will all go through right away. Also, if you are allowed to upgrade ATH-BEY even though MAN-ATH cannot be upgraded then that would debunk the rumour about all legs of a journey having to be upgraded, so feedback would be most welcome. On the other hand, maybe the agent couldn't see availability for exactly that reason.
Jul 2, 2017, 7:31 am
#1440
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Heraklion, Greece
Posts: 7,564