Virgin America upgrades - TIP

Old Jul 15, 2014, 6:26 pm
  #106  
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: In the process of moving from Dubai back to Tokyo because I didn't like it there. Working in Melaka, Malaysia now.
Programs: No longer loyal to any airline.
Posts: 519
Cool

Just yesterday I upgraded to 1st LAX-DFW for $139 at the counter a couple hours before departure. Couldn't do it online because I was connecting from Singapore Airlines.

$139 seemed a good value and felt the product was worth it.
InTokyo is offline  
Old Dec 12, 2014, 9:33 am
  #107  
 
Join Date: Feb 2014
Posts: 38
It seems on the new system upgrading to MCS is easier than it was before. I checked in for a flight and it prompted me right away if I wanted to upgrade for $89 (CHI to SFO). After I said yes it let me choose my seat.
cjchaps is offline  
Old Oct 16, 2015, 12:23 pm
  #108  
 
Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 2,108
Sorry to bump this old thread but I'm flying SFO - BOS shortly and wanted to confirm whether this upgrade method can *only* be made within 24 hrs of your scheduled flight time? I'm flying on a redeye but only if I can book it in 1st and I don't want to pay 1K+ for my wife and myself. Since it's not exactly a last minute booking (yet) I'm concerned that all 1st class seats might be taken and I will not fly a redeye otherwise on this route. So my question is, when exactly can discounted paid upgrades be made; anytime after the initial booking, anytime within 24hrs of your departure time, or anytime after completing online check-in? Lastly, can you upgrade only once or twice from base fare? In other words, is it more cost efficient to purchase a Main Cabin, upgrade to MCS, then upgrade to First for the lowest fare? Would I need to start with a Main Cabin Select seat and then upgrade to First? I've read through the FAQ and it's not entirely clear to me. Thanks for your help.
OliverB is offline  
Old Oct 16, 2015, 2:56 pm
  #109  
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Location: SFO
Programs: UA 1K, AS MVP, Bonvoy Plat, IHG Plat, HH Gold, Hyatt Disc
Posts: 217
Originally Posted by OliverB
Sorry to bump this old thread but I'm flying SFO - BOS shortly and wanted to confirm whether this upgrade method can *only* be made within 24 hrs of your scheduled flight time? I'm flying on a redeye but only if I can book it in 1st and I don't want to pay 1K+ for my wife and myself. Since it's not exactly a last minute booking (yet) I'm concerned that all 1st class seats might be taken and I will not fly a redeye otherwise on this route. So my question is, when exactly can discounted paid upgrades be made; anytime after the initial booking, anytime within 24hrs of your departure time, or anytime after completing online check-in? Lastly, can you upgrade only once or twice from base fare? In other words, is it more cost efficient to purchase a Main Cabin, upgrade to MCS, then upgrade to First for the lowest fare? Would I need to start with a Main Cabin Select seat and then upgrade to First? I've read through the FAQ and it's not entirely clear to me. Thanks for your help.
Your only real chance of making this happen is if you have Gold status with VX.

1. If (and only if) you are Elevate Gold, then you can purchase the discounted upgrade 24 hours before departure. Golds are auto-upgraded to MCS, which is typically always available, so even if you purchased a normal MC seat, you only pay the 1-class upgrade from MCS to F. If you check in right at T-24, there's a very good chance of getting an upgrade to F, but that is a busy route, and people are more likely to pay for F if it's a redeye. Bear in mind that there are only 8 F seats.

2. If you are Elevate Silver, you can purchase the discounted upgrade 12 hours before departure. Silvers may be auto-upgraded to MCS at that point as well. Less than a 50% chance (probably less than a 30% chance) any F seats will be left on that route at T-12.

3. If you are Elevate Red (and maybe if you're not enrolled at all; I don't know), you can purchase the discounted upgrade 6 hours before departure. Basically no chance any F seats will still be left on that route at that point.

You can pay to upgrade all the way from MC to F if you need to. It just costs more (obviously) than MC-->MCS or MCS-->F. But it is cheaper than buying MCS outright and then upgrading MCS-->F.
shza is offline  
Old Oct 16, 2015, 7:15 pm
  #110  
 
Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 2,108
Originally Posted by shza
Your only real chance of making this happen is if you have Gold status with VX.

1. If (and only if) you are Elevate Gold, then you can purchase the discounted upgrade 24 hours before departure. Golds are auto-upgraded to MCS, which is typically always available, so even if you purchased a normal MC seat, you only pay the 1-class upgrade from MCS to F. If you check in right at T-24, there's a very good chance of getting an upgrade to F, but that is a busy route, and people are more likely to pay for F if it's a redeye. Bear in mind that there are only 8 F seats.

2. If you are Elevate Silver, you can purchase the discounted upgrade 12 hours before departure. Silvers may be auto-upgraded to MCS at that point as well. Less than a 50% chance (probably less than a 30% chance) any F seats will be left on that route at T-12.

3. If you are Elevate Red (and maybe if you're not enrolled at all; I don't know), you can purchase the discounted upgrade 6 hours before departure. Basically no chance any F seats will still be left on that route at that point.

You can pay to upgrade all the way from MC to F if you need to. It just costs more (obviously) than MC-->MCS or MCS-->F. But it is cheaper than buying MCS outright and then upgrading MCS-->F.
Thanks for explaining. Unfortunately, I hold no status with Virgin as I typically fly VX 3-5 times per year max. and it's usually short haul within California (LA, SD, PDX) or the Pacific NW, Vancouver, etc; perhaps a round trip to JFK now and again. Definitely not enough to meet the revenue based 10K spend for Gold tier, so I'm out of luck. So it looks like I either need to find a good friend with status to book my tickets or just pay upgrade right away. Since there are only 8 F seats and we require two of them, and it's a red eye flight, it sounds like I have to just pony up the bread for F class. I'll have a look and see if I can redeem miles with UA instead because it would be a shame to spend 2.5K for a domestic SFO-BOS routing, but I'm catching a regional connection out of Boston in the early morning and Virgin's itinerary works really well - provided I can score F seats, pop a few pills and get a night's sleep! So just to summarize all that you've explained above, my options as a passenger with zero status are as follows: pay upgrade each tier from MC to MCS to F but only 6 hours before departure time which would eliminate this option outright as there's no chance of that being offered... or just buy the F class tickets at full fare? Bummer. I'm not going to risk flying Main Cabin on an overnight flight, I'd sooner book with a different airline. I think I'm just going to pay the full cost. Thanks again for taking the time to spell it out for me.
OliverB is offline  
Old Oct 16, 2015, 11:39 pm
  #111  
 
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: BOS
Programs: B6/Mosaic/AF/VX/AS Gold Hertz PC HH Dia. AMEX Plat SPG/Marr Gold Nat. EE FPC Plat
Posts: 833
On BOS<>SFO, I would never count on an upgrade to F being available. Even as a Silver, just getting MCS was a challenge. SFO<>BOS is one of their highest load factor routes.
ptownca is offline  
Old Sep 22, 2017, 10:37 am
  #112  
 
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: PacNW (SEA)
Programs: 75K AS, IHG
Posts: 521
Do the fare classes adjust if buying an upgrade?
leland is offline  
Old Sep 22, 2017, 11:43 pm
  #113  
 
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: BOS
Programs: B6/Mosaic/AF/VX/AS Gold Hertz PC HH Dia. AMEX Plat SPG/Marr Gold Nat. EE FPC Plat
Posts: 833
Originally Posted by leland
Do the fare classes adjust if buying an upgrade?
I don't understand the question.
ptownca is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

This site is owned, operated, and maintained by MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Designated trademarks are the property of their respective owners.