thejoyofgalavanting

Aloha!

First time in this forum and a newbie on UA, so please forgive if this is a easy question.

I have a trip next year on UA and I can see some upgrade options available. The first tab is paying with cash and those are straightforward.


The options under the Miles tab are what are really confusing me. From what I can understand, I can choose to be “waitlisted” for an upgrade to both flights for 35k + $450/person. I will only be charged the $450 if Polaris works out, otherwise just the 35k. However, it doesn’t really say that covers the IAD-HNL flight even though it’s checked.

Also (and this is my big question), what is the “waitlist”? Is this a waitlist from now until the flight leaves on Apr 29, 2023? If I pick this waitlist and then decide I’d rather pay the money, is that an option?

Thanks in advance!

jsloan

Welcome to FlyerTalk!

The Miles + Money upgrades will be charged up front and then refunded if they don’t clear. I assume you’re starting from across the Atlantic? If there are both Polaris-marketed and non-Polaris-marketed flights on your itinerary, and only the non-Polaris (IAD-HNL) clears, you’ll still get a full refund.

Yes, the waitlist is exactly that — a list of people who have used instruments to upgrade. It’s prioritized by status, so even though you may be at the top of the list now, expect that to change. In fact, your odds of clearing an upgrade from the list aren’t great, especially on IAD-HNL. (Your odds improve if a recession hits hard, if that makes you feel any better..)

You will probably need to cancel the Miles + Money upgrade before you’d be able to pay cash instead.

If you are considering buying UA miles (or transferring from another program), please think very carefully. You’re quite likely to end up with orphaned UA miles and a flight in economy.

WineCountryUA

Assume you are not doing a "stop", all connecting flights are included in a single request. If any segment clears, the upgrade fee (miles+copay) will be charged. The one exception is if one flight is Polaris marketed, if that flight does not clear, then the entire mileage+copay will be refunded. Any other cleared segment will stay upgraded.
If you have Polaris market segment (IAD-HNL is not Polaris market), it is safe to include all segments, otherwise you may only want to waitlist for the long segment.

While sometimes upgrade requests will clear on application, if not you will be put on a waitlist which is sorted by status, fare class and other factors. When UA decides to release upgrade space, those on top of the waitlist will be clear, Any unsold seats at departure will be filled from the waitlist. You can clear any time and as lste as a few minutes before departure or never.

Yes but ... you will need to call to make the change and there is no guarantee on the future price or even if available.

Clearing upgrades are not guaranteed especially for a low or no status flyer. Some routes are harder than others. IAD-HNL is not an easy upgrade

All cash upgrades are conformed upgrades and do not waitlist, if you really want the upgrade, for a low status passenger they may be a better choice if not more expensive.

thejoyofgalavanting

Thanks so much for the quick reply!

Yes, my flight route is AMM-IAD-HNL-ITO. Right now I have the option for: $2,693/person Polaris or $550/person PP on the AMM-IAD flight and $650/person First on the IAD-HNL flight. I am trying to figure out if I should just pay for an upgrade or do that deal for the 35k + $450/person and see what happens?

Is there a chance that an upgrade would clear in the near term, or do all waitlist upgrades hold until the check-in window?

Thanks again!

jsloan

Yes, there’s a chance that an upgrade would clear in the near term, if UA thinks it won’t be able to sell all of the seats. The AMM-IAD flight is probably more likely to clear; IAD-HNL is likely to sell every seat.

In your case, I’d be inclined to wait and see if the upgrade prices drop. I’d also watch to see if the ‘waitlist’ notation goes away on one of the legs, which would happen if upgrade inventory opens. In that case, the miles + copay award would become an excellent value.

findark

I would also monitor the price of changing the ticket to Business in its entirety, as with two very long segments this is likely to be cost-effective compared to any per-segment fee upgrades and the odds of getting both segments to clear without status on an instrument upgrade are slim at best.

tattikat2

Hello,

Question about paid seat selection.

If I pay for a seat selection and then take advantage of a free date change due to a schedule change, will my paid seat selection "follow me" to my new date?

Thanks for any replies

findark

Generally no.

The seat selection fee will be refunded, and you can choose to pay again for a new seat selection. The refund process could be a little clunky.

tattikat2

Thank you Findark for your reply. Much appreciated

angetenar

Do you need to pay using the Explorer card to get group 2 boarding, or do you get group 2 boarding just by having the card?

Kacee

Just for being a cardholder. Free checked bag is the key benefit that requires ticket be purchased with the Explorer.

CMH500

Quick question: Is there a priority difference between a Plus Points waitlisted upgrade and an MUA waitlisted upgrade for an international flight on UA metal when booked into premium economy as a 1k? Thanks

Repooc17

No differences.

flyingcrooked

I’m an Air Canada Aeroplan member, and I always hear it’s nearly impossible to book reward flights on UA except a few days in advance. Tonight I happened to notice tons of J reward options from Montreal to London over the next month, flying the Boston. The TATL is UA. Is this a glitch or what’s the explanation for the widespread availability?

jsloan

It’s December, and the BOS-LHR route is still relatively new and disconnected from most UA traffic. (BOS isn’t a UA hub). I doubt this is a glitch; it’s UA admitting they won’t sell those seats.