Originally Posted by
Romanianflyer
QR newbie here! Apologies if the question has been asked before, but I couldn't find good answers/threads with a search...
I recently status matched to QR gold and got 40 Qcredits to spend. I was thinking of buying MAD-DOH-DAR/JRO and use the Qcredits to upgrade from economy (O) to business. Just how am I absolutely sure that the upgrade is possible before I book the economy fare? Is it restricted by availability/there a way to properly check this before buying?
Cheers!
Qcredit availability is restricted, you would need "U" fare class availability and the only way I know to check availability is to constantly check the upgrade tool, sometimes availability might not be available at the time of booking and open at a later date; sometimes it doesn't open ever. I don't know a method to check Qcredit upgrade availability before purchasing a ticket but you could always upgrade with your Qcredits at the check-in counter if there is availability on the Business cabin regardless of upgrade availability space.
Unfortunately, Expertflyer award/upgrade search does not work for QR flights so that is not an option to check upgrade availability. Also, a side note that mileage upgrade availability inventory and Qcredit upgrade availability inventory are the same on QR.
By the way, you could always purchase a QR ticket from a reputable USA based OTA that offers a 24 hour free cancellation period and check Qcredit availability and cancel it if there isn't any upgrade space. You could try this until you succeed, however, I am not sure if the purchase holds would block your credit limit for a while.