Domestic First, worth it?
 

On a 2 hour flight, do you feel that a First Class ticket on a 757 operatated by UAL is worth it?

(IAD-MIA)

PS- The COACH meal is a snack, but the FIRST meal is breakfast.

IAD-MIA
757-200
UA 206
9:00am-11:46am

Worth what? If you mean "Is it worth the difference between a discount economy fare and a paid F ticket," no way (at least to me). If you mean "Is it worth using upgrade credits for," on AA and DL (assuming you've paid a qualifying DL fare) I'd say probably yes. (I don't have enough exposure to UA's program to know how its upgrades work.) I like it for the space, the service, and the fact that (in my experience) you tend to meet more interesting seatmates, including one a few years back who has become a personal friend and a good client of my firm.

Breakfast, on the other hand, isn't a convincer for me. If you really want a good breakfast, fly AC. Their coach breakfast, the one time I had it a couple of years ago, was a tad better than any US first class breakfast I've ever had. I can only imagine what THEIR first-class breakfast must be! (I know, they don't fly that route ...) You can eat on the ground before you board for a lot less than an upgrade costs.

If you are asking whether it is worth paying for, then my opinion would be no. I need to be flying 5 or more hours before I would even check the price on a first class ticket

Ninety percent of the people in the compartment are on some sort of upgrade (or full coach promotion). The remainder are either brain dead, and don't know you don't have to pay the full boat, or are lawyers billing their clients (the really rich guys fly private these days, with Net Jet, or somebody like that). Airlines know it, and have reconfigured (reduced) their service accordingly, with tighter seats and more modest meals.

Definitely!

-SHAQ ONEILL ! http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

If you want a good breakfast treat yourself to one at the best hotel in town. I have never had a breakfast on a plane worth the price of a first class ticket or upgrade for a short trip.

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You obviously have neglected to give us the information that we need to make a judgement in this case, we might want to know:

• Are you paying with Amex, Visa, MC or Discover, or miles?
• What is your elite status?
• Is the cost billed to a client, or out of your pocket?
• What is your income, do you pay child support or court ordered restitution?
• What is the cost of living in your home and destination area?
• How old are you?, and how well funded is your retirement plan?
• Are you overweight or emaciated, do you really need the meal?

Let us know and we'll try to help you, thats what we're here for.

now, now snake.. get out from under the rocks too early today? http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/rolleyes.gif

Seriously - who pays? As deelmakur said, most of us are there on upgrades - on one class of coach or another. I have been known to pay first but only in extreme situations where coach was full and I HAD to get to my destination. It highly irritated me 'cause I could have gotten in that seat for a lot less!

The return flight, MIA-IAD, is a 777-200. I will defiantly upgrade to business.

I received free upgrade certificates, which I would be using.

If I didn't upgrade, I would trade them. There is really no use, because I would only have 2, and I'm a teenager. This is a mileage run, and they come once in a blue moon for me, so they would be no use unless I upgraded to both ways, or traded them.

What would you do?

BTW- Sorry for the lack of information.

If you can't use them for anything else, and you don't need anything that someone is willing to trade them for, than use them.

But, if you can trade them for something valuable to you, trade them.

IMHO, using a North America-type upgrade cert on such a short flight is not worth it - save it for coast-to-coast.

I'm in sales. Every flight segment -- regardless of length -- is an opportunity to make contact with a seatmate who might be interested in my firm's services. Building on Efrem's remarks, prospects are normally better in first class.

After this summer, every time you push off the gate is an opportunity to get stuck in the "graveyard" for 3 hours before you get airborne~ Believe me, you'll only do that once! I'd upgrade across town!

I'm with svpii on this; for 2 hours, I'd sit in coach, but figure the odds of a substantial delay are high and the front of the plane is then where I'd want to be.

If you fly enough that you will get a chance to use the certs on a widebody, save them for that. The only time I upgrade on a narrowbody is if I've booked so late that economy plus or exit row seats are unavailable.

Of course, if you won't have the opportunity to fly a domestic widebody, then I guess you might as well use them. Still - I'd look to see what coach seat you can get first, and then look for an upgrade if they are sticking you with 25B.

Airline food is airline food - in any class. You're really upgrading for the bigger seat and legroom, and your biggest bang for the cert is on the larger airplanes.