unifer

I'm flying LAX-JFK OW this Sunday on the redeye, 11pm departure. I got an email with an offer to submit a bid for an upgrade from MCE to MCS. I saw that if there are still MCS seats when I check in 24 hours in advance I should be able to purchase outright for $129. The minimum bid for an upgrade now is $149, with chances of that winning, "poor" as shown on their system.

Has anyone done MCS upgrade bidding? Any reports of the amounts needed to get an upgrade?

More importantly, what does everyone think my chances are of getting a MCS (or even F) upgrade offer when checking in? It's a red eye so I'm seriously considering paying for a better cabin..

bayhouse

My strategy would be: don't bid.

I wouldn't bother bidding. It's more expensive than upgrading. And while you might know what kind of seats are available when you submit your bit, you don't necessarily know what kinds of seats will be available by the time they process your bid. More than likely, you'll get stuck in a middle seat, which is bad -- especially for a longhaul.

By contrast, if you upgrade, you'll know exactly what the availability is as you upgrade, as you get to chose your seat before you pay.

Keep in mind, the price differences they quote on the bid for upgrade screen reflect estimates of the difference between an MC fare and and MCS fare; they're designed to appear cheaper than buying an MCS ticket outright. The bid offers are deceptive in the sense that they fail to mention that you can upgrade at T-24 for less.

I'm not an expert about this though, I've never used the bid-for-upgrade system.