Jan 1, 2018, 3:17 pm
Last edit by: Baze
Welcome to the Alaska Airlines Flame-Free Q&A Thread for 2018!
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)
ryandc99
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 2016 version of this thread, please click here
For the 2017 version 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)
ryandc99
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 2016 version of this thread, please click here
For the 2017 version of this thread, please click here
2018 Alaska Airlines *FLAME-FREE* Q&A thread: all welcome, new and old!
Jan 26, 2018, 3:43 pm
#151
Join Date: Aug 2017
Posts: 1,610
I'm MVPGold, and my partner is MVP
We are on a paid ticket on the same PNR, and it shows me as first on the upgrade list, while my partner is showing 4th on the upgrade list (on the alaska app). I see there are 2 seats free in first class right now (and 2 seats for sale so really 2 free seats, not that 2 folks haven't selected seats).
Does Alaska upgrade just myself as highest on the list and break us up, or does it upgrade both of us together even though my mvp companion on the same pnr is showing at 4th on the list. Or do they just bypass me because it goes by lowest status person on the pnr.
We are on a paid ticket on the same PNR, and it shows me as first on the upgrade list, while my partner is showing 4th on the upgrade list (on the alaska app). I see there are 2 seats free in first class right now (and 2 seats for sale so really 2 free seats, not that 2 folks haven't selected seats).
Does Alaska upgrade just myself as highest on the list and break us up, or does it upgrade both of us together even though my mvp companion on the same pnr is showing at 4th on the list. Or do they just bypass me because it goes by lowest status person on the pnr.
Jan 26, 2018, 4:21 pm
#152
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: SEA
Programs: AS 75k
Posts: 922
Question RE: LATAM
My +1 and I flew a LATAM flight (LA 601/602) on 12/22 and 1/7, and neither have posted to our Alaska accts. They're definitely LAN flights and in range, and I double checked that our AS MP#s were on the itinerary, so I'm just wondering how long people have waited to see those miles credited before I call..
My +1 and I flew a LATAM flight (LA 601/602) on 12/22 and 1/7, and neither have posted to our Alaska accts. They're definitely LAN flights and in range, and I double checked that our AS MP#s were on the itinerary, so I'm just wondering how long people have waited to see those miles credited before I call..
Jan 26, 2018, 4:56 pm
#153
Join Date: Aug 2017
Posts: 1,610
Question RE: LATAM
My +1 and I flew a LATAM flight (LA 601/602) on 12/22 and 1/7, and neither have posted to our Alaska accts. They're definitely LAN flights and in range, and I double checked that our AS MP#s were on the itinerary, so I'm just wondering how long people have waited to see those miles credited before I call..
My +1 and I flew a LATAM flight (LA 601/602) on 12/22 and 1/7, and neither have posted to our Alaska accts. They're definitely LAN flights and in range, and I double checked that our AS MP#s were on the itinerary, so I'm just wondering how long people have waited to see those miles credited before I call..
Jan 26, 2018, 4:57 pm
#154
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 10,904
Hi everyone. Sorry if this is answered elsewhere -- I looked through the wiki and FAQ quickly and didn't see it.
I am am not really that familiar with AS. I flew with them once and didn't think that the F product was very good so I never flew with them again. I was a frequent VX flier (and credit card holder) through, so all of a sudden I find myself with over 400k AS miles. So I was looking over some blog posts and the AS website to try to understand their award charts and policies and they seem pretty generous, with good partners.
I live in San Francisco. I want to do a long trip to Asia. In particular, over the course of about 4 weeks, I want to go to Japan, S Korea, and Taiwan. This is a personal trip and I can take my vacation whenever I want so my dates are totally flexible -- so I'm asking about policies here, not award availablility.
If I understand their rules and policies correctly (which I probably don't), I should be able to book a round-trip award where my outbound flight is SFO - TPE with a 7-to-10-day stopover in Tokyo (on JAL), and my return flight is TPE - SFO with a 7-10 day stopover in Seoul (on Korean Air). I know that Korean doesn't allow one-way award travel (rather, they charge the same for 1-way as they do for round-trip) but in the fine print at the bottom of the AS award charts page it says that if the flight is 1/2 of a round trip, combined with a different partner for the other direction, it will be charged at 1/2 the round-trip miles.
Am I right about this? If so, how do I book it? Booking direct award flights on their website seems pretty straight-forward, but I have no idea how to include a stopover. If I try to do it as a multi-city trip, it doesn't return any results. If I have to do it over the phone I'm fine with that (it looks like the fee for a phone reservation is only $15?) but I'd like to avoid calling until I understand what is and isn't allowed.
Thanks!
I am am not really that familiar with AS. I flew with them once and didn't think that the F product was very good so I never flew with them again. I was a frequent VX flier (and credit card holder) through, so all of a sudden I find myself with over 400k AS miles. So I was looking over some blog posts and the AS website to try to understand their award charts and policies and they seem pretty generous, with good partners.
I live in San Francisco. I want to do a long trip to Asia. In particular, over the course of about 4 weeks, I want to go to Japan, S Korea, and Taiwan. This is a personal trip and I can take my vacation whenever I want so my dates are totally flexible -- so I'm asking about policies here, not award availablility.
If I understand their rules and policies correctly (which I probably don't), I should be able to book a round-trip award where my outbound flight is SFO - TPE with a 7-to-10-day stopover in Tokyo (on JAL), and my return flight is TPE - SFO with a 7-10 day stopover in Seoul (on Korean Air). I know that Korean doesn't allow one-way award travel (rather, they charge the same for 1-way as they do for round-trip) but in the fine print at the bottom of the AS award charts page it says that if the flight is 1/2 of a round trip, combined with a different partner for the other direction, it will be charged at 1/2 the round-trip miles.
Am I right about this? If so, how do I book it? Booking direct award flights on their website seems pretty straight-forward, but I have no idea how to include a stopover. If I try to do it as a multi-city trip, it doesn't return any results. If I have to do it over the phone I'm fine with that (it looks like the fee for a phone reservation is only $15?) but I'd like to avoid calling until I understand what is and isn't allowed.
Thanks!
Jan 26, 2018, 5:39 pm
#155
Join Date: Aug 2017
Posts: 1,610
No you cannot do this. Within a single award reservation you must use only one partner (either Korean or JapanAirlines).
Based on your availablity, you can book both ways on Korean, or book two one-ways in JapanAirlines/Cathay.
Based on your availablity, you can book both ways on Korean, or book two one-ways in JapanAirlines/Cathay.
Jan 26, 2018, 5:45 pm
#156
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Sydney
Programs: QF Platinum (OW Emerald)
Posts: 101
G'day an Aussie will be relocating to LA & holding One World Emerald status with Qantas. Have heard AA has devalued the award redemptions & looking at building my AS milage back account by means of obtaining a BOA Alaska Visa Card & SPG miles. Also need to be more open minded as heard Chase has great reward cards & am aware of their 5/24 rule. As someone based in LA, will continue to credit to Qantas Frequent flyer account (due to the Qantas lounges they have in LAX & will also have access to AA lounges when flying) planing to fly to Asia SIN/KUL & to SYD/MEL. Heard AS has pretty good redemptions 55K points plus taxes for LAX-SYD, but not too sure about what redemptions rates are sweet spots to Asia (HKG, NET, HND, SIN, KUL).
What strategies would you suggest to this newbie?
Cheers.
What strategies would you suggest to this newbie?
Cheers.
Jan 26, 2018, 5:45 pm
#157
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Pacific Wonderland
Programs: ʙᴏɴᴠo̱ʏ Au, IHG Au, HH Dia, Nexus, Pilot FlyingJ Preferred
Posts: 5,336
I'm MVPGold, and my partner is MVP
We are on a paid ticket on the same PNR, and it shows me as first on the upgrade list, while my partner is showing 4th on the upgrade list (on the alaska app). I see there are 2 seats free in first class right now (and 2 seats for sale so really 2 free seats, not that 2 folks haven't selected seats).
Does Alaska upgrade just myself as highest on the list and break us up, or does it upgrade both of us together even though my mvp companion on the same pnr is showing at 4th on the list. Or do they just bypass me because it goes by lowest status person on the pnr.
We are on a paid ticket on the same PNR, and it shows me as first on the upgrade list, while my partner is showing 4th on the upgrade list (on the alaska app). I see there are 2 seats free in first class right now (and 2 seats for sale so really 2 free seats, not that 2 folks haven't selected seats).
Does Alaska upgrade just myself as highest on the list and break us up, or does it upgrade both of us together even though my mvp companion on the same pnr is showing at 4th on the list. Or do they just bypass me because it goes by lowest status person on the pnr.
I live in San Francisco. I want to do a long trip to Asia. In particular, over the course of about 4 weeks, I want to go to Japan, S Korea, and Taiwan. This is a personal trip and I can take my vacation whenever I want so my dates are totally flexible -- so I'm asking about policies here, not award availablility.
If I understand their rules and policies correctly (which I probably don't), I should be able to book a round-trip award where my outbound flight is SFO - TPE with a 7-to-10-day stopover in Tokyo (on JAL), and my return flight is TPE - SFO with a 7-10 day stopover in Seoul (on Korean Air). I know that Korean doesn't allow one-way award travel (rather, they charge the same for 1-way as they do for round-trip) but in the fine print at the bottom of the AS award charts page it says that if the flight is 1/2 of a round trip, combined with a different partner for the other direction, it will be charged at 1/2 the round-trip miles.
Am I right about this? If so, how do I book it? Booking direct award flights on their website seems pretty straight-forward, but I have no idea how to include a stopover. If I try to do it as a multi-city trip, it doesn't return any results. If I have to do it over the phone I'm fine with that (it looks like the fee for a phone reservation is only $15?) but I'd like to avoid calling until I understand what is and isn't allowed.
Thanks!
If I understand their rules and policies correctly (which I probably don't), I should be able to book a round-trip award where my outbound flight is SFO - TPE with a 7-to-10-day stopover in Tokyo (on JAL), and my return flight is TPE - SFO with a 7-10 day stopover in Seoul (on Korean Air). I know that Korean doesn't allow one-way award travel (rather, they charge the same for 1-way as they do for round-trip) but in the fine print at the bottom of the AS award charts page it says that if the flight is 1/2 of a round trip, combined with a different partner for the other direction, it will be charged at 1/2 the round-trip miles.
Am I right about this? If so, how do I book it? Booking direct award flights on their website seems pretty straight-forward, but I have no idea how to include a stopover. If I try to do it as a multi-city trip, it doesn't return any results. If I have to do it over the phone I'm fine with that (it looks like the fee for a phone reservation is only $15?) but I'd like to avoid calling until I understand what is and isn't allowed.
Thanks!
My suggestion would be searching by one ways around the time you're looking for and try to figure out the availability and then piece it together. Again, not that familiar with KE awards so while it lists SE Asia to Korea, I'm not sure if that's included Taiwan or you'll have to search TPE-SFO on either end of your desired stopover.
I think there's some weirdness in the booking search that appears to not allow segments that are visible on strict one-way searches but I didn't look all that closely. I was able to piece together a dummy itinerary from LAX & a stopover in PUS (which seemed to have the most availability from TPE). I also noticed at least one connect thorough KE & HNL on a random date, which I thought wasn't allowed. Total was 65K for JAL (because the NRT-TPE segment was J) & 35K for KE (half the roundtrip 70K coach price).
Jan 26, 2018, 6:37 pm
#158
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: YVR, HNL
Programs: AS 75k, UA peon, BA Bronze, AC E50k, Marriott Plat, HH Diamond, Fairmont Plat (RIP)
Posts: 7,833
Example below. SFO-TPE on KE is 70k if booked as a one way. Adding a JAL outbound changes the KE portion to 35K.
Jan 26, 2018, 6:46 pm
#159
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 10,904
Thanks for the tips. I'll try to see if I can piece something together. If not I'll just call.
I'm looking for F (or at worst J)... I understand that award availability may be hard to find (although JAL seems to have lots). And if i have to pay for an SFO-LAX flight out of pocket, that's fine too.
I'm looking for F (or at worst J)... I understand that award availability may be hard to find (although JAL seems to have lots). And if i have to pay for an SFO-LAX flight out of pocket, that's fine too.
Jan 26, 2018, 6:58 pm
#160
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: SEA
Posts: 2,556
cancelation fee on award booking
The Alaska webpage states:
Change/cancellation fee $125 for changes made less than 60 days prior to ticketed flight departure.
We will be booking award tickets (Alaska miles, but to be used on a partner airline).
Does the above-stated information apply to both paid-with-cash tickets and paid-with-miles award tickets?
Thank you in advance.
Change/cancellation fee $125 for changes made less than 60 days prior to ticketed flight departure.
We will be booking award tickets (Alaska miles, but to be used on a partner airline).
Does the above-stated information apply to both paid-with-cash tickets and paid-with-miles award tickets?
Thank you in advance.
Jan 26, 2018, 9:39 pm
#161
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: SEA
Programs: Hilton/Marriott Gold, Accor Silver
Posts: 2,036
G'day an Aussie will be relocating to LA & holding One World Emerald status with Qantas. Have heard AA has devalued the award redemptions & looking at building my AS milage back account by means of obtaining a BOA Alaska Visa Card & SPG miles. Also need to be more open minded as heard Chase has great reward cards & am aware of their 5/24 rule. As someone based in LA, will continue to credit to Qantas Frequent flyer account (due to the Qantas lounges they have in LAX & will also have access to AA lounges when flying) planing to fly to Asia SIN/KUL & to SYD/MEL. Heard AS has pretty good redemptions 55K points plus taxes for LAX-SYD, but not too sure about what redemptions rates are sweet spots to Asia (HKG, NET, HND, SIN, KUL).
What strategies would you suggest to this newbie?
Cheers.
What strategies would you suggest to this newbie?
Cheers.
Jan 27, 2018, 11:42 am
#162
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 10,904
Ok, I think I understand why I'm having trouble booking my SFO - TPE flight. If booking a stopover, do I need to use the same middle-city airport for both segments?
SFO -> Tokyo (JAL 1) lands at HND. But Tokyo -> TPE on (JAL 805) takes off from NRT. Does that mean that I can't book Tokyo as a stopover? (Certainly, the website doesn't show it to me as an option -- does that mean that it's not allowed, or is it just a quirk of the website? Will I be able to book it over the phone?)
SFO -> Tokyo (JAL 1) lands at HND. But Tokyo -> TPE on (JAL 805) takes off from NRT. Does that mean that I can't book Tokyo as a stopover? (Certainly, the website doesn't show it to me as an option -- does that mean that it's not allowed, or is it just a quirk of the website? Will I be able to book it over the phone?)
Jan 27, 2018, 11:52 am
#163
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: YVR, HNL
Programs: AS 75k, UA peon, BA Bronze, AC E50k, Marriott Plat, HH Diamond, Fairmont Plat (RIP)
Posts: 7,833
Ok, I think I understand why I'm having trouble booking my SFO - TPE flight. If booking a stopover, do I need to use the same middle-city airport for both segments?
SFO -> Tokyo (JAL 1) lands at HND. But Tokyo -> TPE on (JAL 805) takes off from NRT. Does that mean that I can't book Tokyo as a stopover? (Certainly, the website doesn't show it to me as an option -- does that mean that it's not allowed, or is it just a quirk of the website? Will I be able to book it over the phone?)
SFO -> Tokyo (JAL 1) lands at HND. But Tokyo -> TPE on (JAL 805) takes off from NRT. Does that mean that I can't book Tokyo as a stopover? (Certainly, the website doesn't show it to me as an option -- does that mean that it's not allowed, or is it just a quirk of the website? Will I be able to book it over the phone?)
), it shows a JL flight into HND with a long stopover, then NRT-TPE on JL 805. Then home on KL, TPE-SFO. And all in biz too, except the first leg.
Jan 27, 2018, 12:41 pm
#164
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: SEA
Posts: 2,556
booking award flights from 3 accounts
In a few weeks I will want to book five business class awards (on the same flights, roundtrips within Asia) on Alaska's partner, JAL.
Miles for three of the passengers will be from my account; miles for the fourth passenger will be from his account; miles for the fifth passenger will be from her account.
To maximize our chances of getting the five seats (and right now five business seats do show up for similar dates...but the dates we need won't be available for a few more weeks), I thought it might be better (to ensure getting the five seats) to call and have an agent do the booking (rather than booking online 3 seats from my account, then one from another account, and another from another account).
Is calling in probably the best plan of action?
And would the agent likely be able to book from the others' (family members) accounts per my request?
The Alaska webpage states that a "partner award booking fee of $12.50" applies and is "charged each way, per award, for all new partner award bookings". I assume this means for over-the-phone bookings only; is that correct? And so, for five passengers, traveling roundtrip, the total cost would be $125?
Miles for three of the passengers will be from my account; miles for the fourth passenger will be from his account; miles for the fifth passenger will be from her account.
To maximize our chances of getting the five seats (and right now five business seats do show up for similar dates...but the dates we need won't be available for a few more weeks), I thought it might be better (to ensure getting the five seats) to call and have an agent do the booking (rather than booking online 3 seats from my account, then one from another account, and another from another account).
Is calling in probably the best plan of action?
And would the agent likely be able to book from the others' (family members) accounts per my request?
The Alaska webpage states that a "partner award booking fee of $12.50" applies and is "charged each way, per award, for all new partner award bookings". I assume this means for over-the-phone bookings only; is that correct? And so, for five passengers, traveling roundtrip, the total cost would be $125?
Jan 27, 2018, 12:43 pm
#165
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 10,904
Ahhhhh thanks I'm an idiot. I was searching for both flights on the same day, and that doesn't work. Now that my dates make sense, I'm seeing SFO -> HND direct, and NRT -> TPE, all for 65k miles + $43. That is a great deal. Not sure why they are charging me 65k miles instead of 60k (does the stopover cost 5k or something??) but either way I'm very happy with that.
Thanks a lot for all the help. Now to search for F availability on JAL 1
Thanks a lot for all the help. Now to search for F availability on JAL 1