I have a business trip I have to take from NYC to London, leaving the evening of 12/14 (have to work that day) and returning around 12pm on 12/17. My firm won't pay for business or first class fares, but if I can get an upgradeable fare, I have enough CO miles to upgrade at least one way.

My question: is there an easy guide to the various fare codes somewhere? I keep searching Continental's web site, going through the motions of booking full fare economy tickets, looking at the fare code....and then calling a Continental sales rep to see if the code is upgradeable. For example, I recently found two fares with flight times that looked good; one was H23E and the other was K?USE (forgot the digit/letter after the "K" on that one).

Thanks for any info anyone can provide....and if you're travelling now, hope you're safe and well!

Katherine

P.S.: Off topic from CO, but: The goal, of course, is to have a first class trip on this itinerary, and that could happen on any airline, theoretically! If you know of any consolidators I should check or other off-the-beaten-path sources, let me know. So far, I've checked with a bunch and found, for example, that Air India has a $2300 or so business class fare....but then I read some less than favorable reviews.

If you do an archive search on "HoKeY" or "HoKeY lottery" you will find plenty of information on the topic. Just be prepared for the expletives.

SunLover

PS - fare codes H,K,and Y qualify on CO for a potential chance at an international cash + dollars upgrade (if the non-rev's don't beat you to it). It might be worth checking out partner airlines such as NW or DL.

CO does not have an international First Class.

If your company is willing to pay for an H23E fare ($1435), then why not make a deal with them and purchase the ZR4SIE ($1555) in which you pay the extra $120? This is a lot cheaper than playing HoKeY, and you will have a confirmed BF seat at time of booking.

They certainly would pay $1555 for roundtrip BF--but I can't figure out how you're getting that fare? I will try to call Continental later today and see what they say if I just ask for a fare code; I haven't been able to find this on their web site.

(Incorrect information)

How about this? I think it is a good fare but there is one connection.

$3839.00

Fare (A1): CO EWRDUB ZOW12E fare, psgr type ADT NUC 1340.00
Fare (B1): LH DUBLON Z1OWBMI fare NUC 150.53
Fare (A2): CO LONEWR ZOWC3E fare, psgr type ADT NUC 2201.00
Tax: US September 11th Security Fee $2.50
Tax: US Passenger Facility Charge $3.00
Tax: US International Departure Tax $13.70
Tax: Irish Passenger Charge �8.57
Tax: US International Arrival Tax $13.70
Tax: United Kingdom Passenger Service Charge �7.20
Tax: United Kingdom Air Passengers Duty �40.00
Tax: US Customs Fee $5.00
Tax: US Immigration Fee $7.00
Tax: USDA APHIS Fee $3.10

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Total for 1 adult passenger: $3839.00

(Incorrect information)