Using Plus Points as a Platinum
 

I've been gold for many years, and this year I have the opportunity to move up to Platinum if I book an unnecessary segment on my last flight of the year. The cost would be ~$150 plus the connection hassle. I rarely travel with more than one companion or bag, domestic upgrades are a joke for even 1Ks on my common routes, and I already have a lounge membership thru my credit card. So the only benefit I'm really seeing is the 40 plus points. On the surface, those seem valuable and worth the mentioned hassle... curious if others think so.

I see that GS/1K have a skip the waitlist option, and I'm having a hard time understanding if there is ever a circumstance where a Platinum can book themselves directly into Polaris with plus points. If I'm flexible on dates, and basically searching for ORD-Europe, am I ever going to find a Polaris seat I can just book, or is it always waitlist and pray? My only personal experience is being gifted plus points from a GS friend, and he cleared them instantly for me, but I'm not expecting Plats to have the same experience.

I think I'm good company here when I say I'm not going to fly over an ocean in the back, so I'm not willing to take a waitlist option. Only having 40 plus points means I'll also have to subject myself to expensive one way fares to make sure I'm the front *both* ways. I guess I could also try to use them on a longer domestic routes, but meh, and seems its still hard to clear them...

Thoughts? Any current Platinums have success stories?

one more segment ... you can also use SDC to generate that for free rather than buying it for $150.

+Ps can be valuable and you can check the +P clearance thread for that. Finding immediately confirmable options is very difficult (but not impossible) today.

The bigger benefit of Platinum may be the access to IN inventory. IN continues to be >> I on many routes. If you use your miles for UA Polaris awards, then Platinum can make a significant difference.

Ha I guess I was asking the wrong question, and the right one was what Platinum benefits am I not considering. I can and do use miles for Polaris awards. The change this year to allow PQP earning on those is actually why I'm able to make Platinum. Usually I'm about there on segments, but ~$2k short on spend, so it's never even consideration to go for it.

Thanks for the education, and tip on SDC which I hadn't thought of.

Yes, you can still occasionally find PZ space with enough searching. You may need to be willing to connect, however.

UA will happily sell you J in one direction and Y in the other, thus allowing you to upgrade. Note that as a Platinum, you’ll need to purchase a W fare or higher, or any Premium Plus fare; upgrades from fares below W cost 80 PP. You also have the option to use them on LH, which requires a slightly higher fare class but clears frequently.

You can also use miles + copay to upgrade in one direction and PlusPoints in the other, if you find PZ open in both directions.

There’s no reason to resort to one-way fares if they’re expensive (as international one-way fares often, but not always, are).

I was able to use my PlusPoints this year, but it required some work/flexibility -- flew into LHR instead of EDI to take advantage of likely PZ inventory, did a bunch of monitoring to move my flight around when it popped and just incorporated a day in London and a stop in Manchester into my trip. I don't think I would have been able to use them if I just followed my normal pattern of booking the best time/price flights.

That said, it was pretty worth to pay economy and get a Polaris seat on a redeye to Europe, so I feel pretty good about it. I usually end up happy with my E+ seat on the way back from Europe since I tend to take morning flights back and can often snag the first row of E+ in a 2 on the 767-300ER.

I have been Plat since Dec 2019 and in used my 40PP for Polaris to LHR (cleared at booking) in early 2020. I got extensions in 2021+22 so didn't get additional PPs. Qualified again in 2022 and used my PP domestically this year for a lie-flat transcon (cleared at T-24) and also surprise upgraded Ms Vandelay (no status). I would say all that is worth an extra segment.

I think the main consideration is whether your travel is flexible enough that you can book routes or days or times where an upgrade is more likely. And the need to do some light monitoring to give yourself a good chance. I think if you are willing/able to do that, then PP remains valuable. You can get $2K+ value from a leg in Polaris.