Superelite First Timer
 

I'm set to hit the magical 100,000 miles this year after four years of Elite and two at Prestige in the past six years. Asides the additional upgrades etc. do SE's find the overall travel experience and service any better than that of E's? Curiosity more than anything...

yes.
IKK and concierge.
first choice of meals most of the time.

In a simliar boat to the OP.

I was also curious as to what SE's find the best benefits to be?

I read about concierge service all the time, but wonder just how much of a perk it really is. I've flown on 62 flights so far this year, and many that were connections, but have not had a single connection or ticketing issue that would require the help of a concierge.

Now if the concierge was awaiting my arrival on the AC156 red-eye with a large coffee and nicely pressed shirt, I'd call that a perk!^

Useful in YHZ/YYZ when I lost an antique pocket-watch, ORD when there was weather, YYZ to check sometimes if a flight is oversold. Otherwise, nothing special really... :(

Welcome to the club! a new seat mate /(also a real) seat competitor;)

If and when you need them, you will realize what they can do.
I've had excellent support from concierge when:

YYZ-NRT-BKK flight was delayed 24 hours by snow, and only concierge got me rerouted YYZ-LHR-BKK

YYZ-PVG went mechanical, and I HAD to get there same day

When my SQ flight from SIN-CDG made an emergency landing in FRA, they got me home on the next flight
from FRA

Wife and infant son needed assistance on a domestic China connection
to AC PVG-YYZ

And so on. They are like insurance - most of the time you don't need them,
but when you do you are very happy they are there for you.

Welcome to the club!

Well, Grasshopper, consider these cases:

You are in the middle seat and need an "adjustment". Who do you call?

You are running late and need help through the TSA line. Who do you call?

You are running late and your family will freak out if you're not at the baggage claim on time. Who do you call?

You need an intro to another airline's GA. Who do you call?

You had a tough week and need a hug. Who do you call? (of course, you do have to know the concierge pretty well)

Once you have some concierge mobile phone numbers on your speed dial, you will understand.

On Friday, my SAS flight was an hour late out of CPH, so my 90 minute connection at LHR onto AC suddenly became (almost) impossible.. But as I came up the jetway, I was met by a concierge and she asked people to stand to the side of the Travelators (moving sidewalks), while calling the gate to let them know I was on my way.. She left me at the main hub and then I was met by a second concierge at the last Travelator (of course I was going about as far as you can go in T3!), and she escorted me to the gate, passed my upgrade cert to the GA (they kept my upgrade!). That experience really made my day... ^ I should add that I did not call ahead for that service (why did I only think of doing that as we hit top of climb out of CPH ? :confused:)

Conceirge helpful when you need them. In fact used twice in the last two days. My ORD flight was delayed and conceirge moved us to earlier full flight with an op up. Next day my Jazz flight was quite delayed and Toronto concierge signed my ticket over to CO to arrive on my original schedule. Both services got me to my destination two hours earlier and would likely not have been done by a CS agent.

congratulations :)

Yes you will. The concierge service alone is worth it all. I use them on most travels per week. Congratulations! :p

I second the benefits of having the Concierges, and as IluVSQ said, IKK is the other major benefit, even if it has been eroded recently. I was able to get flights to Florida with absolutely no problem over the Christmas period and then make a change just yesterday to get a cross-country return on the 23rd. Getting awards seats at the last minute when revenue flights can be very expensive is a big perk.

I was travelling LAS/YUL/YYZ/YSB on Sunday.
We left LAS late due to late arrival of a/c from Calgary because of weather issues there.

Knew I would be tight on cnx flight to YYZ.I was on latitude fare and had confirmed J seats on segments where J was available.Arrived YUL at 7:30pm for a 8pm cnx flight.Quickly through customs ,no one there,and through Nexus domestic security.Arrived at gate within 15 minutes ,7:45pm to be told that I had been removed from flight and that my confirmed J seat was given away and J cabin full.Discussions with gate agent had me re-booked on flight as scheduled.

Observations. No notice that I had been taken off flight.No concierge(s) to meet flight and make me(another SE was also connecting to YYZ on flight) aware of situation and offer possible altrnatives /or help making a tight cnx.(as noted no one at customs so IMO there should/could have been some monitoring of flights). :confused:

Most interesting observation.On entering a/c ,there were F/As in uniform sitting in the seats that had been issued to the 2 connecting SEs:rolleyes:

FYI.I had to be re-issued boarding pass for cnx YYZ/YSB flight as well.I know my way around these issues.I can only imagine.

The real benefit that nobody has mentioned is that SE's have priority over E's and P's when it comes to using your upgrade certificates. (Btoh in terms of when we can book an upgrade and priority order when it comes down to Aerolotto). This is a big thing on the more popular routes.

I rarely use the concierges, but have found them fairly helpful the once or twice a year when I've contacted them.