Originally Posted by
Adelphos
IMO,
1) There is a lot of value in getting a redemption for the exact dates / routes you need
2) Even taking the lower price, that's 1.3 cents per SkyMile. Most would consider that fair value. Most people redeem for economy around those prices. Redeeming for 20 hours of D1 at the same price seems like a fair redemption (not a steal, not a rip off - fair).
Understood. Although it should be noted that they've also added a number of restrictions to get the cheapest award mileage rates. US-EU D1 awards now all require roundtrip bookings with Sat night stays and generally 60-90 advance purchase to get cheapest award rates (similar to, but not exactly matching, requirements for cheapest D1 revenue fares). In this case, the cheapest D1 revenue fares require a 7 day minimum stay, while the cheapest D1 awards on route (340K roundtrip) only require a Sat night stay. So DL left somewhat of a gap if you can't meet the 7 day minimum stay requirement for cheapest revenue fares, you can still get cheapest award rates if you can meet the roundtrip booking with Sat night stay requirement (and advance purchase requirements).