flyersfo

I'm new to the US upgrade system.

I'm trying to get upgrades -- using DM miles and money -- on flights from the U.S. to Europe. I am NOT an elite member on US (but I am a Gold member on Star Alliiance).

Business seats are still being sold, but there is no upgrade space for the moment.

1) Do I really have to keep calling in to try to do this? Is there a strategy to how and when to make the calls?

2) Is it correct that you can upgrade from any fare bucket?

3) Even if I am upgraded (using my DM miles), can I earn miles in my other Star Alliance program?

Thanks.

ryans18

1) yes. It is silly, but you have to keep calling. I call once a week until 60 days out, then twice a week until 40 days out, then daily.

2) yes. $300 + 30,000 miles per direction per person.

3) you will still earn miles, but no F bonuses.

Nikolaos

Consider upgrading the day of your departure for 200-300$ more and saving the 30K miles!!

I know that miles+cash will give you peace of mind, but the redemption value for your miles is very very low (plus you wont have to keep calling)!!

flyersfo

Thanks. Does it often happen that they offer paid upgrades on the European flights the day of departure?

flyersfo

Sorry for the duplicate.

Does it often happen that US sells upgrades for money (no miles) on the day of departure? When do you ask for it? At the check-in desk?

kudzu

GoUpgrades link

GoEnvoy upgrades are available, first come first serve, 24 hours before departure by calling, or at the airport. Others have posted that it's about $600 one way TATL

I can't say for sure how often it happens - it depends on route and time of year. You can also assess your chances by checking Envoy availability - if there are Envoy seats for sale 24 hours prior, US generally sells them as GoEnvoy upgrades.

tommyleo

I don't see the point. Valuing miles a 1.5cpm, you're dropping about $750 each way for an upgrade. For a rt, that's an extra $1500 before the cost of your coach fare, which is likely $1200+. In total, you're dropping close to a J fare anyway.

Or course, if you have a ton of miles to burn, it may make sense.

Nikolaos

+1

If you give us the specifics of your flight (route and dates) maybe some senior members can give you some feedback from their experience..

Biggie Fries

Good points, and I think US is onto this, too, since often lately when I do this kind of math, then throw in the miles back from credit card plus the 50% PQM bonus, I get numbers that look very much like a point of indifference, i.e., same functional price/cost on many TATLs.

This, of course, drives us back to the genius of FT programs. Those calculations are based on me paying my own way. When, however, there is someone out there who will pay the cost of my Y fare, but not the J fare or relevant upgrades, then it's a no-brainer to go the upgrade route, even in cases where the net cost of paying for J would be lower. The FT "loyalty" system, plus the tendency of employers/funders/clients to treat travelers as "suspect," makes us opt for payment combinations to US (and other airlines) that are higher than if we were making calculations on our own dime (or nickel).

burlax

The general idea is to buy revenue tickets for yourself (to get PQMs) and award tickets for companions. Upgrading your own tickets using US miles does not always make sense because of

(1) the value of RDM miles. You book a First class *A TATL for 125k, which would value your RDMs anywere from 8 to 12 cpm. You can book US Envoy TATL for 60k/100k, which would value your RDMs anywhere from 4 to 8 cpm.

(2) after you count the Envoy upgrade fee of $600 rt, and realize that you are paying about $3k-5k for the Envoy upgrade, you may decide that it is more beneficial to buy a discounted premium cabin fare on US or UA - it costs about the same, and you will get a large PQMs FCB on TATL itineraries.

Of course, if somebody already bought you a ticket (or if a client is paying for the coach fare only), there is not much you can do except to have the coach fare upgraded.

tommyleo

One point. I would never, ever value my miles at 8-12 cpm. Heck, if you check out my signature below (I'm a professional photographer, so it's a unique trip report ), you will find a trip that would have cost me $22,500 to book, and it cost me 120,000 miles. That would "value" my miles at almost 19 cpm!!!

But come on! I would NEVER have purchased that F itinerary. Heck, I would never purchase a J itinerary. So I value my miles on what I would pay, in Y, to get to my destination -- even if I fly in J or F by only using miles. I estimate the value of my miles to be 1.5-2 cpm.

PHL

You can also try to do a fake Envoy award booking on us airways.com. If it shows seats available for LOW Envoy award on your flight(s), then you can likely call and redeem points + miles as those seats come out of the same inventory.

Superguy

Don't forget the Envoy upgrade fee is waived for Y/B. Kinda pointless compared to a Z fare if you can find one and paying for yourself. However, if you fly on one of those and someone else is footing the bill, you at least don't have to worry about the copay.