This is based on USAir experience, but I think it's pretty universal.

I've been on FT almost a year. I've learned a lot, and still finding out more.

There's no such thing as just "a ticket" - every ticket has a fare class, rules, etc.

There are the real el cheapos - e-savers, internet specials, etc. Typically limited availability, heavy restrictions. On a trip US-London, maybe $300-$350

The ordinary cheapos (US "V" class) is a bit more expenseve, but available continuously. Typically not upgradeable. Maybe $400-$450.

Then come the more desirable classes (US "K", "H", ec.). Upgradeable from "day of" to 7 days out (platinum). Maybe $500-$550.

There's another cheap class (US "B")which is upgradeable on the spot. Maybe $ 600.

Was booking a flight for myself and my wife to London. I have some SWUs and wanted to use them up. The res agent led me through some fares, and was able to locate a "B" fare for us. Cool. Then I asked about my SIL - could she buy the same ticket and maybe I could upgrade her with my miles? Sure. 10K per leg.

That's when the light went on.

I have a choice of buying award seats (80K for biz class) or buying a "B" fare and upgrading with miles (20K).

It strikes me that this is probably the most efficient use I can make of my miles. I can probably come up with an amount like $600 once or twice a year and dump in some miles for the upgrade - I even get miles for the trip (in my case, 100% bonus, so with 3500 miles one way I would bag 14000 miles, for a net cost of only 6000 miles). I could stretch my miles almost forever this way.

Am I going down the wrong road, or am I just learning something that everyone else thinks is too obvious to mention?

I mean, we all like "free", but completely free (award) will drain my balance a whole lot faster than mileage upgrades.

Enquiring minds want to know.

There are a lot of people who only redeem upgrade awards or free tickets for family.

You get much more bang for your buck with upgrades than with free tickets. I have rarely redeemed miles for a free ticket for myself. This is why I will never fly WN!

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Vasant

[Edited for typo]

[This message has been edited by vasantn (edited 10-13-2003).]

For my travel needs it has always been obvious that upgrades are the best use of miles.

I don't think this is universal across airlines. For example, international upgrades on UA are NOT cheap to buy using miles.

First of all, in UA Economy, only H, M, B, Y fares are upgradeable using miles.

The ONE-WAY upgrade price for B and Y (the most expensive economy class) fares on flights from North America to Europe, South America, Asia, or Australia is 15,000 miles. For H and M fares the ONE-WAY upgrade price is 30,000 miles (also applies for Biz to First upgrade).

That same 60,000 miles on the round trip, OR LESS, will get you an Economy Saver Award to those same destinations! (Only 50,000 to Europe or South America.)


Kathy

It all comes down to what dollar value you mentally assign to your favorite award. Most people decide how much a mile is worth by dividing the number of miles required into the dollar value of their favorite award.

I've never been one to refuse an upgrade, but am a dyed-in-the-wool free-travel redeemer (the kind who wants to try to use awards to see as much of the world as possible). The U.S.-to-Asia free coach RT is my valuation benchmark (currently around 1.5 cents a mile). Other favorite redemptions include September in Alaska on 25K miles, intra-Micronesia awards on CO for 25K, and intra-SE Asia on TG or SQ through UA at 20K. Stopovers and open jaws also are a big part of the strategy, and I really like being able to use miles on obscure monopoly routes where paid tickets are very costly.

But many people go for the upgrades, and after a few long rides in back on some planes I can start to see why - especially if you're very limited on annual vacation time but have plenty of miles.

You'll find the whole range of people on FT, though.

Biglar

I think you may have cracked it.

For many with a reasonable amount of miles upgrades are the best use. For others with a lot of miles F tickets are the way foward. I can't see the point myself in burning them on Y tix

Upgrades for myself (paid tickets build status miles) and award tickets for companion(s).

I respectfully disagree.

What I have discovered is that to take advantage of ffm upgrades you have to spend 125%-140% or more of the lowest coach economy fare. Then the upgrades you use typically cost 50% of the ffms you must spend for an outright business class ticket. It's a waste of money and ffms.

An example. We recently traveled from/to SFO/AUA [Aruba]. The lowest cost restricted advance purchase economy class ticket was running $700 or more. The cost of a ffm economy class ticket was 30K ffms. The cost of a ffm business class ticket [really a first class ticket because the aircraft used only offered two classes of service] was 60K miles. We opted for the 60K mile outright business class ticket.

We had some friends we were meeting [traveling the very same routing as us] who wanted to use ffms to upgrade from coach class so they could accrue the miles attendant to their coach class travel [about 7K round trip]. They had to spend over $1,100/ticket for a higher priced economy class ticket to use 30K ffms/each [15K ffms each way] to upgrade to business class. Thus our friends in essence paid $1,100 for 30K ffms; a terrible conversion rate in my opinion.

If you're going to use ffms to upgrade, in my opinion you're far better off just redeeming enough ffms to secure a business class ticket outright rather than purchasing an upgrade. I know of no program where it costs you less than 50% of a plan ahead business class ticket and the unnecessary higher cost you must pay for the additional 50% of travel is just not worth the tariff!

The biggest bang for your buck is purchasing business class outright with ffms!

The prices you use aren't even close to my experience with United for upgradeable tickets with miles. I have never purchased a ticket class to Europe I could upgrade.

A majority of my travel is UA from SFO-Europe. Typically from SFO-LHR or AMS a very cheap ticket is in the $400-550 range. The lowest priced upgradeable ticket with miles is typically $1000-1,500+. (Recently fares are lower, but I am basing this on average prices of the past 4 years when I purchased 20+ tickets.)

3 tickets at $500 = 80,000 miles earned = 1 business class ticket redeemed.
On average 1 or 2 one-way complimentary upgrades to business at the check-in desk (without an SWU) for every three roundtrip flights.

4 trips to Europe with 1 guaranteed business class and maybe 2 in business class if I am lucky and 37,500 status miles.

If I chose to upgrade with miles, then $1500 for one paid ticket in H class = 12,500 status miles, 25,000 miles earned, 40,000 miles burned (on the old charts from past two years; 60,000 miles now). One C class trip to Europe and negative mileage balance, and 1/3 of the status miles.

Let's say I could get H class fare for $750 (wishful thinking), then $1,500 = 2 tickets in H class, 25,000 status miles, 50,000 base miles and 80,000 miles burned (again using the old charts, 120,000 miles now). I have a negative balance of 30,000 miles, and less status miles.

That is why I have purchased 20+ cheap economy tickets to Europe and redeemed a lot of miles for business and first class tickets to Europe.

If the other airlines are allowing upgrades at the lower cost booking fares mentioned above, then I need to look into changing my carrier.

while redeeming 25K miles for domestic tix just to go from point A to point B is not the most efficient way to use your miles, when you throw in the one allowable stopover on either outbound or inbound leg, plus one allowable open jaw, your 25K tix suddenly becomes a lot more valuable.

most of our domestic travels involved coast to coast, we seldom redeem our miles for that because lots of time one can get a cheapo tix for $250 or less. the time we redeem 25K planAAhead w/ AA is when we plan for a stopover, and sometimes also need an open jaw. we used to travel to LAX on award tix, took off from there to Pacific region for a 2-week trip on a paid tix, back to LAX, continued our journey on the award tix, to our "final" destination either in Canada or somewhere else in U.S., spend a few days, then return home. the journey we traveled on award tix, if priced as paid tix, usually ran $600+. couple years ago we made a trip to Alaska, then to Seattle from there we went to Vancouver ... all on award tix, travelled on AA and AS. The AAdvantage desk agent was very good and very patient to find out we can go to SEA from ANC with 25K award, vs 40K award if we go to YVR. The routing if on paid tix, would be close to $800.

When you actually put a $ value on your "potential" redemption, you can then see which way is the most efficient way to use your miles. jmho.

Yes, you are getting it. I used to fear I wasn't getting it. Then I realized that the majority of those who post here have status with an airline and their employer pays for most of their travel. If you don't fit that description, scrutinize the advice you get on this board. For a lot of folks, cash rebate cards can make more sense, especially if you fly routes on which it is hard to redeem awards.

On UA award tix, stopovers or open jaws are NOT permitted on U.S. domestic flights (except continental U.S. to Hawaii). In fact, they are ONLY permitted as follows: "between the continental U.S. and Hawaii or between the U.S. and the Caribbean, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Central and South America or Europe" (from UA website). Also, it's "one stopover en route to your final destination or one open jaw," not BOTH. Of course, Star Alliance awards have a different set of rules than UA awards.

It's dangerous to make generalizations to ALL airlines based on your experience with one airline.


Kathy

Clearly, the prices make a difference. If the upgradeable fare is too much, then a full award ticket is probably better. The prices I gave were those from the website or given to me by a res agent.

I'm just taking this as another tool in my bag, since, like most things in this airline world, everything is a case-by-case basis.

Really, to each his own. I have accrued millions of miles, but have never used miles to upgrade. There have always been other ways to upgrade on UZ.

I have given countless tickets to friends and family. As a result, the balance I carry s always low. And of course, if I can buy a cheap ticlet I will.