Originally Posted by
pseudoswede
I will fall 568 PQPs short of Gold after my last (leisure) flight of the year next week. I do have the option to buy 600 PQP for $805.
blank for formatting- I qualified for Silver status this year only because I had to buy a last-minute TATL Y ticket to get back to the US due to the SK pilot strike (and SK said, "We can't find anything. Here's a refund. Good luck.").
- I don't travel too much domestically for work. I'm planning on 6-10 trips in 2023 (mainly to SDF, with SLC, ORD, or ATL as possibilities). Cheapest non-BE ticket available at time of booking.
- I predict one or two leisure non-stop flights; most likely just to California, maybe to NYC, maybe to Hawaii, maybe Mexico.
- The plan is only for one int'l (TATL) trip in 2023; we will be super price-sensitive so it may not even be on *A over the pond, and most likely ULCC within Europe. There will be more than one person traveling, so getting into *A lounges is not important.
- Mrs. Swede will also have Silver next year (same reason as above); she nor I, nor our kids, are tall, so preferred regular economy seats are totally fine at booking; if there is room in Y+ for us, great, if not, no big deal.
- If I didn't have Silver status, I have the UA Explorer Card, so I already get Group 2 boarding (and two free bags if traveling with a companion).
- Getting CPU'd into F is nice, but low on my list; I'd just rather get to my destination on-time or early. I'd rather just grab a meal in the airport, and I can live without alcohol for a few hours.
- So far in 2022, I've only had one successful CPU. Even on a route like DEN-SDF, I'm in the high teens/low 20s on the upgrade list.
- With my travel pattern described above, I doubt I'll even qualify for Silver in 2024.
If UA offered a soft landing, then I would be more tempted to spring for the 600 PQP to stay at least silver through 2024. However, since they don't, I don't feel that trying to go for Gold is worth it for me. Basically, looking to see if I'm missing something, or if my analysis is correct.
Just some benefits you may want to consider.
- UA does offer somewhat of a soft landing. Qualifying for Gold will give you 1000 PQP to start next year with. This is 500 more than silver. It will make qualifying for silver next year 10% easier. You're effectively buying 600 PQP this year AND 500 PQP next year.
- As someone that has yo-yoed between gold and silver, you will get CPUs more often. At silver my upgrades were usually around 1 in 20. At Gold it was more like 1 in 4 or 5.
- Even if you don't need the extra legroom, e+ seats are nice just because you're closer to the front of the plane. More options to pick from at time of booking is always better.
- Group 1 boarding vs. group 2 boarding with silver.
- The matching status at Marriott and Avis has been very beneficial to me this year. Avis especially. I've gotten a free1 to 2 class upgrade on every rental this year.