Hi,

Sorry, but I was wondering if someone could break this down for me as if I am a 5 year old. I have been letting my travel agent handle everything for years and I am starting to suspect (the more I read this board) that she is not maximizing the benefits I could be reaping. As it currently stands, I am a FlyingBlue member and a Continental OnePass (I think that's the name) member. I may have other memberships she has enrolled me in and not told me...who knows.

For FlyingBlue, it seems pretty straightforward. Can these miles be used on any other SkyTeam partners though?

Continental is complicated. Can these miles be used on other Star Alliance members? Do I have to join each individual Star Alliance members program in order to get their deals with miles? I recently flew several K miles on Star Alliance partners, where do these miles get credited?

I fly tens of thousands of miles a year, Domestic US, intra-Europe, TATL, NA-Asia and this year Europe-Africa. For all the travel I do, I do not feel I am seeing adequate rewards.

How do I make sure that all my miles are going to the right place, how do I max out status on FF programs, and as a result get my free flights, mileage multipliers and free upgrades, etc...

I know it's a long post and I am sorry, but now that my eyes are open, I want the pay off for all my time in the air. Thanks!

maybe this would be a good primer and then the info on FlyerTalk would enhance it:
http://www.amazon.com/Mileage-Pro-In.../dp/0977629503

And I do believe that the author of that book actually knows a good deal about the subject.

Who's my big boy? So gwoan up and fwying like a big boy! When you twavel on the big airpwane, be nice to the gwoan-ups and the nice person on the pwane will give you itty-bitty tweats that you can save up for pwizes! Like Disney World! The more you fwy like a big boy, the more tweats you get! Make sure you always fwy on the same big airpwane, and all your tweats will add up to Disney World!

And remember: mommy and daddy drink on the airpwane because you cry.

;-)

Easy.

You fly you get points.
The more you fly the more miles you get.
The more miles you get the more stuff you get to trade them for, like free flights and upgrades.
Fly enough in a certain period and you get bonus miles, blocked seats and upgrades, no luggage fees and maybe lounge access.

You can get miles that don't get you blocked seats and free luggage but can be used for free flights and upgrades.

Stay with the same alliance to maximize miles, even if you have to fly a bit out of the way.
(Like I did last year when I needed to get from JNB-SAT and flew JNB-LHR-FRA-ORD-SAT)

Hows that?

Agoooo! Gaaaaaaaa. Aghoogha miles.

Pretty miles!

Fly, baby, fly!

Somewhat new to this myself, have in recent years flown 50-100k per year but always on a hodgepodge of airlines. Focused in on one (CO) recently. The basics as I see it are:

If possible focus on one program and get as high status in that program
Choose a carrier that is convenient and you will fly most often
Consider which airlines are in the network (CO is part of star alliance and you can earn miles on United, US Air, Lufthansa, SAS and about 20 other international carriers)
Consider which perks are most important to you (domestic upgrades, mileage awards, etc.) and read Flyertalk to see how they stack up
Get a real sense of what the perks are, for example no airline (I know of) offers complimentary upgrades on longhaul international flights (Europe, Asia, etc.)
Elite qualifying miles and redeemable travel miles are usually tracked and earned seperately (most mileage bonuses, credit cards, etc are for redeemable...EQM bonuses typically kick in with high fare classes such as business)

Hope that's a start...

Here are some specific answers to add to the general remarks already provided.

Yes, CO miles can be used for other Star Alliance members.

No, you do not have to join each individual Star Alliance member program. In fact, you should try to have all of your Star Alliance miles deposited to one account. If CO is your favorite, then put your CO account number in the reservation whenever you fly a Star Alliance member. That way you will reach elite status with CO and get added benefits. Check the CO website to learn about the benefits of elite status.

The miles you have already flown would have been credited to the account for which the frequent flyer number was entered. If your CO number was entered, then those miles should have been credited to your CO account. If no number was entered, then no miles were credited anywhere. If you didn't get credit and if you still have your boarding passes for these flights, you can send the boarding passes to CO and request credit.

For CO, yes, the miles can be used on other *A partners. You do not need to be a member of the other programs to book a trip on them using your CO miles. You can book an award on them using CO's website or by calling CO.

As for flying on other *A partners, the miles are credited to whatever program whose frequent flyer number you provide. In other words, if you want miles that you flew on United to go to CO, you need to give United your CO Onepass number. This can usually be done as part of the booking process.

Thank you. Sub-question. With flyingblue there is a link to all the monthly specials for AF/KLM and how many miles each trip will be. Is there a similar thing for *A?

Also, can my FlyingBlue miles be used to book tickets with other SkyTeam partners?

Finally, how to AMEX miles figure into this as I have probably 300k AMEX points sitting idly by.

Both AA and UA offer limited complimentary upgrades on longhaul int'l flights to their top tier members. AA = 8x eVIP, UA = 4x(?) SWU.

FlyingBlue can be redeemed using a combination of skyteam partners. AMEX has its own partners and allows for you to transfer the AMEX Membership Rewards (assuming those are the points you are talking about) to partner airlines or other programs. The transfers go through very quickly and are not reversible, so dont transfer out of AMEX unless you have a reservation on hold for which you need the miles.

Yes, but I find it harder to find reward seats on other SkyTeam partners, compared to availability on FlyingBlue.

A few other bits of advice:

1) You can increase your miles and hotel points by doing some internet shopping through portals established by airlines or hotel chains (e.g., Continental's Shop OnePass, Marriott Rewards, Hilton Hhonors). Essentially, you start your online shopping experience on, e.g., Marriott's website in its Retail Mall portal - then click through to, e.g., Barnes & Noble, and make your purchase. Some people have complained that Continental has a bad track record when it comes to posting miles for such purchases. I've never had a problem with Marriott, and the points can really add up at Christmas when I do a lot of online shopping and Marriott offers bonus points.

2) Miles-and points-earning credit cards can really help boost your totals and some cards (with fees) offer some of the perks of elite status. For example, I have Hilton Gold status due to spending $20,000 per year on my Hilton Amex. With Marriott Premier Visa, I get 15 nights' credit toward elite status and a one-night stay certificate each year. These perks are in addition to the miles or points you earn using the cards. My husband and I put all the spending we can through our cards and it really makes a difference. I also decided to pay for the Continental Presidential Plus World Mastercard this year. It's expensive ($375) but gives me a President's Club membership and elite access at airports. I'm going to be flying Co a lot this year, including domestic flights, but I might not fly enough to achieve status. This will make the trip a bit more pleasant.

Am I missing something here?

Continental is now a *A member and her miles posted as Flying Blue with SkyTeam.

Would she not need to switch to a SkyTeam member airline to continue earning as FlyingBlue?

I would suggest that she gathter all of her award numbers and passwords together and sign up for free with www.awardwallet.com to get a clear picture of where she stands, and then fire that travel agent and take control of all of here own bookings.

First, you should not count on yout travel agent to get things right - I suggest that you take ownership of your accounts, and since we are at the begining of the year, it is a good time to do so. I have encountered few TA's who are truly savvy, and whatever commissions they are getting paid are usually insufficient to "buy" the service you likely want.

Second, always be mindful of the difference between redeemable miles and "elite qualifying miles". Redeemable miles allow you to buy free tickets, EQM's are used to accrue "status", that status governs what goodies you get (Bonus redeemable miles, upgrade access, lounge privileges, etc.).

Third, I'd try to consolidate activity within one alliance, (Star Alliance, OneWorld, SkyTeam) and as permitted, consolidate activity in that alliance within one airline OR, have miles flown within that alliance accrue to a single airline account. Base don your information, it sounds like Continental may be your choice - be when you fly on any Star Alliance partner, I'd generally have them credit your Continental account so as to establish and maintain a high level of status on one airline. (If you travel a whole lot, you might be able to accrue high status on more than one airline). But please do not dilute your status such that you have mediocre status on numerous airlines.

Fourth, once you have achieved high status on one airline, should you find that another airline is more to your liking, consider a status match - you can find a thread on FLyertalk with extensive discussion.

Fifth, have fun with it. Its great to be a junkie.