Frequent Flyer Advice

http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/07/30/t ... .html?8dpc (http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/07/30/travel/30prac.html?8dpc)

I am never quite sure why several people say it's hard to redeem free tickets using airmiles. For me, if the destination I want to go and book using my aimiles has no available seats then I just choose to go somewhere else. There are many places on earth that surely must be of interest to most people.

I am a Northwest Airlines member. Admittedly, I have found it hard to book a free ticket between USA and Bangkok. But I don't really care. I don't have to use my airmiles for this particular route, i.e. NW has never set a condition that I can only use my airlimes on this route. Whenever I want or need to fly btwn BKK and USA I just buy a ticket to collect airmiles then use my airmiles for free tickets elsewhere. For instance, I am interested in going from London to Madagasgar and Mauritius next Spring. I have checked on NW website and found that there are still free seats on Air France to book with airmiles ( and even available for this October too ).

So what are people moaning about ?.

Many airlines are very generous that they have given away free tickets to everyone who collects airmiles. As a Platinum member of NW, I always fly at least 75,000 miles a year which enable me to earn 168,750 airmiles every year ( because NW generously gives 125% bonus for Plati member ). I therefore can get a return business class ticket for instance btwn London and BKK or London - Madagasgar which requires only 120,000 miles for FREE (ticket costs about $2,500 if buying), and I still have got some airmiles left. I cann't complain.

Isn't life grand?

No problems either. I just book early. Usualy some class or other is hardly ever sold out, April can get a bit tricky for most local destination.
Virgin just dumped a whack of points my way because I complained very strongly about a flight to Australia, it was hideous, they didn't even clean the plane on it's arrival from London, my seat looked like a food processor had sat in it without the lid for thirteen hours. The meals were worse than the Seven 11. And this is what they call "upper" class.

Fortunately I won't ever be using them again, so the points will just go off. Is there a points trading system anywhere, or rather ticket trading? I get yours you get mine type thing.

Is there a points trading system anywhere, or rather ticket trading? I get yours you get mine type thing.

YEARS ago, any transportation ticket was barterable. Nowadays the traveller has to be the named person on the ticket. So selling issued tickets is damn near impossible. Most frequent flyer programs will only issue award tickets in the name of the member.

Is there a points trading system anywhere, or rather ticket trading?

Doesn't Virgin have airline partners such as Singapore, Delta (?), etc which you can book a ticket with your Virgin airmiles ?.

Although I am a Northwest Airlines member, I have hardly redeemed NW tickets. I have used my NW airmiles for free flights on NW's airline partners such as Delta, KLM, and Air France which seem to fly to more interesting destinations than NW.

Virgin,used to be in with Singapore airlines but I didn't bother even looking to see if this is still true anymore. Given the quality of virgin flights I would seriously doubt it.
Purchasing a ticket with your points for a different traveller than yourself is easy at least with Cathay. So it wouldn't be swopping tickets as such but rather purchasing them for each other using points.
I know this is possible, for example I send my maid home each year on my points.

I will just google virgin and see what they still have by way of alliance. I don't think much out here.

Same with United: very easy to issue an award ticket in someone else's name.

I send my maid home each year on my pointsDoes she have to pay her own way back?

[manfarang-old]

With most frequent flyer programs there is no problem using miles to purchase tickets for others. But you only earn miles on flights that you actually fly.

Some programs seem to be easier than others in redeeming the miles. American Airlines' AAdvantage program and the One World Alliance have a reputation for being easiest for obtaining award tickets. For those BKK bound, the One World Alliance includes American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, British Air, Quantas and, in 2007, Japan Airlines. The Star Alliance includes United Airlines, Singapore Air, Thai Air, Air Canada, Asiana and ANA. The Skyteam Alliance includes KLM, Northwest, Delta, Continental, Air France and Korean Air.

Award seats are limited in number per flight. So you may have to be flexible in dates, routing, flying class, and it is best to book as early as you can. I was able to get a hard-to-obtain first class award ticket on Cathay Pacific to BKK, but I booked the flight nine months out and flew out of San Francisco because flight award seats on the Los Angeles flights were already gone. Obviously, award seats to the most popular destinations and in premium classes get gobbled up the quickest, and the excellent reputation of the premium class service on Singapore and Cathay means that those seats can be as scarce as hen's teeth, but they do exist.

Cedric - You may want to check the Virgin Airlines forum on flyertalk.com and see what flights have GOOD reputations. And you can always use the miles to buy others flights on Virgin. Unfortunately, even if you are able to exchange miles between programs there is an awful devaluation that hardly makes it worthwhile.

The main thing I've learned about frequent flyer miles is don't hoard them for too long as even they are subject to inflation. Back in 2002 I was able to get a roundtrip business ticket from the USA to BKK on Cathay for 70,000 (a special promotion, down from the usual 90,000). Now it takes 110,000 miles. And FF miles are like those damn rebates from the super electronics stores (I think my last desktop computer required the mailing in of 7 separate rebate forms) - the companies count on most people never using them.

This is true m'farang. But also it is quite a lot of work keeping all your points together, a number of my point laden cards just rotted away to nothing when I got to Asia. Every quarter or so they kept sending me a down graded card. Star alliance is pretty good, so that keeps me busy enough.

[manfarang-old]

But also it is quite a lot of work keeping all your points together...Agreed. If you glance at the MilesBuzz forum of the aforementioned flyertalk.com, you can see the incredible machinations some people go through to accumulate miles for their upgrades with their cockamamie "mileage runs". I've never been as fanatical, but the fortunate aspect of regular trips to Thailand is that one accumulates miles VERY quickly if one stays reasonably loyal to one carrier or alliance. I earned two free roundtrips - once in business and once in first class - through American Airlines. I've also had several upgrades to business, which was nice on a 12-hour flight. I've now switched my "loyalty" to Thai Air (the JFK-BKK nonstop made it a very easy choice) and will use the miles toward the occasional upgrade.

Oh yes, staying with one air-line is the very best and only way, I go return to South Africa every year for a 'Safari' off points. Sticking to one alliance is very much the way. The Safari is a self drive affair not on points of course, but is it nice to travel business class on those distances, anything over five hours or so and I am a wreck, and then I can also splash out a bit because I haven't broken the bank getting there. Spoilt rotten really. But I am oh so generous with tickets, so this eases my guilt.
I sometimes feel like a travel agent. My nephew must be the most well travelled son of a gun in his entire county.

I sometimes feel like a travel agentThere's a very nice one who works near me. I feel like him quite often and sometimes manage to have him

So Cedric is an uncle, eh? We all know what homintern makes of THEM...

I would hardly call myself an uncle, more like a ticket booth called Ceddy. My nephew is only a decade or so younger than myself, he is more like the little brother I never had. :albino: :albino: :albino:

My nephew is only a decade or so younger than myself, he is more like the little brother I never hadMay I offer you a little brother I don't want? And let's not forget (boygeenyus being an uncle himself) that most paedophiles the world over are uncles of their victims

OK. As I remember it UA used to allow FF ticketing only for relatives (cause I remember there was a controversy over domestic partners). That was a while back. Now I just called, and Yes, u can ticket for anyone, since long time. Sorry for the misinformation.

New York Times, August 6, 2006
Practical Traveler
Window or Aisle? How to Increase Your Odds

By MICHELLE HIGGINS
DAVID BARLOW, a senior executive for a relocation company in San Ramon, Calif., and a Southwest frequent flier, covets a particular window seat, 20A, four rows up from the rear of the airlineтАЩs 737 aircraft and will do just about anything тАФ including paying any passenger who nabs it before him тАФ to sit in it. (The clinching price usually ranges from $10 to $20.) The seat, he said, is precisely in the spot where the planeтАЩs fuselage bows out and therefore offers passengers who sit there slightly more width and additional shoulder room.

тАЬSome people think IтАЩm totally crazy, but when youтАЩre in the air like I am, virtually all the time, every inch counts,тАЭ Mr. Barlow said. (Southwest says the first and last three rows of each aircraft are indeed slightly narrower, but that Mr. BarlowтАЩs seat isnтАЩt particularly wider than any others.)

ItтАЩs getting harder to score a good seat in the air. In June, Northwest filled 89.7 percent of its seats, its highest load factor for that month. And June 30 was DeltaтАЩs most crowded single day ever, with planes 94.4 percent full. With planes so packed, competition for aisles, the bulkhead row and exit rows is intense. Fliers are increasingly selecting seats as soon as they book their flight. Priceline.com, which added a seat selection feature in April for its listed-price tickets, says 65 percent of its travelers are either picking seats or specifying that they want an aisle or window.

Some airlines have changed the rules of the game since last summer by adding new seat selection options. In March, Northwest began letting passengers pay $15 to reserve some of the better coach-class seats on domestic flights. Southwest Airlines changed its system last September to allow passengers to check in online 24 hours before departure. Roughly the first 45 to log in can be in the first group to board тАФ a significant advantage, as the airline has no assigned seats. Some Southwest customers are even paying a new company called BoardFirst.com $5 to check in for them to ensure a better chance at being among the first to board.

In general, there are no hard and fast rules for scoring a good seat. Because each airline has its own seating configurations and policies, a strategy that may work on one airline may not make a difference on another. Last year, for example, JetBlue began making most exit-row seats on its A320 aircraft available to passengers just after purchase. Other airlines tend to hold onto those seats for their top-tier frequent fliers or release them just before boarding. That said, there are a few basic guidelines that travelers should consider when trying to get the seat of their choice.

Do your research Most major airlines let passengers select seats when booking. Look at diagrams on the airlineтАЩs homepage to see which spots are open. Then cross-reference your findings with Web sites like SeatGuru.com or SeatExpert.com, which rank seat quality and offer insider information like which exit-row seats wonтАЩt recline. SeatGuru.com recommends seats 14A and 14F on ContinentalтАЩs 737-300, for instance, because they have no seat in front of them and offer extra legroom. But the site also points out that the tray table is in the armrest and that it тАЬcan get very cold by the exits during flight.тАЭ

Orbitz, Travelocity and Expedia also let passengers view seating maps early in the booking process. The earlier you do choose your seat, online or through an agent, the better. When a flight is nearly full, airlines sometimes deny advanced seat selections, forcing latecomers to get their assignment at the airport. ThatтАЩs because airlines hold back some spots for flexibility in seating families or passengers with disabilities and only release those seats at the gate.

Check back often Selecting your seat doesnтАЩt mean youтАЩll actually get it. Planes are sometimes switched because of maintenance or schedule changes. With passengers able to change spots online, seats are often in flux until the aircraft doors are shut, so it can pay to check back to see if any better seats have opened up.

Another reason to keep checking: some airlines allow elite frequent fliers or full-fare coach passengers to upgrade to first or business class starting five days before departure, depending on status. When they do, they often leave behind prize coach seats that you might nab. Knowing when those upgrades take place can be a key advantage in scoring a good spot. Northwest, for example, confirms platinum elite member upgrades five days before departure; gold elite, three days before departure; and silver, 24 hours before the flight.

Become an elite flier Airlines save their best seats for their best customers. United, for example, lets elite frequent fliers sit in the economy plus section of the aircraft or the front part of coach, which has up to five more inches of legroom than standard economy. Nonelite customers must pay extra for such seats.

тАЬMy only real hope of getting a good seat on Northwest is being an elite flier,тАЭ said Eva M. Lang, a financial consultant from Germantown, Tenn., who typically ends up on Northwest regional jets out of Memphis. To qualify for elite status, Ms. Lang monitors her mileage, and if running low, adds a stopover to get more miles or performs a mileage run тАФ taking a flight on a cheap ticket just to bank more miles.

Northwest and Continental save the first few rows in coach for elite members. US Airways lets elite fliers secure seats in exit rows through Web check-in 24 hours before departure. Nonelite fliers must wait until they get to the airport to select those seats.

Another tip: Airlines sometimes rotate jumbo jets used on long-haul flights through their domestic routes. When this happens, business class seats are classified as part of the coach cabin and high-ranking frequent fliers can nab one by selecting a seat in the first few rows of coach. Tom Parsons, chief executive of Bestfares.com and an elite flier on American scored a business class seat on an American 777 from Dallas to Miami this way last month. тАЬThe bigger the plane, the happier I am,тАЭ said Mr. Parsons, who paid just $278 round trip for the flight.

Know when to ask for an upgrade You can still ask for a new seat just before boarding. ThatтАЩs when airlines tend to release empty seats, often those toward the front of the plane, that they had been holding for families or disabled passengers. American and JetBlue release those seats up to four hours before boarding. At least one airline, Northwest, releases exit-row seats 24 hours before departure, precisely when Web check-in is available to customers. Travelers can sign up at nwa.com to receive an e-mail reminder to check in 24 hours before their flight.

You would think David Barlow would fly business class with all those points. Can you be a senior executive and travel economy? Or do Southwest not offer business class seats?

Southwest is single class seating. It's like Air Asia except they offer free soft drinks and coffee, give you a little more leg room and tend to be on schedule.

http://www.airlinequality.com/

Accurate results, will look closer when I have more time.