ANA (NH) Redemptions using VS Flying Club points - thread locked Sept 2022
Jul 29, 2021, 12:54 pm
#1501
Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 486
Thanks CosmicGirl! Turns out that was what I was doing! Have seen some availability now.
On certain dates with availability, there’s a “business saver” and “business everyday” award seat. Does anyone know if this equates to 2x bookable Business class seats using VS points? Im unsure on the difference between “saver” and “everyday” awards and whether both are available to be booked with VS points.
When I called VS to find out, they searched for 2x availability which didn’t yield any results, but im wondering if I should have asked them to search each seat individually?
On certain dates with availability, there’s a “business saver” and “business everyday” award seat. Does anyone know if this equates to 2x bookable Business class seats using VS points? Im unsure on the difference between “saver” and “everyday” awards and whether both are available to be booked with VS points.
When I called VS to find out, they searched for 2x availability which didn’t yield any results, but im wondering if I should have asked them to search each seat individually?
This thread has taught me that VS needs business saver availability, but I believe that United shows one seat under both categories. So United would really only have access to one seat but display it twice. If you book one seat in business class with VS you'll see that both disappear on the UA site.
Take the time to read through the whole thread. You'll learn a lot.
Jul 29, 2021, 5:44 pm
#1502
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Pittsburgh
Programs: Whoever Has the Best Bonus
Posts: 5,183
ANA do sometimes have availability for their own members that is not available to partners, but even then you can use the website to get useful information. Let's say United is showing availability but ANA is not, then it's likely to be a glitch. If both are showing award space then it's worth calling VS to check. If you get an agent who claims ANA has had nothing for months then you're talking to the wrong person.
For the other person searching, find 2 seats is just very very difficult.. I can believe that's just not available at all as I rarely see 2 seats available, especially now as people are ready to travel.
Jul 30, 2021, 6:22 am
#1503
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Pittsburgh
Programs: Whoever Has the Best Bonus
Posts: 5,183
Can confirm after an hour waiting on hold for a VS agent this morning (much easier with Pixel "Hold For Me" feature) a VS agent ticketed the flights I wanted in 5 minutes. I also see the single seat I found no longer available on united.com, so I believe that shows that website is pretty accurate at inventory!
This will be my fourth attempt to go to Tokyo, so fingers crossed.
EDIT: Also obviously a British agent (Even through US number) and the total was around $200 in taxes and fees .. so less than the $250 I paid a few years ago, but much more than the $50 I paid last year. But of course at this point I just want it to happen!
This will be my fourth attempt to go to Tokyo, so fingers crossed.
EDIT: Also obviously a British agent (Even through US number) and the total was around $200 in taxes and fees .. so less than the $250 I paid a few years ago, but much more than the $50 I paid last year. But of course at this point I just want it to happen!
Last edited by pitflyer; Jul 30, 2021 at 6:29 am
Aug 2, 2021, 2:14 pm
#1504
Join Date: Jun 2018
Posts: 940
For internal flights within Japan (when it’s possible again), I know it’s only possible to book into Y, using VS points.
However, do NH have a similar policy to booking JL flights with Avios - in that you can (if there’s availability), upgrade to domestic J for a small cash fee? (It’s something like $15 O/W on JL if I remember correctly)? Cheers
However, do NH have a similar policy to booking JL flights with Avios - in that you can (if there’s availability), upgrade to domestic J for a small cash fee? (It’s something like $15 O/W on JL if I remember correctly)? Cheers
Aug 2, 2021, 4:52 pm
#1505
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Tokyo
Programs: JAL Metal Card (OWE), SAS Eurobonus Gold (*G), Marriott Titanium (LTP), Tokyu Hotels Platinum
Posts: 21,146
For internal flights within Japan (when it’s possible again), I know it’s only possible to book into Y, using VS points.
However, do NH have a similar policy to booking JL flights with Avios - in that you can (if there’s availability), upgrade to domestic J for a small cash fee? (It’s something like $15 O/W on JL if I remember correctly)? Cheers
However, do NH have a similar policy to booking JL flights with Avios - in that you can (if there’s availability), upgrade to domestic J for a small cash fee? (It’s something like $15 O/W on JL if I remember correctly)? Cheers
Aug 3, 2021, 1:38 am
#1506
Join Date: Jun 2018
Posts: 67
Thanks to the great help from CosmicGirl I saw the posts about Saudia and using their web site to confirm you reward seat is 100% OK.
When I use the e-ticket number there I get this error:
Which she got herself with her earlier tickets, which meant they were not quite right.
So I called Virgin just now, explained the situation but the lady had never heard of Saudia.
She said the ticket looked fine from what she could see and we used it on the ANA web site and it status there when I put in e-ticket number was "OK" and could see booking details.
But as it is not showing via Saudia am still concerned but am not able to articulate in "airline talk" why Saudia not showing it, gives me concern.
Is anyone able to give me a form of wording to use, if I call back Virgin again, so i can make this point in "airline talk" so they go "Got you, let me look into this a bit deeper" type of thing? Something like:
Hello, I have a reward booking with you for a ANA flight to Japan (Frankfurt to Haneda) and am slightly concerned that the ticket for this has not been issued correctly.
I can see the status of the e-ticket on ANA web site is "OK" but one of the tools travelers have found is to check their booking via the national airline for Saudia Arabia (Saudia), as it allows you to input any airlines e-ticket number and see the full status of the booking via the SABRE ticket system that normal travelers do not get access to, but agents like yourself do. When I try on the Saudi web site it gives me an error message that suggests xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Made SABRE up but can you see where am going with this??? Any ideas of what to ask Virgin?
When I use the e-ticket number there I get this error:
ERROR
- E-Ticket Display request failed. (3006)
- E-Ticket Display request failed. (9817)
Which she got herself with her earlier tickets, which meant they were not quite right.
So I called Virgin just now, explained the situation but the lady had never heard of Saudia.
She said the ticket looked fine from what she could see and we used it on the ANA web site and it status there when I put in e-ticket number was "OK" and could see booking details.
But as it is not showing via Saudia am still concerned but am not able to articulate in "airline talk" why Saudia not showing it, gives me concern.
Is anyone able to give me a form of wording to use, if I call back Virgin again, so i can make this point in "airline talk" so they go "Got you, let me look into this a bit deeper" type of thing? Something like:
Hello, I have a reward booking with you for a ANA flight to Japan (Frankfurt to Haneda) and am slightly concerned that the ticket for this has not been issued correctly.
I can see the status of the e-ticket on ANA web site is "OK" but one of the tools travelers have found is to check their booking via the national airline for Saudia Arabia (Saudia), as it allows you to input any airlines e-ticket number and see the full status of the booking via the SABRE ticket system that normal travelers do not get access to, but agents like yourself do. When I try on the Saudi web site it gives me an error message that suggests xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Made SABRE up but can you see where am going with this??? Any ideas of what to ask Virgin?
Last edited by Antony Jackson; Aug 3, 2021 at 2:38 am
Aug 3, 2021, 5:03 am
#1507
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: WAS/TYO
Programs: UA 1K, AA EXP (3MM), DL PM, BONVOY TITANIUM, HYATT GLOBALIST, HILTON DIAMOND, IHG DIAMOND AMB, et al
Posts: 5,913
You can upgrade the flight to premium class on a day of departure availability basis. While JAL has Class J which is basically just a better seat and more like PY for 1000 yen, and first class on selected routes for 8000 yen, ANA only has premium class, which varies in price depending on segment length, but if memory serves me right is in a range of 10000 to 25000 yen.
Day of departure upgrade prices range from ¥4000-6000 for the very short domestic flights (with no real meal in Premium) to ¥15,000 for the premium domestic routes (HND-FUK/CTS) that have a enhanced meals and Champagne in F. Most domestic routes are priced around ¥8000-11,000 for the same-day upgrade.
NH domestic upgrades tend to be more difficult to purchase than JL for a couple of reasons. The Premium Class cabins are quite small (ex. just 8 F seats on the 321 up to only 21 F seats on their 500+ seat domestic-configured 773) and tend to sell out ahead of time. Also, NH members are able to purchase an upgrade 2 days prior to departure into any remaining F seat. I'm only about 50/50 with day of departure upgrades on NH, while JL's Class J is much easier (and cheaper at ¥1000) - although it really more of a Premium Economy product with no meal service provided. JL Domestic F is a better comparison, and it's priced at ¥8000 for the same-day upgrade regardless of route.
-FlyerBeek
Aug 3, 2021, 5:30 am
#1508
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: WAS/TYO
Programs: UA 1K, AA EXP (3MM), DL PM, BONVOY TITANIUM, HYATT GLOBALIST, HILTON DIAMOND, IHG DIAMOND AMB, et al
Posts: 5,913
I was the poster who wrote upthread about not having a valid reissued ticket by VS at check-in and came within minutes of missing my NH F award flight... have you thought about contacting NH directly and verifying your ticket looks okay on their end? If I had called VS prior to my debacle, I'm not even certain they would have caught the issue ahead of time. I think NH is in a much better position to determine whether you're holding a valid ticket for travel on them.
-FlyerBeek
-FlyerBeek
Aug 3, 2021, 5:35 am
#1509
Join Date: Jun 2018
Posts: 67
I was the poster who wrote upthread about not having a valid reissued ticket by VS at check-in and came within minutes of missing my NH F award flight... have you thought about contacting NH directly and verifying your ticket looks okay on their end? If I had called VS prior to my debacle, I'm not even certain they would have caught the issue ahead of time. I think NH is in a much better position to determine whether you're holding a valid ticket for travel on them.
-FlyerBeek
-FlyerBeek
I called ANA before but too late for them being open, so will call them tomorrow morning as an early bird, but just wanted to try and find a magic phrase of some type that would make them look at the ticket a bit deeper - as the status on the NH web site shows it "OK".
Aug 3, 2021, 5:44 am
#1510
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: WAS/TYO
Programs: UA 1K, AA EXP (3MM), DL PM, BONVOY TITANIUM, HYATT GLOBALIST, HILTON DIAMOND, IHG DIAMOND AMB, et al
Posts: 5,913
Oh the horrible time you must have had.
I called ANA before but too late for them being open, so will call them tomorrow morning as an early bird, but just wanted to try and find a magic phrase of some type that would make them look at the ticket a bit deeper - as the status on the NH web site shows it "OK".
I called ANA before but too late for them being open, so will call them tomorrow morning as an early bird, but just wanted to try and find a magic phrase of some type that would make them look at the ticket a bit deeper - as the status on the NH web site shows it "OK".
-FlyerBeek
Aug 4, 2021, 12:13 am
#1511
Join Date: Jun 2018
Posts: 67
Am beginning to suspect am using the Saudia page wrong.
I have paid tickets to go to Seattle with Virgin next month (lets see if that happens!) but if I check either of the e-tickets for myself or partner, I get the same error of:
I have paid tickets to go to Seattle with Virgin next month (lets see if that happens!) but if I check either of the e-tickets for myself or partner, I get the same error of:
ERROR
- E-Ticket Display request failed. (3006)
- E-Ticket Display request failed. (9817)
Aug 4, 2021, 12:30 am
#1512
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: YYZ
Programs: Ex-Bonvoyed, Hyatt, Hilton, BR, AC, AA
Posts: 1,291
Am beginning to suspect am using the Saudia page wrong.
I have paid tickets to go to Seattle with Virgin next month (lets see if that happens!) but if I check either of the e-tickets for myself or partner, I get the same error of:
I have paid tickets to go to Seattle with Virgin next month (lets see if that happens!) but if I check either of the e-tickets for myself or partner, I get the same error of:
ERROR
- E-Ticket Display request failed. (3006)
- E-Ticket Display request failed. (9817)
Aug 4, 2021, 12:57 am
#1513
Join Date: Jun 2018
Posts: 67
I suspect you made the same mistake I made. The eTicket number Virgin Atlantic sent you is a 13 digit string of numbers; you need to separate that into 2 parts: the first 3 digits (to enter in the first field on Saudi’s website) and the other 10 digits (to enter in the second field), then enter your last name in the second line and you should be good.
The eticket number should contain numbers only, eticket number should be exactly 13 digits
If I leave 932 in first field and add full 13 digits to second field, am back to:
ERROR
- E-Ticket Display request failed. (3006)
- E-Ticket Display request failed. (9817)
Aug 4, 2021, 1:20 am
#1514
Join Date: Jun 2018
Posts: 940
I couldn’t get it to work on the app, so in Google I entered ‘saudia airlines manage bookings’, then went to the top result which was the ‘manage booking’ part of the saudia website.
finding it this way gave a webpage with a slightly different layout than if I had gone from the main saudia home page and used tabs to find the page to manage booking.
it then gives the option to enter a booking reference (6 digits), or an e ticket number (the 13 digits)
so, I selected e ticket box, which then displayed a smaller box (in which you’ll need to enter 932 as the first 3 digits of your ticket number issued by virgin), and then add numbers 4 to 13 of the rest of the e ticket number in the box to the right.
Everything seems to pop up fine then. I didn’t need to enter middle name either - just first and last.
finding it this way gave a webpage with a slightly different layout than if I had gone from the main saudia home page and used tabs to find the page to manage booking.
it then gives the option to enter a booking reference (6 digits), or an e ticket number (the 13 digits)
so, I selected e ticket box, which then displayed a smaller box (in which you’ll need to enter 932 as the first 3 digits of your ticket number issued by virgin), and then add numbers 4 to 13 of the rest of the e ticket number in the box to the right.
Everything seems to pop up fine then. I didn’t need to enter middle name either - just first and last.
Aug 4, 2021, 1:35 am
#1515
Join Date: Jun 2018
Posts: 67
I couldn’t get it to work on the app, so in Google I entered ‘saudia airlines manage bookings’, then went to the top result which was the ‘manage booking’ part of the saudia website.
finding it this way gave a webpage with a slightly different layout than if I had gone from the main saudia home page and used tabs to find the page to manage booking.
it then gives the option to enter a booking reference (6 digits), or an e ticket number (the 13 digits)
so, I selected e ticket box, which then displayed a smaller box (in which you’ll need to enter 932 as the first 3 digits of your ticket number issued by virgin), and then add numbers 4 to 13 of the rest of the e ticket number in the box to the right.
Everything seems to pop up fine then. I didn’t need to enter middle name either - just first and last.
finding it this way gave a webpage with a slightly different layout than if I had gone from the main saudia home page and used tabs to find the page to manage booking.
it then gives the option to enter a booking reference (6 digits), or an e ticket number (the 13 digits)
so, I selected e ticket box, which then displayed a smaller box (in which you’ll need to enter 932 as the first 3 digits of your ticket number issued by virgin), and then add numbers 4 to 13 of the rest of the e ticket number in the box to the right.
Everything seems to pop up fine then. I didn’t need to enter middle name either - just first and last.
Trip status:
Confirmed
Coupon status:
Airport control
For both legs - thanks to all who took pity on me!!