tiamsanit

Dear all,
Now I'm short of 20000 miles to become platinum member. I have only 1 month left to do the run and my schedule and budget is tight. All I want to ask is "is it really worth it to become a platinum member?" I mean, yes I do understand their basic benefit such as F lounge access and bonus. The only thing I do interest is a chance of Operational Upgrade. As I discuss with friend who have a gold tier and some basic search through the internet. It is less likely that they will upgrade or approve "asked for upgrade"

Another question is about tier miles, I do understand that tier and guest miles are a different thing. However I do want to confirm that my understanding is correct. For example if I fly economy on a breaking deal fare which give 25% guest miles. If I actual fly 1000 miles I will get 250 guest miles and 1000 tier miles, am I correct?

Best regards

thbe

The support for platinums is much better (at least you can, that there is a support).

The chance for operational upgrades is better for platinums. But since the last changes they also factor the booking class for the op up list. A gold member with a freedom fare could be higher on the list than a platinum member with a breaking deal fare.

Yes, tier miles only depend on the cabin class while guest miles depend on the booking class (only exception: The Residence).

All economy: 100% tier miles per mile flown, but 25% to 100% guest miles
All business: 150% tier miles per mile flown, but 115% to 175% guest miles
First: 200% tier miles per mile flown, but 250% guest miles
The Residence: 400% tier miles per mile flown and 400% guest miles

NoY

Where do you think you would fly to & in what class of service?

erik123

If you fly a few times a year I'd say no. If once or more a month - maybe yes. But probably not if you are still short 20k (a lot) which you are unlikely to be able to do cheaply without agony.

tiamsanit

By far the best deal I can find is deal breaking fare on bkk-lax slightly over 22000 tier Miles per round trip at 1000$ (does not care much for guest miles this time). Still a pain in the arse I think.

And thanks for all replies, appriciated

erik123

Would be completely not worth it for me - even in business. Better to spend it on a fantastic weekend trip in Thailand.

NoY

Nice fare - I’d do it (only if in J!) if time your time is your own - YMMV!

LostAntipod

I've been plat for a while and frankly I wouldn't bother going out of my way for it, unless I knew I had a good chance of additional trips coming up, and, doing so would boost my miles in a way I can actually make use of. I've had one upgrade in 8 flights , so I cant say its a super perk in that respect. Status should be useful if it prioritises how you are treated when a flight is delayed or cancelled.... fortunately I haven't had that issue so I cant comment.

On my last flight, the J cabin supervisor stopped by my seat to introduce herself and started promoting to me the benefits of joining EY Guest.... ....so much for onboard status recognition. And despite priority status tags put on my luggage at check-in, my bags came off the belt at LHR stone motherless last, after about a 45 minute wait. When that happens to you, do try not to think about the money and your valuable time you spent reaching for Plat status....

tiamsanit

Thanks so much for your reply, I'm thinking the best perk for me now is a F lounge access, I'll rethinking about it...

chinatraderjmr

^^^. I still can't wrap myself around sitting on a plane, in ANY class for a minute longer then necessary. The idea of flying fro BKK-LAX, THE LONG WAY!!! Just to get a card that is not exactly impressive, does nothing for you but give you a few more miles and a hope for an upgrade that may never happen

I love to travel, hate to fly these days but love to travel. Instead of paying out of pocket (and there are plenty here who pay out of pocket themselves, but if they sleep in lounges, buy cheapest fares, & use a flight like a Disney ride) then perhaps their money can be spent elsewhere on things they really need - at the same time, do what I and thousands of others have done,......Find a career that requires travels

tiamsanit

Well, after getting aged, may be true... I have done AI JFK-DEL with full load 100% not a single seat left, I dont want to be a racism or discriminating someone but it was the deepest hell for 15 hrs... I think I have a good immunity for such a super long hual

chinatraderjmr

I used to take Jet Air between EWR - BOM when they operated 3 cabin 77Ws with Great Indian cabin crews WHO WERE ALL SQ TRAINED & retired AA, UA & DL pilots. These were wonderful flights, especially in F. But when they discontinued the service I didn't even consider Air India. Went back to my tried and true Emirates flights (would book it with an 18 hour layover so I could go home, shower & take a nap). I got food poisoning in Mumbai last year & had to catch a 6 am AI flight to Chennai. Less then 2 hours and I wanted to kill myself. Packed A320 & even in biz no room to move. I was ok till they served breakfast. The smell of 120 meals throughout the plane almost killed me. Locked myself in the LAV for an hour

NoY

Its all about priorities & what you enjoy & value. No one can dictate to you about what you should or shouldn’t do - particularly when spending you own time & money, as indeed I do for all of my travel now. No kowtowing to corporate rules for me @:-) ^