You would be surprised. This was a luxury cruise this summer on Silversea cruise line. It included free RT economy air while offering Business Class upgrades for $2,000 RT. If you declined the economy tickets, they gave you an $800 credit meaning the RT Business Class was really $2800 per person.

I can personally tell you that a whole lot of people on the cruise took advantage of the Business upgrade and considered themselves fortunate since if they had booked it themselves, it would have been about $3500 - and trust me, they would have most certainly paid it.

Almost every one of them would NEVER go to the efforts that I go to (and trust me - I enjoy it!). But there are many people who gladly buy Business Class tickets who are not merely business people but are successful people who like to live well. Your argument as to whether there is value if someone would not willingly pay that amount is an old and constant discussion on FT. There is no answer and no agreement. But I think that all can agree that it is a pleasure to live the good life and enjoy perks, even if you cannot afford them and might not pay for them. Whatever your approach, there is certainly value and enjoyment to be had. Six years ago, when I was first becoming knowledgeable about this stuff, we transferred points to Cathay Pacific for them to book First Class travel on British Airways from NY to Paris. At the time, Cathay charged 90,000 miles each while BA wanted 150,000 for the same seats. We dove in and have never looked back!