Feb 19, 2016, 2:01 pm
Last edit by: thorofare
AA Vacations / aavacations.com Flight and Ground Packages
Trust American Airlines to offer you the perfect package at the best price, guaranteed! When you choose to bundle your travel components into one package price we can offer you an unbeatable value by combining our unpublished low rates on flights with specially negotiated rates on hotels, activities and transportation. So, whether you're looking for a quick flight plus hotel weekend getaway or an all-inclusive package complete with flight, hotel, ground transportation and tickets to local attractions, you can rest easy knowing the entire trip is covered by our Lowest Price Guarantee.
FAQ
Q. Do these earn AAEQM Loyalty Points, Award Miles (RDM) and EQD (EQ Dollars in 2017)?
These generally book into discount paid fare buckets, so "Yes" at this time. There are a few promotional offers that do not earnEQM Loyalty Points; these will clearly say so, so read thoroughly. See:
Special fares: Earning Award Miles and Loyalty Points on aa.com (link)
Earning AA Elite Qualifying Miles / EQM on AA, oneworld, partners 2016
and this for the changes affecting Award Miles coming in the latter part of 2016.
Earning AA Award / Redeemable Miles / RDM on AA, partners later 2016
Q. Can I upgrade these with AA upgrade instruments (e500 "stickers", miles and copay, SWU)? NOTE: As of July 2022, AA no longer issues 500-mile upgrade certificates ("stickers"). Auto-requested complimentary upgrades are now available to all elite status members and one traveling companion. See details at aa.com
Yes. These follow the standard AA upgrade rules.
Q. Can I use AAadvantage Award Miles to "pay" for a vacation?
(Change late 2019) Yes. You can "pay" with money (cards, etc.), AAdvantage miles or a combination of both. Miles may be used to pay for any portion of the vacation package up, and including, all of it. At this time there is no way to distinguish the breakpoint between the land portion and the air portion of the package, except by calling. And even this is a mixed bag.
Q. If I use AAdvantage Aware Miles to pay for part of my vacation, does this impact upgrades or EQM/RDM for the flights?(RDM)?
(Change 2020) AA Vacations agents are confident that using miles will have no impact on EQM/EQD/RDM as the miles are converted to "cash" to pay for the trip, so the AA system sees these as cash paid. This is supposed to apply no matter how much of the trip is paid with miles. Experiences reported here using part miles indicate that all posts as expected in these cases..
Q. So, what kinds of fares are ineligible for earning AA miles?
"Exceptions (aa.com)
Q. What aboutEQM Loyalty Points and Award ("Redeemable") Miles earning later in 2016 after 1 January 2022?
AA has specified a set of "Special Fares", which includes select AA Vacations (where there is a * next to the booking code when looking at the flight details).
Note that the Special Fares page also says, "AAdvantage elite member bonuses will be applied in addition to the percentages shown for award miles."
Q. What fare classes do First and Business packages book into?
Typically A for international First, A, R or P domestic F, and I or D international Business.
Q. What if I'm flying on a flight on a partner airline?
AA Vacations most often books into AA "code shares" / AA marketed flights. In that case, you'll earn miles as if flying on American. If it doesn't, you'll earn per the agreement AA has with the partner airline. Start here to look them up.
Q. What advance purchase restrictions are imposed?
Most advance purchase, minimum stay, etc. normally imposed by the airline don't apply; the restrictions are those imposed by AA Vacations. (Detailed Fare Rules for your fare generally do apply, however.)
Q. Are the trips or fares refundable?
Generally not fully refundable. Hotels and ground activities are generally not at all, and air will depend on the fare bucket and detailed rules. AA vacations does offer protection, but hotels etc. may not be included.
"There are two types of protection available: We offer the Cancellation and Change Waiver (Pre-Departure Protection) which allows you to cancel and/or change either the land or air portion of their package without penalty. Trip Protector (Post-Departure protection) from Allianz Global Assistance can provide protection for your trip expenses, your health and your belongings."
A waiver is usually $129 for international travel and $69 for domestic travel. This can also be paid with miles.
Q. What is the shortest time I can book an air-hotel package for?
It appears three nights is the shortest period allowed by aavacations, unless the total duration of the trip is less than three days, then it is length of trip. However, those three nights do not need to be at a single property.
Q. Can I book a ten day package with only three days of prepaid hotel?
Sure. You'll have to call to do so, however.
You can change the dates of the hotel to be different from those of the flights in the "More Search Options" section of the search. You can also book multiple rooms here too, specifying the number of guests per room.I don't think you can book hotel to be in a different city though. A hotel in a different city (or continent, even) can be booked, but must be done over the phone.
Q. Is only one hotel offered?
No. A variety of properties is generally offered, but this will of course affect pricing.
Q. Does the hotel have to be in the destination city?
No. You can book a property in another city if it's offered by AA Vacations.
Q. What happens if I don't use the ground part (hotel, car, etc.)? Will they cancel my return flights?
Nothing. You can use it or forget it. No flight cancellations ensue. See AA Vacations - not checking in at Hotel Some purposely book the cheapest pricing for their trip knowing they're choosing a "throwaway hotel" they won't use.
Though one AA Vacations agent actually said "always book with us and just book the cheapest hotel for 3 days and throw it away", don't you say it's your intent.
Q. Will AA Vacations cause problems for me?
If you disclose your intent to AA Vacations to "throw away" (not stay at) the hotel, they can not sell you the package. So, don't.
Q. Will the hotel cause problems for me?
Not likely; they're paid for a prepaid stay whether you stay or not, as they get to keep the money and have "your" room to sell.
Q. Will I earn points at the hotel? Will they recognize my status?
Many chains don't recognize third party bookings for points or stay credit, but will usually recognize your status. Properties will treat as prepaid booking.
Q. Are there ever deals or promos?
Indeed. There are often sales and promotions; look for them on the site.
Q. What if I want to book open jaw or customize?
Calling can do that. There's a $39 call fee, unless it's not able to be booked online. Others have said you can generally calculate the price of an open jaw itinerary by adding half the price of pricing for vacations to the arrival and departure cities and adding those.
Q. Can I put these on "hold" while I think about it since these include air fare?
No. But: Refund of Air Ticket Portion Within 24 Hours of Purchase
Within 24 hours of booking, you are allowed to cancel your refundable or non-refundable air ticket for a full refund (and no change fees and/or difference in fare) subject to the following rules:
Q. My AAdvantage credit card earns double Award ("Redeemable") Miles on AA purchases. Will AA Vacations purchases earn 2x miles?
No. What transactions are eligible to earn double AAdvantage® miles?
Eligible American Airlines purchases are items billed by American Airlines as the merchant of record booked through American Airlines channels (aa.com, American Airlines Reservations, American Airlines airport, in-flight and city ticket counters). American Airlines tickets purchased through other channels or that are a component of any other cruise or tour package do not earn the additional mile purchase bonuses. Products or services that do not qualify for the additional bonus miles include car rentals, hotel reservations, American Airlines Vacations packages, purchases of American Airlines AAdvantage miles, duty free purchases and or AA Cargo℠
Q. Do these earn AA
These generally book into discount paid fare buckets, so "Yes" at this time. There are a few promotional offers that do not earn
Special fares: Earning Award Miles and Loyalty Points on aa.com (link)
and this for the changes affecting Award Miles coming in the latter part of 2016.
Earning AA Award / Redeemable Miles / RDM on AA, partners later 2016
Q. Can I upgrade these with AA upgrade instruments (
Yes. These follow the standard AA upgrade rules.
Q. Can I use AAadvantage Award Miles to "pay" for a vacation?
(Change late 2019) Yes. You can "pay" with money (cards, etc.), AAdvantage miles or a combination of both. Miles may be used to pay for any portion of the vacation package up, and including, all of it. At this time there is no way to distinguish the breakpoint between the land portion and the air portion of the package, except by calling. And even this is a mixed bag.
Q. If I use AAdvantage Aware Miles to pay for part of my vacation, does this impact upgrades or EQM/RDM for the flights?(RDM)?
(Change 2020) AA Vacations agents are confident that using miles will have no impact on EQM/EQD/RDM as the miles are converted to "cash" to pay for the trip, so the AA system sees these as cash paid. This is supposed to apply no matter how much of the trip is paid with miles. Experiences reported here using part miles indicate that all posts as expected in these cases..
Q. So, what kinds of fares are ineligible for earning AA miles?
"Exceptions (aa.com)
There are certain airline ticket types that are not eligible for mileage accrual regardless of the booking class. These include, without limitation, the following:
Q Are there any types of tickets that won’t earn award miles?
Yes, tickets that currently do not earn award miles, elite-qualifying miles or elite-qualifying segments will not earn award miles in the future. This includes:
Q Are there any types of tickets that won’t earn award miles?
Yes, tickets that currently do not earn award miles, elite-qualifying miles or elite-qualifying segments will not earn award miles in the future. This includes:
- All tickets issued as AAdvantage awards
- Other free ticket promotions including free or reduced rate tickets
- Companion tickets
- Charter flight tickets
- Travel agency/industry reduced rate tickets
- Infant tickets
- Extra seats or items occupying a purchased seat
- Unpublished fare tickets, including consolidator fares
- Tickets issued subject to special provisions
Q. What about
AA has specified a set of "Special Fares", which includes select AA Vacations (where there is a * next to the booking code when looking at the flight details).
Some fares (such as bulk or consolidator fares) earn award miles and Elite Qualifying Dollars (EQDs) Loyalty Points (LPs) at a modified rate based on a percentage of the distance flown as determined by the booking code.
Special fares are often purchased through a specialized agent, third party or as part of a package including air transportation and lodging.
Examples:
Special fares are often purchased through a specialized agent, third party or as part of a package including air transportation and lodging.
Examples:
- Bulk fares
- Cruise fares
- Consolidator fares
- Discounted or inclusive tour packages
- Vacation packages, including select American Airlines Vacations® packages. For Vacations, special fares are marked with an asterisk (*) after the booking code in the AAVacations.com booking path,
- Other tickets where the fare isn't disclosed, excluding bookings made through priceline.com or hotwire.com where the carrier isn't disclosed before buying
Q. What fare classes do First and Business packages book into?
Typically A for international First, A, R or P domestic F, and I or D international Business.
Q. What if I'm flying on a flight on a partner airline?
AA Vacations most often books into AA "code shares" / AA marketed flights. In that case, you'll earn miles as if flying on American. If it doesn't, you'll earn per the agreement AA has with the partner airline. Start here to look them up.
Q. What advance purchase restrictions are imposed?
Most advance purchase, minimum stay, etc. normally imposed by the airline don't apply; the restrictions are those imposed by AA Vacations. (Detailed Fare Rules for your fare generally do apply, however.)
Q. Are the trips or fares refundable?
Generally not fully refundable. Hotels and ground activities are generally not at all, and air will depend on the fare bucket and detailed rules. AA vacations does offer protection, but hotels etc. may not be included.
"There are two types of protection available: We offer the Cancellation and Change Waiver (Pre-Departure Protection) which allows you to cancel and/or change either the land or air portion of their package without penalty. Trip Protector (Post-Departure protection) from Allianz Global Assistance can provide protection for your trip expenses, your health and your belongings."
A waiver is usually $129 for international travel and $69 for domestic travel. This can also be paid with miles.
Q. What is the shortest time I can book an air-hotel package for?
It appears three nights is the shortest period allowed by aavacations, unless the total duration of the trip is less than three days, then it is length of trip. However, those three nights do not need to be at a single property.
Q. Can I book a ten day package with only three days of prepaid hotel?
You can change the dates of the hotel to be different from those of the flights in the "More Search Options" section of the search. You can also book multiple rooms here too, specifying the number of guests per room.
Q. Is only one hotel offered?
No. A variety of properties is generally offered, but this will of course affect pricing.
Q. Does the hotel have to be in the destination city?
No. You can book a property in another city if it's offered by AA Vacations.
Q. What happens if I don't use the ground part (hotel, car, etc.)? Will they cancel my return flights?
Nothing. You can use it or forget it. No flight cancellations ensue. See AA Vacations - not checking in at Hotel Some purposely book the cheapest pricing for their trip knowing they're choosing a "throwaway hotel" they won't use.
Though one AA Vacations agent actually said "always book with us and just book the cheapest hotel for 3 days and throw it away", don't you say it's your intent.
Q. Will AA Vacations cause problems for me?
If you disclose your intent to AA Vacations to "throw away" (not stay at) the hotel, they can not sell you the package. So, don't.
Q. Will the hotel cause problems for me?
Not likely; they're paid for a prepaid stay whether you stay or not, as they get to keep the money and have "your" room to sell.
Q. Will I earn points at the hotel? Will they recognize my status?
Many chains don't recognize third party bookings for points or stay credit, but will usually recognize your status. Properties will treat as prepaid booking.
Q. Are there ever deals or promos?
Indeed. There are often sales and promotions; look for them on the site.
Q. What if I want to book open jaw or customize?
Calling can do that. There's a $39 call fee, unless it's not able to be booked online. Others have said you can generally calculate the price of an open jaw itinerary by adding half the price of pricing for vacations to the arrival and departure cities and adding those.
Q. Can I put these on "hold" while I think about it since these include air fare?
No. But: Refund of Air Ticket Portion Within 24 Hours of Purchase
Within 24 hours of booking, you are allowed to cancel your refundable or non-refundable air ticket for a full refund (and no change fees and/or difference in fare) subject to the following rules:
- You must call 800-321-2121 within 24 hours of purchase to cancel the air ticket reservation and request a refund of the air ticket.
- The reservation must have been booked at least 7 days before scheduled departure.
- This policy does not apply to hotel or other non-air portions of the package. Standard cancellation policies will apply to all non-air components of the package.
- Refunds are only issued for tickets booked on aavacations.com or with American Airlines Vacations Reservations.
Q. My AAdvantage credit card earns double Award ("Redeemable") Miles on AA purchases. Will AA Vacations purchases earn 2x miles?
No. What transactions are eligible to earn double AAdvantage® miles?
Eligible American Airlines purchases are items billed by American Airlines as the merchant of record booked through American Airlines channels (aa.com, American Airlines Reservations, American Airlines airport, in-flight and city ticket counters). American Airlines tickets purchased through other channels or that are a component of any other cruise or tour package do not earn the additional mile purchase bonuses. Products or services that do not qualify for the additional bonus miles include car rentals, hotel reservations, American Airlines Vacations packages, purchases of American Airlines AAdvantage miles, duty free purchases and or AA Cargo℠
(lower right wiki corner)Updated by JDiver 19 Feb 2016
FAQ: aavacations.com / AA Vacations flight & vacation package questions, discussion
Aug 15, 2017, 11:47 am
#211
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SJC
Programs: AA EXP, BA Silver, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 33,535
Change car rental (as part of package) on car site?
This is a new one on me. I have a Vacation package reservation, airfare + car. The car is through Avis. I have added the reservation to my Avis account as well, and I can see the base rate that AA purportedly pays, plus the taxes+ fees that I would have to pay.
Well, I can get the car for less than half of the rate that AA are paying - which means less in taxes+ fees.
I called AA vacations and they indicated that, while they couldn't change it on their end, they saw no issue with my changing it on Avis. They believed that they would still pay the (now lower) base rate and I'd pay fewer taxes/fees.
Has anyone here done this sort of thing before? I have two future packages with Avis rentals that I'm sure I can get for less
Cheers.
Well, I can get the car for less than half of the rate that AA are paying - which means less in taxes+ fees.
I called AA vacations and they indicated that, while they couldn't change it on their end, they saw no issue with my changing it on Avis. They believed that they would still pay the (now lower) base rate and I'd pay fewer taxes/fees.
Has anyone here done this sort of thing before? I have two future packages with Avis rentals that I'm sure I can get for less
Cheers.
Aug 15, 2017, 2:05 pm
#212
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: USA & UK -- AA EXP 3.5MM, Hyatt Diamond, SPG Plat, Avis President's Club
Posts: 6,411
In several recent situations earlier in 2017, the (Budget, Avis, Thrifty, Dollar) websites would not let me change the reservation. Everything looked normal, up until the point that you actually save the change. It wouldn't save. I phoned the car company and they wouldn't change it for me. They said that the reservations through AAVacations can only be changed by AAVacations. And (as you already experienced) AAV won't change the rez either.
All I wanted to do was add my (Fastbreak, Avis First, BlueChip, Express) number to the rez, so that the car would be ready and waiting. A pretty simple request really. But no go.
I hope that your experiences are better.
All I wanted to do was add my (Fastbreak, Avis First, BlueChip, Express) number to the rez, so that the car would be ready and waiting. A pretty simple request really. But no go.
I hope that your experiences are better.
This is a new one on me. I have a Vacation package reservation, airfare + car. The car is through Avis. I have added the reservation to my Avis account as well, and I can see the base rate that AA purportedly pays, plus the taxes+ fees that I would have to pay.
Well, I can get the car for less than half of the rate that AA are paying - which means less in taxes+ fees.
I called AA vacations and they indicated that, while they couldn't change it on their end, they saw no issue with my changing it on Avis. They believed that they would still pay the (now lower) base rate and I'd pay fewer taxes/fees.
Has anyone here done this sort of thing before? I have two future packages with Avis rentals that I'm sure I can get for less
Cheers.
Well, I can get the car for less than half of the rate that AA are paying - which means less in taxes+ fees.
I called AA vacations and they indicated that, while they couldn't change it on their end, they saw no issue with my changing it on Avis. They believed that they would still pay the (now lower) base rate and I'd pay fewer taxes/fees.
Has anyone here done this sort of thing before? I have two future packages with Avis rentals that I'm sure I can get for less
Cheers.
Aug 15, 2017, 2:53 pm
#213
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SJC
Programs: AA EXP, BA Silver, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 33,535
As for the reservation, I was able to change it successfully in Avis.
Cheers.
Aug 15, 2017, 7:30 pm
#214
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: USA & UK -- AA EXP 3.5MM, Hyatt Diamond, SPG Plat, Avis President's Club
Posts: 6,411
Did you get your Avis number put into the rez by phone, before the travel was bought? Or was it entered after purchase? I'd try a car from AAVacations again, if I could enter my Renter number (instead of being #65 in line to see the one agent at the rent-car counter).
Aug 15, 2017, 7:42 pm
#215
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SJC
Programs: AA EXP, BA Silver, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 33,535
Did you get your Avis number put into the rez by phone, before the travel was bought? Or was it entered after purchase? I'd try a car from AAVacations again, if I could enter my Renter number (instead of being #65 in line to see the one agent at the rent-car counter).
Cheers.
Aug 17, 2017, 9:05 am
#216
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: CGX
Posts: 168
Okay, so when I went shopping the other day for an AAV package, it said the special fares chart applies only when the flights are displayed with * next to the booking class; all other fares use the regular fare-based chart.
At least on the itineraries I searched, most of the flights did not show the *.
Apparently this loophole has been closed?
At least on the itineraries I searched, most of the flights did not show the *.
Apparently this loophole has been closed?
Aug 17, 2017, 9:28 am
#217
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SJC
Programs: AA EXP, BA Silver, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 33,535
Cheers.
Aug 17, 2017, 9:40 am
#218
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: CGX
Posts: 168
if I am doing something wrong please let me know!! This EQD requirement is a pain.
Aug 17, 2017, 9:53 am
#219
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: New York, NY
Posts: 3,698
I only received 2,300 EQD on my last trip ORD-LHR, and that was routing through MAD and HEL. Wouldn't regular fare class be better for EQD in this instance, assuming the flight portion of the trip cost was greater than $2,300?
if I am doing something wrong please let me know!! This EQD requirement is a pain.
if I am doing something wrong please let me know!! This EQD requirement is a pain.
Aug 17, 2017, 9:56 am
#220
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: CGX
Posts: 168
Fares to EU are much less in J, usually by a few thousand USD.
Aug 17, 2017, 10:03 am
#221
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: New York, NY
Posts: 3,698
Aug 17, 2017, 4:00 pm
#223
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SJC
Programs: AA EXP, BA Silver, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 33,535
With that said, I've never found J on AA Vacations, only I. And I'm hard-pressed to find I fares where I don't get more EQD than dollars spent for international. One should certainly be able to find I ORD-LHR for less than $2300.
I earns 20%, so 1581 on ORD-LHR RT. Should be able to get a fare in I for less than that.
Cheers.
Last edited by brp; Aug 17, 2017 at 4:09 pm
Aug 17, 2017, 5:19 pm
#224
Join Date: Jan 2013
Posts: 743
"orthogonal" - had to look that one up. Second meaning, obviously. :-)
Aug 17, 2017, 5:43 pm
#225
Join Date: Dec 2016
Location: CA
Posts: 304
Final destination, and to a degree origin, matters. I've found Scandinavian/Eastern european cities, on average during the summer, yielding great EQD/EQM per dollar spent when purchasing through AAV and to some degree Expedia. Major cities like London, Paris, Rome didn't do too well, at least for AA. Regular fares might be better there.
Anyone else keep track of EQD/$ and EQM/$ ratios? The best I've personally seen is 1.5 for EQD (my Prague trip) and 14 for EQM (Ho Chi Minh), excluding work trips that I upgraded to J using miles/copay.
Anyone else keep track of EQD/$ and EQM/$ ratios? The best I've personally seen is 1.5 for EQD (my Prague trip) and 14 for EQM (Ho Chi Minh), excluding work trips that I upgraded to J using miles/copay.