Originally Posted by
flyingmike
Hi all
This is certainly a subjective question but looking forward to your thoughts.
Wife and I are beginning overseas vacation travel twice annually now that the kids are on their own.
I’ve had a long and basically satisfying relationship with United.
I’m wondering if the Polaris experience out of EWR and IAD is nice enough to justify the connection from BOS versus just picking a direct flight on whichever overseas carrier serves my destination direct.
The value of Sticking with UA would be a consistent experience versus what might be a roll of the dice with a European carrier.
On the other hand, do the additional travel risks of a missed connection and probably the cost negate the consistency?
I’ve actually never flown Polaris, which is part of my indecision I'm sure. In any event, I’d trust reviews here more than what a random YouTube channel thinks.
I’m sure it’s a YMMV answer but wondering is Polaris consistency and experience worth the extra travel headaches?
thanks
Mike
Boston is also home for my wife and I, and at one time we also had this debate. We've been fairly happy United flyers over the years, and my 2022-23 commuting weekly from SFO was overall very positive. We take several trips to Europe each year and often look to connect at EWR or IAD. Some may call us crazy, though we lived for several years in central Jersey and often took NJ Transit to Newark so became very familiar with all the nuances that EWR has to offer.
We've had some success using Pluspoints for Polaris on these trips and don't mind the short connect to Newark. Since I'm nearing 1MM we'll likely continue to prioritize these itineraries. On occasion we will take the direct Swiss flight to Zurich or Lufthansa through FRA/MUC though we are admittedly happy flying UA134/135 from Newark.