I’ve only flown UA a handful of times over the last 5 years, but I’ll agree that the charm is not there when compared to AS. Although I did find the Lounge Attendants at the PDX United Club to be pleasant.

I take one international trip per year and am typically able to find award inventory, but with ANC as my home airport I have to be flexible. In fact, I did use AS miles for LHR-SFO this year in F on the A380. Yes, you have to pay up the nose in fuel surcharges, but I partially offset that cost with all the food and drink I consumed in the LHR Concorde Room. Given your additional options for gateway cities, you should have no problem finding inventory. If your trips take you to Europe, Condor is a good option as their A330-900neo J product is perfectly adequate. If you’re going to Asia there are several options, with Starlux being the newest. Many FTers complain about lack of international J/F award inventory, but I’ve always been successful. The only time I wasn’t was a trip specifically to Iceland, but the flight is short enough I didn’t mind using my miles for a Y redemption to KEF.