tekhna

Hey, I was just curious what peoples' experiences have been flying buddy passes lately given how full flights have been as of late? Is it pretty much a fools errand right now? I'm hoping to go SFO/OAK->MSP next month non-rev, but it might just be better to buy a ticket (and no, not Thanksgiving--I'm not a moron).

tennreb

I occasionally fly on a buddy pass from a family member, but it has gotten to be such a hassle that I hardly ever use it anymore. I'd rather just pay for a ticket and avoid the mess. However, on some routes and some times of day/week it is very easy. Other times it is very difficult. Fridays and Sunday evenings are terrible. Have the employee check and see how often buddies are actually getting on the particular flights you want. Buddy passes require a lot of patience and time. If you are on a schedule, buy a revenue ticket.

pjpoker

If you can get the ticket for sub $500, I would buy a real ticket. Buddy passes are a huge headache...Loads to the west are almost always near full, and buddy passes are not nearly as cheap as they once were, so its not really much or a bargain.
If you are on a tight budget or the ticket is really expensive, go ahead and do the buddy pass, but skip OAK. You'd have to connect, and that would be 2 additional flights R/T to not get on. Buddy passes on direct flights aren't so bad, but try to avoid connections.

PRWeezer

+1 Recently gave someone similar advice. In the end she bought a ticket because the cost for a confirmed flight wasn't that much more than the pass price, and she doesn't travel very frequently so the stress of it wasn't worth it. IIRC there were options cheaper than a pass, but she chose the most convenient flights to her plans which cost a little more. She's flying from an East coast city w multiple airport options to the SFO Bay area with multiple airport options but wasn't really looking forward to last-minute changes or a possible connection where she could get stuck somewhere.

Non-rev travel isn't always as perilous as some would say, but you have to be flexible & willing to roll with whatever happens, which isn't easy for everybody. Other factors for the OP to consider are the employee date on the pass (i.e. priority), and load factor trends for flights to/from the target cities around the time of potential travel. The person offering a pass could look at the loads today & give you an idea of whether or not it's worth a try. And finally, weigh the pros & cons of not taking the trip at all, which is always a possibility. (or buying a last-minute ticket if the trip is essential)

Good luck!

flightattendantsteve

Buddy Passes are not worth the headache... You have the lowest boarding priority... Its easier just to buy a cheap ticket. I don't even give them out anymore.

DavidDTW

Keep in mind that when using a buddy pass, availability is meaningless unitl the night before or day of the flight. IROPs and cancellations can change things dramatically. (speaking from experience)

As already said, flexibility is key. Also be patient and don't get mad at the airport staff, as I have seen happen a lot. You have lowest priority and can easily get left behind.

mersk862

Haven't bothered to give my buddy passes out from my airline at all this year. Not worth the hassle with full flights.

Heck, I'm planning a non-rev trip this weekend and am still not 100% sure I'm getting on even two days out (looks likely, but you never know until you're on the plane).

If you absolutely need to be somewhere, buy a ticket. That's what I'm doing at Thanksgiving, I'm doing it at Christmas, and I'm doing it in January to get to a friend's wedding in Florida.

tekhna

Thanks for the input guys, about what I expected.

Is it actually easier to go buddy pass abroad than domestic? I ask simply because I've been on some emptier flights lately international. I was in SLC the other day and the plane to CDG took off with 53 empty seats. Obviously going somewhere like Istanbul where Delta only has one flight would be tricky, but if planes are going to CDG that empty, maybe it's worth it.

GYEWorldTraveler

I am going to say that if you fly SFO-MSP and pick the flights well that you can fairly easily get on in early November. The flights I would recommend are either the redeye (12:30am from SFO) or the 6:05am from SFO. Those flights on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays usually go out with tons of open seats. Other days they are a little more full but still not too terrible (unless there are IROPS).

On the return from MSP I would recommend the early flight (7:30am) or the second flight (9am-ish) to a lesser extent. Honestly, if you pick the dates well you really shouldn't have much a problem. If your times and dates are set, you may want to just purchase the ticket. If the non-stops look bad, connecting via LAX is not a bad option either. And you probably would have a decent shot at F on LAX-SFO midweek since everytime I have flown this route there seems to be empty FC seats.

On a side note, it is always interesting when nobody is on the UG list and there are 7 empty FC seats that magically get filled last second. I know DL sells upgrades for $50 at the gate but have yet to see anyone actually walk up to buy them. The seats must be filled by people on the standby list which leads me to believe that non-revs have pretty good luck getting up front. Same thing seems to happen on LAX-LAS too.

GYEWorldTraveler

I think the conventional wisdom is that buddy passes are much better values traveling internationally. You more than likely would get Business Elite if you pick your dates and flights well. Domestically I would imagine you would get coach if you get on and if traveling with someone else probably don't have too great a shot at being seated together.

International flights are usually more set with numbers a few days in advance and don't fluctuate as much due to IROPS and SDCs. Also, medallions aren't upgraded to BE so it makes that number easier to track and you pretty much should know how it looks a little ahead of time in most markets since not many people will buy walk up BE for $10,000 day of departure. Only thing that you don't know is if there are DMs and PMs trying to use SWUs that may take away a couple seats up front. I doubt that number is too high though and if you have expert flyer, you can see if there is Z inventory....if there is Z inventory that means that presumably every revenue passenger that wants to use an instrument to upgrade has already been cleared.

PRWeezer

Yet again, it depends on the day & the flight load. And your flexibility. One year I thought I was going to Rome for a New Year's trip and I went to Paris instead. Good problem to have.

Folks on FT would have you believe that every International flight is full of non-revs in BizElite. Not always the case. Again, have the person offering you the buddy pass look at your options. If you're just looking to use a buddy pass to go 'somewhere' you could have a lot of fun with it and probably get somewhere you'd love to go. If you need to be somewhere on some specific date, not so much.

adem

I know a lot of people on here are very hesitant to use a buddy pass, but I think going into it with the right mindset and flexibility, they can be a beautiful thing!

My wife and I have a couple of buddy passes available to us and 3 weeks in mid August in which to use them. I've used buddy passes a few times (with great success) but have heard the horror stories and know the risks. I know that August is not the best time to be trying to use one, but we don't really have much choice about the dates.

We are open to going literally anywhere that we can, the more exotic and remote the better. We will definitely build in a couple of leeway days on either end of the trip in case flights fill up.

What kind of destinations do you guys think would be relatively safe to try and use the passes? (the Olympics will be going on in London at the time.)

I know that UK, Italy, France, Spain, etc... are probably all out immediately. Any chance of Japan, Eastern Europe, or Argentina? Africa? We are open to anything. I just wanted to hear what you guys think.

Btw, we will be departing from Atlanta.

Marylou

I wouldn't count out mid-August. Most families are getting into the back-to-school mode. It's also a down time for many convention and trade shows. Paris is especially sparse then. (For good reason.)

flightattendantsteve

Some destinations have indefinite embargo dates for Buddy Passes.. suggest your talk to the person that supplied them to you to rule out those destinations.

adem

Yeah, I'll definitely make sure to avoid the embargoed cities. We're adventurous but not really looking to get caught up in any African civil wars or nuclear disaster areas. Maybe on our next trip.