Old Mar 9, 2015, 6:33 am
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: Gnopps
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A friendly reminder that Flyertalk is not a marketplace, and nothing may be offered (or solicited) for sale or barter within the general forums - which includes offering vouchers for free. For those with sufficient posts and length of membership, trading/exchange is allowed solely within Coupon Connection, and then only in accordance with the specific rules of that forum.

Please do not attempt to solicit, sell or trade upgrade vouchers within this forum. Posts will be deleted and the members concerned potentially subject to disciplinary action. **Please note that this includes directly using the PM system to do so without first posting in Coupon Connection**. Thanks for your co-operation.
A3 provides all Gold members with four vouchers for upgrade from Economy to Business. Silver members get two upgrade vouchers.

Criteria
  • You must be travelling on A3 or OA metal - codeshares are not included.
  • The original ticket must be issued on either A3 (390) or OA (050) ticket stock.
  • Only revenue (paid) tickets, in fare classes other than U, P & T on a GoLight fare basis, can be upgraded, but not redemption tickets.
  • All flights on the ticket must be on A3 or OA metal.
  • There must be award availability in I-class for the upgrades to clear. You can check this by logging in to M&B then going to https://en.aegeanair.com/milesandbon...t/spend-miles/ The results page will initially be a calendar. To see Business availability, you have to click through to the next step. (You can also use a free or paid tool such as ANA website, UA website (looking for saver award space), Aeroplan, AwardNexus or ExpertFlyer to check for availability.)
  • One coupon per person per journey leg is required - so, for example, TXL-ATH-SKG and return via the same route would require four coupons per person.
  • Anyone can be upgraded using the coupons - you do not have to be travelling on the same booking or even the same plane.

Procedure
  • Call A3 to request the upgrade. The phone numbers are listed at https://aegeanairlines.custhelp.com/ (most of them should go to the same call centre in Greece).
  • If successful, a new ticket will be issued (with a new number). The PNR will remain unchanged.
  • You are liable for any extra taxes applicable to Business Class (e.g. APD from the UK). Sometimes this gets charged, sometimes it doesn't - if it's due and you're not charged because the agent forgets, you've just been lucky.
  • If there's no immediate I-class availability, you can ask to be waitlisted for upgrade. The ability to waitlist was reported to have been removed in August 2016, but was again possible in September. Check with the agent - option available on May 2018.
    • in case you requested to be waitlisted for upgrade and want to check if the customer care agent made the changes on your booking you can check the reservation on checkmytrip.com (click here), the leg you requested the upgrade will be shown here as Waitlisted.
  • If you wish to upgrade one segment of a multi-segment trip (e.g. XXX-ATH-YYY) and there is availability on the leg you wish to upgrade, you may still have to be waitlisted due to married segment issues. The process of clearing the waitlist is somewhat confusing and may result in frustration due to the availability seeming to disappear but in reality, this may mean that the segments have been "unmarried" and the availability has been allocated to your reservation. See post 2272 and the update in post 2294 for more details.

Benefits
  • No matter what the fare basis of the original ticket, you receive full Business Class benefits after upgrade.
  • This includes lounge access (useful if you're upgrading someone other than yourself who has no status, or if you've run out of Silver lounge vouchers) and full baggage allowance (it applies for first leg as well, in case you are upgraded only on the 2nd leg of your trip - confirmed on the etix).
  • Because the ticket books as a redemption, the free car hire is not included.

Mileage/segment earning
  • You will earn at the underlying rate of your purchased ticket in economy, not at a business class rate. Because status miles are awarded, this also counts as a segment for re-qualification purposes.
  • The flights may credit automatically, but may take longer to credit than tickets that have not been changed. They may also credit as 0 miles, and later change to the correct rate. If the flights have not credited properly after a few weeks then calling A3 will rectify this rapidly.

Expiry
  • The vouchers expire at the end of your membership year - they do not carry over, even if status is retained. A new set is issued every year.
  • It is the date when you use the voucher that matters. It can upgrade a flight that takes place after expiry as long as you apply the voucher before.
  • On upgrade from Silver to Gold, any remaining Silver upgrade coupons expire, but they are replaced by four Gold ones which expire at the end of the Gold membership year.

BEWARE
  • Once you have upgraded your seat, your ticket will be reissued. Suddenly, this ticket may be VERY expensive to change. If, for instance, you later decide to travel on a different date, you will probably be required to rebook into Business, even if Economy was available for new bookings. A3 will charge you the difference from your original Economy fare to a NEW Business fare. Plus fees, taxes and whatnot. Update 18/08/2021: this appears to no longer be the case, as an upgraded ticket was changed and the underlying Economy fare was used for the upgraded segments. The coupon was "removed" from the old dates and "reapplied" to the new dates.
  • Coupons will not be returned/reinstated. Once a coupon is applied, it is gone for good (the T&Cs printed on the coupons allow for date and time changes, but not route changes).
  • If you want to provide your coupons to upgrade a friend's travel, it is advisable to call in yourself. Your friend can call in if they know your name, birthdate, M&B-number and the email address associated with your account. That means: Anyone who knows these particulars can use your coupons without your knowledge. They do NOT need the coupon numbers.
  • Crediting upgraded segments to another program will likely fail, as it will be reported as I-class. It may be possible to retro-claim the miles.
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Seat upgrade coupons

Old Jan 16, 2016, 8:25 am
  #871  
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: MUC
Programs: M&M, M&B
Posts: 33
Originally Posted by benberg2013
I get the feeling, that putting a reservation on the waiting list, that makes them often open more seats for that flight. Because, I assume, when putting on a waiting list, the "back office" will check how many seats have already been released on that flight, and re-consider opening more.

I've realised this from past experiences of mine and others, such as the previous post.

Just 2 days ago, I waitlisted 2 friends, and today I get a call that the upgrades are now available.
I made the same experience last week. I asked for two upgrades, got waitlisted and two days later I received the new tickets, this time even without a call
payga is offline  
Old Jan 16, 2016, 9:25 am
  #872  
Suspended
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: MAN,TLV
Programs: Silver:BA,VX,AB, QF. Gold:A3,RJ,AZ,GF, EY,SPG,Marriott,Choice, Carlson. Dia/Plat:HH,IHG,BW,Accor
Posts: 1,965
Originally Posted by ringbahn
Hello,do you know,when the new Upgrade Coupons will be put into my account?My requalification was in Nov 2015.My account only shows the old used vouchers valid from Jan 2015 until Jan 2016.My Status is valid until Nov 2016.Shouldn`t I have gotten the new upgrade vouchers at time of requalification?
Thanks for your answers.
When you log in to your account, and click "my coupons" the screen shows you your coupons. Once you have clicked that, on the top left, there is a box which allows you to choose which coupons to view, you can view used coupons only, or issued (valid) coupons only , or all coupons.

Select "issued coupons", or all coupons, and you should be able to see your new coupons.
benberg2013 is offline  
Old Jan 16, 2016, 9:49 am
  #873  
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Germany
Programs: SPG Gold,Amex Cent,IC RA,HH Diamond,Marriott Gold,Hyatt Dia,LH FTL,CX Diam,FB Plat
Posts: 216
Originally Posted by NWIFlyer
Yes, you should have seen them on the first day of the new membership year. You'll need to call A3 on this one.
Thanks NWIFlyer,I`ve just called the Greece Hotline and they told me,that my old vouchers ,even when used in last September,would have been valid until January 2016 and that`s why new ones couldn`t be released at date of requalification but only after January 30th with validity until January 2017.So,I`ll have to wait until then and hope that my flights will be able for upgrades then.
ringbahn is offline  
Old Jan 16, 2016, 9:56 am
  #874  
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Germany
Programs: SPG Gold,Amex Cent,IC RA,HH Diamond,Marriott Gold,Hyatt Dia,LH FTL,CX Diam,FB Plat
Posts: 216
Originally Posted by benberg2013
When you log in to your account, and click "my coupons" the screen shows you your coupons. Once you have clicked that, on the top left, there is a box which allows you to choose which coupons to view, you can view used coupons only, or issued (valid) coupons only , or all coupons.

Select "issued coupons", or all coupons, and you should be able to see your new coupons.
Thanks Benberg2013,that`s exactly what I did,but a call to the Greece hotline told me,that my new vouchers will be valid beginning 31st of January 2016,because my old ones -that I`ve used in Sept 15 - had a validity until January 2016 and new ones can`t be opened before the day after the old ones have expired.
ringbahn is offline  
Old Jan 16, 2016, 3:24 pm
  #875  
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: MUC
Programs: M&M, M&B
Posts: 33
Originally Posted by payga
I made the same experience last week. I asked for two upgrades, got waitlisted and two days later I received the new tickets, this time even without a call
BTW, this time we are flying with a baby and for the baby no additional coupon was required
payga is offline  
Old Jan 16, 2016, 11:46 pm
  #876  
Community Director
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Norwich, UK
Programs: A3*G, BA Gold, BD Gold (in memoriam), IHG Diamond Ambassador
Posts: 8,448
Originally Posted by ringbahn
Thanks NWIFlyer,I`ve just called the Greece Hotline and they told me,that my old vouchers ,even when used in last September,would have been valid until January 2016 and that`s why new ones couldn`t be released at date of requalification but only after January 30th with validity until January 2017.So,I`ll have to wait until then and hope that my flights will be able for upgrades then.
Originally Posted by ringbahn
Thanks Benberg2013,that`s exactly what I did,but a call to the Greece hotline told me,that my new vouchers will be valid beginning 31st of January 2016,because my old ones -that I`ve used in Sept 15 - had a validity until January 2016 and new ones can`t be opened before the day after the old ones have expired.
That would only make sense if your membership (qualification) year also ended in January. Most people are on a membership year-end of November because of the mass migration to the new scheme. There will clearly be some who've qualified later, perhaps as an upgrade from Silver.

I have a November date, and my coupons (all of them, not just the Upgrade ones) were refreshed then. If you're in the same position, call A3 and try again. If you have a January year-end, A3 is correct.
NWIFlyer is offline  
Old Jan 17, 2016, 12:49 pm
  #877  
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Germany
Programs: SPG Gold,Amex Cent,IC RA,HH Diamond,Marriott Gold,Hyatt Dia,LH FTL,CX Diam,FB Plat
Posts: 216
Originally Posted by NWIFlyer
That would only make sense if your membership (qualification) year also ended in January. Most people are on a membership year-end of November because of the mass migration to the new scheme. There will clearly be some who've qualified later, perhaps as an upgrade from Silver.

I have a November date, and my coupons (all of them, not just the Upgrade ones) were refreshed then. If you're in the same position, call A3 and try again. If you have a January year-end, A3 is correct.
Funny,looking into my account dates,I can see that I`ve been upgraded from Blue to Silver in Nov 2014,upgrade to Gold was Nov 2014 and then a 2nd upgrade to Gold on 29th of Jan2015.I remember having gotten two Gold cards within 2 weeks in January,but I thought that it was due to their chaotic system.And the miles for the flight that made me Gold in Nov14 didn`t post until January 2015.
Regarding retention of status it says,that I`ve collected the required miles to stay Gold until 29th of Jan 2017.So I think they`re right in their view,that my requalification date is at the end of January and I`ll have to wait for the vouchers.Now I only hope that they`ll give me time until January 2018 to do my 4 flights and 12k miles for retention of status. In 2015,I had to do these until 24th of Nov.
ringbahn is offline  
Old Jan 17, 2016, 7:49 pm
  #878  
 
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Heraklion, Greece
Posts: 7,557
Originally Posted by ringbahn
Funny,looking into my account dates,I can see that I`ve been upgraded from Blue to Silver in Nov 2014,upgrade to Gold was Nov 2014 and then a 2nd upgrade to Gold on 29th of Jan2015.I remember having gotten two Gold cards within 2 weeks in January,but I thought that it was due to their chaotic system.And the miles for the flight that made me Gold in Nov14 didn`t post until January 2015.
Regarding retention of status it says,that I`ve collected the required miles to stay Gold until 29th of Jan 2017.So I think they`re right in their view,that my requalification date is at the end of January and I`ll have to wait for the vouchers.Now I only hope that they`ll give me time until January 2018 to do my 4 flights and 12k miles for retention of status. In 2015,I had to do these until 24th of Nov.
You've written something that is absolutely true: "...their chaotic system". The reason I stress this is because you also follow a strange logic. Why should should you get another "free" year to complete your requirements? 2018 is in two years from now, and unless you forget that and you go for 2017, you're in for a big surprise 12 months from now if you don't fulfil the requirements by then then.
KLouis is offline  
Old Jan 18, 2016, 8:56 am
  #879  
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Germany
Programs: SPG Gold,Amex Cent,IC RA,HH Diamond,Marriott Gold,Hyatt Dia,LH FTL,CX Diam,FB Plat
Posts: 216
Originally Posted by KLouis
You've written something that is absolutely true: "...their chaotic system". The reason I stress this is because you also follow a strange logic. Why should should you get another "free" year to complete your requirements? 2018 is in two years from now, and unless you forget that and you go for 2017, you're in for a big surprise 12 months from now if you don't fulfil the requirements by then then.
Hi KLouis,you`re right,of course,I`ll have to do the required flights and miles within 2016 to retain Status until Jan 2018
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Old Jan 18, 2016, 9:37 am
  #880  
 
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Heraklion, Greece
Posts: 7,557
Originally Posted by ringbahn
Hi KLouis,you`re right,of course,I`ll have to do the required flights and miles within 2016 to retain Status until Jan 2018
I still don't follow: why till 2018?
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Old Jan 18, 2016, 11:39 am
  #881  
Community Director
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Norwich, UK
Programs: A3*G, BA Gold, BD Gold (in memoriam), IHG Diamond Ambassador
Posts: 8,448
Perhaps I could steer this vaguely back on topic .

LHR-ATH-LHR, 4th - 6th March.

There's always been plenty of upgrade availability on the 22.15 flight from London, but until recently the 19.10 return from Athens was showing nothing for every date I looked at in ANA.

A3 seems to have changed tack on that because now almost every date is wide open for all flights.

Ticket purchased via the App, upgrade applied, payment for UK APD taken and seats allocated within about six minutes. Highly efficient, and now I just need to wait for the new e-ticket.

Now, where to for the domestic flights?

EDIT: Plus ticketed within a couple of hours. They're definitely improving. Now, let's put whoever deals with these things in charge of sending the cards out. .

Last edited by NWIFlyer; Jan 18, 2016 at 1:22 pm Reason: Add ticketing time
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Old Jan 19, 2016, 9:22 am
  #882  
 
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: SOF
Programs: A3 Gold, IHG Platinum, Marriott Silver
Posts: 849
Originally Posted by NWIFlyer
Perhaps I could steer this vaguely back on topic .

LHR-ATH-LHR, 4th - 6th March.

There's always been plenty of upgrade availability on the 22.15 flight from London, but until recently the 19.10 return from Athens was showing nothing for every date I looked at in ANA.

A3 seems to have changed tack on that because now almost every date is wide open for all flights.

Ticket purchased via the App, upgrade applied, payment for UK APD taken and seats allocated within about six minutes. Highly efficient, and now I just need to wait for the new e-ticket.

Now, where to for the domestic flights?

EDIT: Plus ticketed within a couple of hours. They're definitely improving. Now, let's put whoever deals with these things in charge of sending the cards out. .
That's quite unusual. I used this year's upgrade coupons 2 weeks ago and when I used them last year, the reservation reflected the ugprade immediately, but the new e-ticket was sent 3 days later both times despite being told on the phone that the new ticket will be sent out within a couple of hours.

I always purchase through American websites, so I can cancel for free within 24 hours if there's no availability and not receiving an e-ticket right away is a problem but I'm glad it works out in the end.
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Old Jan 19, 2016, 9:46 am
  #883  
 
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Heraklion, Greece
Posts: 7,557
Originally Posted by Phoenixtinct
That's quite unusual. I used this year's upgrade coupons 2 weeks ago and when I used them last year, the reservation reflected the ugprade immediately, but the new e-ticket was sent 3 days later both times despite being told on the phone that the new ticket will be sent out within a couple of hours.

I always purchase through American websites, so I can cancel for free within 24 hours if there's no availability and not receiving an e-ticket right away is a problem but I'm glad it works out in the end.
Could you describe a little better what the problem is if the successful free upgrade is not accompanied by the ticket immediately? You'll not have bought anything and whether you cancel within 24 hours or later, it doesn't matter. At any rate, if there is no availability, you'll have found out while booking and not after receiving the ticket. In other words, I'm utterly confused with what you write.
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Old Jan 19, 2016, 11:27 am
  #884  
Community Director
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Norwich, UK
Programs: A3*G, BA Gold, BD Gold (in memoriam), IHG Diamond Ambassador
Posts: 8,448
Originally Posted by Phoenixtinct
That's quite unusual. I used this year's upgrade coupons 2 weeks ago and when I used them last year, the reservation reflected the ugprade immediately, but the new e-ticket was sent 3 days later both times despite being told on the phone that the new ticket will be sent out within a couple of hours.
I was a little surprised at the speed given the time of day (8pm in Greece) and the horribly bodged experience last year which took several months, five phone calls and a lot of angst before the ticket was finally re-issued not long before I travelled.

I don't think this year's improvement is particularly unusual as the call centre has become more used to processing the upgrades, but gratifying nonetheless.
NWIFlyer is offline  
Old Jan 19, 2016, 12:01 pm
  #885  
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Germany
Programs: SPG Gold,Amex Cent,IC RA,HH Diamond,Marriott Gold,Hyatt Dia,LH FTL,CX Diam,FB Plat
Posts: 216
Originally Posted by KLouis
I still don't follow: why till 2018?
Because my account says,that my status is valid until 29th of January 2017 and then a new qualification season will start in February 2016.
ringbahn is offline  

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