Originally Posted by
AUSshouldbeahub
5.) Fares and reward tickets seems to have changed drastically recently, should I wait or is it only going to get worse?
For a few hours yesterday I believe I saw AUS-HNL roundtrip in the $600 range. You just have to check frequently and hope that something is there, fares like that don't last long.
As for rewards, as a Plat you can book a reward ticket and then if a good fare comes along you can cancel the reward ticket and receive all of your miles back for no fee.
One thing to note about using miles to upgrade purchased tickets is that IAH-HNL is considered a BF market with copays on mileage upgrades. This is where those B fares may affect you as AUS-HNL are probably sky high now. If you choose a UA option (AUS-ORD/SFO/DEN/LAX-HNL) try for the flights on a 763 or 772, these flights are UDU eligible.