mailbotx

My company's travel agent (Egencia) booked my tickets on Emirates and I am 7 days out with a not so comfy coach seat.
I wanted to upgrade and visited the website, clicked on the upgrade with cash, but it refuses to do anything because of my ticket.
I called my travel agent and they quoted me an astronomical amount (aka to buy a J seat) not upgrade to one.
My first time on Emirates, so I thought I could buy the coach ticket and then pay for the upgrade? Any advice?
Don't guess I'm going to offered/sent anything at this point - help!

skywardhunter

The cost of the upgrade is the cost to buy a J seat...? You need to pay the fare difference.

mailbotx

Thanks, so when there are 20+ J seats left on an A380 that nobody will pay $10K for, what does Emirates do? Fly empty? Do they offer upgrades for less in the boarding area? Just curious how they do it? Email people who have paid Y or ???? I couldn't find anywhere which explains how they fill empty J seats.

skywardhunter

I assume you're based in the US ? Most airlines outside the US are happy to let their premium cabins fly empty rather than provide free or almost free upgrades to their premium passempass

DYKWIA

They will email some people who have booked direct with upgrade offers (probably around $1000 for the one way flight). They won't email TA booked passengers.

mailbotx

Thanks, I'm regretting now letting my TA do the booking as I think I'm out of luck.

mailbotx

Wanted to follow-up on my first experience with Emirates -
Saturday afternoon - during check-in SFO - fully booked, no seats available
Friday morning - during check-in DBX - seats available - price was $7200 USD
Told to ask on board - Asked whether points or cash - was available for $3200 USD
I offered $1000 USD, but the purser said he could not change the price, it was fixed
So yes, they do fly J empty

Numerous tips for first economy flyers on Emriates -
There are two check-in areas at SFO for economy - Online check-in and non-online
In DBX, there is a separate check-in for USA bound flights separate from the other two (online, regular economy)
In economy, I received an amenity kit with eye mask, toothbrush/paste.
There is USB at each seat on the A380 and a power outlet in every other seat
Expect pillows and blankets along with a headset. If you bring your own headset, you’ll need a dual plug adapter.
There is FREE wifi which is limited to BOTH 20MB and 2 hours.

For those who are trying to get to Pune (PNQ) -
Emirates operates out of Terminal 3 in DBX
Obviously, you should expect to clear customs in UAE, get your checked bag (if you have one).
You will need to catch a bus to change to SpiceJet to Terminal 1.
If you get SpiceMax (recommended) you do not have to wait in line to check-in.
You should allow at least 3 hours between flights (Emirates and SpiceJet).
Once you check-in in Terminal 1, I was able to relax in the Marhaba Lounge with my priority pass. The shower would have been an extra 70 Dirham ($20 USD), I didn’t try it.
Pune airport is a military base, no lounge, but the food court isn’t too bad.

sydtogla

*EK fly to and from DXB.

skywardhunter

Actually no need to clear customs in DXB, you can pay Marhaba to handle the bags and transit airside, or better travel HBO. Also why not rather fly EK to BOM and drive, that's what most people do.

Re headset comment, are there actually airlines that don't provide them?

And yeah, EK will fly a totally empty J or F cabin

mailbotx

Appreciate the Marhaba tip. You're right, most people do fly into BOM and drive. Thanks again!

ricktoronto

Same with Cathay Pacific especially F. I flew in F transpac as the only passenger when it was still on my route. They had no probs with leaving 5 of 6 seats empty. As you can imagine the service was quite good with two lavs, and all appetizers and mains catered for one passenger.
I was on CX HKG BKK three days ago and there were 9 in J out of I think 32 seats but plenty in coach and a few in PE. That stayed there.
CX or EK are not upgrading people to $10,000 seats for $1000.

ncsuactor84FT

I totally get the logic of wanting to make first class this exclusive experience that they don't give out for free... but from a business standpoint it just seems like lost revenue. If your premium cabin is empty you are missing out on potential revenue. Don't give it away for free, but find a happy medium (like $2000 for an upgrade from J to F - that should more than cover the cost of any soft product consumed).

I honestly think this is the main reason Emirates is moving to a 6 seat first class. I think they're having trouble selling 8 seats on a 777 @ 10k a pop.

skywardhunter

No one pays 10k for F. And they're in no rush to move to 6 seats. They offer occasional discounted cash upgrades during online check-in, targeted and not always available, and I've mostly seen it for Y-J

ft101

That may all be true if you look at one flight on its own, but if you look at the big picture and the amount of paid for F seats it might make good business sense to do as Emirates does.

ncsuactor84FT

Really? I just took a look at JFK-DXB on Emirates and the cheapest flight I see is around $20k for a round-trip. I personally can't swing that amount, but I'm sure some can.