For the past 10 years, we fly to Maui every February & every April we get our FF tix with our choice of seats including EEAS. Have never had a problem. This is 330 days in advance, at 12:01AM they are just opening the bookings for the day of travel & yes for the return we have to call again in a week or 2 weeks or 3 weeks, depending on how long we are in Maui, to book the return. Then again a 3rd day may also be needed if the return involves 2 days with our connection thru ATL or CVG.
It is their partners (CO & NWA) that have marketing depts that overcharge miles or state no FF seats.
Then folks want to travel in the summer, the Hawaiian busy time, and plan to book In January to travel in June of the same year. NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN!
Originally Posted by Potreroflyr
Rolling the dice isn't the ONLY option. Skychoice awards are available for 2x the miles.
Also, it's widely documented that Hawaii tickets are THE most popular and hardest to get. Plus compared to other carriers (i.e. United), Delta has few flights to the Aloha state. So, a member's goal is ONLY Hawaii, Delta is not a good choice for accruing frequent flier miles.
While I understand the frustration, it's a bit of an overstatement to call SkyMiles useless for vacation award travel. I personally have had pretty good luck getting award seats to various destinations over the years.