Wanted: Your Opinions of El Al Matmid
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: San Francisco, CA
Posts: 106
Wanted: Your Opinions of El Al Matmid
Randy Petersen's InsideFlyer magazine editors are writing a cover story about frequent flyer programs in the Middle East and would like your opinion.
Please tell us the plusses and minuses of membership in the Matmid program.
We appreciate your comments and look forward to hearing from you. Please reply to [email protected] if you would like to communicate via email.
Thank you!
Please tell us the plusses and minuses of membership in the Matmid program.
We appreciate your comments and look forward to hearing from you. Please reply to [email protected] if you would like to communicate via email.
Thank you!
#2
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: San Francisco/Tel Aviv/YYZ
Programs: CO 1K-MM
Posts: 10,761
------- points expire within 3 years of accrual
Website sucks big time
No good credit card partner
KD lounge in TLV is very nice, and it comes with Gld/plt.
last minute upgrades are a good deal
Website sucks big time
No good credit card partner
KD lounge in TLV is very nice, and it comes with Gld/plt.
last minute upgrades are a good deal
#4
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Yiron, Israel
Programs: Bates Motel Plat
Posts: 68,916
Lynda, I sent you a PM. My opinion is adequately covered in three words: "Close to worthless" but I explained why, with facts and figures, in detail in the PM.
#5
Join Date: Oct 2005
Programs: EL AL Gold, BA Gold, LH M&M
Posts: 1,050
i will send you email.
Biggest problem is website, can you believe it possible to book bkk - NYC rd on expedia but not on El al website!!!!
1 Review the flight details
Traveling to New York
Wed 14-Nov-07
Bangkok (BKK)
Depart 12:50 am to Tel Aviv (TLV)
Arrive 7:35 am
Terminal 3 INTERNATIONAL
4,304 mi
(6,927 km)
Duration: 11hr 45mn
Flight: 82
Economy/Coach Class, Meal, Boeing 747-400
Tel Aviv (TLV)
Depart 10:40 am
Terminal 3 INTERNATIONAL to New York (JFK)
Arrive 4:00 pm
Terminal 4
5,666 mi
(9,119 km)
Duration: 12hr 20mn
Flight: 7
Economy/Coach Class, Meal, Boeing 777
Total distance: 9,970 mi (16,045 km)
Total duration: 24hr 5mn (27hr 10mn with connections)
Traveling to Bangkok
Mon 18-Feb-08
New York (JFK)
Depart 11:50 pm
Terminal 4 to Tel Aviv (TLV)
Arrive 5:10 pm +1 day
Terminal 3 INTERNATIONAL
5,666 mi
(9,119 km)
Duration: 10hr 20mn
Flight: 8
Economy/Coach Class, Meal, Boeing 747-400
Tue 19-Feb-08
Tel Aviv (TLV)
Depart 10:10 pm
Terminal 3 INTERNATIONAL to Bangkok (BKK)
Arrive 2:05 pm +1 day
4,304 mi
(6,927 km)
Duration: 10hr 55mn
Flight: 81
Economy/Coach Class, Meal, Boeing 747-400
Total distance: 9,970 mi (16,045 km)
Total duration: 21hr 15mn (26hr 15mn with connections)
Biggest problem is website, can you believe it possible to book bkk - NYC rd on expedia but not on El al website!!!!
1 Review the flight details
Traveling to New York
Wed 14-Nov-07
Bangkok (BKK)
Depart 12:50 am to Tel Aviv (TLV)
Arrive 7:35 am
Terminal 3 INTERNATIONAL
4,304 mi
(6,927 km)
Duration: 11hr 45mn
Flight: 82
Economy/Coach Class, Meal, Boeing 747-400
Tel Aviv (TLV)
Depart 10:40 am
Terminal 3 INTERNATIONAL to New York (JFK)
Arrive 4:00 pm
Terminal 4
5,666 mi
(9,119 km)
Duration: 12hr 20mn
Flight: 7
Economy/Coach Class, Meal, Boeing 777
Total distance: 9,970 mi (16,045 km)
Total duration: 24hr 5mn (27hr 10mn with connections)
Traveling to Bangkok
Mon 18-Feb-08
New York (JFK)
Depart 11:50 pm
Terminal 4 to Tel Aviv (TLV)
Arrive 5:10 pm +1 day
Terminal 3 INTERNATIONAL
5,666 mi
(9,119 km)
Duration: 10hr 20mn
Flight: 8
Economy/Coach Class, Meal, Boeing 747-400
Tue 19-Feb-08
Tel Aviv (TLV)
Depart 10:10 pm
Terminal 3 INTERNATIONAL to Bangkok (BKK)
Arrive 2:05 pm +1 day
4,304 mi
(6,927 km)
Duration: 10hr 55mn
Flight: 81
Economy/Coach Class, Meal, Boeing 747-400
Total distance: 9,970 mi (16,045 km)
Total duration: 21hr 15mn (26hr 15mn with connections)
#6
Moderator, El Al and Marriott Bonvoy, FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: SIN
Programs: SQ*G, Mar LTT, Hyatt Glb, AA LTG, LY, HH, IC, BA, DL, UA SLV
Posts: 12,018
The program is fairly good for the frequent flyer to destinations where other carriers don't fly direct.
Pros:
* If you have status you have a good chance of getting off the Waiting List.
* You have a fair chance of getting upgraded if there is availability.
* Status desk agents will go above and beyond to try to get bookings to fit your needs.
* Status lets you check-in and do first-line screening in the business line which is a huge time saver.
* Lounge access for Gold and Plat is guaranteed.
* Last Minute upgrades are a huge bonus in my book, although with more and more flyers it is becoming more rare to get them.
Cons:
* The website has so many problems listed here in the forum that I can't bear to go over them. They are improving but there is no excuse for it.
* Customer service through e-mail is horrendous. They print the address on the status tier cards but it takes them a week to two weeks to respond. And in fact, sometimes they delete it without even responding. They think this is ok.
* The credit card hookups are a joke.
* Recognition on the flight is non-existant.
Bottom line: I like the program but if my frequent travel was to a destination served by a major alliance I'd switch in a moment.
Pros:
* If you have status you have a good chance of getting off the Waiting List.
* You have a fair chance of getting upgraded if there is availability.
* Status desk agents will go above and beyond to try to get bookings to fit your needs.
* Status lets you check-in and do first-line screening in the business line which is a huge time saver.
* Lounge access for Gold and Plat is guaranteed.
* Last Minute upgrades are a huge bonus in my book, although with more and more flyers it is becoming more rare to get them.
Cons:
* The website has so many problems listed here in the forum that I can't bear to go over them. They are improving but there is no excuse for it.
* Customer service through e-mail is horrendous. They print the address on the status tier cards but it takes them a week to two weeks to respond. And in fact, sometimes they delete it without even responding. They think this is ok.
* The credit card hookups are a joke.
* Recognition on the flight is non-existant.
Bottom line: I like the program but if my frequent travel was to a destination served by a major alliance I'd switch in a moment.
#8
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: 30,000 Feet
Programs: LY Top Platinum, AA Platinum, Hertz President's Circle
Posts: 863
But then LY got greedy/stupid and decided to look at each flight in a vaccum and not in the wider view of a time period in which to foster loyalty. Nowadays, LY's criteria is comprised first and foremost of the highest ticket class and only thereafter tier status. This means that a passenger who flies TLV-NYC in coach, say 7 times a year (min. to be Gold), but happened to buy a Y class ticket for 1 partcular flight, is ahead of the Platinum passenger, who flies 20 times a year, generating 3 times the revenue for LY, but he looses out because for that particular flight he "only" purchased an S or M class ticket ($1700 instead of $1900). They are looking at their revenue for ONE particular flight instead of their revenue relationship with the passenger. Seems to be like the antithesis of an FF program.
This REALLY angers me.
Another real kicker related to this is that they won't even let you "upgrade" your ticket class from S/M to Y at the airport (if you see that otherwise you won't get the upgrade because of the GL's with Y).
Yes - its true, we all love the "Last Minute Upgrades." But I think most of us are infuriated by this "little" change that was instituted in 2004.
LY is playing with fire on this one. They WANT us to all buy Y class regularly (increasing their revenue from us by 10-20%). But if upgrading keeps getting scarce (as its become) what will happen is that the collective "we" will start buying cheaper K and V class, spending 40% less, since we are sitting in the back of the bus anyway. And yes, we can get K and V since most of us make our reservations FAR in advance.
PL status is USELESS aside from the upgrades. I can buy access to the Lounge if need be, the check-in lines for premium classes take as long as coach and the "priority" luggage tags only work 1 out of 10 times - unreliable.
Changing this one criteria back to the pre-2004 system would do a lot for LY's relations with its most frequent passengers. Their answer will no doubt be that CO and DL don't even offer this kind of upgrade. While that may be true (for now at least), the Last Minute Upgrade is the ONLY THING (imho) that keeps the most FF with LY from jumping to CO (or soon DL) on TLV-NYC.
#9
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: Israel
Programs: Elal Silver, AirCanada Aeroplan, AA AAdvantage, KLM Flying Blue, Continental OnePass, Delta Skymiles
Posts: 529
The grass always appears greener on the other side of the fence, but try flying Delta business or US Air business (in the US) or Olympic (Greece) and you will come to love Elal.
I would say the most annoying aspect is their poor website but I bet they know that by now.
#10
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: 30,000 Feet
Programs: LY Top Platinum, AA Platinum, Hertz President's Circle
Posts: 863
Are we traveling from the same airports? JFK check-in is horrendous.
Hit or miss.
No argument about the lounge - but I CAN buy access to it (membership in Kind David Club) without being a PL.
Hit or miss.
No argument about the lounge - but I CAN buy access to it (membership in Kind David Club) without being a PL.
#11
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: London, UK / (TLV), Israel
Programs: BA Gold (GGL/CCR), *A Gold - TAP, SkyTeam E+, IHG Diamond AMB, HH Diamond, Sixt PL, GE/TSA Pre
Posts: 1,663
I know get a fully flat bed in ClubWorld on BA for the price of a full fare Y on LY.
Go figure!!
#12
Join Date: Feb 2005
Programs: EL AL Matmid, BA Executive Club GfL, GGL/CCR, Hilton Diamond, Avis President's Club
Posts: 2,084
Well, I can fly home from London at a sensible time so I don't need to get by on a maximum of 3 hours sleep (even if it is on a flat bed). BA gives me a choice of leaving London either at the crack of dawn (so having to get up very early) or to fly overnight. I did try them a few times in the past, but was not overly impressed.
#13
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2005
Location: TLV/LHR
Programs: BA GGL, IHG Diamond Elite Amb, HH Diamond, Avis PC, Hertz PC, Sixt Platinum
Posts: 12,948
Well, I can fly home from London at a sensible time so I don't need to get by on a maximum of 3 hours sleep (even if it is on a flat bed). BA gives me a choice of leaving London either at the crack of dawn (so having to get up very early) or to fly overnight. I did try them a few times in the past, but was not overly impressed.
#14
Join Date: Feb 2005
Programs: EL AL Matmid, BA Executive Club GfL, GGL/CCR, Hilton Diamond, Avis President's Club
Posts: 2,084
Well, it means I need to leave home at 6:00. Being frum I also need to go to shul in the morning, which is pretty much ruled out. Likewise if I want to take the morning flight from Tel Aviv to London, which leaves at about 7:15, I believe.
#15
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2005
Location: TLV/LHR
Programs: BA GGL, IHG Diamond Elite Amb, HH Diamond, Avis PC, Hertz PC, Sixt Platinum
Posts: 12,948
I just don't think of an 08:50 flight as the crack of dawn, since I am used to taking day trips in Europe on flights leaving at 06:00-07:00am.
Recently I had to fly to TLV and get to a party that was taking place that evening.
LY wasn't even an option for me since I would arrive too late in the evening, so BA was the better option.
Come to think of it, I ended up flying LX...