The Consolidated "Is United 1K Status Worth It? - 2013/14 Edition
Mar 8, 2014, 5:27 am
#286
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 57,613
This. x1000. Maybe if you're in your 20's you can do it, but once you get older, that is a brutal schedule.
Mar 8, 2014, 6:25 am
#287
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: SF Bay Area
Programs: None - previously UA
Posts: 4,867
Mar 9, 2014, 12:00 pm
#288
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Home, where we should all be
Programs: Who knows anymore. It's a f---ing pandemic.
Posts: 273
Not surprised to see FTers on both sides of the fence. But since I'll be going from 0 to 1k and have no idea how good things used to be, I'm a little less jaded - lucky me!
SIN or BKK? Hmmm... talk about 1st world problems...
SIN or BKK? Hmmm... talk about 1st world problems...
Mar 17, 2014, 8:35 am
#289
Join Date: May 2012
Programs: Hilton Diamond DL Platinum UA 1K, DL Gold, Marriott Gold
Posts: 500
1K as an Asia Traveller
Has anyone discovered any reason to care about obtaining 1K status if almost all your travel is to SE Asia.
Mar 17, 2014, 8:45 am
#290
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: BKK/SFO
Programs: UA 1K, TG Platinum, SPG Gold, Hyatt GP Platinum, Priority Club Platinum, Hilton Gold, Marriott Gold
Posts: 283
Mar 17, 2014, 8:57 am
#291
Join Date: May 2012
Programs: Hilton Diamond DL Platinum UA 1K, DL Gold, Marriott Gold
Posts: 500
Afraid I agree. DL will get all my business next year. And I am not happy about it.
But UA has become a joke as an Asian Carrier
But UA has become a joke as an Asian Carrier
Jun 3, 2014, 1:23 pm
#292
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 4,974
Glad I found this thread. After some long distance travels this year I will be around 10K miles away from 1K. I might as well book a MR to go for it.
Jun 21, 2014, 11:18 pm
#293
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: washington, dc, usa
Posts: 244
Would you buy 1k?
I could buy 30k PQMs at $3k. That would put me at 1k again next year. But with virtually no domestic upgrades and the change in redeeming miles, what's the point? So we bought cheap $1400 P tix from BWI to AMS and haven't used system wides. That's lower than W fares with a possible upgrade. Loyalty means nothing. Next year maybe we don't get UA massive sell off of Business First inventory. We'll want to do one or two overseas trips.
What would you do?
What would you do?
Jun 21, 2014, 11:24 pm
#294
Join Date: Feb 2012
Posts: 2,933
I could buy 30k PQMs at $3k. That would put me at 1k again next year. But with virtually no domestic upgrades and the change in redeeming miles, what's the point? So we bought cheap $1400 P tix from BWI to AMS and haven't used system wides. That's lower than W fares with a possible upgrade. Loyalty means nothing. Next year maybe we don't get UA massive sell off of Business First inventory. We'll want to do one or two overseas trips.
What would you do?
What would you do?
Get it over with on one spin and cease with the torture of thinking that a 1K is important anymore!!!
Jun 21, 2014, 11:40 pm
#295
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: LAX & EWR/JFK
Programs: Fomerly UA 1K, now Gold... next year, who knows?
Posts: 1,432
I bought some PQMs with the accelerator, and then had some extra travel pop up, so now I think I'll be 100K+ PQM, especilly with the bonus offer for travel through Sep 30.
I'll make the Chase spend, but probably not the 10K PQD spend unless I buy a premium ticket, which may happen if a last minute biz trip gets called between now and EOY.
I'll make the Chase spend, but probably not the 10K PQD spend unless I buy a premium ticket, which may happen if a last minute biz trip gets called between now and EOY.
Jun 21, 2014, 11:56 pm
#296
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: washington, dc, usa
Posts: 244
I bought some PQMs with the accelerator, and then had some extra travel pop up, so now I think I'll be 100K+ PQM, especilly with the bonus offer for travel through Sep 30.
I'll make the Chase spend, but probably not the 10K PQD spend unless I buy a premium ticket, which may happen if a last minute biz trip gets called between now and EOY.
I'll make the Chase spend, but probably not the 10K PQD spend unless I buy a premium ticket, which may happen if a last minute biz trip gets called between now and EOY.
Jun 21, 2014, 11:57 pm
#297
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: LHR (sometimes CLE, SFO, BOS, LAX, SEA)
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 5,894
$3000 is a lot. Your mileage may vary, but for a heavy UA traveler 1K status is worth somewhere between $60–$3060 more than Platinum status.
Let's break that down:
Tangible perks: $60
If you were planning to hold a UA credit card that carries an annual fee, you get a $60 statement credit as a 1K member.
Quasi-tangible perks: $0 to $4400, maybe average of $2000
You get six GPUs. Value is hard to measure; if UA had some kind of offer to earn more GPUs in exchange for spending more money (e.g. up-faring tickets to meet a promotion), I'd probably spend up to $300 more per GPU, so I guess I value these at about $1800.
You get two additional RPUs as a 1K vs. a Platinum member. Value is again hard to measure and depends on whether you have EWR/IAH-HNL or JFK-SFO/LAX in your travel plans; if UA had some kind of offer to earn more RPUs in exchange for spending more money (e.g. up-faring tickets to meet a promotion), I'd probably spend up to $100 more per RPU, so I guess I value these at about $200.
You get instant upgrades from M to PN. I value this at $0; I don't often buy M fares specifically.
Intangible perks: $0 to $????
Priority on waitlists: very hard to measure how much Platinum status vs. 1K status matters for priority on upgrade and standby waitlists. I would be willing to be paid $500 cash to be sorted as a Platinum instead of a 1K on these kinds of lists.
Hotels during wx irrops: hard to say how much this perk is worth. I haven't needed a UA-supplied hotel during weather irrops in years now. I guess I'd value this as $0.
Access to 1K phone agents: this can be super helpful, hard to tell how much better the experience is vs. talking to the phone agents that Platinum members get. I have been lucky and spoken to some very good agents on several occasions. Hard to value but I'd be willing to be paid $500 cash in exchange for spending a lot more time hanging up & calling again to get "good agents" who are fluent in the arcane language of GDSes / routing rules / SHARES.
Add it up
So, adding it up, the 1K status is worth about $60 more than Platinum status for sure.
If your travel patterns involve enough intl travel with enough flexibility that you can use GPUs and enough interesting domestic trips that you can use RPUs, those seem to me to be worth about $2000.
And the intangible benefits of priority on waitlists, hotels during wx irrops, and getting to speak to 1K reservations agents — those I would be willing to be paid $1000 to lose, so I guess on the flip side they're worth about $1000.
By my math that makes 1K worth about $3060 more than Platinum status. But only about $60 of that is actual cash; the rest is "value" which is a lot fuzzier.
Let's break that down:
Tangible perks: $60
If you were planning to hold a UA credit card that carries an annual fee, you get a $60 statement credit as a 1K member.
Quasi-tangible perks: $0 to $4400, maybe average of $2000
You get six GPUs. Value is hard to measure; if UA had some kind of offer to earn more GPUs in exchange for spending more money (e.g. up-faring tickets to meet a promotion), I'd probably spend up to $300 more per GPU, so I guess I value these at about $1800.
You get two additional RPUs as a 1K vs. a Platinum member. Value is again hard to measure and depends on whether you have EWR/IAH-HNL or JFK-SFO/LAX in your travel plans; if UA had some kind of offer to earn more RPUs in exchange for spending more money (e.g. up-faring tickets to meet a promotion), I'd probably spend up to $100 more per RPU, so I guess I value these at about $200.
You get instant upgrades from M to PN. I value this at $0; I don't often buy M fares specifically.
Intangible perks: $0 to $????
Priority on waitlists: very hard to measure how much Platinum status vs. 1K status matters for priority on upgrade and standby waitlists. I would be willing to be paid $500 cash to be sorted as a Platinum instead of a 1K on these kinds of lists.
Hotels during wx irrops: hard to say how much this perk is worth. I haven't needed a UA-supplied hotel during weather irrops in years now. I guess I'd value this as $0.
Access to 1K phone agents: this can be super helpful, hard to tell how much better the experience is vs. talking to the phone agents that Platinum members get. I have been lucky and spoken to some very good agents on several occasions. Hard to value but I'd be willing to be paid $500 cash in exchange for spending a lot more time hanging up & calling again to get "good agents" who are fluent in the arcane language of GDSes / routing rules / SHARES.
Add it up
So, adding it up, the 1K status is worth about $60 more than Platinum status for sure.
If your travel patterns involve enough intl travel with enough flexibility that you can use GPUs and enough interesting domestic trips that you can use RPUs, those seem to me to be worth about $2000.
And the intangible benefits of priority on waitlists, hotels during wx irrops, and getting to speak to 1K reservations agents — those I would be willing to be paid $1000 to lose, so I guess on the flip side they're worth about $1000.
By my math that makes 1K worth about $3060 more than Platinum status. But only about $60 of that is actual cash; the rest is "value" which is a lot fuzzier.
Jun 22, 2014, 3:29 am
#298
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: body: A stone's throw from SFO, mind: SE Asia
Programs: Some of this 'n some of that
Posts: 17,263
Would you buy 1k?
Only if it were missing from my keyboard.
Jun 22, 2014, 5:15 am
#299
Moderator, Hertz; FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: KRK
Programs: UA 1MM, BA GGL, Hyatt Glob, Hilton Diamond and others
Posts: 12,690
I'm in a similar situation. I am quite close to MM and with this year in flying I could hit 1K. Though, the costs are higher than just flying FD tickets.
Including with UA changing everything, I wouldn't mind hitting that MM before they deval that program.
Including with UA changing everything, I wouldn't mind hitting that MM before they deval that program.
Jun 22, 2014, 8:47 am
#300
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Since the BoSox and ChiSox won it, now it is the Cubs turn to take the Series. Go Cubs Go!
Posts: 3,685
Star Gold status with the lounge access and baggage allowance are good benefits of being UA MM. If you are close, than it is likely worth it to reach UA MM sooner, rather than later. With all of the UA devaluations, one has to wonder what further changes are coming next.