Jan 8, 2015, 12:16 am
Last edit by: jackal
Welcome to the Newbie Lounge Thread!
Anyone is welcome to ask anything, even the most basic questions, in this thread without having to fear a snarky response. In this thread, there's no such thing as a dumb question--we were all new to Alaska Airlines, FlyerTalk, and even the whole idea of mileage programs once and needed some help navigating the ropes. We're here to help you do just that!
That said, if you want to do a little reading to see if your question has been previously discussed, links to some of the most common and extensive topics in this forum are listed in our FAQ thread--click here to check it out.
Special care will be given in this thread to trying to provide answers in a clear manner with minimal use of acronyms and jargon.
If you need to contact someone for help, here's a current list of our forum's team:
Ambassadors (Our Greeters--members who have specifically volunteered to welcome and mentor newbies and monitor this thread):
ANC RED-EYE
baliktad
beckoa
golfingboy
Moderators (Our Janitors--members who have volunteered to do housekeeping/keep the forum in order)
Cholula
jackal
You are welcome to send a private message to any of these individuals for assistance, but you'll generally get a faster response and broader palette of answers if you simply post your inquiry here in this thread.
Note to FlyerTalk members who enjoy the ability to take advantage of loopholes--if someone posts something that exposes information you'd rather not be public, please remember this is a Flame-Free thread, and harsh or snarky posts are not permitted. Although FlyerTalk itself does not censor posts that share information, members are free to edit their own posts to remove information. If you wish to request any poster to remove information they have shared publicly, please do so politely and respectfully.
Welcome, and we look forward to providing any assistance we can!
~the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan forum team~
For the previous incarnation of this thread, please click here
Anyone is welcome to ask anything, even the most basic questions, in this thread without having to fear a snarky response. In this thread, there's no such thing as a dumb question--we were all new to Alaska Airlines, FlyerTalk, and even the whole idea of mileage programs once and needed some help navigating the ropes. We're here to help you do just that!
That said, if you want to do a little reading to see if your question has been previously discussed, links to some of the most common and extensive topics in this forum are listed in our FAQ thread--click here to check it out.
Special care will be given in this thread to trying to provide answers in a clear manner with minimal use of acronyms and jargon.
If you need to contact someone for help, here's a current list of our forum's team:
Ambassadors (Our Greeters--members who have specifically volunteered to welcome and mentor newbies and monitor this thread):
ANC RED-EYE
baliktad
beckoa
golfingboy
Moderators (Our Janitors--members who have volunteered to do housekeeping/keep the forum in order)
Cholula
jackal
You are welcome to send a private message to any of these individuals for assistance, but you'll generally get a faster response and broader palette of answers if you simply post your inquiry here in this thread.
Note to FlyerTalk members who enjoy the ability to take advantage of loopholes--if someone posts something that exposes information you'd rather not be public, please remember this is a Flame-Free thread, and harsh or snarky posts are not permitted. Although FlyerTalk itself does not censor posts that share information, members are free to edit their own posts to remove information. If you wish to request any poster to remove information they have shared publicly, please do so politely and respectfully.
Welcome, and we look forward to providing any assistance we can!
~the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan forum team~
For the previous incarnation of this thread, please click here
2015 Alaska Airlines *FLAME-FREE* Q&A thread: all welcome, new and old!
Nov 25, 2015, 6:08 pm
#1321
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: SEA
Programs: AS 75k
Posts: 922
I just had to cancel a segment of a trip on AS and I am now going to find myself 266 miles short of MVPG next year. Can I buy 266pqms somehow? Will they bump me up anyways? Taking another trip for 266 pqms just seems ridiculous. Any experience with targeted offers for the New year from AS to help maintain status? Am I screwed? Help!
Not generally; that close and you may be offered a courtesy bump to MVPG if you ask, or you may be offered the 8-segments-in-3-months challenge next year to regain Gold.
Note they don't like to give courtesy upgrades or challenges back to back, so if you take advantage of anything this year, don't expect the same next year. You'll need to actually fly 40,000 miles butt-in-seat next year to hit MVPG.
To ensure that you remain uninterrupted MVPG with no problems, can you add a segment to an existing trip? How about instead of flying a nonstop ORD-PDX, rebook it to ORD-SEA-PDX (assuming the fare is reasonable)? That'll get you an extra 500 EQMs and help you clear the bar.
Note they don't like to give courtesy upgrades or challenges back to back, so if you take advantage of anything this year, don't expect the same next year. You'll need to actually fly 40,000 miles butt-in-seat next year to hit MVPG.
To ensure that you remain uninterrupted MVPG with no problems, can you add a segment to an existing trip? How about instead of flying a nonstop ORD-PDX, rebook it to ORD-SEA-PDX (assuming the fare is reasonable)? That'll get you an extra 500 EQMs and help you clear the bar.
Either way, this seems to be one of the most common questions and I've never seen anyone who actually got PQMs to make status, even if they were 1 short.
There are some same day SFO-PSP turns for $131. Otherwise, as jackal suggests, just add a -PDX- or -SEA- leg in somewhere.
Nov 26, 2015, 10:49 am
#1322
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,639
Status matched to MVPG - is the only way to change seats for existing reservations to wait and call in a week and manually change each reservation with an agent? This won't update automatically at some point if I just wait?
Nov 26, 2015, 11:13 am
#1323
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: BOS/ORH
Programs: AS 75K
Posts: 18,323
No it never automatically updates. If you have not already requested to be on the upgrade waitlist, call in about a week and have them remove and reapply the MP number from the reservation so it recognizes the status
Nov 28, 2015, 10:45 am
#1325
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: SEA
Programs: Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 1,946
2 questions:
1. What are the chances of getting into the SEA Board Room with a AAdmirals Club day pass (awarded via a AA Citi Plat spend promo)? In a pinch, I also have the Chase Lounge Club card that I know works.
2. Are there updated rules on getting a free drink with Preferred Plus seats? The website says, "...with the purchase of a Preferred Plus seat," but on 2 recent flights I was told by the FA:
A. We don't do that any more
B. Its only for those who first bought a regular seat and then buy-up to a preferred plus seat
I get that redeeming miles for a preferred plus seat would probably not count--and in the past, has not counted--as "with the purchase," but the current interpretation still seems loose.
TIA
1. What are the chances of getting into the SEA Board Room with a AAdmirals Club day pass (awarded via a AA Citi Plat spend promo)? In a pinch, I also have the Chase Lounge Club card that I know works.
2. Are there updated rules on getting a free drink with Preferred Plus seats? The website says, "...with the purchase of a Preferred Plus seat," but on 2 recent flights I was told by the FA:
A. We don't do that any more
B. Its only for those who first bought a regular seat and then buy-up to a preferred plus seat
I get that redeeming miles for a preferred plus seat would probably not count--and in the past, has not counted--as "with the purchase," but the current interpretation still seems loose.
TIA
Nov 28, 2015, 11:42 am
#1326
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SGF
Programs: AS, AA, UA, AGR S (former 75K, GLD, 1K, and S+, now an elite peon)
Posts: 23,194
2. Are there updated rules on getting a free drink with Preferred Plus seats? The website says, "...with the purchase of a Preferred Plus seat," but on 2 recent flights I was told by the FA:
A. We don't do that any more
B. Its only for those who first bought a regular seat and then buy-up to a preferred plus seat
I get that redeeming miles for a preferred plus seat would probably not count--and in the past, has not counted--as "with the purchase," but the current interpretation still seems loose.
A. We don't do that any more
B. Its only for those who first bought a regular seat and then buy-up to a preferred plus seat
I get that redeeming miles for a preferred plus seat would probably not count--and in the past, has not counted--as "with the purchase," but the current interpretation still seems loose.
A free drink (with the purchase of a Preferred Plus seat)
Flight attendant #A in your example was wrong. Flight attendant #B was correct.
When you say "redeeming miles for a Preferred Plus seat," what do you mean? I am not aware of any way to redeem miles specifically for Preferred Plus seats, since they are not a separate fare/booking class. If you redeem miles for regular coach and get to sit in Preferred Plus seats as a benefit of your AS MVP status, then that does not count as having purchased a Preferred Plus seat. Non-elites who pay the $15/30/50 to sit in a Preferred Plus seat are the ones who count as having purchased a Preferred Plus seat.
Nov 29, 2015, 12:53 am
#1327
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Murcia, Spain
Programs: AADVANTAGE, Iberia Plus, BA Exec Blue, Hertz #1Gold, HHonors Gold, AS, Paradores Amigos
Posts: 505
SEA Lounge access, guest on AA 30-day pass
But I will also have a 30-day AA lounge pass. According to this page, https://www.aa.com/i18n/travelInform...nge-access.jsp I should be able to get access to the AS lounge at SEA, but what about my partner, as my guest? I know he would get into AA lounges as my guest but what about the AS lounge at SEA?
Thanks.
Nov 29, 2015, 12:50 pm
#1328
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 11
My apologies in advance if this has been asked before, but can we redeem award flights on partner airlines purely using purchased miles? Or is there a minimum amount of "earned" miles that needs to be used for redemption?
Nov 29, 2015, 1:06 pm
#1329
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: BOS/ORH
Programs: AS 75K
Posts: 18,323
Nov 29, 2015, 1:50 pm
#1330
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend, Moderator, Information Desk, Ambassador, Alaska Airlines
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: FAI
Programs: AS MVP Gold100K, AS 1MM, Maika`i Card, AGR, HH Gold, Hertz PC, Marriott Titanium LTG, CO, 7H, BA, 8E
Posts: 42,953
Wirelessly posted (beckoa's BB: Mozilla/5.0 (BlackBerry; U; BlackBerry 9810; en-US) AppleWebKit/534.11+ (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/7.1.0.694 Mobile Safari/534.11+)
I have a similar question. Me and my partner travelling in F from ANC-SEA on AS then on AA to CLT in F. This will not get us lounge access at SEA, I know (though I think we'll get access in ANC by virtue of the fact we are in AS F class).
But I will also have a 30-day AA lounge pass. According to this page, https://www.aa.com/i18n/travelInform...nge-access.jsp I should be able to get access to the AS lounge at SEA, but what about my partner, as my guest? I know he would get into AA lounges as my guest but what about the AS lounge at SEA?
Thanks.
If in F (A,P,D or F class) you'll get access to the AS BR in ANC and SEA. Just keep your BP to show in SEA ^
Originally Posted by johnash
But I will also have a 30-day AA lounge pass. According to this page, https://www.aa.com/i18n/travelInform...nge-access.jsp I should be able to get access to the AS lounge at SEA, but what about my partner, as my guest? I know he would get into AA lounges as my guest but what about the AS lounge at SEA?
Thanks.
Nov 29, 2015, 7:24 pm
#1331
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: Pacific NW
Programs: AS MVP, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 126
Is there a thread here about the ins and outs of getting and using award space on Fiji like there is for Cathay and EK? I couldn't find it in a search. If not, should we start one since it is the most viable way to get to New Zealand/Australia now.
Nov 29, 2015, 7:34 pm
#1332
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: BOS/ORH
Programs: AS 75K
Posts: 18,323
Not that i know of. Feel free to start one. Nothing too exciting about their awards one connection point, no fancy product and not complicated to book since it can be done online and they only serve two US cities. I'm sure there's other reasons who no one has cared to start one. Even if you were to look for space it would be buried by all the the QF mixed cabin awards. I rarely see any awards not on QF to OZ or NZ. If yiu want premium cabin you probably would have better luck with QF just based off what i'm looking at so far. Just Y so far
Last edited by CDKing; Nov 29, 2015 at 7:47 pm
Nov 29, 2015, 8:45 pm
#1333
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: SEA
Programs: Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 1,946
As of when I last flew AS (October), simply being seated in a Preferred Plus eat does not grant you the drink benefit (I was denied a free drink when I asked from seat 6F). You must have actually purchased the Preferred Plus seat to get the free drink, and that is indicated on the FA's manifest. That matches what is quoted here: http://www.alaskaair.com/content/dea...s-seating.aspx
Flight attendant #A in your example was wrong. Flight attendant #B was correct.
Flight attendant #A in your example was wrong. Flight attendant #B was correct.
...but, strangely, I got an apology from Alaska Listens and an unprompted $25 credit just for asking what the policy was.
Nov 29, 2015, 10:07 pm
#1334
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SGF
Programs: AS, AA, UA, AGR S (former 75K, GLD, 1K, and S+, now an elite peon)
Posts: 23,194
I have a similar question. Me and my partner travelling in F from ANC-SEA on AS then on AA to CLT in F. This will not get us lounge access at SEA, I know (though I think we'll get access in ANC by virtue of the fact we are in AS F class).
But I will also have a 30-day AA lounge pass. According to this page, https://www.aa.com/i18n/travelInform...nge-access.jsp I should be able to get access to the AS lounge at SEA, but what about my partner, as my guest? I know he would get into AA lounges as my guest but what about the AS lounge at SEA?
Thanks.
But I will also have a 30-day AA lounge pass. According to this page, https://www.aa.com/i18n/travelInform...nge-access.jsp I should be able to get access to the AS lounge at SEA, but what about my partner, as my guest? I know he would get into AA lounges as my guest but what about the AS lounge at SEA?
Thanks.
That said, you have a 30-day lounge membership with AA, and it is, for all intents and purposes, a full-fledged membership for that 30-day period, not any sort of "light" pass or anything. Your AA lounge membership should get you and "Immediate family or up to 2 guests" in as well.
Nov 30, 2015, 5:00 pm
#1335
Join Date: Aug 2013
Posts: 63
Hawaii Premium Economy / AS Miles
I'm booked on Flight 844 (LIH -> SJC) in August 2016 with AS miles. It looks like rows 6-17 or so are blocked out since I initially booked this flight (before seat assignments were even available). I'm guessing this is premium economy - thought seatguru claims it is not. Seat selection does not allow me to select these seats - even for a price. Am I able to upgrade to (what I think is) premium economy for a fee?
Sorry if this has been asked. I searched and browsed a few threads without any hints of an answer.
Sorry if this has been asked. I searched and browsed a few threads without any hints of an answer.