Edgerfly

Sadly, It seems like award availability is really a luck of the draw. I wanted to change my upcoming trip to Europe. First agent I spoke to was downright nasty and didn't really want to go beyond what was necessary. In fact when I asked her to check other days and airports she said she had already gone over the maximum "third check" and I should call back and keep looking online. She couldn't accommodate the change I wanted.

So I hung up and called back. The next agent really seemed like she wanted to help me and placed me on hold for a while but couldn't find any availability despite putting in what seemed to me like a lot of effort.

Finally a third call (keep in mind this was in a span of an hour) the last agent actually was able to find a routing with availability. I told her the exact same information I had told the previous agents- nothing different.

It never ceases to amaze me what different responses you get about award availability just by hanging up and calling again. And hopefully get lucky enough to find an agent who cares and knows what he/she is doing. Why is award availability so unorganized? Can't they just have a central computer with all the flights they have award seats on that will spit out a correct answer? How come this has become so difficult and tedious every time I want to book an award ticket?

TheRoadie

Because we customers want to use low mileage for flights, and Delta wants us to burn miles at high. Any impediment to finding low (either IT fail or availability fail) serves their purposes. Our frustration is no motivation for them to change.

bajrbajr

calling is a waste of time. you have to learn to find the availability yourself. call after you find your availability.

there are many many threads on the DL forum you can sift-through to learn the search techniques... the key is to search each segment individually and piece your itinerary together.

good luck!

benzemalyonnais

Just post what you want here and we'll find it in 5 minutes. We do, however, insist that you at least make a small attempt to do it yourself first.

timmy83

This. Read the sticky on this page. Calling to book will take plenty of time and energy on it's own...

davetravels

As I've said before - not that I'm sticking up for them - What incentive do they have to make it easier to fly on their planes on award tix?

I will say, that, UAL.com seems really AMAZING in comparison to DL. The HUGE variety of flight options & combinations that come up, sometimes quite off the wall, is really fantastic!

One time years ago, UAL.com offered me TXL to PIT with a 23 hour stopover in WAW! Most would probably hate that, but I booked it by phone, and had a fantastic visit to a new city! It's a routing that I never would have considered.

Sabai

UA.COM doesn't just seem amazing compared to DL.DUMB, it is.

It works, it offers options, it shows partner availability - functionality that the IT dullards at Delta have found so challenging to implement.

Five years after the merger DL.DUMB is still measurably - and pathetically - less functional than NWA.COM.

Keep Climbing, Up, etc.

bajrbajr

It's not that DL can't fix the award search engine... it's that THEY DON'T WANT TO! It works exactly as they want it to work.

I bet DL put more effort into making DL.com dis-functional than UA puts into making their search engine work perfectly.

Edgerfly

Well if anyone wants to help me I'm trying to get from SEA-STR leaving either september 9th 10th or 11th. I'm in the lowest business class award level and I'm trying to find availability in the same award level because I have no more miles left.

I can also fly into FRA, MUC, ZRH, and BSL. If anyone has any advice or can offer any help I would greatly appreciate it. The agents on the phone are no help and DL.DUMB as someone else mentioned is worthless.

I've tried searching individual segments but using the DL.DUMB website for award availability segments within Europe is not easy.

benzemalyonnais

I'm 90% confident I can at least find something over the Atlantic. Just because Delta seems impossible doesn't mean it is. KLM segments won't work, so you're stuck with AF and AZ, both of which are easily bookable online.

More to come when I get bored on my SEA-ANC flight tonight.....

arkangel

I've found low level business flying EWR-CDG-MUC on 9/11. The problem is SEA-NYC on 9/11 in F. Nothing @ 45,000. However, you can fly low level Y, departing SEA at 6am, arriving EWR at 4:33p, via SLC. This combination should result in a 100,000 mile award from SEA to MUC, assuming you can tolerate riding in the back of the bus domestically.

Dalat767

Here is one option for STR,
AS38(First) SEA to MSP 9/9
DL1291(First)/DL116(Business lie-flat seat) 9/10
100K + $15.20