Companion pass - Book a year out and change later to stretch it?
Dec 30, 2020, 6:05 pm
#16
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: SAN
Programs: DL SM, Marriot PLT, Tall guy in need of legroom
Posts: 1,478
Funny enough I close my card yesterday to avoid the pending $75 annual fee and just applied for the 40k mile bonus $100 statement credit (covers the $75 annual fee) and was approved - so got a new companion fare coming and avoided the annual fee
That seems to be a decent play..
Dec 30, 2020, 9:28 pm
#17
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Anchorage, AK
Programs: Lifetime AS 1MM & MVPG, AS MVPG100K, AA, DL, HH-G
Posts: 8,259
I absolutely loathe Skank of America and have only kept two of their cards because of the companion fares. I always found them useful, but more often than not needed to make changes closer in. The AS constant schedule changes never helped. Now, with this change, I will be closing both cards. I keep them at $0.00 balance, so it will be nice to give BofA ( or more clearly SofA) the nose thumb as I walk away.
Dec 30, 2020, 10:00 pm
#18
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: Portland, Oregon
Programs: Hilton Platinum, Alaska MVP Gold
Posts: 2,363
Funny enough I close my card yesterday to avoid the pending $75 annual fee and just applied for the 40k mile bonus $100 statement credit (covers the $75 annual fee) and was approved - so got a new companion fare coming and avoided the annual fee
That seems to be a decent play..
That seems to be a decent play..
Dec 30, 2020, 10:27 pm
#19
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Intermountain West
Programs: Too many to list
Posts: 12,082
Move on
IMO neither AS or BofA gives a hoot if you cancel your card so you might as well do it and move on. My DW and I have 3 cards and we're cancelling one because they bring little value. Some folks who fly AS a lot DO get value from the CF cert but the infrequent flyer won't. Watch the sales and use those instead. 
Dec 31, 2020, 10:27 am
#20
Ambassador: Alaska Airlines
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: ANC, SAP
Programs: AS MVP Gold, Priority Pass
Posts: 1,863
Did this years ago. Most of my travel doesn't end up lining up perfectly with people even if a group trip (i.e. slightly different departure/return dates, or meeting someone coming from a different city), so found it chore to use the companion cert on something that gave me good value. The card isn't particularly rewarding for purchases (even AS purchases you can get better rewards with other cards), and the fact that there was no flexibility on the companion cert (i.e. companion flies free *or* $50 off a solo traveler ticket) made me cancel. Have never looked back.
Jan 1, 2021, 11:15 pm
#21
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: SFO
Posts: 487
hate to lose the 3 certificates i have expiring
and was going to book for travel next fall but
sfo airfares to east coast arent even competive
400 RT SFO-NYC where united is half that
200 RT SFO PDX twice the discounted price
450RT SFO BOS/WAS
thats alot cash to have riding
and was going to book for travel next fall but
sfo airfares to east coast arent even competive
400 RT SFO-NYC where united is half that
200 RT SFO PDX twice the discounted price
450RT SFO BOS/WAS
thats alot cash to have riding
definitely closing the bofa card after I use up my companion fare
Jan 2, 2021, 7:52 am
#22
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: British Columbia
Programs: AS MVPG100K, Marriott Marriott Titanium Elite, Hilton Gold
Posts: 7,263
"Going in circles" offers a better yield. We just completed an itinerary of 8,502 miles (not a mileage run) and saved $457 off of the base fare. With taxes, average cost per flight was $71.46 each and together we earned 36,134 RDM. I booked us an award MSY-SEA-PHX//PHX-PVR with a 5 week stopover in PHX for 17.5K each offsetting a base fare greater than the original itinerary.
James
Jan 2, 2021, 9:21 am
#23
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: SFO
Posts: 487
Are you using a companion certificate for a one-way SFO-HNL? It would be very difficult to extract any value on an itineray with one segment.
"Going in circles" offers a better yield. We just completed an itinerary of 8,502 miles (not a mileage run) and saved $457 off of the base fare. With taxes, average cost per flight was $71.46 each and together we earned 36,134 RDM. I booked us an award MSY-SEA-PHX//PHX-PVR with a 5 week stopover in PHX for 17.5K each offsetting a base fare greater than the original itinerary.
James
"Going in circles" offers a better yield. We just completed an itinerary of 8,502 miles (not a mileage run) and saved $457 off of the base fare. With taxes, average cost per flight was $71.46 each and together we earned 36,134 RDM. I booked us an award MSY-SEA-PHX//PHX-PVR with a 5 week stopover in PHX for 17.5K each offsetting a base fare greater than the original itinerary.
James
Jan 2, 2021, 1:05 pm
#24
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: British Columbia
Programs: AS MVPG100K, Marriott Marriott Titanium Elite, Hilton Gold
Posts: 7,263
