Feb 9, 2019, 8:39 pm
Last edit by: WineCountryUA
This is an archive thread, the active thread is
[Consolidated] Chance of upgrade clearing on my flight
Related thread - Understanding the United Upgrade List Comprehensively
[Consolidated] Chance of upgrade clearing on my flight
Related thread - Understanding the United Upgrade List Comprehensively
[Consolidated] Chance of upgrade clearing on my flight {Archive}
Aug 28, 2018, 1:12 pm
#3076
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: MSP
Programs: DL PM, UA Gold, WN, Global Entry; +others wherever miles/points are found
Posts: 14,410
IME, it's rare to find R space on NRT-IAH. When I've looked, the availability is, more-or-less in order, NRT-GUM, NRT-LAX, NRT-DEN, KIX-SFO, HND-SFO, NRT-ORD, NRT-SFO, NRT-IAD, NRT-IAH, NRT-EWR, NRT-HNL. (Admittedly, I don't always check NRT-HNL, because R space ex-HNL is so hard to find).
What is the general consensus on the best days to fly to Europe to get R space? Wednesday? Tuesday? I'm looking to fly to Europe in Sep or Oct and am looking for R space for the night flight over. I am willing to go where the R space is in Europe, and I want to confirm the upgrade at booking. Any routes that are better than others? I'm willing to fly from IAD or DCA to EWR, ORD, or even IAH for a better chance. Thanks in advance. I'm looking very hard but can't find much. I guess it hasn't opened yet.
Aug 28, 2018, 2:53 pm
#3077
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 56,450
I have better luck finding P fares to Asia than to Europe. For Asia, if I find anything below $4,000, I purchase Polaris Business outright. For Europe, I have not been able to determine yet the number where I should purchase Polaris Business outright but with prices at $7,000 when I need to travel there it's not going to happen. I need advice of what you would consider a good price for Polaris Business to Europe. Thank you!
September is brutal. Trade fairs.
Aug 28, 2018, 3:07 pm
#3078
Join Date: Nov 2012
Programs: BA Bronze, United 1K, HH Gold, SPG Platinum, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 3,477
Well it varies by location. Ex-SFO, we've had discount fares to some combination of BUD, MXP, and BEG (all of which are currently off), ranging from $2800-3600, for much of the past two years. Though right now, it's pretty tough to find anything under $4 or $5k, which is generally above my pain threshold.
Aug 28, 2018, 3:07 pm
#3079
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: In between IAD and DCA
Programs: UA Plat 1.1MM , Marriott Gold Elite, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 2,262
For Europe, I usually have good luck upgrading on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. When I book my tickets, I never find R space but always end up clearing on the ORD-MUC and MUC-ORD. Sometimes, the R space opens 2 months before my flight, sometimes 1 month before, sometimes 4 days before, sometimes at check-in and sometimes when I'm already sitting in the plane.
I know another FTer who always seems to have good luck with the upgrade clearing on routes to LHR.
The problem is if you wait for R to open to purchase your ticket, you might miss it when you plan to fly in the next two months.
I know another FTer who always seems to have good luck with the upgrade clearing on routes to LHR.
The problem is if you wait for R to open to purchase your ticket, you might miss it when you plan to fly in the next two months.
Huh, the one (and only, I admit) time I checked on NRT-HNL, it was over by at least 30 in the back and nearly into double op-up territory (fewer paid J than blocked F from the Y oversale). ymmv, I guess
Tuesday or Wednesday, via ORD or IAD (in that order). September is a very tough month because it's when everyone gets back to work after the holiday period; if you can stretch into the second half of October you will get much better odds (but a colder, dimmer Europe).
Tuesday or Wednesday, via ORD or IAD (in that order). September is a very tough month because it's when everyone gets back to work after the holiday period; if you can stretch into the second half of October you will get much better odds (but a colder, dimmer Europe).
Aug 28, 2018, 4:48 pm
#3080
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: MSP
Programs: DL PM, UA Gold, WN, Global Entry; +others wherever miles/points are found
Posts: 14,410
Well it varies by location. Ex-SFO, we've had discount fares to some combination of BUD, MXP, and BEG (all of which are currently off), ranging from $2800-3600, for much of the past two years. Though right now, it's pretty tough to find anything under $4 or $5k, which is generally above my pain threshold.
LHR is $2,500 right now, but with the 180-day AP it's not the business travel savior that the eastern European fares were.
Aug 28, 2018, 7:59 pm
#3081
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Programs: UA 1K 1MMer & LT UC (when flying UA); Hyatt Credit Cardist; HHonors Diamond; Marriott Gold via UA 1K
Posts: 6,956
Aug 28, 2018, 8:13 pm
#3082
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: NYC
Programs: Marriot LT Titanium/Hertz PC/UA 1MM 1K
Posts: 131
EWR - NRT 9/8 with GPU’s
Well been following this flight for abt a month and a half now for my Gs 1mm comped gf and I since I wanted to get to Japan days ahead of the flight we were previously booked which had PN and instant Polaris access. The 9/8 was wide open at the time and figured I’d roll the dice. Well it’s gone from 30+ J open to 25, 24,20 and now 14 just in abt a week. Ugh. Sure its still probable but a sat nrt flight goes full? I’ll be looking at t-72 but if the trend is my friend here I might not even get to do that!
We are supposedly #1 and #2 on the list but just heard today from the GS desk of a rev Y Gs comes in with a gpu you’re trumped. Were XN waiting for PN I’m 2
gpus.
Think we can do it?? Ugh.... grrr.
We are supposedly #1 and #2 on the list but just heard today from the GS desk of a rev Y Gs comes in with a gpu you’re trumped. Were XN waiting for PN I’m 2
gpus.
Think we can do it?? Ugh.... grrr.
Aug 28, 2018, 9:02 pm
#3083
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: 66,842
Aug 28, 2018, 9:11 pm
#3084
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 56,450
Aug 28, 2018, 11:28 pm
#3085
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,395
Inventory on your flight is J9 C2 D0. That's a strong indication that UA believes it can sell the rest of the business inventory. It makes some sense, too; you're likely to get slightly more business travel than average that week, because some percentage of trips that otherwise would have been the previous week will get pushed back due to the holiday.
Also, I'm afraid you're committing a classic blunder. (Not quite as bad as getting involved in a land war in Asia, or going in against a Sicilian when death is on the line, but...) The seat map isn't a reliable indicator of load. Your flight's status page indicates that 50 seats are currently booked (look at the upgrade tab).
Aug 29, 2018, 12:17 pm
#3086
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: In between IAD and DCA
Programs: UA Plat 1.1MM , Marriott Gold Elite, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 2,262
IAD-BRU and IAD-GVA have R space on Oct 11 and I believe Oct 18 too if anyone is looking for IAD-Europe R space. Can go anywhere from those two places in Europe due to SN and LX.
Aug 29, 2018, 1:23 pm
#3087
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: San Francisco, CA
Posts: 17
Question about upgrades from a waitlist
Longtime lurker, first time (in 5 years) poster, heh. Forgive me if I'm failing to follow proper question etiquette, but I feel like I did all the research I could but haven't found a clear answer.
I'm flying from SF to Hong Kong on a polaris business class (Z) ticket (on a 77W). I have UA Silver and am paying the full fare to hit the PQD requirement to get UA Silver again for next year.
My girlfriend is also traveling with me, and I booked her ticket in economy and put her on the waitlist for a miles + copay upgrade to business class.
Before anyone calls me out on it - she's more than happy sitting in an economy seat for 12 hours, whereas for reasons not worth getting into, I'm not.
It's out of our budget to buy two full-fare business class tickets (we're using miles to fly business back on Singapore Air)
Any ideas as to how likely it'll be that she can get upgraded? We're flying mid-week. ExpertFlyer seems to show 9 seats in both C and J fare classes - are those eligible to be upgraded into? Or is only I class eligible to be upgraded into? I have no idea how upgrades work...
Thanks in advance!
I'm flying from SF to Hong Kong on a polaris business class (Z) ticket (on a 77W). I have UA Silver and am paying the full fare to hit the PQD requirement to get UA Silver again for next year.
My girlfriend is also traveling with me, and I booked her ticket in economy and put her on the waitlist for a miles + copay upgrade to business class.
Before anyone calls me out on it - she's more than happy sitting in an economy seat for 12 hours, whereas for reasons not worth getting into, I'm not.
It's out of our budget to buy two full-fare business class tickets (we're using miles to fly business back on Singapore Air)
Any ideas as to how likely it'll be that she can get upgraded? We're flying mid-week. ExpertFlyer seems to show 9 seats in both C and J fare classes - are those eligible to be upgraded into? Or is only I class eligible to be upgraded into? I have no idea how upgrades work...
Thanks in advance!
Aug 29, 2018, 1:30 pm
#3088
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: San Francisco, CA (SFO)
Programs: UA 1K, UA .53 MM, Marriott Gold, Nexus, GE, TSA Pre, Hertz PC
Posts: 581
Longtime lurker, first time (in 5 years) poster, heh. Forgive me if I'm failing to follow proper question etiquette, but I feel like I did all the research I could but haven't found a clear answer.
I'm flying from SF to Hong Kong on a polaris business class (Z) ticket (on a 77W). I have UA Silver and am paying the full fare to hit the PQD requirement to get UA Silver again for next year.
My girlfriend is also traveling with me, and I booked her ticket in economy and put her on the waitlist for a miles + copay upgrade to business class.
Before anyone calls me out on it - she's more than happy sitting in an economy seat for 12 hours, whereas for reasons not worth getting into, I'm not.
It's out of our budget to buy two full-fare business class tickets (we're using miles to fly business back on Singapore Air)
Any ideas as to how likely it'll be that she can get upgraded? We're flying mid-week. ExpertFlyer seems to show 9 seats in both C and J fare classes - are those eligible to be upgraded into? Or is only I class eligible to be upgraded into? I have no idea how upgrades work...
Thanks in advance!
I'm flying from SF to Hong Kong on a polaris business class (Z) ticket (on a 77W). I have UA Silver and am paying the full fare to hit the PQD requirement to get UA Silver again for next year.
My girlfriend is also traveling with me, and I booked her ticket in economy and put her on the waitlist for a miles + copay upgrade to business class.
Before anyone calls me out on it - she's more than happy sitting in an economy seat for 12 hours, whereas for reasons not worth getting into, I'm not.
It's out of our budget to buy two full-fare business class tickets (we're using miles to fly business back on Singapore Air)
Any ideas as to how likely it'll be that she can get upgraded? We're flying mid-week. ExpertFlyer seems to show 9 seats in both C and J fare classes - are those eligible to be upgraded into? Or is only I class eligible to be upgraded into? I have no idea how upgrades work...
Thanks in advance!
Aug 29, 2018, 1:49 pm
#3089
Join Date: Nov 2012
Programs: BA Bronze, United 1K, HH Gold, SPG Platinum, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 3,477
Longtime lurker, first time (in 5 years) poster, heh. Forgive me if I'm failing to follow proper question etiquette, but I feel like I did all the research I could but haven't found a clear answer.
I'm flying from SF to Hong Kong on a polaris business class (Z) ticket (on a 77W). I have UA Silver and am paying the full fare to hit the PQD requirement to get UA Silver again for next year.
My girlfriend is also traveling with me, and I booked her ticket in economy and put her on the waitlist for a miles + copay upgrade to business class.
Before anyone calls me out on it - she's more than happy sitting in an economy seat for 12 hours, whereas for reasons not worth getting into, I'm not.
It's out of our budget to buy two full-fare business class tickets (we're using miles to fly business back on Singapore Air)
Any ideas as to how likely it'll be that she can get upgraded? We're flying mid-week. ExpertFlyer seems to show 9 seats in both C and J fare classes - are those eligible to be upgraded into? Or is only I class eligible to be upgraded into? I have no idea how upgrades work...
Thanks in advance!
I'm flying from SF to Hong Kong on a polaris business class (Z) ticket (on a 77W). I have UA Silver and am paying the full fare to hit the PQD requirement to get UA Silver again for next year.
My girlfriend is also traveling with me, and I booked her ticket in economy and put her on the waitlist for a miles + copay upgrade to business class.
Before anyone calls me out on it - she's more than happy sitting in an economy seat for 12 hours, whereas for reasons not worth getting into, I'm not.
It's out of our budget to buy two full-fare business class tickets (we're using miles to fly business back on Singapore Air)
Any ideas as to how likely it'll be that she can get upgraded? We're flying mid-week. ExpertFlyer seems to show 9 seats in both C and J fare classes - are those eligible to be upgraded into? Or is only I class eligible to be upgraded into? I have no idea how upgrades work...
Thanks in advance!
What you need to do at this point, is to make sure she has a seat that she will comfortable flying in: if she prefers window, window, if she prefers aisle, aisle. If she prefers aisle, the center group is best as there will be only one passenger trying to get out. I usually manage to get a bulkhead and then it's very comfortable. If all bulkheads are booked now, keep checking as some seats get empty when their occupants get upgraded. I don't know if she qualifies for an E+ seat but if she does not, pay for it. If her upgrade clears, that cost will be reimbursed. E+ is way more comfortable than E.
Aug 29, 2018, 2:18 pm
#3090
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: San Francisco, CA
Posts: 17
For the upgrade to happen, UA needs to open the R fare. At this point for your flight, you can use the expert mode on UA and see if there is PN=1 or PN>1. If PN is way bigger than 1, there are chances that they will open R. But if your girlfriend has no status, she will be at the bottom of the waitlisted upgrade list, just above the NonRevs.
What you need to do at this point, is to make sure she has a seat that she will comfortable flying in: if she prefers window, window, if she prefers aisle, aisle. If she prefers aisle, the center group is best as there will be only one passenger trying to get out. I usually manage to get a bulkhead and then it's very comfortable. If all bulkheads are booked now, keep checking as some seats get empty when their occupants get upgraded. I don't know if she qualifies for an E+ seat but if she does not, pay for it. If her upgrade clears, that cost will be reimbursed. E+ is way more comfortable than E.
What you need to do at this point, is to make sure she has a seat that she will comfortable flying in: if she prefers window, window, if she prefers aisle, aisle. If she prefers aisle, the center group is best as there will be only one passenger trying to get out. I usually manage to get a bulkhead and then it's very comfortable. If all bulkheads are booked now, keep checking as some seats get empty when their occupants get upgraded. I don't know if she qualifies for an E+ seat but if she does not, pay for it. If her upgrade clears, that cost will be reimbursed. E+ is way more comfortable than E.
Right now PN and R are both at 0, but our flight isn't until October