Cali Rob

Hi all. I’m PLT for life. I need 25K loyalty points for PLT PRO. I can do it for $3500 and I have $1700 flight credit. Is it worth doing? Thank you. Please if I posted incorrectly, don’t yell. :-)

BrianV

Out of Austin, as PPro, I almost never got upgrades and was routinely 10+ on the list. As I quail’s for EXP, my spend/LP was high as a PPro. The last upgrade I got was DEN-AUS in mid-April on a Sunday. That means 9 months of flying without a single upgrade.

To me, the compelling benefits of PPro are:

- OWE (Emerald). If you travel overseas, the Emerald lounges are notably better.

- Higher LP multiplier will make requal’ing for status next year easier. It’s 20% higher, not insignificant.

JJeffrey

No way on earth I would spend an add'l $3500 to reach PLT Pro. Heck I wouldn't even spend another $3500 to reach EXP.

For only 25k more LP's you should be able to book a hotel through RM or BAAH for ~$1k-ish that will get you the LP's for way cheaper.

And even then, I would not spend even another $1k unless you have a bunch of int'l travel coming up and could take advantage of the oneworld Emerald status.

craigthemif

The jump up to Oneworld Emerald status can be important, if you travel internationally. Plus the bonus miles / LPs next year.

If you just travel in the US, PPro will probably get you to Number 10 on the upgrade list instead of 25.

P.S. 25k LPs should only cost you $600-700...

BrianV

Spot on, I literally averaged 10 as PPro flying on elite dense segments. AUS, DFW, DEN, LAX, SNA, SFO, SJC, ORD, RTP, DTW being my most frequented airports.

PHL

Or even less. Find a rocketmiles or bookaahotels deal in Vegas, or perhaps even in your own backyard.. Prepay it,. You'll get charged and credited appropriately even if you don't show up.

Cali Rob

Thank you all for your replies. I didn’t even think of RocketMiles or BAAH. That’s what I’m going to do. You all are so damn clever! 😊🙏

brenc3

If you plan to fly AS at all, Pro gets you upgrade eligibility, extra legroom (Premium) seat selection at booking, and same day confirmed standby.

As mentioned by others, Emerald status when flying international gets you much nicer lounges at certain airports and F checkin.

MathMusic

Data point: I just paid ~$650 for 21k LPs through BAAH to keep my current status. And you get the miles too, so depending how you value the miles it isn't that bad of a deal. I see it as basically half of what I paid I am getting back in mileage.

noiretnoir

Wait, can you provide an example of how that works? I'm about 19k LP short of requalifying for PP. I have to take two more transcon flights anyway so I was gonna book for about $2200 RT. But if I can book for way less via RM or BAAH then I'd much rather go that route.

When I tried to pull up something for LAS all I saw was 3000 base miles, but not LP points. Is there a guide somewhere to follow?

flying_geek

And BAAH is? - I expect to be 14K short of the next SWU milestone and was planning to shift some CC spend around but sonds like I should at least know what that is

JJeffrey

There's an extensive thread right on the top page here about RM and BAAH, base miles earned from either are also LP's. Take some time to read through it.

Bookaahotels vs RocketMiles - useability, experiences, questions, data points

flying_geek

Hmm - thanks

JMN57

Exactly - I have a trip to DFW in early Feb. Right now I am 25k short of PPRO renewal with probably 12k in flights left to fly before end of Feb. I'm adding 20k via RM for ~$650 for two nights in Dallas (that's more than I technically need but just being safe in case of any breakage on what's scheduled to fly).

Relative to OP's original question - is PPRO worth it - IMO less than when stickers were being used. When it was stickers, free upgrades were a real benefit - now that everyone gets free upgrades, less so. Clearly, having PPRO status is better than just Plat in terms of pecking order. For me, as I do a lot of TATL, premium lounge access is great and 3 bags per person sometimes a very welcome benefit. As I am semi-retired and have a lot of flexibility on when I fly, upgrade % is better as I can "bet" which flights to take to max upgrade %. If you can get the 30 segments, the systemwide also has some value. I certainly wouldn't spend $3k for it but I would drop an extra $650 (especially as it's a business expense and I'll get reimbursed for it) for PPRO.

MathMusic

Check the thread, but on Book AA Hotels the best deal is usually an option to "Pay more to earn More" (+3k miles per night). Combined with the option to boost your miles (+3k miles per night more). So that 3000 mile offer is potentially available for 9000 miles a night if it was through BAAH. I booked a 2 night Las Vegas stay earning 14k LPs for ~$380 combining these options.

All base miles you earn through AA Hotels or Rocket miles also earn the LPs you normally get for earning miles. So a booking that earns 20k miles will also get you 20k LPs.