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Tag Archive: airline

  1. Flight Upgrade Methods With a Lower Success Rate

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    We all want one, but we can’t always get one; an upgrade. In our smart traveler series we’ve looked at some ways you can try to improve your chances of getting an upgraded seat on the plane. The below, are some of the lesser known, but also significantly less successful ways of scoring that plush seat in the front; but it may give you some ideas of how upgrades work and why you may or may not get one.

    1
    Book with a Travel Agent. Agents are routinely allotted a certain number of upgrade vouchers. This will not come free but you can persuade your agent for a business class flight voucher if they have any available. If you’re not a frequent user of a particular travel agent, they have very little incentive to try and get you an upgrade. Whatever discretionary vouchers they may have will most certainly go to the people who have contributed the most to their agency.

    Travel agents have much less input regarding your status now than they used to. Your seat assignments are done via computer now, and computers don’t take into account notes that a travel agent may have added to your record. Computers are quite content to simply count the miles and use your earned status.

    2
    Use a mileage broker. Mileage brokers buy mileage from frequent fliers, and resell those miles to other travelers. This is very risky. Airlines have very strict policies against buying frequent flier miles from a 3rd party. If they catch you doing this, you will likely lose your ticket, and you may also lose all your miles, earned or purchased. As a result of strict airline policies, brokers are hard to come by.

    3
    Ask the ticket counter agent nicely. This will almost never work. In most cases, on most airlines, the ticket agent is not authorized to upgrade. Only the manager is, so if there is only one person at the ticketing counter, you are talking to them. You will most likely need to use miles to get your upgrade. However, you might be able to ask the ticket counter agent to kindly add a code to your ticket. That signifies to the gate agent that you are potentially eligible for an upgrade.

    4
    If you were late because of a partner airline, make sure the airline is aware of that: it is their fault and they need to fix it. Both airlines need to be on the same E-ticket number, so both airlines are responsible for getting you to your destination. If they can’t get you to your destination on time, that’s a great time to ask—as nicely as possible—for another flight, plus an upgrade voucher for your troubles.

    5
    If you happen to be a travel agent, show your Iata or ARC ID. Again, if and only if seats are available will an airline offer a free upgrade and even though a travel agent might have some pull (this pull ended in the late 90’s), you always have to assume that frequent flyer status will help more than just travel agent status. If you have both, you will only improve your chances of an upgrade. It certainly does not hurt to try.

  2. How to book award travel

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    One of the best perks available to people who are enrolled in a frequent flier programme is the opportunity to spend miles on “free” travel. We put free in quotation marks because there are usually some costs associated with this travel and these differ from airline to airline. Knowing what to expect before you start saving those points can help prevent some costly surprises when it comes time to cash in on those rewards.

    Generally, US Carriers have been very generous with their redemption rates, and they don’t pass on fuel surcharges and high fees to customers trying to book with miles. The three big players all have a tiered reward system offering flight rewards for fewer miles on off-peak dates and with advance purchase; than booking for flights at peak travel times and closer in to the date. United airlines is perhaps the most simple of the carriers, offering saver and standard rewards. American Airlines offers MileSAAver awards but further distinguishes between Peak and Off-Peak within this category. In addition to MileSAAver, AA offers AAnytime awards at 2 levels dubbed Level 1, and Level 2. Additionally, in times of peak demand, awards may cost more miles than at these two levels, and it is not clear when this is or how much it will be.

    Both AA and United publish charts that give an indication of how much a ticket will cost beforehand. Delta does not. To find out how many miles you will need to spend in the SkyMiles programme at Delta, one needs to actually go in and make a booking. Delta is perhaps the least transparent of the three loyalty rewards programmes mentioned here.

    In Europe and Canada, carriers are more often likely to add a host of fees and surcharges to reward bookings. That’s definitely not to say that all carriers do it, but major carriers such as British Airways, as well as AirFrance/KLM, and Lufthansa all add in fuel surcharges to their members’ rewards tickets. This can sometimes mean that the cost of your reward ticket ends up only being fractionally less than the cost of the full-out purchase of a ticket.

  3. Top 5 things for airline travel

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    Flying is without a doubt the worst part of any holiday, but what are the top 5 things that can help for your flight experience? Travel and particularly airline travel is almost always an unavoidable part of going on vacation so we have concocted a list of things that are guaranteed to make your travel experience slightly less terrible. Tuck these five magic items into your carry-on next time your travel and you’ll never dread flying again.

    TravelEssentials

    Travel Pillow

    This is an absolute essential for airline travel no matter how far you’re going. These marvellous inventions wrap around the back of your neck, providing support for your head as you doze off. No more waking up to a crick in your neck or your head flopping down mid-snooze. Even if you’re not planning on sleeping, the extra level of comfort that the travel pillow provides makes it worth using anyway.

    Water

    This might sound obvious but if you’re flying, drink plenty of water. Perhaps one of the most common plights of airline travellers is dry lips, skin and throat so keeping well hydrated will help you avoid looking like a snake by the end of your journey.

    Entertainment

    The majority of modern airlines have TV screens on the back of every seat with a pretty decent collection of films. However, if you really want to enjoy your flight, don’t restrict yourself to the selection of films that the airline provides, fill up your tablet/phone/laptop with your favourite series, films or music and spend the duration of your journey enjoying your own entertainment. Don’t forget to take a portable charger as well to keep your devices functioning throughout the whole flight.

    Flight Socks

    There is a risk, when flying long distances, of contracting deep vein thrombosis, a rather unpleasant condition caused by sitting for prolonged periods of time and the blood in your legs not flowing as it should. In order to reduce the chances of being affected by this, flight socks are essential as they provide your legs with the support they need to keep your blood flowing properly. Of course, you should combine this with regular walks up and down the plane.

    Baby Wipes

    Sitting on a plane for hours on end can leave you feeling groggy and even a little bit unclean. Travel, and particularly airline travel, by all accounts is rarely the most hygienic thing in the world. When you start feeling sweaty or that you might smell a bit, it’s useful to have a packet baby wipes with you to make yourself feel a little bit cleaner. You certainly won’t regret taking them with you.

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