RE:value of 1K
 

OK, I went and looked. I actually spent an extra $700 to qualify for 1K in 2006. And worth every penny.

As many have said the value of 1K is not necessarily in the SWU or the CR-1. It is in the little things that give those their value. It is the priority on the standby lists that comes into play. Case in point. On a recent flight from ORD to MSP I got into ORD and found that the earlier departure to MSP was delayed significantly and my original flight was also delayed about the same amount. I went to the gate an inquired about getting on the flight as a stand-by. The agent told me it wasn't likely as they were oversold. She put me on the waitlist. Right as boarding started I was called up and got a seat. Ok it was 7B, but it was a seat, and I got home at a decent hour instead of the much later hour that my original ended up getting in at.

So for me it is the ability to move my flights when there are iregular ops that gives me the most value for the 1K. The others are bonuses that I enjoy.

Heh heh, if that actually happens, I'll be there! :)

1K is worth it
 

While I enjoy the separate check-in/security lines, SWU's and bonus miles, I also agree with others that it's the "other" things that make 1K priceless.

When I was going to miss leg 3 of a 5 leg journey due to weather delays, the 1K desk moved heaven and earth -- and enlisted local help (at SFO) -- to get me and my non-elite travel partner to our destination with just a few hours delay. Very impressive.

Can't agree more with MSY-MSP:

So I underlined his key statement. If you are there enough years you are recognized personally by the UA officials with discretionary authority.
Impersonal UGS status won't give you any of that.

For example:
On our 60th birthday, my wife and I were OP U/G from E+ to F, R/T, on a three class airplane (777/747) - ORD-FRA. You figure how much is that worth?
I reported last week that I got a phone call from a station manager informimng me that my lost Day-Timer is waiting for me at the one of my two home airports. That is a little thing but recovering my phone numbers is invaluable.

Yestrday I called to rebook my flight, expecting full well to pay the customary fee.
It didn't happen. My tenure as 1K must been recognized. And my loyalty to UA is affirmed.

:-: Thank you United ! :-:

A definite thanks to those who actually answered the question. The purpose of this thread was not to hear "There's a bunch of intangible benefits...here's my great story." That's why I phrased the initial question the way that I did.

Maybe we could start another post called "The intangible benefits of 1K" for those entries. I'm hoping to keep this thread more focused on actual $$ values or people's opinions thereof.

Thanks! :)

I am on my way to becoming a 1k this year for the first time, I have been a Prem Exec for over 10 years. I travel mainly transcons BOS-LAX, The SWU's, and the CR1's are what I am looking for so I do not have to burn miles or pay for extra 500 milers. To upgrade one way BOS-LAX using 500 mile coupons (purchased) would cost $300 to buy them so could you say a CR1 and SWU's are worth 300 each?