Indurain

Just found out I'll be heading out to Korea next week. It seems odd that there are almost no available seats (business class) to SEL on 9/23-25, and NONE on UA (LAX, SFO, ORD)! I checked UA's web site, the Connections software, Travelocity, Expedia, ITN. Can anyone shed some light on why its so popular right now?

seawolf

Just checked UAL's page. There are eight first and three business class seats on UA883 from NRT to SEL on the 23rd.

It doesn't matter whether you are searching from LAX, SFO, or ORD. The full flight is NRT-SEL and not the transpacific sector. UA883 is booked full on the 24 and 25.

Indurain

Thanks Seawolf! It didn't ocurr to me to check the NRT - SEL leg... Looks like UA883 is their only flight, and it gets there too late for my connection. Can't believe that route has such a high load factor! Is it still tourist season?

Oh well, I guess they'll book me on Asiana, or (gack!) Northwest.

flingo

You could always fly to NRT on United and take Asiana from there. With a business ticket, I think the price should be the same.

Indurain

Thanks for the suggestion Flingo. It won't hurt to make the request. I told the office manager its for my miles, and she just chuckled like I'm a wacko. If only she knew how many of us are out there...

doc

Everybody cut back due to the Asian flu and the resulting econimic slowdown- and then Korean Air HAD to cut back due to its own problems (take off, landing and the flight in between). Having said that, I do hope they work out their difficulties efcectively and soon.

Indurain

Its official, there are no seats available for UA 9/24 LAX - SEL and returning on 10/1, according to Carlson. I thought I'd concentrate on the return since its more flexible, and here's the strange part. UA web says 7 seats remain in BC on UA883, but Premier reservations couldn't find ANY seats, then later found 1, yet Carlson still couldn't find any. My company only books through Carlson, so I'm out of luck.

They ended up booking me on Asiana and NW...

Any advice? I've got some miles left on NW, but I've not flown them in a few years. OZ will get me miles on AA, but I'm concentrating on UA these days. Should I just settle, or should I remain hopeful that some seats will miraculously open up?

seawolf

Yup. Couldn't find anything on 9/25 NRT-SEL. There are some seats on 9/24. Return is packed. Even tried the All Nippon (NH)codeshare (which is the same flight as 883). If you want UA, you could do UA LAX-NRT and then OZ NRT-SEL. If UA transpacific is full, you could try NH LAX-NRT. You won't get any elite bonus, but you do get base miles, but you'll be better off than NW in the first place.

Indurain

Thanks again Seawolf, if you're ever in LA, the beer's on me! I think you know more about this than our agent at Carlson! It just amazes me they can't find any flights. Perhaps its higher priced than the NW flights. Anyway, I'm going to change the return on UA. Once all is set, I'll post the itinerary.

Whew, this has been quite an excercise, I'm tired already, and the trip is still a week away!

Counsellor

It seems to me quite often they overbook that leg (NRT-SEL). Perhaps your travel agent could check with United and get you added as one of the "overbooks"?

(If you're elite status with Mileage Plus, e.g., Premier Executive or 1K, it might pay for your travel agent to mention this fact to United as well.)

[This message has been edited by Counsellor (edited 09-18-1999).]

Indurain

I spoke to a Premier reservations agent and he suspects the flights are indeed overbooked. I immediately thought "volunteer!" but then remembered that I'll be in business class and they probably won't bump me. I'm Premier vanilla, but its still worth trying to get on the list.

The problem I have is that I need to go through the office manager for the booking, and I'm not sure they're trying to get me on UA very hard. The outbound NW is also full, and I'm waitlisted there because another member of the group prefers NW. I'm rather new to the company and am not too familiar with things so I didn't want to throw any weight around as I'm sure it'll be thrown right back at me.

I just hate these last minute trips.

freeflyer

Indurain, you picked a great time to go to Seoul! The weekend of Sept. 24 is Chusok, the most important holiday of the year in Korea. It is sometimes refered to as Korean Thanksgiving, but it is as important to Koreans as Christmas is to Westerners. Please be prepared for major traffic disruptions as the whole country will be on the move that weekend! (think SUBWAY... easiest way to get from the airport, anyway).

With respect to air travel, planes in and out of Korea have been full of tourists all summer long due to the recent (real or perceived) improvements in the Korean economy. BTW, in addition to SEL-NRT, UA does have a flight from Osaka to Seoul, a codeshare on ANA. Also, Air Canada has an evening flight from Seoul to Vancouver twice a week, last time I checked. And Thai also has daily flight from LAX to Osaka.

Good luck and enjoy your stay in Seoul!

seawolf

Indurain,

My company uses Carlson as well. I usually don't talk to them about what is available and what is not. When I need a ticket I do the research on the internet and then call Carlson and tell them to book me on flight xxx and that's it.

seawolf

As freeflyer suggested, you can always connect thru KIX. However, don't ask me why, but UA scheduled KIX-SEL such that you need to stay a night in Osaka on your way to Korea. The scheduling on the return is fine.

here's something unusual. When I search 10/1 SEL-NRT, UA responded with a full flight. However, when I search 10/1 SEL-LAX, a couple of business seats magically showed up on the supposely full SEL-NRT segment. So I guess some seats on SEL-NRT are allocated for those travelling beyond NRT.

Indurain

Freeflyer, I was told about a major holiday on that weekend, that's why the company sent us on the 24th, so we can start working with the customer on the 26th (yes that's a SUNDAY). We're actually going to Taegu, so we'll be connecting through SEL. I was also told that this is their fall season, and there is actually foliage and the weather becomes much more mild. Just hope I'll get to see some of that - the others that have gone before are trying to scare me with 9am to 12am work day horror stories.

Seawolf, I saw the same thing as you did. The SEL - NRT was full, yet there are seats on SEL - LAX. Not that I'm complaining, but it does cause some undue stress if I'm not looking for the right thing. Thanks for the heads up on KIX, that's the newer airport on water, right? It'll be cool to come back via that one, since it'll be another new airport for me. One of my life goals is to go through as many airports as I can. I've heard their landing fees are way high, does that affect the airfare?