Originally Posted by
Passmethesickbag
I do miss having a comfortable stash of MP miles. They really are like money in the bank for unexpected and short-term travel needs, thanks to generous award availability and refreshingly limited fuel surcharges. Both of these may very well change, and perhaps 600k miles is a rather too large hoard to sleep comfortably on, but they're not likely to lose their value overnight.
+1 - Being able to fly transcon on a few days notice to visit a sick relative because I had 50k miles spare (actually reduced to 25k as I switched in saver awards when they opened up at T-24) saved me at least $1000 in May. With family all over the place, that comfort blanket is nice.
That said 600k is probably too much to have stashed away, I'd fly friends/family to visit or to come with you on holiday. One of my friends is flying BA F to NYC because her boss has hundreds of thousands of miles he never uses and doesn't care about. She is so grateful because she could never afford that experience on her own.
PS Welcome to FT from another (quasi)-New Yorker.