I am fairly new to the frequent flyer program and I was hoping you guys can lend me your expertise.

I have bought my tickets for my husband and myself from BWI to OGG via DFW for my Sept trip. I was debating if i should use my miles to upgrade on the flights. I called and spoke to a rep and was told the flight from BWI to DFW was ugradable but from DFW to OGG is not available. It was the same in the return flight home. I was told I would need 15k miles each way and it would cost me $175 a ticket each way. They would put me on a wait list for the DFW to OGG flight and from the OGG to DFW flight

Do you guys think it is worth the miles and money to upgrade? I was really hoping to get the upgrade for the longer leg of the flight. What are the odds of those seats opening up? Does it happen often or am i wasting hope.

The last question I have is, can I check myself online to see if seats are open without have to call a rep? I see business seats are available as award seats for the leg from DFW to OGG. If that is the case should i be able to upgrade on it if a award seat is available?

In case anyone needs to know I bought coach seat with booking code G. I really appreciate any advice you guys can lend to a newbie.

Hi, you do not mention status, therefore I would not know where you stand on the upgrade waitlist. You are correct in wanting the upgrade for the longer portion, DFW-OGG-DFW, it will be a more relaxing flight. The price is worth it in my opinion. The plane is a 767, which has 30 business seats, availability and chances are there, but do realize that other elite flyers would apply for the upgrade opportunity as well.

You can check the seat map on AA, however, it is not 100% guaranteed. Click on PLAN TRAVEL on AA.COM, and sub menu opens up, the second column in the middle you will see, VIEW AVAILABLE SEATS. Just enter the flight details, and select the cabin. I do not suggest that you go around making dummy bookings to check if there are seats available, as that could be considered as tampering with the seat inventory. You could also try a free trial subscription to expertflyer, and see if the seats are available.

I don't have any status with AA. I an fairly new to the program. I do see there are seats available on all 4 legs. I wasn't sure if it was worth spending an additional $700 for the upgrade for my husband myself with a possibility of only getting it on the leg bwi to dfw and dfw to bwi. The flight is only 3 hours long on those legs.

You can check the miles+copay upgrade availability on expertflyer.com, which is a pay service ($10 a month for a full version, there's a 5-day trial). Look for code A for your flights. This is the standard way for AA flyers to check upgrade availability.

I wouldn't upgrade the BWI-DFW, DFW-BWI portion from the beginning. Miles and co-pay will allow you to upgrade up to 3 segments so you might be better waitlisting for the DFW-OGG-DFW portion to clear and then add the BWI. Granted, this will cost $700 and 60k miles if all goes through. It is your call. If you have the miles, enjoy them as you which. On the flipside, those 60k miles can be used for a coach saver fare to Europe, which is 40k, just a thought.

I agree with others. I would waitist the DFW-OGG-DFW flights. Tell the agent to NOT do the BWI flights yet. If either of the longhauls clear then try and get the BWI flight. If they can't clear BWI at least you are only spending your miles and dollars on the better flights.

That being said, your chances are somewhat slim. As non status you are at the very bottom of the list. Paid business class to the islands is not that expensive so many times the cabin is sold out with paid passengers.

You might also want to look at Alaska Air - they serve BWI and if you can get a connection with them (SEA), they are often cheaper in First Class than AA. The 763 via DFW is more comfortable than AS' 737's, but they are not that bad and you may be able to book First without worrying about standby. AND, Alaska is a member of AAdvantage and you can get Elite Qualifying Miles.

I have decided to put my name on the wait list for the dfw to ogg legs and if they come through I will secure the bwi to dfw legs. Thank you for the advice.