Frequent Flyer Miles

[okarol]

Am I the only person who has lots of frequent flyer miles and cannot figure out the best way to use them? I went to Europe in 1999, accumulating miles, and also used my United Mileage Plus credit charging school tuition and big purchases for 10 years - so I have lots of miles. But every time I have tried to use them it is so difficult I give up. Does anyone have experience with United that can give me some guidance? I once tried to book a flight to NY, and there were 4 stops required along the way to get the free flight. It was easier finding a kidney donor than it is to try to use these credits!

[mikey07840]

Okarol, according to my friends who are platinum flyers (lots of miles for work), it is almost impossible to get free flights. Use the miles to upgrade to first class. That is much easier.

[RichardMEL]

I have about 350,000 miles with United right now. I am keeping them active for the time I can get back out there!!!

Yes, things have gotten much harder in recent years... some tips:

1. Think of other ways you might use miles - spoil yourself with an upgrade!

2. forget trying to get limited awards to popular places in peak times - the airlines will want to sell seats rather than give them away. So Disney in the summer? forget it! Florida in the winter? nope.

3. If you DO want to try to go to a popular destination - BOOK EARLY!! Inventory often opens up around 335 or so days in advance. So if you can plan a year or so out... do so.

4. Be flexible with dates... this will often help find an award

5. Think outside the box a little in terms of destinations. Also consider partner airlines - For example, let's say you want to get from LA to London. Air New Zealand also flies the route, so does US Airways (via PHL I think), and so does Lufthansa (via Frankfurt).

6. I never use my miles for domestic (US or Australia) flights in economy(coach). Tickets are relatively cheap enough there's no benefit there. Instead, save them up and splurge. In 2004 I spent 150,000 miles for a First Class award ticket from Melbourne (oz) to London on Singapore Airlines. A ticket valued at roughly $12,000 at the time. That was one of the mose decadent and amazing experiences I've had and it was sensational!! I'd never ever pay for that with cash... but with miles... you betchya!

7. If you have elite status with an airline (so on UA, that would be Premier, Premier Exec, 1K etc) often it is easier to obtain award seats.

In some ways it's nowhere near as worth it as it used to be to play the game, but if you play your cards right you can still find options to use the miles.

Consider less high profile routes and destinations, and also consider where your airline of choice (or its partners) fly to the most - with bigger planes - which will give you more opportunities. So for example United isn't fantastic with New York service (compared to, say, Continental)... but Chicago and San Francisco? Denver? Yep, go with UA.

Good luck!!!

[florida.flyer]

I spent several years at American Airlines in their frequent flyer program. 
#1  if you have a trip that you really want to use your miles, ask the agent to be put on the waiting list. (there is one)
#2  most domestic flights are cheap so using miles would not be a good idea except where you will not be spending a saturday nite to get the cheap fares.  using the miles for an upgrade is excellent!!
#3  get creative with the routing!!!
  for instance, I had miles that were going to expire, so this is the route I took:
jacksonville to raleigh on American, last flight in and first flight out is not considered breaking the trip or a stopover
. Picked up a friend and we flew the next morning to las vegas (one stopover is allowed) the next day we flew to Hawaii (destination) on Hawaiian Air  (frequent flyer program partner)

and remember .........the biggie..........you can change your dates and times at no charge.
so, request a frequent flyer coupon for any travel date and keep it for up to a year. so if you have a sudden emergency come up and you don't have the 14 days advance notice requred for a cheap fare, just call and book your frequent flyer trip (during the week travel is best of course)