New Year's Resolution: GGL in 2018
Dec 21, 2017, 7:36 am
#16
Suspended
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Sin, HKG
Programs: SQ, BA CCR GGL
Posts: 626
One word of caution: The getting to GGL should not be your cost consideration. Achieving GGL in itself is pointless. It only gives you benefits for your travels after achieving it. So - you need more trips booked after you make GGL. Ideally in Y to max out on the GGL benefits. And no way will you voluntarily book Y after doing tons of flights in premium cabins just to get to GGL.
Dec 21, 2017, 7:49 am
#18
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2016
Programs: BAEC GGL/CR; Hilton Diamond; Mucci des Puccis
Posts: 5,602
I think she might have her suspicions. There's only so many times you can pop out round the corner to buy a newspaper and come back 5 days later smelling of Elemis with a priority tag stuck to your bag.
Dec 21, 2017, 9:00 am
#19
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Cumbria
Programs: BAEC GGL/CCR, Hilton Diamond, Starbucks Gold
Posts: 4,510
Dec 21, 2017, 9:03 am
#20
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2016
Programs: BAEC GGL/CR; Hilton Diamond; Mucci des Puccis
Posts: 5,602
Dec 21, 2017, 9:05 am
#21
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: NCL
Programs: BAEC and Hilton mostly
Posts: 653
). Floated the idea of a Qatar two-fer last month and got a 'you must be *** joking' - but she is coming along as far as Sofia, then heading home while I do a short trip to Singapore...
Dec 21, 2017, 10:03 am
#22
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Cumbria
Programs: BAEC GGL/CCR, Hilton Diamond, Starbucks Gold
Posts: 4,510
Dec 21, 2017, 10:12 am
#23
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: England
Programs: BAEC
Posts: 1,006
Who am I to tell someone how to spend their money, I burn a couple of hundred GBP an hour chasing a propellor round the skies.
My 2018 goal is to spend less time on BA aircraft if they are to further densify the short haul Airbus fleet, I’ll not renew Silver in the next year but have fun getting your GGL. Will you be filing Trip Reports?
My 2018 goal is to spend less time on BA aircraft if they are to further densify the short haul Airbus fleet, I’ll not renew Silver in the next year but have fun getting your GGL. Will you be filing Trip Reports?
Dec 21, 2017, 10:25 am
#24
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2016
Programs: BAEC GGL/CR; Hilton Diamond; Mucci des Puccis
Posts: 5,602
Who am I to tell someone how to spend their money, I burn a couple of hundred GBP an hour chasing a propellor round the skies.
My 2018 goal is to spend less time on BA aircraft if they are to further densify the short haul Airbus fleet, I’ll not renew Silver in the next year but have fun getting your GGL. Will you be filing Trip Reports?
My 2018 goal is to spend less time on BA aircraft if they are to further densify the short haul Airbus fleet, I’ll not renew Silver in the next year but have fun getting your GGL. Will you be filing Trip Reports?
The intention is to append to this thread, yes. Especially the LHR->PRG->HEL->LHR->JFK->DCA->BOS->LHR->HEL->PRG->LHR->HEL->DOH->BKK->HEL->LHR 10 day special.
Dec 21, 2017, 10:32 am
#25
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: England
Programs: BAEC
Posts: 1,006
Dec 21, 2017, 11:12 am
#26
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Vancouver, British Columbia
Programs: BA GGL, FPC Plat, HH Diamond, IHG Amb
Posts: 3,372
3,300 TP in February to September is barely on-pace for GGL. You'll need to keep that pace up for October-January to reach 5,000, bearing in mind that Christmas and your already planned January 2019 holiday are in there.
If you are going to go for it, make absolutely sure you can get those last 1,700 TP in the time allotted.
If you are going to go for it, make absolutely sure you can get those last 1,700 TP in the time allotted.
Dec 21, 2017, 12:01 pm
#27
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2016
Programs: BAEC GGL/CR; Hilton Diamond; Mucci des Puccis
Posts: 5,602
There should be circa 600 TP from business flights additionally - I have to leave a bit of space for those in the calendar so can't go all out with booking TP runs until a little later in the year. The current bookings are clustered into Feb and March mostly. I can also probably arrange to convert the work WT+ to CW and do some imaginative routings, and/or put some side trips into the schedule. Mostly for work I'm heading east, I have Indian and Chinese visas, so most of the Sri Lankan and Malaysian options are open as and when. The holiday is in mid September.
So I'm not concerned providing the first cluster goes off OK. If it does, the first 20 days of the TP year yield 1720 TP which is a solid start. If all goes tits up, I'll retrench and stop at 3500 TP.
So I'm not concerned providing the first cluster goes off OK. If it does, the first 20 days of the TP year yield 1720 TP which is a solid start. If all goes tits up, I'll retrench and stop at 3500 TP.
Dec 21, 2017, 12:23 pm
#28
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Las Vegas
Programs: BA Gold; Hilton Honors Diamond
Posts: 3,227
Each to their own on this I suppose and as others have said it's your money - but I really don't see the appeal of chasing GGL simply for the sake of it. I am not entirely sure whether the additional benefits of GGL are worth the significant personal expenditure. That said, there are other equally contentious hobbies out there. I am sure a lot of people would say the same about my recent 4-day weekend back in the UK simply to do a railtour (although I did see family and friends).
Personally I don't see myself getting anything above standard Gold. I have only made 3500 TPs once, and that was a truly exceptional year. I have Most years it's 1500 or a little above to maintain Gold and although it's not exactly touch and go it's a bit of a challenge as I really only have two work trips per year (HKG / SIN and MAN / BRU) and work only pays Premium Economy for those. Anything else is personal expenditure and when you add in the OH plus at least one minor CC it becomes rather expensive rather quickly, especially in premium cabins when there is a real paucity of sale fares from the USA.
That all said, good luck to you - I hope everything goes to plan, that you have fun, and that you're not left with an "Is that it?" feeling at the end
Personally I don't see myself getting anything above standard Gold. I have only made 3500 TPs once, and that was a truly exceptional year. I have Most years it's 1500 or a little above to maintain Gold and although it's not exactly touch and go it's a bit of a challenge as I really only have two work trips per year (HKG / SIN and MAN / BRU) and work only pays Premium Economy for those. Anything else is personal expenditure and when you add in the OH plus at least one minor CC it becomes rather expensive rather quickly, especially in premium cabins when there is a real paucity of sale fares from the USA.
That all said, good luck to you - I hope everything goes to plan, that you have fun, and that you're not left with an "Is that it?" feeling at the end
Dec 21, 2017, 12:54 pm
#29
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2008
Programs: AA EXP/LTP, BA GGL/CCR/GfL, HH D/LTD, SPG/MR Plat/LTP
Posts: 10,075
Loooking forward to your TR.
Although thinking your question is rethorical, I agree with your answer.
Dec 21, 2017, 12:55 pm
#30
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: BCN
Programs: BA GGL, IB, LH, IHG Gold
Posts: 582
. As I said at the outset I'm perfectly well aware it's not an exercise in profit and loss, it's for fun. When I get to the end of the project I'll know a bit more about myself and a lot more about the process of finding and booking travel.
One of my favourite quotes is from David Bowie who was asked in a colour supplement magazine interview what his favourite journey was. He answered: "there is only one". If we spent that whole journey only doing what was sensible, it'd be a pretty dull flight.
One of my favourite quotes is from David Bowie who was asked in a colour supplement magazine interview what his favourite journey was. He answered: "there is only one". If we spent that whole journey only doing what was sensible, it'd be a pretty dull flight.