Originally Posted by ethernal (Post 29489078)

Admittedly I don't use domestic awards much but I live in Atlanta - which is probably only slightly more competitive than MSP or SLC and don't usually see great redemption rates. Usually where I see materially over 1 cent per mile it's mostly because Delta is charging an extra $50-100 for main cabin and the award ticket gives you main cabin. I'd rather just fly Southwest (or even better, JetBlue) if that's an option than pay the Delta main cabin tax.

I'm sure there can be some decent last minute deals but for leisure travel I do actually book pretty far in advance so that doesn't give me much value. But, as mentioned above, different people face different opportunity costs so it may make sense in your case but not in mine.

Originally Posted by jdrtravel (Post 29489932)

There are also great deals for using miles in advance. For example, we are flying SFO-MSP this summer, and right now main cabin tickets are $350- $500 depending on the flight time, but there are mileage tickets available for 26.5K miles.

Originally Posted by ethernal (Post 29488047)

But it's even worse at small airports.. because at a place like VPS if you're near the front of the plane you should be out of the front door of the airport in like 7-8 minutes tops. And with bags you really don't want to order an Uber until you see your bag come out of the carousel.. which may be 5 minutes+ after the first bag comes out, even with a priority tag (Delta's system is based on when the first bag comes out, not the last)