gfowler-ord-1k

Did you try to select "Systemwide-Region 2" (SWU) from the "Upgrade Eligibility" drop down menu? This sometimes works but sometimes it picks a fare bases larger the the minimum necessary for an SWU.
Do you have any details of which type of memberships the double miles applies to? I have a $165 first year one and I have yet to receive any extra miles for flights.

gfowler-ord-1k

I plugged in the dates of July 9 and 17 SFO-SYD with Systemwide-Region 2" selected.

I was a bit surprised when I got the following, exactly like it should work.

Firewind

gfowler: Just out of curiosity, did you check what the SW zone fare would have been? If so, what would it have been? And, maybe I missed this permutation, but are SWUs applicable on the zone fares? You don't need to answer as I'm being blatantly lazy here...

gfowler-ord-1k

The off peak (July 24, 2006 - Sep 21, 2006) zone fare for SFO-SYD is $1150+taxes(fees?). Shoulder season (Jun 9, 2006 - Jul 23, 2006) is $1350. I bet they add a fuel surcharge. All this would add about $265 more. Add in a $70 weekend charge. I don't see any bargain here when it can be booked online for $1074.38 all in or $1324.38 all in for and upgradeable.
I have no idea what fare bucket SW uses. It needs to be W or higher for an international (region 2) SWU upgrade. In post 15 of this thread RTWFF said he booked a W throught SW and upgraded with an SWU.

Firewind

Thank you! Seems to me this is the pattern across the board, comparing SW zone fares vis a vis lowest fare available. Upgradeability of zone fares in various markets remains an open question to me. I just hadn't tested these things in the Asian market. (Apologies again for laziness here.) What a nice side door they would be vs. having to pay the extra couple of hundred for a W or above to use the "free" SWU. (Pet peeve creeping in here...)

And I just hadn't gotten the relationship between RTWFF's W and the zone fare, or if they were one and the same in this case. I would bet that SW program managers mostly target another market segment - who don't have all these pesky SWUs, CR-1s and 500s to deal with - while more and more FTs are now getting into it. But that just may be a FNG's perspective. Thanks again.

gfowler-ord-1k

It seems to me they are marketing to non travel savey people who think they are getting simplicity and a bargain with the zone fares. There are probably some cases where SW zone fares will be cheaper, but I have yet to find one.

I signed up for $165 SW for the 10K miles and the $300 travel credit. I see nothing that will cause to renew my membership next year.

Firewind

Exactly. Hence, the one place they go against the tide by driving customers to transact with a person. Well, I guess we're all going to be old some day (irony intended here).

Firewind

RTWFF, did "W"=Zone Fare in your case? Maybe I missed it. Old age creeping in here...

itsme

Would you please explain what you were referring to with "double miles up to a lifetime ceiling." One of the sign-up offers included not only the substantial initial bonus miles and credits ($), but also the prospect of "double miles." I believe I receive the full measure of "double miles" after flying 3 transcons, making it all a very good deal for me. I am not sure about the "future" or "lifetime ceilings," that is what would or wouldn't come with re-enrollment.

Amaran

I hope I'm in the right forum with this question... But I've just been reading throught the website of Silver Wings Plus as it might be interesting for my parents.
Can anyone tell me if it is worth the annual fee? How exactly does this work? As far as I understood you have to pay 240 $ per year to be Preferred Member and for that you get 300 $ in travel credits you can use for flights and hotel stays? And is it also available for Europeans?

Maybe some of you have experience with this program

hiyo

Welcome to Flyertalk.

If you use the Search function, you will find numerous threads on this topic: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/searc...searchid=19620

rfrost

I recently joined on a special offer (I think it was $200). I haven't yet found a zone fare available or cheap enough for flights I wanted, but I did use one of my $100 off certs. Although I understand it's possible to have SW send you an electronic cert so you can book online, I had them do the booking on the phone as I thought it would be simpler. It was for a transcon, and I'd confirmed upgrade availbility with them before purchasing. But it turned out they couldn't do the upgrade themselves, so I had to make another call and then spoke with a moron (I think they may not thave transfered me to the 1K desk, which I'd requested) who claimed I couldn't upgrade off that fare and didn't have a clue what a CR-1 was. I insisted on speaking with a supervisor who straightened it out, but it was a bit of a hassle. To be fair, though, SW found me a very cheap fare I didn't see online, so I saved quite a bit of money.
I hope next time is easier, but on a pure mathematical basis, I think it's worth it as long as you're planning to fly UA.

harryhv

In Feb I joined just to get the (then) enrolment bonus of 10k miles. Paid $220 and received, and have since used, $300 of discount certificates for bookings on .bomb.

Am very happy with Silverwings now I understand which parts of their offering are rubbish. The flat-rate Zone fares, for example, only work on Tuesdays & Wednesdays and don't include tax.

There's also talk of double mileage but none has yet appeared in my account. [Edited: they did after 6 months, the full 12,500 which is the lifetime maximum for SW so no more double miles ever for me.]

Still, paying $220 annually for $300 of coupons seems a reasonable deal.

powlan

"Preferred members of Silver Wings Plus earn double miles on qualifying United, United Express® and TedSM flights, up to a lifetime maximum benefit of 12,500 bonus miles. Simply book your reservations through the Silver Wings Plus Travel Center."

So it looks like the double bonus miles are only earned if you book through SW, not online?

powlan

"To redeem your travel credits, book discounted fares, and to earn double miles, be sure to make all your booking arrangements through the Silver Wings Plus Travel Center at 1-800-720-1765."
The double miles applies to the "Premier" membership which is now $240/year