New to MR. Someone spoon feed me just once?
Jan 30, 2007, 2:35 pm
#46
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: DEN
Programs: UA 1K (MM), DL, AA, AS, HHonors, SPG, Kimpton, Hyatt, IC PC, Marriott Titanium (LT PLT), Hertz PC
Posts: 7,231
Following this advice yourself, instead of instantly jumping on the defensive will likely result in a greater response from the community. I'm guessing that you will respond to my post as you have done to the others, but restraint at times may help.
As far as advice goes, part of the thing of mileage runs is waiting until the right fare presents itself. Although there are usually ok fares available at all times, the best and most impressive runs are usually the result of some luck tied to a mistake fare/super-human bonus, etc. So, keep your eyes open, and pounce on something when it comes your way.
Jan 30, 2007, 3:28 pm
#47
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 408
That's important to know, as perspective is everything in this business.
Last year (I'm a noobie too) I did 55,866 EQM at a rate of $0.04889/mile. For those focused on elite qualifying miles, my impression is that isn't real good.
However, those same MRs banked me 273,331 FF miles at a rate of $0.00999/mile. That is a very good rate if that is your goal (and on AA, lifetime elite flying status is achieved via total FF miles). And that is how I measure my success.
For your MRs, if you see something that looks pretty good to you, put the reservation on hold. I think most everybody lets you do that for 24 hours at the fare you nabbed. Then post your route and fare on this board, and almost certainly someone (or several someones) will throw some suggestions at you. (But not all the time--I had one that not a soul commented on, so I guess I could assume that noone could improve on it
)
It helps if you also copy/paste the ticket rules in your post, to make it easy for other people to make suggestions--the easier for them to suggest, the more will do that, and thus the greater amount of info to you.
I actually find it more helpful (in the long run) if they are somewhat vague in what routing they found, making you figure out how to get that result--you will remember how you did that clearer that way. If you still need it spelled out, try PMing the person who suggested the routing with, letting them know what you have tried. The recent AA FLY06 promotion, over the course of several hours I held and cancelled about a dozen reservations before I figured out the cheapest way (with the patient guidance of a fellow local FTer) and finally "pulled the trigger" on that set of tickets.
The other reason for not being very specific with a routing is that quite a few of the airlines have lurkers peeking at this board, and if you post the specific routing then they can close it up.
If paying the FTer for planning an MR for you also gets a fairly detailed description of how he came up with it, that may well be very worthwhile (and something a number of us may be interested in--including me). But maybe not with your first MR. Trust me, the more you understand how it works yourself, the more information you grasp from the words posted by other FTers.
Best of luck,
Steve
Last year (I'm a noobie too) I did 55,866 EQM at a rate of $0.04889/mile. For those focused on elite qualifying miles, my impression is that isn't real good.
However, those same MRs banked me 273,331 FF miles at a rate of $0.00999/mile. That is a very good rate if that is your goal (and on AA, lifetime elite flying status is achieved via total FF miles). And that is how I measure my success.
For your MRs, if you see something that looks pretty good to you, put the reservation on hold. I think most everybody lets you do that for 24 hours at the fare you nabbed. Then post your route and fare on this board, and almost certainly someone (or several someones) will throw some suggestions at you. (But not all the time--I had one that not a soul commented on, so I guess I could assume that noone could improve on it
)It helps if you also copy/paste the ticket rules in your post, to make it easy for other people to make suggestions--the easier for them to suggest, the more will do that, and thus the greater amount of info to you.
I actually find it more helpful (in the long run) if they are somewhat vague in what routing they found, making you figure out how to get that result--you will remember how you did that clearer that way. If you still need it spelled out, try PMing the person who suggested the routing with, letting them know what you have tried. The recent AA FLY06 promotion, over the course of several hours I held and cancelled about a dozen reservations before I figured out the cheapest way (with the patient guidance of a fellow local FTer) and finally "pulled the trigger" on that set of tickets.
The other reason for not being very specific with a routing is that quite a few of the airlines have lurkers peeking at this board, and if you post the specific routing then they can close it up.
If paying the FTer for planning an MR for you also gets a fairly detailed description of how he came up with it, that may well be very worthwhile (and something a number of us may be interested in--including me). But maybe not with your first MR. Trust me, the more you understand how it works yourself, the more information you grasp from the words posted by other FTers.
Best of luck,
Steve