Originally Posted by
j2simpso
Define, "make sense," in terms of strictly a milage run standpoint, no it doesn't make sense. Good MRs are usually 2-3 CPM in Y. Case in point I flew YYZ > SIN for $800 CAD last year on UA in Y which netted me 21,000 miles (3.8 CPM). Granted I was in a plump E+ seat for the many hours I was flying UA but I didn't mind. Sometimes I will opt for an upgrade particularly if the price is right such as the $500 I spent 2 years ago upgrading ORD > HNL for BusinessFirst on UA (feat a lie flat seat).
You have to weigh the costs and benefits. I've run the numbers on my chasing United Gold (50,000 miles) every year and figured it worked out as I was getting about $2,000 in benefits for about $3,000 in revenue spend. Next year I'll be gunning for 1K to earn valuable upgrade certificates I can use for my inter-inter continental flights (read Australia to Europe via North America) as I'm getting sick and tired of flying Y even on medium haul domestic flights like LHR > YYZ. To each their own I suppose.
Safe Travels,
James
Thanks James for the detailed explanation. have a few questions:
1. does "Y" denote business class in this context? I know with a few airlines, "Y" actually appears in quite a few booking classes. could find “Y" in Business or in "Prem E" or in "Tango". Am I interpreting this correctly?
2. when search flights on let's say skyscanner, they only let me choose First, Business, and Ecom. what if I want to choose Ecom fare ticket, but with a particular sub-class that gives me 100% qualifying miles, how would I check that? when at checkout, most time I am directed to 3rd party travel agency site that does not display any fare class info. in this case, do I have to call the airline directly or this 3rd party agency to confirm mileage schedule?
3. as you pointed out with UA Gold (50k), your benefits are $2000, and spends are around $3000. I wonder what benefits do you consider or "monetize" in your calculation?
for example, I am going after Aeroplan (Air Canada) E75k status, at year end, I will be 6000 miles shy of E75k. let's say I spend $800 to fly to Panama city, which would give me 12k qualifying miles. but the benefits gained from going E50k to E75k is:
1. E35k status for a friend ; not sure if this has any monetary value?
2. 35 e-up credits, instead of 20; additional 15 e-up credits are equivalent to 1 business upg and 1 pre E upgrade for canadian domestic flight. let's say it is about $1000
3. 75% bonus miles, instead of 50%; based on 70k miles flown yearly, this would give me 70k * 25% * 1cent/mile = $175
4. plus, higher chances of getting upgrades, and courtesy upgrades based high status
so in total, my net benefits are $1175, and my spends are $800. is this how people would evaluate the milegage run worthiness?
thanks
Sen