Get over it, I keep telling myself. What’s wrong with using miles to upgrade on domestic travel? I don’t have a good answer. I just can’t stop hoarding miles for international travel. That doesn’t make much sense considering LA-NY is only two hours less flying time than NY-London. Perhaps it’s some residual glamour that international travel has over domestic.
But my intransigence puts me in a corner because while I hold several elite cards, I’m increasingly skeptical that elite upgrades will come through, especially on the major transcon routes. And with transcon fares creeping upwards, I’m equally resistant to just putting down my credit card.
I need a triple bypass—and here’s how I found it on a trip last month that took me from Monterey to Philadelphia.
The First Class fare on this itinerary was pricing at $1,250. The number sounded familiar. Hadn’t I just seen the same price on some Caribbean routes? So I used the stopover ploy, meaning I searched for a fare that would allow me to insert a stop, where I had to be—Philadelphia—to somewhere I wouldn’t mind being—the Caribbean. And wouldn’t you know it, United had a Monterey-Philadelphia-Aruba-Monterey fare that came in at the same price as Monterey-Philadelphia-Monterey.
Okay, it may sound nuts, but forget Aruba and focus on this easy to remember general principle: Make your destination into a stopover point and you can often get a reasonable fare plus a free side trip beyond.
As I needed to be in Philadelphia, I initially looked at US Airways, a United/Star Alliance partner that has a hub there. But it didn’t allow a stopover on its $1,250 First Class fare to Aruba (for that I would have to pay $2,662). But United did, and the schedule was fine. (For that matter, United would have allowed me to stop in Charlotte, Chicago, Denver or Washington/Dulles had the meeting taken me there).
Three Other Ways to Play It
- Mileage Upgrades: Had I been determined to fly US Airways, with a side-trip to the Caribbean, I could have used the carrier’s B fare upgrades, which allow stopovers at only 15,000 round-trip. In my case, I found an $1,100 B fare that allowed a stopover. For only 15,000 miles round-trip, I could have upgraded all the way on the $1,100 fare—a great use of US Airways miles.
- Free Elite Upgrades: With B fares, US Airways Dividend elite members can upgrade for free at time of ticketing, based on availability saving the 15,000 miles.
- Paid Non-elite Segment Upgrades: For me, a non-US Airways elite, these upgrades are available for $50 per 500 miles, and can be confirmed at time of ticketing, based on availability.
How are you winning the battle for good domestic First Class fares nowadays?
Get over it, I keep telling myself. What’s wrong with using miles to upgrade on domestic travel? I don’t have a good answer. I just can’t stop hoarding miles for international travel. That doesn’t make much sense considering LA-NY is only two hours less flying time than NY-London. Perhaps it’s some residual glamour that international travel has over domestic.
But my intransigence puts me in a corner because while I hold several elite cards, I’m increasingly skeptical that elite upgrades will come through, especially on the major transcon routes. And with transcon fares creeping upwards, I’m equally resistant to just putting down my credit card.
I need a triple bypass—and here’s how I found it on a trip last month that took me from Monterey to Philadelphia.
The First Class fare on this itinerary was pricing at $1,250. The number sounded familiar. Hadn’t I just seen the same price on some Caribbean routes? So I used the stopover ploy, meaning I searched for a fare that would allow me to insert a stop, where I had to be—Philadelphia—to somewhere I wouldn’t mind being—the Caribbean. And wouldn’t you know it, United had a Monterey-Philadelphia-Aruba-Monterey fare that came in at the same...