Originally Posted by
roguetraveler
I'm wondering how to make a decision about using miles. Is there a general principle that you all use?
I'm traveling to Munich in April and can use 60,000 miles from United Mileage Plus, or pay $1,250 for the fare.
Do you have any AA miles? It would only be 40,000 R/T for an AA Off Peak award if you could still find availability. Maybe you have these points in Ultimate Rewards and haven't transferred to United yet? You might be able to transfer to BA and book an award on AA for slightly less depending on your starting airport.
You need to make whatever decision is right for YOU. The answer to this question mostly breaks down to an opinion. If you are traveling for leisure (ie your company isn't paying for this flight), then why not save $1,250 by burning 60,000 miles which you probably obtained for just 1 inquiry in your credit report and minimal, if any cash.
If it was me, I'd save $1,250 and book with miles. However the poster below does make a good point that flights to Europe in April should be under $1,000 still. I just booked 6 myself in the $800-$900 range...
Originally Posted by
benzemalyonnais
60,000 for this flight isn't a good redemption.
$1250 for this flight is an even worse purchase.
I look at it this way: What is harder to get, the 60,000 miles or the money for the fare? With the exception of nice credit card bonuses, it's a lot easier to come up with the $800 or so that a ticket normally costs. I routinely pay under $500 for tickets between Europe and the US.
Unless you are completely incapable of using flexible travel dates or looking at nearby airports like ZRH or FRA, you have no reason to pay this fare in APRIL!
This is true... I just booked 6 tickets at the end of April r/t to FRA for $800-$900. $1,250 sounds like a summer fare.