FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - Have there been any independent studies of the cost/benefit of IDB?
Old Apr 21, 2017 | 8:27 am
  #9  
pinniped
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Originally Posted by darthbimmer
Another is thinking up a whole new trip that the vouchers pay for. I can tell you from experience that many infrequent travelers considering vouchers think of them in terms of, "Where can I go for $XXX?"
This was always me with AA vouchers during my peak VDB years. I knew the vouchers caused certain taxes to drop off, making them even more valuable on international trips. So when I'd get one, I'd start a basic "ORD to Anywhere" search query and often find a new city (for me) in Europe or wherever to use the voucher.

We even had an AA city ticket office in the mall next door to my office. One time a couple of colleagues and I got vouchers on a Friday, walked into the CTO on Tuesday, and were flying (using the vouchers) ORD-MXP the following Thursday for a 4-day weekend. ^

(Sidebar: I miss the CTO. )
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