Thanks for all the help, guys. I'll take all of this into account, but just wanted to provide more info first.
Just a little bit more info: I'm living in the US, but for the next few years or so, I'll be spending maybe half the year in the UK, but after that, should be back in the US more permanently. (Does that make a difference?)
Originally Posted by
guv1976
Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry: BlackBerry8530/5.0.0.1030 Profile/MIDP-2.1 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/417)
What class of service will you be flying on your paid tickets? If Economy, will you be on a deeply-discounted fare? (Some FFPs award less than full mileage when you fly a partner carrier on deeply-discounted fares.)
Will you want to redeem your earned miles for domestic flights? International flights? A combination of the two? And in what class of service?
What do you value most in an FFP? Free flights? Upgrades on paid flights? Lounge access? And how many total miles would you expect to fly in a 12-month period?
Given the fact that you may be flying to HKG with some frequency, you might want to consider joining a oneworld carrier's FFP, since Cathay Pacific serves HKG from LAX, LHR, and lots of other places. Both AA and BA fly LAX-LHR nonstop. (And LAX is an AA hub, which should be considered since you will be flying domestically, as well.)
Class of service: Economy, cheapest possible, probably, since it's coming out of my own pocket and flights add up quickly.
Redemption: No preference as to redemption, except that I'd like to stretch it as far as it goes (obviously, if the best I can redeem is LAX-SFO, that's not so great).
Value most: If I'm flying NZ, free flights possibly since their economy is already amazing, but with any other airline, upgrades probably.
Yearly miles: Probably 32000 miles on just the LAX-LHR route, and maybe another 10000–15000 on either LAX-HKG or LHR-HKG and US domestic combined. (Plus miles from credit card, maybe?)
HKG: Not sure if I'll be making it to HKG that frequently, probably just once a year, maybe twice depending.
Originally Posted by
BbTrumpet
NZ no longer operates LHR-HKG, they only have a code share with CX on that route.
Didn't hear about that, now I'm just the tiniest bit sad.
Originally Posted by
sahiljain22
Yes, please factor in where and how you want to redeem those miles and if you will need one way redemptions.
No particular redemption preference; one-way vs. round trip shouldn't be a factor for me?