Award Upgrade, change of itinerary
May 30, 2016, 4:36 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: NYC
Posts: 99
Award Upgrade, change of itinerary
Hello. I will be flying on a long-haul KLM flight about 6 months from now, but do not yet know the exact dates, only the general week or so in which I will have to go. I have purchased an economy ticket (M fare) that I intend to modify if I must leave on a date that differs from the current ticket.
I would like to use miles to upgrade this ticket and there is award ticket space available in business for the current date so I could go ahead and do this. But if I need to move the departure date by a couple of days closer to the time, what happens to the upgrade? Does it transfer with the change? Does there need to be award space in business on the new date at the time of change? If it doesn't transfer, is there a refund of the miles spent?
Any help on this would be appreciated
I would like to use miles to upgrade this ticket and there is award ticket space available in business for the current date so I could go ahead and do this. But if I need to move the departure date by a couple of days closer to the time, what happens to the upgrade? Does it transfer with the change? Does there need to be award space in business on the new date at the time of change? If it doesn't transfer, is there a refund of the miles spent?
Any help on this would be appreciated
May 31, 2016, 12:05 am
#2
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: CPT,AMS
Posts: 4,412
According to the following page, you will lose it:
http://www.klm.com/travel/nl_en/prep...conditions.htm
http://www.klm.com/travel/nl_en/prep...conditions.htm
May 31, 2016, 12:54 am
#3
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Netherlands
Programs: KL Platinum; A3 Gold
Posts: 28,722
I would strongly advise you NOT to do anything until you know the date of departure.
Given that you appear determined NOT to travel on the dates you have booked, you are not helping yourself by upgrading a ticket on dates you do not want to use.
The only thing that matters here is:
a) figuring out what date you want to travel
b) paying to move your ticket to those dates
c) ONLY THEN should you attempt an upgrade, bearing in mind that there may be no upgrades available on this date. The longer you wait, the less likely you will be to get an upgrade.
If you upgrade now, you will only make it more difficult to change your ticket later. And it does not guarantee you an upgrade after you change your ticket. It's bad enough that you bought a ticket for dates you don't want to use - don't compound this by also upgrading the ticket on dates you don't want to use. [I suspect that it may be difficult to make the sort of changes you are intent on making if you first upgrade your ticket]
Given that you appear determined NOT to travel on the dates you have booked, you are not helping yourself by upgrading a ticket on dates you do not want to use.
The only thing that matters here is:
a) figuring out what date you want to travel
b) paying to move your ticket to those dates
c) ONLY THEN should you attempt an upgrade, bearing in mind that there may be no upgrades available on this date. The longer you wait, the less likely you will be to get an upgrade.
If you upgrade now, you will only make it more difficult to change your ticket later. And it does not guarantee you an upgrade after you change your ticket. It's bad enough that you bought a ticket for dates you don't want to use - don't compound this by also upgrading the ticket on dates you don't want to use. [I suspect that it may be difficult to make the sort of changes you are intent on making if you first upgrade your ticket]
May 31, 2016, 6:38 am
#4
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: NYC
Posts: 99
It's not that i'm determined not to travel on the dates booked but that I had to buy a return ticket without knowing the exact date on which I would be able to return, only the week. So the current date is one of 7 possible dates I might be able to leave.
I will not know the exact date till about 2 and a half months out, by which time there is unlikely to be award space still available in business.
If the upgrade won't transfer, and it sound like it won't, then there is no point in booking it since the date is more likely to change than not. However there is still some small chance that it might not change, which would make the decision not to get the upgrade pretty disappointing. This is why I wanted to know if the miles would be refunded, in which case there isn't much to lose by doing so anyway right?
I will not know the exact date till about 2 and a half months out, by which time there is unlikely to be award space still available in business.
If the upgrade won't transfer, and it sound like it won't, then there is no point in booking it since the date is more likely to change than not. However there is still some small chance that it might not change, which would make the decision not to get the upgrade pretty disappointing. This is why I wanted to know if the miles would be refunded, in which case there isn't much to lose by doing so anyway right?
May 31, 2016, 7:23 am
#5
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: CPT,AMS
Posts: 4,412
It's not that i'm determined not to travel on the dates booked but that I had to buy a return ticket without knowing the exact date on which I would be able to return, only the week. So the current date is one of 7 possible dates I might be able to leave.
I will not know the exact date till about 2 and a half months out, by which time there is unlikely to be award space still available in business.
If the upgrade won't transfer, and it sound like it won't, then there is no point in booking it since the date is more likely to change than not. However there is still some small chance that it might not change, which would make the decision not to get the upgrade pretty disappointing. This is why I wanted to know if the miles would be refunded, in which case there isn't much to lose by doing so anyway right?
I will not know the exact date till about 2 and a half months out, by which time there is unlikely to be award space still available in business.
If the upgrade won't transfer, and it sound like it won't, then there is no point in booking it since the date is more likely to change than not. However there is still some small chance that it might not change, which would make the decision not to get the upgrade pretty disappointing. This is why I wanted to know if the miles would be refunded, in which case there isn't much to lose by doing so anyway right?