grunze

Hello!

I'm Delta PM. 2 questions around getting Delta tickets through the AMEX Member Portal.

1. If I buy a ticket through AMEX with money, will I still be eligible for the usual upgrades I get when buying directly through Delta?
2. If I buy a ticket through AMEX with AMEX membership rewards points, will I still be eligible for the usual upgrades I get when buying directly through Delta?

Thanks so much!

josephstern

Yes, and yes. I've done both, and gotten upgrades.

Buying airfare through portals is distinctly different from making hotel reservations through portals in this regard.

grunze

Thanks for the quick and helpful response!

grunze

Hello! Followup question: Do you know if I buy my ticket on the AMEX portal (JFK-TLV for September) will that come with free changes or cancellation?

Thanks!

MSPeconomist

If you buy through AmEx, AmEx becomes your travel agent and changes must be done through AmEx until the day of departure. I would expect AmEx to charge a ticket reissue fee for any "voluntary" changes.

flyerCO

DL won't charge , but AMEX may have a fee.

SDQBound

They usually do not charge a fee for Gold/Platinum/Centurion cardholders.

However, there’s a downside that could directly affect upgrade list position. When there’s a schedule change involving new flight numbers and DL does not fix tickets booked with a TA right away (very usual), Amex needs to reconfirm the new flights and this could take up to an additional day unless you call and it gets done manually. In the meantime​​, DL reconfirms tickets issued by them and by the time Amex finishes, anyone at your medallion level with the same fare will have an earlier timestamp.

Happened to me at least 3 times in the last year, where my spouse booked directly and I booked through Amex, at the same time, and in the same fare class, but after schedule changes she ended up many positions higher in the list and the GA explanation was the timestamp at the time of rebooking following schedule change.

jamflyer

Good info. I bought a ticket recently as was annoyed that there is a $39 fee in the event I canceled.

MSPeconomist

IIRC there aren't fees for purchasing tickets if you book them online through the AmEx website, but this might go through Expedia like many hotel reservations do, especially the prepaid ones. I would expect fees to be associated with any voluntary changes or cancellations.

I always call.