I'm in Canada, where there's barely any earning possibilities for UA (I believe the only one is the SPG Amex), or why do you think there's more earning possibility than AC in Canada? AC has THE most CC's with signup offers in Canada and transfers from Amex and SPG, too... AA at least transfers from RBC as well.

Oh I thought you were talking about value on flights (how much you earn in each fare) and not CC spend! In that case stay away from UA (spg:ua=2:1 :rolleyes:). Go the AA/BA route, apparently the RBC Avios has a 1.5:1 redemption promo for BA twice a year or something.

That's what I'm asking about though - Given that fuel surcharges on BA to Europe are easily 600-1k for an award flight (vs. 1300 for a full-price ticket) and like 100 on an AA/Aero(with United) award flight, the fact that I can convert with a bonus from AMEX and RBC is not worth the difference in actual cost... I think? Unless I'm missing something, which is why I'm asking here. ;)

AMEX converts 1:1 to Aero as well, and RBC converts 1:1.25 to AA (sometimes...), so I'd get slightly less points but way less fuel surcharges...

I think the best redemption option might be Delta/Skyteam, because the availability seems to be a TON better on the route AND there's no fees, but there's not a lot of CC-earning options for it.. The only one there was (and it was great) was the CapitalOne Delta, and that's been discontinued :( I guess there's SPG-conversion... Or booking Delta through AS. gah so many options...

Hi all!

I'm just getting started in the whole mileage/points game and am looking for some guidance on where I can get started.

1. What is most important to you in a frequent flyer program (FFP)?
upgrades, priority services, baggage allowance, good award redemption rates, better award access, lounge access, etc.

>>> Reply: I think the most important thing for me would be finding award flights at low prices. I mostly just want to be able to use miles to fly home from Istanbul to LA as much as possible.

2. How many miles do you usually fly each year? How many flights/sectors?
less than 25000 miles, 50000+ miles and 20-25 flights, etc.
>>> Reply: I would estimate round trip to and from Istanbul two times a year so roughly 25,000 - 30,000 miles a year. My wife is Thai so we will probably also be flying from Istanbul to Bangkok every couple of years.

3. What fare class do you usually buy?
first, business, premium economy, economy
>>> Reply: Economy

4. Are you able to choose your airlines and/or class of service? Do you travel for work and/or pleasure?
>>> Reply: I can choose the airline.

5. Which routes do you fly most often?
transatlantic, domestic USA, intra-Asia, etc.
>>> Reply: I expect most of our flights will be transatlantic but a few flights from Istanbul to Bangkok as I mentioned before.

6. What is your home airport?
>>> Reply: Although I live near LA, I think my home airport would actually be Istanbul mainly because we will be flying from their to Bangkok as well. Plus my work books a one way ticket for me from LA to Istanbul at the start of my two year contract.

7. Do you have status in any FFP? What is it? How miles do you have banked in each FFP, if any?
>>> Reply: Don't have any miles banked at the moment although I have started looking into ways to gain some more miles by paying off student loans using credit cards. If anybody has any info on the best award cards for flights to and from Europe that would also be greatly appreciated!

8. What are your preferred airlines, if any?
>>> Reply: I'm pretty easy-going as far as airlines are concerned. Comfort and amenities aren't really my main priority as I'm just trying to figure out how to get to LA and Bangkok from Istanbul without breaking the bank every year.


Thanks in advance everybody! I have spent so many hours trying to figure this out and the fact that this forum allows people to just throw their queries to this collection of great traveling minds is just really amazing! Thanks again!

Jeff

I've been pretty happy with Virgin ... pretty hard to go back now.

Southwest and Alaska have the best customer service (whether in the front or in back I find in domestic doesn't make much of a difference). Though of course Southwest doesn't have "first".
Alaska has a great policy in that they waive change fees if you have MVP gold and above (mid-tier). And they match pretty much anybody, and don't require a challenge.

I would say none of the airlines can compare in terms of customer service.

Traveling a lot from the Bay Area to Seattle, having flown all of these airlines in F, I can agree.

Alaska (AS) would probably be the easiest to get elite status with if you fly SEA-SFO frequently (90 segments), that's flying 2 RTs/week though. Most people can vouch for their superior, friendly customer service as they are a smaller airline than the legacies on the route (DL/UA)

That being said, Delta (DL) is basically giving away status for PNW residents here: http://www.delta.com/mypromos/acelan...ffer=2tosilver

VX (Virgin America) is by far the nicest FC experience you can get on the route.


If your priorities are just Big seats and Customer Service, I'd go Virgin America.

DL's larger RJs with FC are awfully nice: clean new fresh aircraft, 1-2 seating in front, 2-2 in back, great spacious FC seats, drinks or cold meals depending on route and time, etc. Also, DL has lounges at both SEA and SFO, although admission requires more than a domestic FC ticket.

Hello! I'm currently planning a trip to London, leaving at Christmas and returning near the end of January, and I need a bit of help planning the trip. I'm in college and I don't have a large amount of money to work with, so i'm looking for any way there is to save money on this. I'm also very green - I'm not a member of any programs, I don't fly very often (yet), this trip is the first i'm planning on my own, and I haven't even opened a credit card yet. I'm unsure of what options are available to someone in my position, but if this one goes well and I happen to save a good chunk of cash while making my dream trip happen, I will be flying MUCH more often in the future!

So far, i've worked out an itinerary that would cost me just under $900 if I were to book it right now, flying with Aer Lingus and layovers in ORD and DUB. I feel like I can do better though. I just want to see what FFP options I have as a complete newbie and if they're worth pursuing or if I should just book the above itinerary.

Since I don't fly right now i'll be answering the questions with what would probably be my future habits and preferences.

1. What is most important to you in a frequent flyer program (FFP)?
upgrades, priority services, baggage allowance, good award redemption rates, better award access, lounge access, etc.
>>> Reply: Probably upgrades and priority service, and best value for money obv. More free flights in business or first class.

2. How many miles do you usually fly each year? How many flights/sectors?
less than 25000 miles, 50000+ miles and 20-25 flights, etc.
>>> Reply: As of now I haven't stepped on a plane since August 2014. Later, anywhere between 6 flights and 24 flights a year.

3. What fare class do you usually buy?
first, business, premium economy, economy
>>> Reply: Now, economy. Later, whatever I can upgrade to for the best value.

4. Are you able to choose your airlines and/or class of service? Do you travel for work and/or pleasure?
>>> Reply: Travel for pleasure now. Will probably be business related in the future

5. Which routes do you fly most often?
transatlantic, domestic USA, intra-Asia, etc.
>>> Reply: Domestic USA, Transatlantic

6. What is your home airport?
>>> Reply: MSP

7. Do you have status in any FFP? What is it? How miles do you have banked in each FFP, if any?
>>> Reply: None.

8. What are your preferred airlines, if any?
>>> Reply: I like Delta, especially with MSP being a hub, but i'm not too partial to any right now. As far as my London trip, Air Canada has offered some good prices as well as AA and BA.

Basically i'm just looking to save as much money as I can on this one roundtrip in the short term while leaving options open in the long term. Priority seating isn't a priority, but if an upgrade is even a possibility I won't complain. I know a round trip to LON is probably small fry for most of you, but I'm so brand new to this that literally any advice will help! I just would like to take the opportunity to save some money and build the foundation for a lifestyle i've been curious about for a long time. Thank you!

I wouldn't be too worried about a frequent flyer program in the short term and just shop on fare. I primarily use Google flight explorer and I know many also use ITA Matrix. They give you some flexibility in searching multiple airports or airports within a certain distance of your origin/destination.
https://www.google.com/flights/
https://matrix.itasoftware.com/

With UA and DL, an $800 ticket is only going to bring in around 3,500 miles, so not much when a free domestic ticket is 25,000 miles. At AA, you'll do slightly better with around 9,000 miles RT via JFK, but again not too much you can do with 9,000 miles. If you start flying for business these numbers can change significantly with higher priced fares (DL, UA), but I'd wait until that day comes to pick a carrier or alliance.

One thing that could hurt you is flying around Christmas. Fares tend to run higher at that time of year versus early December or later in January.

Your bigger expense could be accommodations, particularly if you're planning on hotels in London. Are you going to do hostels or stay with friends? I wouldn't buy an airline ticket until you have a good handle on ground costs which could include not just hotels but rail or flights within Europe.

guv1976: But not on mainline equipment -- in case that matters to the OP, who usually travels in F.

You're missing my point: THESE RJs not only have FC, they have GOOD FC, so there's no reason why flying FC excludes the DL flights on this route. It's not the case here that wanting FC means that the OP must fly mainline.

You're missing my point.

I suggested Delta in my first post in this thread.

Thank you.

I don't have a pony in this race but I am curious. Do you in fact, buy FC tickets? Because I read a post with that conclusion. If you don't, are you asking if a particular competitor has a "better" Y class seat, for lack of a better word? That would mean one might be starting a new loyalty program as a peon, no offense.

Are you asking if the seat in First is better on any particular competitor? And, the customer service: on the ground or in the air?

Must be a compelling reason to say goodbye to UA. Best wishes. :D

So it may not even be worth looking into if only for the one trip...I suppose that makes sense given that any discounts on the $1200 AA fare would have to get below the $900 low-cost fare to even be worth the effort. I figured with all the ways to accumulate miles without stepping foot on a plane that it would be possible, but if it requires a massive amount of points then yeah, not worth. Helps me come to a decision faster!

I'll be staying with friends for the duration, so that's taken care of. I'm mostly there to work on a project with them, so I figure working on that will also help stifle a lot of the expenses that come with staying there.
I'm only traveling around the holidays because that's the only time our schedules allow me to visit for...if I left before the 27th I wouldn't have accommodations! For staying for a couple weeks, I need the RT fare as low as I can. $900 is reasonable for me, and i've heard positive things about Aer Lingus, so if that really is the best I can do, i'll take it! :)

Thanks a ton for your help!