Award Ticket Success - Post It Here
Jun 27, 2007, 11:55 am
#556
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: Newport, NJ, USA
Posts: 2,114
Based on online research on delta.com and the comments of others about limited availability of Skysaver Business Class seats to Europe, my husband and I decided to be flexible and play "Europe Roulette" for our trip in May 2008.
We called Delta 331 days in advance of our desired departures to and from Europe with a window of travel dates and a wish list of destinations.
To our surprise, we're off to Berlin (we just said "Germany" because availability into Frankfurt looked more likely than most European options; we ended up going with a different date than orginally planned), and we're coming home from London (which we wanted and were pleased to get; this time we got the date we wanted).
Our routing is a little cumbersome on departure (DCA to ATL to JFK to Berlin), and our layover on return is a little long, but I expect the schedules to change about 4,345 times between now and next May so I'm pretty sure things stand to improve in the end.
For both of our calls to the Int'l. Partners desk, the person we got was extremely helpful and patient (both were on the phone with us for more than an hour searching for the best options).
So, while it's not as easy and predictable as it was years ago, it's still possible to have a very nice free vacation flight on Delta!
We called Delta 331 days in advance of our desired departures to and from Europe with a window of travel dates and a wish list of destinations.
To our surprise, we're off to Berlin (we just said "Germany" because availability into Frankfurt looked more likely than most European options; we ended up going with a different date than orginally planned), and we're coming home from London (which we wanted and were pleased to get; this time we got the date we wanted).
Our routing is a little cumbersome on departure (DCA to ATL to JFK to Berlin), and our layover on return is a little long, but I expect the schedules to change about 4,345 times between now and next May so I'm pretty sure things stand to improve in the end.
For both of our calls to the Int'l. Partners desk, the person we got was extremely helpful and patient (both were on the phone with us for more than an hour searching for the best options).
So, while it's not as easy and predictable as it was years ago, it's still possible to have a very nice free vacation flight on Delta!
Jun 28, 2007, 3:58 pm
#557
Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 64
In 2005...
The only time I've redeemed Delta miles...I had a more flexible schedule so it worked out amazingly!
In 2005, Delta had Africa split into "Northern" and "Southern." Northern was only 50,000 miles! I booked less than 2 months in advance, I flew from New York to Cairo, did my overland trip through the region, and flew back from Istanbul.
Most likely because it was relatively last-minute, this was NOT a simple flight:
JFK-BRU
BRU-AMS
AMS-CAI
IST-FCO (24 layover to hang out in rome)
FCO-BOS
BOS-JFK
How I long for those days...I would totally take a multi-leg flight if I could still get to Cairo for only 50,000 miles in 2007! Now it's back up to 80,000 for all Africa (or Middle East, not sure where Egypt is placed).
In 2005, Delta had Africa split into "Northern" and "Southern." Northern was only 50,000 miles! I booked less than 2 months in advance, I flew from New York to Cairo, did my overland trip through the region, and flew back from Istanbul.
Most likely because it was relatively last-minute, this was NOT a simple flight:
JFK-BRU
BRU-AMS
AMS-CAI
IST-FCO (24 layover to hang out in rome)
FCO-BOS
BOS-JFK
How I long for those days...I would totally take a multi-leg flight if I could still get to Cairo for only 50,000 miles in 2007! Now it's back up to 80,000 for all Africa (or Middle East, not sure where Egypt is placed).
Jul 2, 2007, 4:14 pm
#560
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Lafayette, CO, USA
Programs: SPG Lifetime Plat, AA Gold, UA Gold, DL Silver, HH Gold, Vail Epic
Posts: 9,096
2 SkySaver Coach. CAE-ATL-EGE for peak ski season in early March. There were several date ranges to choose from in Feb and March for my desired 5-night stay.
I see SS seats every day in Feb from ATL to SLC, but many of the outbounds are early in the morning and many of the SS return dates are limited to redeyes. (Noteworthy is that I am seeing a 12:15am redeye SLC-ATL that starts around Dec 15. That could be very good for folks that are seeking an overnight mileage run on a discount rate that prohibits returning on the same day.)
I see SS seats every day in Feb from ATL to SLC, but many of the outbounds are early in the morning and many of the SS return dates are limited to redeyes. (Noteworthy is that I am seeing a 12:15am redeye SLC-ATL that starts around Dec 15. That could be very good for folks that are seeking an overnight mileage run on a discount rate that prohibits returning on the same day.)
Jul 2, 2007, 4:26 pm
#561
Join Date: Dec 2004
Programs: DL MM/FC/FO; UA PS; AA GLD
Posts: 2,063
2 SkySaver Coach. CAE-ATL-EGE for peak ski season in early March. There were several date ranges to choose from in Feb and March for my desired 5-night stay.
I see SS seats every day in Feb from ATL to SLC, but many of the outbounds are early in the morning and many of the SS return dates are limited to redeyes. (Noteworthy is that I am seeing a 12:15am redeye SLC-ATL that starts around Dec 15. That could be very good for folks that are seeking an overnight mileage run on a discount rate that prohibits returning on the same day.)
I see SS seats every day in Feb from ATL to SLC, but many of the outbounds are early in the morning and many of the SS return dates are limited to redeyes. (Noteworthy is that I am seeing a 12:15am redeye SLC-ATL that starts around Dec 15. That could be very good for folks that are seeking an overnight mileage run on a discount rate that prohibits returning on the same day.)
Jul 5, 2007, 8:54 pm
#564
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: California
Programs: Skymiles, Advantage, Dynasty
Posts: 116
In Feb I booked lax-mia-gig for May 11th through the 20th for 50k miles. My first try and got the dates I wanted online. Unfortunately couldnt make the trip so had to cancel. DL returned my $69 but charged me $50 for cancellation but I got 1000 miles for booking online.
Just booked November 11th to the 21st and got skysaver lax-mia-gig.
Just booked November 11th to the 21st and got skysaver lax-mia-gig.
Jul 6, 2007, 5:48 pm
#565
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: SAN
Programs: AS 100K, DL MM, AA PLT
Posts: 2,934
The sky is not falling
Once again, my experience seems to contradict everyone else's evidence to the contrary. Called today on what I thought was a fool's errand (already had a UA/LH itinerary, but needed to change the dates slightly and got no love from *A). Reserved two J skysaver seats for August SNA-SEA(AS) SEA-CDG-VCE(AF), VCE-AMS-LAX(KL) on the exact dates I wanted. The routing through SEA is obviously suboptimal, but we all know hunting for availability on LAX-CDG is like searching for the tooth fairy.
Best part is it priced out to 90K---was expecting to take a hit on the new routing rules due to the SEA route, but even that didn't come to pass!
Best part is it priced out to 90K---was expecting to take a hit on the new routing rules due to the SEA route, but even that didn't come to pass!
Jul 7, 2007, 6:40 pm
#566
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: FLL
Programs: AA PLT 2.7 MM, DL GLD, UA Prem, BW Diamond, PC PLT, HH Diamond
Posts: 1,285
Yes, Virginia there are Skysaver awards out there.
For this fall I had BE DL FLL-ATL-AMS-ATL-FLL. Wanted to get more of adventure in so called just 3 months out and was able to change to:
MIA-CDG AF Biz (4 days)
CDG-CPH AF Biz (4 days)
CPH-AMS KL Biz (10 days)
AMS-BRU KL Biz (1 day)
BRU-ATL DL BE
ATL-FLL Dl 1st
All on one PNR so no weight concept issues on intra EU flights. Like I said all Skysaver too. Took some research on the agents part but, I got a good ITN for fewer miles.
PS: In general try LGW and BRU as EU gateways for BE saver best availability.
For this fall I had BE DL FLL-ATL-AMS-ATL-FLL. Wanted to get more of adventure in so called just 3 months out and was able to change to:
MIA-CDG AF Biz (4 days)
CDG-CPH AF Biz (4 days)
CPH-AMS KL Biz (10 days)
AMS-BRU KL Biz (1 day)
BRU-ATL DL BE
ATL-FLL Dl 1st
All on one PNR so no weight concept issues on intra EU flights. Like I said all Skysaver too. Took some research on the agents part but, I got a good ITN for fewer miles.
PS: In general try LGW and BRU as EU gateways for BE saver best availability.
Jul 7, 2007, 8:42 pm
#567
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Yiron, Israel
Programs: Bates Motel Plat
Posts: 68,930
Sorry, but you do have weight restrictions on your intra EU flights. If you have a stopover, as opposed to a connection, the 2 piece concept does not apply.
The weight limits are dependent on the particular airline and will be the same as if you had paid for the flight.
The weight limits are dependent on the particular airline and will be the same as if you had paid for the flight.
Jul 7, 2007, 9:47 pm
#568
Suspended
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Bay Area
Programs: DL SM, UA MP.
Posts: 12,729
Hey guys, I'm trying to book a business class ticket for next May on AF, SFO to FLR and back two weeks later.
The key is SFO-CDG leg availability.
I got the outbound of 5/18/08 (although would have preferred 5/17).
For the return, they're saying the FLR-CDG leg is available on 5/31 but that the CDG-SFO leg is only available on Monday, 6/2, rather than the Saturday or Sunday of that weekend.
What do you think, is there a chance the weekend seats have all sold out already or they're holding them?
I had called a couple of days ago, I think on 73 or 7/4 and they said AF had not released any seats for 5/30 or 5/31 yet.
I know you have to be flexible for awards, especially on partner airlines. But it would make a difference to fly back on a weekend versus a week day. As you can see, I tried to jump on these as soon as the dates opened up.
The key is SFO-CDG leg availability.
I got the outbound of 5/18/08 (although would have preferred 5/17).
For the return, they're saying the FLR-CDG leg is available on 5/31 but that the CDG-SFO leg is only available on Monday, 6/2, rather than the Saturday or Sunday of that weekend.
What do you think, is there a chance the weekend seats have all sold out already or they're holding them?
I had called a couple of days ago, I think on 73 or 7/4 and they said AF had not released any seats for 5/30 or 5/31 yet.
I know you have to be flexible for awards, especially on partner airlines. But it would make a difference to fly back on a weekend versus a week day. As you can see, I tried to jump on these as soon as the dates opened up.
Jul 7, 2007, 10:22 pm
#569
Join Date: Apr 2006
Programs: DL PM, UA Gold, Marriott Gold, AA Gold
Posts: 291
Hey guys, I'm trying to book a business class ticket for next May on AF, SFO to FLR and back two weeks later.
The key is SFO-CDG leg availability.
I got the outbound of 5/18/08 (although would have preferred 5/17).
For the return, they're saying the FLR-CDG leg is available on 5/31 but that the CDG-SFO leg is only available on Monday, 6/2, rather than the Saturday or Sunday of that weekend.
What do you think, is there a chance the weekend seats have all sold out already or they're holding them?
I had called a couple of days ago, I think on 73 or 7/4 and they said AF had not released any seats for 5/30 or 5/31 yet.
I know you have to be flexible for awards, especially on partner airlines. But it would make a difference to fly back on a weekend versus a week day. As you can see, I tried to jump on these as soon as the dates opened up.
The key is SFO-CDG leg availability.
I got the outbound of 5/18/08 (although would have preferred 5/17).
For the return, they're saying the FLR-CDG leg is available on 5/31 but that the CDG-SFO leg is only available on Monday, 6/2, rather than the Saturday or Sunday of that weekend.
What do you think, is there a chance the weekend seats have all sold out already or they're holding them?
I had called a couple of days ago, I think on 73 or 7/4 and they said AF had not released any seats for 5/30 or 5/31 yet.
I know you have to be flexible for awards, especially on partner airlines. But it would make a difference to fly back on a weekend versus a week day. As you can see, I tried to jump on these as soon as the dates opened up.