Jan 8, 2015, 12:16 am
Last edit by: jackal
Welcome to the Newbie Lounge Thread!
Anyone is welcome to ask anything, even the most basic questions, in this thread without having to fear a snarky response. In this thread, there's no such thing as a dumb question--we were all new to Alaska Airlines, FlyerTalk, and even the whole idea of mileage programs once and needed some help navigating the ropes. We're here to help you do just that!
That said, if you want to do a little reading to see if your question has been previously discussed, links to some of the most common and extensive topics in this forum are listed in our FAQ thread--click here to check it out.
Special care will be given in this thread to trying to provide answers in a clear manner with minimal use of acronyms and jargon.
If you need to contact someone for help, here's a current list of our forum's team:
Ambassadors (Our Greeters--members who have specifically volunteered to welcome and mentor newbies and monitor this thread):
ANC RED-EYE
baliktad
beckoa
golfingboy
Moderators (Our Janitors--members who have volunteered to do housekeeping/keep the forum in order)
Cholula
jackal
You are welcome to send a private message to any of these individuals for assistance, but you'll generally get a faster response and broader palette of answers if you simply post your inquiry here in this thread.
Note to FlyerTalk members who enjoy the ability to take advantage of loopholes--if someone posts something that exposes information you'd rather not be public, please remember this is a Flame-Free thread, and harsh or snarky posts are not permitted. Although FlyerTalk itself does not censor posts that share information, members are free to edit their own posts to remove information. If you wish to request any poster to remove information they have shared publicly, please do so politely and respectfully.
Welcome, and we look forward to providing any assistance we can!
~the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan forum team~
For the previous incarnation of this thread, please click here
Anyone is welcome to ask anything, even the most basic questions, in this thread without having to fear a snarky response. In this thread, there's no such thing as a dumb question--we were all new to Alaska Airlines, FlyerTalk, and even the whole idea of mileage programs once and needed some help navigating the ropes. We're here to help you do just that!
That said, if you want to do a little reading to see if your question has been previously discussed, links to some of the most common and extensive topics in this forum are listed in our FAQ thread--click here to check it out.
Special care will be given in this thread to trying to provide answers in a clear manner with minimal use of acronyms and jargon.
If you need to contact someone for help, here's a current list of our forum's team:
Ambassadors (Our Greeters--members who have specifically volunteered to welcome and mentor newbies and monitor this thread):
ANC RED-EYE
baliktad
beckoa
golfingboy
Moderators (Our Janitors--members who have volunteered to do housekeeping/keep the forum in order)
Cholula
jackal
You are welcome to send a private message to any of these individuals for assistance, but you'll generally get a faster response and broader palette of answers if you simply post your inquiry here in this thread.
Note to FlyerTalk members who enjoy the ability to take advantage of loopholes--if someone posts something that exposes information you'd rather not be public, please remember this is a Flame-Free thread, and harsh or snarky posts are not permitted. Although FlyerTalk itself does not censor posts that share information, members are free to edit their own posts to remove information. If you wish to request any poster to remove information they have shared publicly, please do so politely and respectfully.
Welcome, and we look forward to providing any assistance we can!
~the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan forum team~
For the previous incarnation of this thread, please click here
2015 Alaska Airlines *FLAME-FREE* Q&A thread: all welcome, new and old!
Jan 3, 2015, 7:06 pm
#16
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,955
I didn't want to start a thread for this - it probably belongs in the newbie thread -
If I commence travel on a paid ticket, fly the outbound, and then decide to change my plans before flying the return, will AS allow me to cancel the return segment and put the credit in my wallet (and pay the change fee, of course)?
If I commence travel on a paid ticket, fly the outbound, and then decide to change my plans before flying the return, will AS allow me to cancel the return segment and put the credit in my wallet (and pay the change fee, of course)?
Jan 4, 2015, 11:48 am
#17
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Northern Calif./Eastern Ida.
Programs: Amethyst Premier Plutonium Medallion
Posts: 20,644
I didn't want to start a thread for this - it probably belongs in the newbie thread -
If I commence travel on a paid ticket, fly the outbound, and then decide to change my plans before flying the return, will AS allow me to cancel the return segment and put the credit in my wallet (and pay the change fee, of course)?
If I commence travel on a paid ticket, fly the outbound, and then decide to change my plans before flying the return, will AS allow me to cancel the return segment and put the credit in my wallet (and pay the change fee, of course)?
Jan 4, 2015, 11:57 am
#18
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,955
I'm already booked - I have a BOS-SAN-BOS run coming up. I need to return sooner but don't want to do the change now since I want to stay on the waitlist (my status expired on 12/31). Given that they're selling B fares right now on the return, I'm already past the risk of the fare being ridiculous. I'm probably going to fly the outbound then cancel the return segment, since I have a reasonably priced AA return flight on hold.
Jan 4, 2015, 12:11 pm
#19
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Northern Calif./Eastern Ida.
Programs: Amethyst Premier Plutonium Medallion
Posts: 20,644
I'm already booked - I have a BOS-SAN-BOS run coming up. I need to return sooner but don't want to do the change now since I want to stay on the waitlist (my status expired on 12/31). Given that they're selling B fares right now on the return, I'm already past the risk of the fare being ridiculous. I'm probably going to fly the outbound then cancel the return segment, since I have a reasonably priced AA return flight on hold.
i'm not sure if this would reissue the ticket and result in re-waitlisting, as the flight i did it on did not have upgrades (QX).
Jan 4, 2015, 1:47 pm
#20
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,955
Well, I'll give it a try and report back. I do know that canceling the return segment now, prior to flying the outbound, will reissue the ticket. I'll wait, fly and see if I can cancel the return segment and we'll get some new data here.
Jan 4, 2015, 2:38 pm
#21
Join Date: May 2009
Location: EUG
Programs: AS MVP, AA MM, HH Diamond, MR Gold
Posts: 8,220
I once cancelled a return on AS at the last minute. Not sure if the same circumstances apply, but it was a dark and stormy night at PDX, they cancelled our flight and put us on one the next morning. Next morning the wind was still howling and we just did not want to fly so we rented a car and drove home. AS gave us our money back for that segment, even though the flight did leave and arrive on time and safely, so "weather" was not really a factor, it was our choice. It was probably in the form of a credit, but I don't recall.
Jan 5, 2015, 1:16 pm
#22
Join Date: Nov 2009
Posts: 519
I have 100k in Alaska airline milage and about 200k as miles. I am planning my first tour to Alaska from MCI and have few questions, I am sure I will get my direction from here.
- which mileage points should I use for best value?
- is it better to fly Anchorage and fly back from Fairbanks.
Any 5-6 days itinerary suggestion?
Thanks.
- which mileage points should I use for best value?
- is it better to fly Anchorage and fly back from Fairbanks.
Any 5-6 days itinerary suggestion?
Thanks.
Jan 5, 2015, 1:54 pm
#23
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,955
I have 100k in Alaska airline milage and about 200k as miles. I am planning my first tour to Alaska from MCI and have few questions, I am sure I will get my direction from here.
- which mileage points should I use for best value?
- is it better to fly Anchorage and fly back from Fairbanks.
Any 5-6 days itinerary suggestion?
Thanks.
- which mileage points should I use for best value?
- is it better to fly Anchorage and fly back from Fairbanks.
Any 5-6 days itinerary suggestion?
Thanks.
Jan 5, 2015, 11:00 pm
#24
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: Redbird Wasteland of NC
Posts: 62
I saw in one of the FAQs that the companion pass can not be used for code shares. I'm not 100% sure what this means.
If I order a flight to Alaska through Alaska Airlines portal, but the first hop to Seattle is Delta (there are no Alaska flights direct from my airport), then does this count as a code share? Or is it only forbidden to book a Delta ticket which uses Alaska Airlines for the last leg?
If I order a flight to Alaska through Alaska Airlines portal, but the first hop to Seattle is Delta (there are no Alaska flights direct from my airport), then does this count as a code share? Or is it only forbidden to book a Delta ticket which uses Alaska Airlines for the last leg?
Jan 6, 2015, 12:09 am
#25
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend, Moderator, Information Desk, Ambassador, Alaska Airlines
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: FAI
Programs: AS MVP Gold100K, AS 1MM, Maika`i Card, AGR, HH Gold, Hertz PC, Marriott Titanium LTG, CO, 7H, BA, 8E
Posts: 42,953
Wirelessly posted (beckoa's BB: Mozilla/5.0 (BlackBerry; U; BlackBerry 9810; en-US) AppleWebKit/534.11+ (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/7.1.0.694 Mobile Safari/534.11+)
Its basically good on 'Alaska Metal' ie flown by Alaska- this includes QX flights, KS operated ANC-DUT, and select OO flights marketed by AS. DL and AA metal is excluded from the companion certificate, even if AS has a codeshare on the flight.
Its basically good on 'Alaska Metal' ie flown by Alaska- this includes QX flights, KS operated ANC-DUT, and select OO flights marketed by AS. DL and AA metal is excluded from the companion certificate, even if AS has a codeshare on the flight.
Jan 6, 2015, 7:04 am
#27
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,955
From an award pricing perspective, AA and AS both price out Alaska from the lower 48 as any other domestic award. 25k RT coach, 50K RT in first with both airlines (if you look at the AA chart, you'll see 50k Business/First and 62.5k First - that has to do with a 2 or 3 cabin offering, and nobody's running 3 cabin Y/J/F to Alaska that I know).
Both AA and AS have access to one another's saver space, but while AA prices AS first as 50k, AS prices AA first at 65k. For that reason, I'd suggest that if you plan to fly F, you don't book an AA flight using AS miles.
Beyond that, how are you earning your miles and which do you value more? I'd personally be inclined to book with AA miles, since AS miles have some partner flexibility that AA doesn't.
Both AA and AS have access to one another's saver space, but while AA prices AS first as 50k, AS prices AA first at 65k. For that reason, I'd suggest that if you plan to fly F, you don't book an AA flight using AS miles.
Beyond that, how are you earning your miles and which do you value more? I'd personally be inclined to book with AA miles, since AS miles have some partner flexibility that AA doesn't.
Jan 6, 2015, 8:11 am
#28
Join Date: Dec 2005
Programs: DL, AA, US, SWA
Posts: 1,129
All. I have need of assistance. I am looking to switch over from DL, and they have made it almost impossible to get miles and would like to switch to Alaska. The problem is that I am based in ATL and there is only 1 flight per day that gets into SEA at 8:45pm, too late for most connections. I guess I am wondering from those in the know, is it even worth it to try and do Alaska?
Jan 6, 2015, 8:19 am
#29
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: SEA
Programs: AS MVPG 75k, UA zilch, IHG Spire, Marriott Plat, Hyatt Plat, Hertz Gold, Avis Presidents
Posts: 1,302
All. I have need of assistance. I am looking to switch over from DL, and they have made it almost impossible to get miles and would like to switch to Alaska. The problem is that I am based in ATL and there is only 1 flight per day that gets into SEA at 8:45pm, too late for most connections. I guess I am wondering from those in the know, is it even worth it to try and do Alaska?
Jan 6, 2015, 10:41 am
#30
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Northern Calif./Eastern Ida.
Programs: Amethyst Premier Plutonium Medallion
Posts: 20,644
All. I have need of assistance. I am looking to switch over from DL, and they have made it almost impossible to get miles and would like to switch to Alaska. The problem is that I am based in ATL and there is only 1 flight per day that gets into SEA at 8:45pm, too late for most connections. I guess I am wondering from those in the know, is it even worth it to try and do Alaska?
what we really need to know is your fare buying patterns (cheapest available versus full fare versus paid F), your most frequent destinations, and what is most important to you in an FFP (valuable miles, upgrades, etc)