How to avoid this AA fee?
 

Trying to book this flight from LA to LAS, getting a $80.60 fee?

http://i.gyazo.com/62aa3a5e6c0c86dc40bf809e390d5cc4.png

http://i.gyazo.com/542c8e3ba449d4989e4a343b89a4f643.png

$75 of that is a fee for booking less than 21 days in advance. That fee is waived if you're an elite (Exec Plat I believe). There is no other way around it with AA miles, but if you have any BA avios, you could use those since BA doesn't charge a close-in booking fee. It would also be a better deal with Avios since this is a short direct flight (only 4.5k in economy).

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All AAdvantage elites -- even lowly Golds like myself -- are exempt from the $75 close-in award-booking fee.

+1 to the suggestion of using BA Avios for this short, nonstop flight.

Or just pay cash to one of the many airlines that fly that route
http://www.kayak.com/flight-routes/L...s-McCarran-LAS

Yeah there should be some flights on this route for about $80.

Otherwise you can avoid the $75 close in booking fee by getting your award tickets more than 21 days in advance of travel if you want to use AA miles and aren't an AA elite.

You could drive from LA to Vegas but I suspect that several days of parking at some of the casino hotels on the strip would cost more than $80 including tips.

Most carriers have flights in the $40-50 range on that route. AA itself is as low as $41. Not worth using miles/avios.

With Avios, even though the required number of them can be quite reasonable for short hops, you have to watch out for fuel surcharges and other fees. They can change the picture dramatically.

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No such fees/surcharges apply to BAEC Avios redemptions on AA for travel wholly within the Americas (North and South).

As this is an AA specific query, we're moving your post to that forum.

~beckoa, co-moderator Information Desk

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There are no $40 one way fares from LAX-LAS in coach on July 20th, as requested by the OP. And the OP was actually booking in J/F.
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For Business class redemptions Avios required for this route are 18,000 (versus 4,500 for economy - although no economy class award seats are available using Avios on OP's date) plus GBP 3. AA would charge, as OP mentions, 25,000 plus USD 80.60

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18,000 Avios is the rate for a First Class redemption on this route. On two-cabin domestic flights, AA sells the front cabin as First Class, not Business Class.

If AA offered Business Class on this route, it would cost considerably less than 18,000 Avios.

fares on the 12:30 AA flight desired by the OP , it is $85 in economy and $164 in 1st class

With the $75 expedite fee on an award, 25,000 points to save $83 doesn't seem like a great deal and would suggest that just buying the ticket would be the best value

Even compared against a BA award booking ( assuming the OP has BA Avios anyway ) 18,000 points vs $164 still doesn't seem that great to me

Other than attaining status very quickly, there is no workaround to the $75 fee

Yes I know, my point is for the same seat in the front of the cabin on OP's chosen AA flights on 20 July 2015, he would pay 25,000 AA miles plus USD80.60 or 18,000 BA Avios plus GBP3.

Sweet Mother of Mercy, AA has a LAS-LAX flight that leaves LAS at 3am? Yikes!