Award Ticket Success - Post It Here
Mar 28, 2010, 5:45 pm
#1396
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: DSM
Programs: DL Diamond; SPG Platinum; Hyatt Diamond; Hertz Presidents Circle
Posts: 43
Take care and Travel Safe. BHawk.
Mar 28, 2010, 9:31 pm
#1397
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: HH Diamond, Marriott Gold, IHG Gold, Hyatt something
Posts: 33,543
Well, Babyhawk, you're here now, and will learn lots about how to redeem the right way. Sit back, and you'll learn.
Many NW and DL folk are disillusioned with redeeming miles. If you can plan a bit more ahead, I'm sure you can get a much better deal, the next time.
Many NW and DL folk are disillusioned with redeeming miles. If you can plan a bit more ahead, I'm sure you can get a much better deal, the next time.
Mar 28, 2010, 9:41 pm
#1398
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Whatever Hotel I'm in
Programs: Delta Gold, Bonvoy Titanium Elite Lifetime
Posts: 459
Told my son ( 14 year old) I would take him to Tokyo after school was out if he got straight A's. Well just booked on Delta ATL to NRT round trip for 60K each. Not bad as it would have been tought to afford with the economy as it is. But .............14 hours ina couch seat!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Mar 28, 2010, 10:05 pm
#1399
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: MN
Programs: Lots of programs, dirt on all of them!
Posts: 11,938
Told my son ( 14 year old) I would take him to Tokyo after school was out if he got straight A's. Well just booked on Delta ATL to NRT round trip for 60K each. Not bad as it would have been tought to afford with the economy as it is. But .............14 hours ina couch seat!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Mar 28, 2010, 10:15 pm
#1400
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Whatever Hotel I'm in
Programs: Delta Gold, Bonvoy Titanium Elite Lifetime
Posts: 459
Mar 28, 2010, 10:25 pm
#1401
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: SJC/SFO
Programs: DL DM MM (fmr NW Plat), BA GGL/CCR, Aegean Gold, WorldClubs Life, SPG Plat, Hyatt Plat, HHonors Dmnd
Posts: 1,409
SFO-PDX-AMS-ATH on AS/DL/KL in J 4/1/10
ATH-CDG-SFO on AF in J 4/7/10
2 pax, 100k mi each + a few hundred in taxes. (Was originally only able to get ATH-JFK-SFO on DL in J for 100k mi (150k r/t each), but AF opened up availability).
Not totally thrilled with the outbound as there's a 12+ hr layover in AMS and I have to go on a nasty 763 from PDX, but it's at least getting me there.
ATH-CDG-SFO on AF in J 4/7/10
2 pax, 100k mi each + a few hundred in taxes. (Was originally only able to get ATH-JFK-SFO on DL in J for 100k mi (150k r/t each), but AF opened up availability).
Not totally thrilled with the outbound as there's a 12+ hr layover in AMS and I have to go on a nasty 763 from PDX, but it's at least getting me there.
Mar 28, 2010, 11:49 pm
#1402
Join Date: Dec 2009
Programs: DL Plat, MP Gold, *Wood Lifetime Gold, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 125
Burning through my last SkyPesos, thank God...I just booked PHL-CDG roundtrip on the exact dates I wanted, no stopover/connection, for 60K in coach. That's $970 on a T-fare. It's kind of sad, but at 1.5 cents per mile, I think I am doing great...
Mar 29, 2010, 8:06 pm
#1403
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: DSM
Programs: DL Diamond; SPG Platinum; Hyatt Diamond; Hertz Presidents Circle
Posts: 43
Well, Babyhawk, you're here now, and will learn lots about how to redeem the right way. Sit back, and you'll learn.
Many NW and DL folk are disillusioned with redeeming miles. If you can plan a bit more ahead, I'm sure you can get a much better deal, the next time.
Many NW and DL folk are disillusioned with redeeming miles. If you can plan a bit more ahead, I'm sure you can get a much better deal, the next time.
Mar 29, 2010, 9:00 pm
#1404
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Louisville, KY, USA
Posts: 2,583
Define success
About three weeks ago I booked an early June trip to Venice for two with a return via Rome in business class for 200,000 miles each and my friends booked coach on the same flights for 90,000 miles each. Success to me would have been 100,000 and 60,000 mile bookings.
I tried for a South America booking for next January and at 331 days out the flight down was 200,000 miles. By the time the return became available, it was 275,000 miles for the round trip. I passed and booked on Air Canada using its metal down and US Airways back. The booking was for business and only required 75,000 miles although for now I am coach down (hoping for something to open up) and business back. Delta wanted 160,000 round trip for coach.
I'll admit that my Venice out Rome back trip was in high season and on the most convenient flights available. Still a purchased business class ticket cost under $3,600 and in miles it cost me 200,000 plus the lost miles for the rt of approximately 10,500 so I only got 1.7 cents per mile in value.
For me success begins at 2 cents per mile and I try for 4 or more. The Air Canada trip has a value coach/business of $2,600 and over $3,600 all business. This works out at a value per mile between 3 cents and 4.2 cents. That's success.
The Delta ticket is a questionable use of miles and hard to call a success. It certainly isn't to be bragged about.
I tried for a South America booking for next January and at 331 days out the flight down was 200,000 miles. By the time the return became available, it was 275,000 miles for the round trip. I passed and booked on Air Canada using its metal down and US Airways back. The booking was for business and only required 75,000 miles although for now I am coach down (hoping for something to open up) and business back. Delta wanted 160,000 round trip for coach.
I'll admit that my Venice out Rome back trip was in high season and on the most convenient flights available. Still a purchased business class ticket cost under $3,600 and in miles it cost me 200,000 plus the lost miles for the rt of approximately 10,500 so I only got 1.7 cents per mile in value.
For me success begins at 2 cents per mile and I try for 4 or more. The Air Canada trip has a value coach/business of $2,600 and over $3,600 all business. This works out at a value per mile between 3 cents and 4.2 cents. That's success.
The Delta ticket is a questionable use of miles and hard to call a success. It certainly isn't to be bragged about.
Mar 29, 2010, 9:29 pm
#1406
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: NYC
Programs: Delta DM, SPG Plat, Hyatt Diamond, MTA Rust, Hertz Five Star something or other
Posts: 2,858
1 BE this July-August
SAN-SLC-CDG, CDG-IAD (AF)- CVG- SAN 100k BE. The easiest part was finding the international legs. Trying to find low coach or F domestic Delta legs was near impossible. Its such crap that DL's awards are a la carte, so even if you have a medium coach on a low BE award, you pay for both awards, thus jacking the price up. With tons of patience, I pieced it all together for 100k with only 1 short domestic leg in coach, but it was obnoxious to have to do one way searches for each leg for multiple gateways on multiple dates.
SAN-SLC-CDG, CDG-IAD (AF)- CVG- SAN 100k BE. The easiest part was finding the international legs. Trying to find low coach or F domestic Delta legs was near impossible. Its such crap that DL's awards are a la carte, so even if you have a medium coach on a low BE award, you pay for both awards, thus jacking the price up. With tons of patience, I pieced it all together for 100k with only 1 short domestic leg in coach, but it was obnoxious to have to do one way searches for each leg for multiple gateways on multiple dates.
Mar 29, 2010, 9:38 pm
#1407
Join Date: Feb 2010
Programs: DL PM
Posts: 18
1 BE this July-August
SAN-SLC-CDG, CDG-IAD (AF)- CVG- SAN 100k BE. The easiest part was finding the international legs. Trying to find low coach or F domestic Delta legs was near impossible. Its such crap that DL's awards are a la carte, so even if you have a medium coach on a low BE award, you pay for both awards, thus jacking the price up. With tons of patience, I pieced it all together for 100k with only 1 short domestic leg in coach, but it was obnoxious to have to do one way searches for each leg for multiple gateways on multiple dates.
SAN-SLC-CDG, CDG-IAD (AF)- CVG- SAN 100k BE. The easiest part was finding the international legs. Trying to find low coach or F domestic Delta legs was near impossible. Its such crap that DL's awards are a la carte, so even if you have a medium coach on a low BE award, you pay for both awards, thus jacking the price up. With tons of patience, I pieced it all together for 100k with only 1 short domestic leg in coach, but it was obnoxious to have to do one way searches for each leg for multiple gateways on multiple dates.
Not having the same amount of patience I just booked BOS-SLC-NRT ICN-SIN-CDG-LHR-BOS for 175k in coach with the SIN-CDG portion in BE. Had to move one flight out by 3 days to reduce it from 230k...
Apr 1, 2010, 7:59 am
#1410
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Arlington, VA
Programs: DL GM
Posts: 181