Originally Posted by
Maz1982
That's good to hear definitely the way I've travelled. Guess this status is about getting access to lounges and other perks. Ah interesting outlook yeah my sister has been annoyed that things have changed and closed over the years. When it becomes a headache I will opt out
For me, the biggest status benefit is getting free premium (eg exit row) seats when seated in economy. These are quite expensive and definitely something that I would pay for (and do pay for the rare time I fly economy without status).
So basically on AA domestic flights I pay for economy (or, usually, get a cheap economy award) and get upgraded to first a little over half the time, and the rest of the time I'm in the exit row without paying extra.
The more time I spend in lounges, the less I care about them. If I have a long connection they are useful but if I'm flying direct I usually will wait at the gate even if I have lounge access. I'm at the gate, maybe, 20-30 minutes before boarding. Being on my phone in a lounge vs being on my phone at the gate for half an hour is not a huge upgrade.