Originally Posted by
mtofell
So, what do you veteran flyers do once you reach 75K status? Start using miles to book flights? Switch to another airline to build status?
No easy answer. Sometimes the Alaska fares are so attractive after reaching 75K, I just keep accruing. If I can fly to the east coast for $300 or less, I'm going to buy the ticket before I give up 25,000 miles. Would prefer to save those miles for international awards when I can. When I flew with AA I did 125-150K many years, but that was because international accrued based on distance. Not now. Hard to resist $500-600 winter fares to Europe and Asia.
As to switching to another carrier, see my comments in the next part of this post below:
Originally Posted by
currid7
I've never flown enough paid tickets to get status, but I imagine if I did, the first step would be to start matching that to other statuses.
The problem there, particularly if you are a leisure flyer, is that other carriers award miles based on dollars spent. For example, a RT SFO-JFK for a 75K will bring in 11,000 miles. Fly the same itinerary with AA or UA as a top tier flyer on a $300 fare and you'll earn less than 3,000 miles (11X per pre-tax dollar). You'll also need to meet the carriers spending requirement to retain status. AA requires $12,000 spend (that's why I'm not there now). I've lost track of how UA deals with top tier. It used to be dollars but looks like they're using a different formula now involving points.
On the other hand, if your tickets are a mix of paid first, business and full-fare economy, it may very well be a good idea, as those fares are higher priced and will accrue more miles. A top tier AA/UA flyer paying $2,000RT SFO-JFK will bring in slightly less than 22,000 miles (11 miles per pre-tax dollar). A similar ticket on Alaska in domestic first for a 75K would bring in 325% miles or around 16,250 miles. If you're flying this mix of fares, you just about have to get a spreadsheet out to figure where the miles accrued work out the best, and then look at the award charts for your favorite destinations and see what the awards price out. You may earn more miles at UA and AA, but you may spend more miles on international flights in first or business.
Let me also add that as long as I've been on FT the topic of one-time status matches has been a topic. I don't know if there's a definitive answer as to whether you can get comped status more than once, so might be best to ask for the comped status when you really need it if it is a one-time deal. I've done status matches from UA to AA to Alaska over the years, but moved the bulk of my flying each time I made the move.
Another issue to consider is some carriers charge more for award routes. For Qantas to Australia in business, AA charges 80K. Alaska charges 55K and allows a free stopover in and out of Australia, something AA doesn't allow (add on around 30K for two extra segments). I have lifetime status with AA and UA and still fly them occasionally, mostly international, when the paid fares are good, but hardly accrue any miles on the fares I buy (a $600 Europe fare might bring in 4,000 miles at 8X per dollar spent- going to take a long time to buy that Australia ticket when the miles come in so slowly).
There's no single answer. You have to spend time looking at your fares and the miles they'd accrue among different carriers, where you want to go with awards (and in what class), and, in addition to those, which carrier is most convenient to you.