Hotrod

Booked a great trip from YYZ - DET - NRT - BKK - MSP - YYZ for around $1640 Using miles to upgrade to C for the entire trip. This will give me approximately 60,000 EQM miles in a single trip. Would love to know hear about NW's business class service on the pacific routes from other FTers as this will be my first time flying NW on the pacific route.

DESMOINESguy

I just booked a similar trip from DSM to SIN via HNL each way, yielding about 70,000 EQM's for $1793, about 2 1/2 cents per EQM, a fantastic rate. Also upgraded using PMU's, so FC & WBC all the way. NW's WBC across the Pacific is pretty nice. WBC seats are controversial but I've come to like them. They recline pretty flat, but at a slight angle, so you tend to slide down. Don't wear slick clothing. You can try different settings, Z one of my favorites. I can sleep like a baby, but also like to sleep on my side. If on 747get upper deck. Seatguru.com

Food wise, it is OK to good, somewhat typical, sometimes above average but seldom stellar, but usually decent food/wine/service and worlds apart from the back of the bus. It's not Air France. FA's up front are usually top notch. Asian routes often have nice fusion and asian choices on the menus which can liven things up.

NRT has the best World Club in the system, so hopefully you have time to enjoy that.

I couldn't make anything work to BKK (or PVG) in M class without it costing a fortune. SIN was the alternative. Have a great trip.

best

Now that is an MR !

JMR

Sounds great. What fare basis did you get? Were you able to confirm the NRT-BKK segment upgrades?

Hotrod

I used the "B" Fare basis. I was able to get the upgrade from DTW-NRT-BKK. On the return, I was only able to upgrade the NRT-MSP-YYZ portion. But I got the bulkhead window seat due to my elite status from BKK to NR. NW uses a 757 from BKK to NRT so award seat availability is limited.

EasternTraveler

So if you upgrade to first do you get triple for being in that fare class?
If so then I could just do the lowest fare ticket and then use miles to upgrade to C.

I would not think award tickets would qualify.

cheesewiz

Would anyone mind assisting me with a similar run, I found CMH-SIN-CMH on the 4th or 6th of May for $1300 all in, CMH-ATL-NRT-SIN-NRT-ATL-CMH. However I have friends in NRT and SIN. So this is what I have been trying to do, route thru HNL for additional miles (but not necessary) and spend a night in NRT in addition to the night in SIN. I can depart after April 26th and return on or before May 20th, but prefer the 13th. Any help is greatly appreciated. I'm a GM and would like to upgrade as much as possible.

Cellisttoo

You first need to understand the fare rules for the fare you are looking at. You can do this by going to NWA and choosing flights for potential dates and then taking it all the through to just before purchase where you can read the fare rules. You probably will want to print these for future reference. The NWA site lists the fare basis code early on in the booking process, but the rules are only available near the end. When you read the rules, you can tell whether or not stop overs are allowed. Often on transpacific fares I have found that NRT is only allowed on the return. In addition, look at the valid dates for the fare. Many of the ones being discussed on FT right now are only valid if you make your western trip over the pacific by May 21st. This will help you in narrowing down potential dates and itenerary. Also note the days of the week that the fare is valid for- for example, many fares require that you depart and return on M,T,W or TH.

You next need to use Expertflyer.com or a similar service to determine which dates/routes have upgrade availability. Because you are a gold member, you will need to use miles to upgrade from a B or Y fare. You can upgrade into R for domestic routes and for international routes, if I am not mistaken, U from a B fare or Z from a Y fare. (Can someone else verify this?) You type in each segment of your trip +/- 3 days and then see if there is upgrade availability. I find that a pencil and paper are handy at this point in the process. Note that you need to list HNL to SIN as ONE segment in Expertflyer. The availability is different from HNL to SIN vs. for each of the pairs- HNL to NRT and NRT to SIN. This actually will probably work in your favor, because NRT to SIN has very limited availability to upgrade from lower B fare classes (I have even had trouble getting upgrades from Y).

Then you start playing around with dates trying to figure out a date when you can get the upgrades, still stay within the fare rules, and spend the amount of time that you want in each city. At the point that you have found something that works, you book the ticket and immediately call NWA and ask for the upgrades. If there is a problem, you have 24 to cancel the ticket or change it.

This can be a time consuming hunt- but the reward is worth it. Alternatively you can pay the fee and have the NWA agent help you with this, but I find that I can usually do a better job myself. And as there are often compromises with dates/schedules I like to be able to think about all my options at my own pace- but that is just me.


Good luck!

cheesewiz

Cellistoo,

Did you copy that from a sticky? If not then it should be one, I appreciate the info.

Cellisttoo

Nope, just made it all up myself. I am still hoping someone will provide clarification on the fare classes that you need to look for for upgrades. I am not positive the information that I gave you is correct.