J to F: Make us an offer.
May 20, 2012, 12:35 pm
#16
Join Date: Nov 2000
Posts: 1,941
Stupic idea, EY! If you want to sell your open seats, then please do it 2 hours before departure. And leave me with the chance to buy a revenue ticket (which is much more attractive for you, anyways).
May 20, 2012, 1:43 pm
#17
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: ORD
Programs: BA, AA, SQ, UA, AC, WS, MR TIT
Posts: 8,660
May 20, 2012, 5:36 pm
#18
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 2
Plus grade Etihad
I am flying out next Tuesday LHR AUH and return. I have put in an offer of £600 for each leg, which said "more likely to get upgrade". Just wondering if I should change it to a lower offer? Really keen to fly business but obviously keen to get a bargain. Suppose it all depends on how booked the fight is and what other offers they receive.
Difficult to know where to pitch it.
Difficult to know where to pitch it.
May 20, 2012, 11:08 pm
#19
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: BHX
Programs: BA GGL CCR GfL, SQ Gold, Hyatt Glob, HH Diamond, Marriott Plat, Cafe Nero Loyalty Card (7 Stamps)
Posts: 7,343
£600 EW I'd imagine you'll definitely get your upgrade. I mean, a standard return fare to AUH in J is £1800 anyway. If you wait for the fare deals, you can often pick it up for under £1500. In fact, my ticket to KUL rtn was only £1800 in one of their sales.
So I guess it comes down to how much you think it's worth. You obviously thought £600 was a good price when you made the offer, and you're pretty much guaranteed to get it at that bid I would think. If you change it, you might get a bargain, but you should also be prepared to fly in Y.
So I guess it comes down to how much you think it's worth. You obviously thought £600 was a good price when you made the offer, and you're pretty much guaranteed to get it at that bid I would think. If you change it, you might get a bargain, but you should also be prepared to fly in Y.
May 20, 2012, 11:10 pm
#20
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: BHX
Programs: BA GGL CCR GfL, SQ Gold, Hyatt Glob, HH Diamond, Marriott Plat, Cafe Nero Loyalty Card (7 Stamps)
Posts: 7,343
I already have the car booked on my J ticket. They picked me up from my house (just outside Birmingham) to take me to LHR without charge. Kudos to them for that.
May 24, 2012, 8:09 pm
#21
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: London, England
Programs: AF FlyingBlue Ivory, BAEC Silver, Etihad Guest Gold, A3 M&B Gold
Posts: 23
Interesting that EY ignore the rules of their own terms and conditions in offering the 'Plusgrade' - I was sent an email for a two leg upgrade (LHR-AUH and AUH-LHR) despite having (a) booked with an online travel agent; and (b) bought a heavily discounted J class ticket - £1500 rtn LHR-KUL. My slider started at $700. Was tempted to bid, but I've decided not to, as the AUH-LHR sector already seems to be full (oversold?), so would rather take my chances on a free upgrade. J class is good enough for a comfortable trip anyway.
So... I've been through this, read the T&Cs, and this is what I've found:
You will only get the email if you booked your flight direct with Etihad.
The emails are sent 14 days prior to the flight.
You are notified if you're successful 48 hours before departure.
Winning bids do get access to the F lounge at AUH.
Winning bids do accrue bonus miles, but I think this is less than you would get if you booked a revenue F ticket.
Extra luggage is only valid for the F legs of your ticket, so if you're just transiting in AUH the extra allowance is as good as useless if you don't/can't upgrade your entire journey.
The "bid" amounts are set by Etihad, starting as £385 per sector, and increasing to £750 per sector. If you move the slider to £750 you stand " A good chance" of being successful. If you stick at £385 it is "Very unlikely your upgrade will be successful".
You will only get the email if you booked your flight direct with Etihad.
The emails are sent 14 days prior to the flight.
You are notified if you're successful 48 hours before departure.
Winning bids do get access to the F lounge at AUH.
Winning bids do accrue bonus miles, but I think this is less than you would get if you booked a revenue F ticket.
Extra luggage is only valid for the F legs of your ticket, so if you're just transiting in AUH the extra allowance is as good as useless if you don't/can't upgrade your entire journey.
The "bid" amounts are set by Etihad, starting as £385 per sector, and increasing to £750 per sector. If you move the slider to £750 you stand " A good chance" of being successful. If you stick at £385 it is "Very unlikely your upgrade will be successful".
May 25, 2012, 1:43 am
#23
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Not the UK
Programs: EK Gold, BA Silver
Posts: 70
Seems like a bit of a no-brainer. I did AUH-JFK last December, was booked in J but felt a bit devil-may-care when I arrived in AUH and asked how much it would be to upgrade to F on the AUH-JFK leg. Took a while to sort it out but it was about US$600. I was so impressed that I did it on the return JFK-AUH leg as well.
EY F is certainly comparable to EK - the food is better and there are some nice little touches like the companion seat, but the décor seemed a little gloomy to me, too many dark colours.
So the advice would be to ignore the e-mails and the bidding system and ask at the airport, probably won't be cheaper than what I reading above!
EY F is certainly comparable to EK - the food is better and there are some nice little touches like the companion seat, but the décor seemed a little gloomy to me, too many dark colours.
So the advice would be to ignore the e-mails and the bidding system and ask at the airport, probably won't be cheaper than what I reading above!
May 25, 2012, 7:15 am
#24
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: BHX
Programs: BA GGL CCR GfL, SQ Gold, Hyatt Glob, HH Diamond, Marriott Plat, Cafe Nero Loyalty Card (7 Stamps)
Posts: 7,343
Jun 27, 2012, 2:19 pm
#25
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: FLL, MIA, PBI
Posts: 86
There are a few threads that deal with this topic. This one seems to concentrate on the nitty-gritty... dollars & cents. I am flying LHR-AUH in a few days and did receive the upgrade email from Plusgrade. I put in the lowest available bid on the slider £420 including airport tax. At under 7 hours of flight, I am not terribly concerned about comfort, more interested to see how the system works. Will post results.