merce42678

Hi all,

I started gaining lots of miles this year and was so close to redeeming them for a multi-city trip in June from NYC-LON and EDI to NYC. When I first looked it was 48K then it went to 50K but I was a few hundred miles short so I was waiting for my next billing cycle to post and now it ballooned up to 71K!! I've only been in the program a couple of years and rarely use my miles so I'm not very familiar with the fluctuation of miles. Is it just too early and I should relax? Will it go down? I know with airfares usually 3 months out is when prices are best but does the same hold true for using miles?

flyerCO

Either right when becomes able to be booked or very close in. There's no flow like with paid tickets. Note this applies to DL metal only. Partners release at different times.

merce42678

Is it likely to go down again?

MSPeconomist

merce42678

Not really my question though.

xliioper

It's impossible for anyone to say. I'd guess it's unlikely to go down, but that's only a guess. They haven't actually gotten rid of the 50K roundtrip level on these routes, they just aren't currently available on the particular flights you are checking. Just so you know, these are not really that big of a change in mileage amounts for most people here. For business class tickets, the changes tend to be much, much larger. BOS and JFK enjoy discounted coach award redemptions to Europe. For the rest of the country, coach awards start at 30K each way or 60K roundtrip and most would not consider 71K a bad deal for summer when award pricing tends to be higher.

If you click on the Fare Rules link, you can get the individual pricing components and see how much each flight is contributing to the total award mileage amount. If you have date flexibility, you can then adjust the date with the higher mileage amount and see if you can find availability in the lower award buckets on a different date. There are still dates with 50K roundtrip availability on these routes, so it is still possible to come up with a 50K roundtrip award with the right dates. Generally speaking you are more likely to find availability at the lower award levels for flights with mid-week departure than departures around the weekend. I just looked at the fare rules for these awards and they have a Tue/Wed departure requirement, so they will in fact only be available with Tue/Wed departures. If you are desperate to save miles, you might want to consider a doing a train ride up to BOS where are awards are available from 42K roundtrip. If possible to route the return through JFK on some dates, so you might be able to get away with a one-way train ticket.

Finally, Delta has started creating Basic Economy award classes. While these are just on limited routes right now, it's probably safe to assume they will eventually get to international flights and the award prices for Main Cabin awards like the above will likely go up then.

third_wave

Nobody can tell you whether it will go down again. I wouldn't count on it though, particularly to Europe in summer. If you don't have 71K miles anyway, then you don't really have a decision to make right now, do you, unless you are considering purchasing a cash ticket instead.

If you have flexible travel dates, you will be more likely to find something that meets your needs at a price you consider reasonable. If you are locked into exact dates and destinations, then you are at the mercy of DL's algorithms, which are unpredictable.

bosman

You can also try clearing your cookies or checking via a different computer. I too found the # of award miles kept rising as I kept checking. Then, cleared my cookies and voila, rate was back where it was when I started. This is many years ago, so DL may have changed this, but doesn't hurt to try.

sydneyracquelle

jdrtravel

Instead of the open jaw ticket are you able to fly back from London? That might help you get a better rate.

PHXflier

Sometimes Delta has award sales, and then for a couple of days you can get really good deals, like 30-50K (or less) for an economy R/T across the Atlantic on specific routes. There was a Black Friday / Cyber Monday sale of that ilk for travel through Memorial Day, and then another one that just ended for travel through March. I do not know whether there will be another sale of that type and whether it is for the right destinations or time periods, but keep your eyes open for those. They often are very good deals.

EarlVolFan

3Cforme

I might look for a GLA-AMS-JFK or GLA-CDG-JFK routing before taking the train to London.

flyerCO

Also would avoid the LHR luxury tax. Taking the train to LHR doesn't exempt you from it.

jdrtravel

OP appears to be booking in coach.