Repooc17

I will probably do a half-a-day quick turn EWR-STL-EWR in December, or I may not have to do anything depending on work travels.

The tally will be clearer after November.

Thanks!

lvovsky

No, I'd rather pay ~$1,000 to buy PQM. I'll be 9600 pqd short of platinum at beginning of December. I may bring it down to 5100 pqd.

grnkirby

I made United Platinum for 2017 and with my current travel plans I'll be ~10K PQM and $800-$1,000 PQD short for 2018. I've already made Gold for 2018.

1. Is it worth going for Platinum? The key advantages I see are the 9X award miles and group 1 boarding.
2. If it's worth it, where should I go for the biggest bang for the buck? I'd be traveling around Christmas/NYE out of SFO.

Thanks,
Theresa

Boraxo

As noted above, I would not spend $1k for Plat (in 2015 I ended with 61k and did not do a MR) even though I value G1 boarding & the E+ at booking for my family.

If you could fly @ Thanksgiving we often see SFO-LHR-SFO in the $300-500 RT range, which would net you 10k EQM. But you would still fall short on PQD, unless you buy a higher fare class. With Xmas & Jan 1 on a Monday you might find some good fares as holiday travel will be spread out - often there are cheap SFO<->ORD and SFO<->East Coast fares in December as business travel tails off.

EmailKid

Now that your post has been moved, here is my thought:

IMHO, The only worthwhile benefits are:

Boarding in Group 1 instead of Group 2
2 RPUs
Free award reservation changes, cancellations, miles redeposits if 61 days or more before departure, otherwise $50

There is such pittance of miles awarded, that I don't really consier 8x v 9x a factor.

And most years I didn't even use RPUs except one year I flew to Hawaii and the two or three years I sponsored my brother.

Of course, YMMV.

asquare

One thing that I value about Platinum over Gold is the BG1. I often find myself in bulkhead row in the front of economy (or close to it) as connections are 1hr or less these days for the flights I typically take. Even mid to late in BG1, I never have an issue finding bag space close to my seat, whereas when I was BG2, I basically had to camp in line to be towards the beginning of BG2, and even then occasionally I would have no room in an overhead bin close by if I had the bulkhead seat. This difference has improved my life and stress in airports tremendously as it gives me more latitude to grab food or go to the bathroom before a flight even close to boarding time.

My upgrade rate is marginally better, but ironically, it means I'm just closer to the bubble meaning sometimes I end up feeling more disappointed, as opposed to when I was gold and had no hope! I've had some moderate luck with my RPUs, but as others noted, it is hit or miss on those as well.

grnkirby

Thanks for all the replies!

Theresa

ZBigFam

Hi there,
Have been a usual United Gold never really approached plat but at this point I am going to be within 13K miles and $400 of making premier platinum.

Couple of questions:
1. Would it be worth it to mileage run to get premier platinum? Are the benefits vs gold that much better?
2. Any recommendations on a mileage run route? Have never done it before, would appreciate your help.

Thanks everyone.

Z

UAL250

It's really up to you if you think it's worth it or not to get Plat. I personally would go for it, and do find Plat better than Gold by quite a bit, but it's also not like Plat is the most amazing thing ever. I think it really depends on how much you'll be flying next year and if you have free time for a mileage run or two.

As for the MR itself, we have a mileage run forum on this website that would be of better help. I would post: Need 13k miles, $400 PQD on UA/*A 016 ticket stock by end of year

Here is the link: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/mile...eeded-113.html

You will get good responses over there from people who love doing MRs and planning for them. I think your best bet personally is to try and find a cheap intl fare. 13k miles in one trip is doable, but will be in Y most likely and could be a quick turnaround. Google Flights is a good tool to use as well. You can browse the world map and there will be prices displayed for destinations on certain dates from your origin of travel.

Good luck.

ZBigFam

Thank you for your kind response. I will try and see if I can find a decent deal!

UAL250

No problem. Like I said, your best bet to find a good deal is to post in the UA/*A post in the MR forum I linked. Someone can find something good for you there.

While you wait for a response, I'd browse Google Flights or ITA Matrix.

goodeats21

Agree with above.

Also be sure to post where in the world you would like to start the MR. Different options and opportunities depending on where you fly out of...

BThumme

There was (still might be) lots of flights to SIN from all over the US, in the 400 pqd range and that's 13-15k miles.

jsloan

I’d offer a different perspective. I’ve been Silver, Gold, Platinum, and 1K, and with the most recent set of changes to the elite tiers — removing free award changes for Platinum — I don’t see $400+ worth of value in Platinum, especially if your usual travel patterns keep you closer to Gold, unless you frequently travel with several other people on your itinerary.

The benefits for Platinum vs. Gold are:

• Increased baggage allowance on UA itineraries (3 pcs @ 70 lbs vs 2)
• Economy Plus for 8 companions (vs 1)
• 2 RPUs
• Discounted (but not eliminated) award change fees
• Waived phone service charge
• 1 additional award mile per dollar spent
• Higher priority for upgrades

However, a lot of these benefits are notional. Unless you’ve routinely ended up first or second on the upgrade list, it’s unlikely that your upgrade percentage will change much. The RPUs can be used, but it’s difficult to find space that’s confirmable in advance, and the cases where they do clear are often the ones where you would have gotten a complimentary upgrade anyway. The baggage allowance is nice if you need it, but most people don’t; same with E+ access.

I’d say, if you’re going to reach it naturally, or with an extra, inexpensive weekend trip somewhere pleasant, then I’d go for it. But, unless you can make regular use of the definite benefits (extra E+ and luggage), I wouldn’t travel to Singapore in Economy just to reach Platinum.

ZBigFam

Wow...you have put a lot of food for thought into my mind now...

The Economy plus for 8...that does help as per my name my fam is quite large and would love to bump them up into E+

The upgrades...I live in the midwest so i do get the upgrades maybe 40-50% of the time...not sure if going plat helps that much.

And here I was about to book a 3 day run to Changi...hmm...