Waiting for your suggestions on this.

I'd say the answer points back to that earlier post about a prayer... ;)

Good luck!

CLG

Some people think they are being funny, rather than truthfully responding to a question, and others just like to bash CO, whether valid or not;)

That sounds like a not so subtle hint that I shouldn't quit my day job and become a comedian.@:-)@:-)@:-)

What can I say, all my joke writers are on strike.

But as I am being mocked for my failure to answer the question, here it is...If you want a BF upgrade you have use miles and pay a co-pay depending on class. CO is known for being stingy on the BF upgrades, again YMMV. The suggestions on page one contain sage advice, as opposed to my attempt at humor on page two.

BF upgrades tend to be random and rare, as CO would of course prefer to sell these seats (and they retain several seats for employee perks) then give them out for next to nothing. Be patient is my only real advice, try to find upgradeable flights when book if you are flexible enough.

Thanks for your suggestions and insight. i appreciate it.

Luxury Tax to EU??
 

I just upgraded an "X" for the miles and $450 BUT it was really $528. Apparently there is some kind of new luxury tax for flights into Europe. The agent said they tack it on if you pay and have to add it to reward tickets. She said even the "H" upgrades now have to pay the tax.

Anyone else experience this yet?

FWIW

DLM

thats $900 if you get the Upgrade both ways, you can decide if you want it both ways or only 1

the same for the Miles you need to cash in and use 80,000 for round-trip and 40000 for 1 way

I havent priced out the fares, but although an H will save you from having to pay the $900 co-pay and earn you an extra 50% EQMs if they matter to you, I would NOT purchase an "H" Unless at the time of purchase CO can Confirm me in BF both ways and that the difference in fare from the 'S' to an 'H' isnt $900, so if if the difference between an S & H is say $1200 then Id buy the S unless I feel the extra EQMs are worth it. If the diffference is say $700 then its cheaper to buy the H as then no co-pay will be needed.

keep in mind if you buy the H and CO wont/cant confirm the Upgrade at time of purchase, then if the upgrade doesnt come thru, you just spent alot more $$$ to sit in the same exact seat as you could have if you purchased the S fare

its rare to find where the H will be cheaper then say a S and copay, but theyre there in the system and I have seen it.

I heard that there were some new taxes taking effect on January 1st that was going to make TATL flights to CDG much more expensive as some friends in Paris were making sure they were buying their tickets before January 1st to take a trip to nyc for a home exchange with me. But I've never had to pay taxes for that fee to upgrade! I've been trying to decide whether to spring for a BF ticket or go for the upgrade and fee for my trip and this might make the difference. Anyone else hear about this?

Yes -- the UK doubled its longhaul flight taxes as of 1-Jan-2007. The taxes went from £20 in economy cabins and £40 in premium cabins to £40 and £80 respectively. I purchased some tix to the UK in 2006. Our upgrades cleared a month or so before the flight. Taxes on the upgrades for the four of us were an additional £60 each (we'd paid £20 at the time of booking) or about $480. Ouch!

Except, as you point out, you'll have earned a 50% EQM bonus which could be substantial if you're taking a long transpac route. If you're close to an elite tier this could be all the miles you need and you won't need an additional trip later to get there. Of course this assumes the person knows roughly how many miles they'll be travelling during the year already.

On a HKG flight I could buy 'H' for an extra $750 or 8060 EQMs not bad, or I can use that same $ or $367 and do a MR and earn 10500 EQMs. Also on the MR Ill earn 125% of the miles as a Plat bonus, the HKG flight I wont earn any extra over the 125% I already will be getting. Im awaiting my traveling companions decission. I really wouldnt care about staying in the back to HKG as the flights are far from full so that means an empty Middle seat between us or a whole row for each if its really empty. BF seat wise I dont care for, its having the extra room that I like.

Correct, but this does not take into account the opportunity cost of making an additional trip. The decision on whether to buy an H fare with the possibility of getting a mileage upgrade should be personalized. It's never as simple as saying "never" or "always" and one needs to consider the traveller's overall travel goals, EQM/elite goals and what they are giving up in order to travel.

A lot of this, as said, comes down to how much free time you have. Do you have the free time to do another 8000 EQMs? If you do, an H fare might not be the best. I travel a lot on business and it's togh for me to find more than a few extra weekends to do MRs. I'd rather spend more money for an H fare than lose 2 weekends, possible hotel expenses, etc., when I am already worn out traveling I HAVE to do.

I agree , thats why I try not to say dont do it its a waste. But will say if for Me if its a waste or not.

Yet I try to Warn everyone that buying an 'H' although means no co-pay, does not mean that an Upgrade is 100% assured. Sure if it doesnt come thru you still get the 50% extra in EQMs which for some people will justify buying an 'H' anyway, but other then the extra EQMS to me w/o getting that UP is a waste of my $$.Except of cause if 'H' just happens to be the cheapest fare basis available and flying with another Carrier wont be any better price wise.

all to often people buy the 'H' figuring that way they wont have to pay the co-pay but dont take into acct what if the UP doesnt clear, then most likely they will end up paying at least Double what they could have to sit in the same exact Coach.

Last Aug on a trip to ATH, the only (cheapest) coach fares available were M at 1250 or H at 1400. I took the H and waitlisted for BF. I cleared r/t just before the 24 hour mark on my outbound-- but even if I didn't get those BF seats it was still worth it for me to get the 150% mileage for 150 bucks. So it depends on what available when you purchase. If there were X or L at 450 r/t I wouldn't have paid an addition $900 to waitlist for BF, as it isn't worth it to me, but if the fare is close and no copay is involved, I'll go for it.