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Thread: Lots of questions, looking to be pointed in the right direction
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Old Sep 6, 2021 | 8:36 pm
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garykung
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Let me try.

Originally Posted by Jereld
  1. What are the best SkyTeam partners for flying US to Asia? When I say best I mean from the standpoint of:
    1. Lowest cost for flying D1 (if on Delta metal), or a similar class on partner metal? KE. DL does not fly to Asia as frequent as others (6 destinations).
    2. Best point redemption options? N/A - dynamic pricing
    3. For reference, a user on Reddit tipped me off that I can transfer my AMEX MR points to Virgin Atlantic with a 30% bonus, and then I can book D1 US to EU on Virgin Atlantic for approximately 39k miles (with 30% bonus) one way. I am looking for similar types of deals, but US to Asia. See above.
  2. When flying Delta, are there any tips or tricks to doing an upgrade with points? As I understand it, there is no way to know if a points upgrade will be available until after you book?
    1. Is it better to book further out, or closer to departure date to get a point upgrade offer? It is best to upgrade when the upgrade can be instantly confirmed.
    2. Has anyone compiled any charts for points upgrades? i.e. If I want to fly from MCO to SGP is there a redemption rate that I should anticipate/aim for? 60k miles each way? 80k miles? N/A. DL's upgrade is dynamic pricing, i.e. demand-driven.
    3. I am guessing the upgrade cost will be based on the purchased fare? Do I have a better chance of getting an upgrade offer if I purchase premium select vs main cabin or C+? You actually get a better offer if you are not a elite. IIRC, per the current system, the higher the elite level, the higher the upgrade costs.
  3. Any thoughts on the "best" (cheapest) airport in the US for trips to Asia? I live in Orlando, but am finding fewer options (especially for award redemptions) than if I pick DTW or JFK as my departing airport. LAX.
  4. The questions I am asking above are ultimately me doing research for several trips to Asia next year. I want to do my own research, but if someone wants to look at my specific trip and provide some guidance, here are those details:
    1. Planning 2-3 trips to Asia in 2022 for a family of 3. I want to go to Manila, Singapore, and Seoul, and I want to try to do D1, however I don't want to pay the approx. $8k per ticket, per trip.
    2. I am Platinum with Delta, and will be trying to get to Diamond in 2022. I will be fine on MQM's, but will need MQD's.
      1. Completely fine using another airline, but would prefer at least to use SkyTeam so I can get the miles/MQM/MQD's.
    3. I have around 275k miles, 250 AMEX MR points, and 800k Marriott points. Pretty sure I can't transfer Hilton points, but if I can, I have around 1.3M Hilton points.
      1. I am trying to keep my per-ticket price to $2500 for each person per trip. You may have better luck dropping either Singapore or Manila (Seoul is fine). There is no ST flight between Singapore and Manila. So, any ST flight will, at the minimum, reach TPE as connection. If you drop one city (simply booking others), the fare should be substantially cheaper IMO. Also, you may not have enough for 3 in D1 or similar, given that an award ticket can cost as much 200k/passenger.
  1. Any recommendations for tools/sites that can help?
    1. I already got some great info from the r/awardtravel sub-reddit. No comment.
    2. Some folks recommended I check out award hacker, however I am not finding as much there as I would have hoped.No comment.
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