Originally Posted by pinniped

It's always going to be a personal decision. 1.2cpm is a little lower than most FTers like to redeem, but that doesn't mean it's a bad choice for you.

As painful as it seems to pay $600 on a domestic flight, that's the reality these days for holiday travel on some routes, so I would probably bite the bullet and pay it. I'd evaluate the RDM/EQM benefits of flying paid...that could tip the decision one way or the other.

Other things I'd consider:

- It may be 50k for a Y award, but check and see if it's *also* 50k for an F award. I'm flying over New Year's on a peak cruise-departure route to the Caribbean. Cash prices = insane. Coach awards = 50k. F awards = 50k. No-brainer: I'm flying F. Given the raw number of seats out there from the Bay Area to WAS, you might score an F seat here.

- If you choose to buy, and you have the Thank You Points to redeem, then that seat is treated as a normal mileage-earning fare. Since the TYP "bonus" for redeeming AA ends in mid-2017, this might be a good place to spend your points. (Assuming AA was in the cheapest-fare ballpark.)

- You can also look at discounted-F fares. (I always do this when I see sky-high Y fares.) Sometimes you find something just slightly higher (say, $800), sometimes not. Only catch: the engine that books TYP tickets sometimes can't book AA discount F fares. YMMV.