Jan 19, 2017, 10:23 pm
Last edit by: WineCountryUA
Main Impact
Useful Links
EveryDay Awards - UA MP award changes 1 Nov 2017 (Everyday award/dynamic price, No RTW, No Show fee,..)
principle change - Standard awards being replaced by "EveryDay Award" with variable pricing
What is the Excursionist Perk?
Previous thread -- UA award booking,change questions/fees/issues/routing/excursionist problems {Archive}
- No more free stopover - replaced with Excursionist Perk
- Agents no longer have the ability to find routings or build itineraries that do not show up on united.com
- Manually constructing trips using multi-city search results in multiple award fares being charged
- Changing any segment basically requires current availability for all existing Os&Ds in the PNR (as if a brand new booking is made)
- Singapore Airlines segments are priced separately (add-ons)
Useful Links
EveryDay Awards - UA MP award changes 1 Nov 2017 (Everyday award/dynamic price, No RTW, No Show fee,..)
principle change - Standard awards being replaced by "EveryDay Award" with variable pricing
What is the Excursionist Perk?
The Excursionist Perk is a free one-way award within select multi-city itineraries. Members who book an itinerary with three or more one-way awards will be eligible to receive one of those one-way awards for free, if it meets all of these conditions:
The Excursionist Perk cannot be in the MileagePlus defined region where your travel originates. (For example, if your journey begins in North America, you will only receive the Excursionist Perk if travel is within a region outside of North America.)
The Excursionist Perk cannot be in the MileagePlus defined region where your travel originates. (For example, if your journey begins in North America, you will only receive the Excursionist Perk if travel is within a region outside of North America.)
- Travel must end in the same MileagePlus defined region where travel originates.
- The origin and destination of the Excursionist Perk is within a single MileagePlus defined region.
- The cabin of service and award type of the free one-way award is the same or lower than the one-way award preceding it.
- If two or more one-way awards qualify for this benefit, only the first occurrence will be free.
Previous thread -- UA award booking,change questions/fees/issues/routing/excursionist problems {Archive}
UA award booking, change questions / issues / routing / excursionist problems / help
Feb 1, 2023, 9:01 am
#106
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 11,462
My 1K friend will have a trip to BKK. His wife may go to China directly from Thailand. So, her return segments will have to be cancelled. This was 60K JN sale fare.
What is the best strategy for canceling the return, before the trip or in the middle of the trip, without triggering repricing? I do not know the best answer myself. Thanks.
What is the best strategy for canceling the return, before the trip or in the middle of the trip, without triggering repricing? I do not know the best answer myself. Thanks.
Perhaps someone else knows a better scheme.
Feb 1, 2023, 9:13 am
#107
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,412
My understanding is that your friend does want to fly the original booking still and only remove wife's return segments. For that, best thing I can think of is fly outbound, then split reservation and cancel for the 1 pax. I have not done that before, but I can't think of any reason why that wouldn't work. There shouldn't be any repricing when cancel.
Perhaps someone else knows a better scheme.
Perhaps someone else knows a better scheme.
If you change only the return prior to travel, it's going to be YMMV as to whether or not an agent will be both willing and able to store the old fare and book the new ticket. The partner segments on the itinerary add an extra wrinkle.
My suggestion would be to identify some future flight that she may want to take and then try, after departure, to change (not cancel) to the new flight. That should keep the outbound from repricing, because it's already been flown, and should return any mileage difference on the return.
Feb 1, 2023, 7:58 pm
#108
Join Date: Jul 2022
Programs: United MileagePlus
Posts: 336
Feb 1, 2023, 8:45 pm
#109
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,412
It would be against policy for them to do so. It might be possible, but there's a nonzero chance that you'd lose the partner reservation entirely.
Feb 2, 2023, 11:32 am
#110
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: BOS/EAP
Programs: UA 1K, MR LTT, HH Dia, Amex Plat
Posts: 32,055
Feb 2, 2023, 11:35 am
#111
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: BOS, PVG
Programs: United 1K and 1MM, Marriott Ambassador
Posts: 10,000
Called GS desk. The agent was puzzled too since XN9 but can't be booked online.
After talking to her supervisor, she still could not get 35K pricing.
So she created a PNR booked into XN, and sent over to some department to get a pricing.
Don't know how long this will take.
It's just frustrating. I think it's intentional. UA doesn't want to allow us to book 35 XN award PVG-SFO.
Feb 2, 2023, 11:45 am
#112
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,412
Feb 2, 2023, 11:50 am
#113
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: BOS, PVG
Programs: United 1K and 1MM, Marriott Ambassador
Posts: 10,000
Often things like pushing PN upgrade at T-72 would need assistance from the China desk.
GS agent won't even be able to do it.
That desk has a lot of power. They just eliminated XN price but forgot to inform the RM to zero out XN.
My 2 cents
Feb 3, 2023, 12:29 pm
#114
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: YVR
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 975
Have an award schedule change. Website says I'm eligible for a free change +/- 1 day.
However, on the new change UI (while logged in), all searches say no flight available. On the old UI (not logged in) I see flight options but I'd have to pay more (although still XN). But this isn't even the option I wanted. The flight I wanted (UA operated) has no XN space - would I be able to call UA, get them open XN space on the flight I want, and do an even exchange?
However, on the new change UI (while logged in), all searches say no flight available. On the old UI (not logged in) I see flight options but I'd have to pay more (although still XN). But this isn't even the option I wanted. The flight I wanted (UA operated) has no XN space - would I be able to call UA, get them open XN space on the flight I want, and do an even exchange?
Feb 3, 2023, 12:32 pm
#115
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Aurora, CO
Programs: Statusless and proud
Posts: 7,582
Have an award schedule change. Website says I'm eligible for a free change +/- 1 day.
However, on the new change UI (while logged in), all searches say no flight available. On the old UI (not logged in) I see flight options but I'd have to pay more (although still XN). But this isn't even the option I wanted. The flight I wanted (UA operated) has no XN space - would I be able to call UA, get them open XN space on the flight I want, and do an even exchange?
However, on the new change UI (while logged in), all searches say no flight available. On the old UI (not logged in) I see flight options but I'd have to pay more (although still XN). But this isn't even the option I wanted. The flight I wanted (UA operated) has no XN space - would I be able to call UA, get them open XN space on the flight I want, and do an even exchange?
Feb 5, 2023, 6:31 pm
#116
Join Date: Mar 2014
Posts: 17
can I re-use booked segment when changing a partner award issued by UA ? flying JFK-TPE-HKG, there is no current availability in JFK-TPE anymore, and I'd like to keep first segment and change destination of second leg (award space available). Is it possible via agent? Called and agent said it requires first leg to be available too for them to reprice the whole itinerary. Any workaround? (I recall I did it once last year with an all-UA award, but not sure if it's different when involving partner airline)
Feb 5, 2023, 6:34 pm
#117
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,412
can I re-use booked segment when changing a partner award issued by UA ? flying JFK-TPE-HKG, there is no current availability in JFK-TPE anymore, and I'd like to keep first segment and change destination of second leg (award space available). Is it possible via agent? Called and agent said it requires first leg to be available too for them to reprice the whole itinerary. Any workaround? (I recall I did it once last year with an all-UA award, but not sure if it's different when involving partner airline)
Feb 6, 2023, 1:48 pm
#118
Join Date: Nov 2011
Posts: 238
Hi Everyone,
I haven't booked many UA awards in the past but I wasn't able to find this answer quickly - even though it might be somewhat obvious for this group.
I am wanting to book 2 First seats on a particular route. This route has plenty of seats available. When I search flights for 1 ticket - the route I want shows the particular flight with a cost of 74,000 miles. When I do that same search for 2 tickets I see 82,200 miles. Why is it charging me 8,200 additional miles per ticket for the exact same thing? Is it worth the risk to just buy 2 tickets independently? Very bizarre.
I haven't booked many UA awards in the past but I wasn't able to find this answer quickly - even though it might be somewhat obvious for this group.
I am wanting to book 2 First seats on a particular route. This route has plenty of seats available. When I search flights for 1 ticket - the route I want shows the particular flight with a cost of 74,000 miles. When I do that same search for 2 tickets I see 82,200 miles. Why is it charging me 8,200 additional miles per ticket for the exact same thing? Is it worth the risk to just buy 2 tickets independently? Very bizarre.
Feb 6, 2023, 1:54 pm
#119
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Aurora, CO
Programs: Statusless and proud
Posts: 7,582
There are two possibilities:
A) They have one ticket on sale for 74K miles and another on sale for 82.2K miles. It's easier to charge the higher price.
B) They have one ticket on sale for 74K miles and another on sale for 90.4K miles. They are averaging the cost.
Either way, I would just call in to book this. You can explain the issues and they can set up both itineraries (for you and your companion) and then book them separately, but at the same time.
A) They have one ticket on sale for 74K miles and another on sale for 82.2K miles. It's easier to charge the higher price.
B) They have one ticket on sale for 74K miles and another on sale for 90.4K miles. They are averaging the cost.
Either way, I would just call in to book this. You can explain the issues and they can set up both itineraries (for you and your companion) and then book them separately, but at the same time.
Feb 6, 2023, 3:05 pm
#120
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SFO
Programs: UA Plat 1.995MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 66,855
There are two possibilities:
A) They have one ticket on sale for 74K miles and another on sale for 82.2K miles. It's easier to charge the higher price.
B) They have one ticket on sale for 74K miles and another on sale for 90.4K miles. They are averaging the cost.
Either way, I would just call in to book this. You can explain the issues and they can set up both itineraries (for you and your companion) and then book them separately, but at the same time.
A) They have one ticket on sale for 74K miles and another on sale for 82.2K miles. It's easier to charge the higher price.
B) They have one ticket on sale for 74K miles and another on sale for 90.4K miles. They are averaging the cost.
Either way, I would just call in to book this. You can explain the issues and they can set up both itineraries (for you and your companion) and then book them separately, but at the same time.
There is no averaging the prices although continuous pricing comes close to this.