Long Haul Business Class for under $2K (Long Post)

[Luv2Phuket]

2 hours ago, skink said:

I just checked on changing an existing reservation using Alaska miles online and it will let me without a change fee.

Award travel or paid reservation?

[skink]

17 hours ago, Luv2Phuket said:

Award travel or paid reservation?

Award travel using Alaska miles on JAL. Since it's JAL I'm able to make the change online. If it was on Cathay and I had to call Alaska to make the change then the phone agent might charge the new change fee.

Edited June 27, 2018 by skink
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[wash747]

Just a heads up for using miles on Cathay. It seems that Cathay award space dried up big time (hopefully it’s temporary). It’ll be sucks if Cathay decide to be stingy with seat since Cathay is one of easiest method for american mongers to get to BKK from several major US cities

[Luv2Phuket]

2 hours ago, wash747 said:

Just a heads up for using miles on Cathay. It seems that Cathay award space dried up big time (hopefully it’s temporary). It’ll be sucks if Cathay decide to be stingy with seat since Cathay is one of easiest method for american mongers to get to BKK from several major US cities

Looks like you're right -- I went the full 331 days out, and NOTHING shows up on BA's website for Cathay availability.

There is JAL availability, but not Cathay.  

Of course, that COULD be a BA website issue and not a Cathay issue.  I didn't check the KVS tool.

[skink]

I'm seeing some Cathay seats searching on Qantas.

[wash747]

22 minutes ago, skink said:

I'm seeing some Cathay seats searching on Qantas.

If it’s there, American Airlines probably can see space while Alaska, it’s hit or miss. From my experience, Alaska air don’t have same level of access on Cathay award space and most folks from flyertalk’s Alaska air thread share similar experiences 

[Little Evil]

On 6/27/2018 at 23:10, wash747 said:

If it’s there, American Airlines probably can see space while Alaska, it’s hit or miss. From my experience, Alaska air don’t have same level of access on Cathay award space and most folks from flyertalk’s Alaska air thread share similar experiences 

This is quite true. AA seems to have some of the best CX availability, almost identical to KVS Tool, while Alaska has some of the worst. It is a safer bet to use BA's website search for CX. 

[tenpro]

PSA - Marriott Travel Packages are getting devalued August 1st (~30% down across the board) , so if you have the points, you should redeem now rather than later.

New Chart - https://lacek.hs.llnwd.net/e1/marriott/redemption/HAR18036_TravelPackages_Chart2.pdf

Old Chart - https://www.marriott.com/rewards/usepoints/morepack.mi

 

[Little Evil]

Interesting new non-stop route from JFK to MNL on Philippine Airlines. Catch is that they don't partner with any alliances. Still, prices are compelling with round trip starting at $860 coach and $3800 biz. Could significantly shorten the route to Manila for east coast people. 

https://thepointsguy.com/news/philippine-airlines-bringing-nonstop-a350-nyc/

[bouncewithme]

Does anyone have any experience with Hainan Airlines? Alaska seems to have a ton of business class availability with them BKK - PEK - SEA (787 on long haul) for 50K miles (cheap!). They are a 2-2-2 configuration, TPG had a review that was decent, certainly not the best hard product but for 50k points for a flat bed, that seems like a great deal.

Searched the thread and saw some mentions but did not appear as if anyone had flown them before?

 

 

 

Edited July 8, 2018 by bouncewithme

[tenpro]

2 hours ago, bouncewithme said:

Does anyone have any experience with Hainan Airlines? Alaska seems to have a ton of business class availability with them BKK - PEK - SEA (787 on long haul) for 50K miles (cheap!). They are a 2-2-2 configuration, TPG had a review that was decent, certainly not the best hard product but for 50k points for a flat bed, that seems like a great deal.

Searched the thread and saw some mentions but did not appear as if anyone had flown them before?

 

 

 

I flew JFK-PEK round trip a couple of months ago. Apparently, some 787s are configured with 1-2-1 reverse herringbone seating. I'm not sure which routes those are flying, as HNA aren't super transparent about which planes & routes have what seating arrangement. 

As far as the 2-2-2 configuration goes, there's definitely less privacy. There isn't anything blocking you from your neighbor and if you're sitting in the window seat, getting up when your neighbor's seat is fully flat can be challenging. Getting a seat in the middle might be best because then you don't have to step over anyone or have anyone step over you.

That said, the soft service was exceptional - much better than BR/CX J.

Edited July 8, 2018 by tenpro

[bouncewithme]

I just noticed the Hainan Airlines 50k miles BKK - PEK - SEA also has a $345 fee with it took, so not as appealing as before I noticed that : )

[skink]

On 7/2/2018 at 07:10, tenpro said:

PSA - Marriott Travel Packages are getting devalued August 1st (~30% down across the board) , so if you have the points, you should redeem now rather than later....

I actually did one of those for 270k Marriott points to 120k Alaska miles and a 7 night category 1-5 a few days before they made that announcement, which took 40 minutes on the phone. Can't imagine how long it takes now. If you are going to call them try googling for the phone tree (it seems like I saw someone write about a quicker number to call after I had done mine but I can't find it now).

[skink]

Frequent Miler had the phone tree:

"Call Marriott at 1-800-321-7396 (or any other Marriott phone number you have) Wait for the recording to tell you that you can learn all about the new program online. In response to: “How can I help you today?” Say: “Transfer rewards points.” Then the computer will ask you more specifics about the transfer. Interrupt the computer and say “Something else.” Wait on hold for a long, long time. If an agent answers with something like “Marriott Rewards, can I have your rewards number?” then you’ve made it to the right place!"

[Luv2Phuket]

BIG news -- Singapore non-stops between SIN and LAX can now be booked online.....and they appears to be wide open!

https://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2018/07/11/singapore-airlines-business-class-awards-lax/

I am flying BKK-SIN-ICN-LAX in late November, and looked to see if I had alternatives -- saver awards (88,000) were available both the day I am currently coming back (Monday, Nov. 26) and the following day (Tuesday, Nov. 27)

The shortest route leaves BKK at around 15:15, has a 1;30 layover, then goes non-stop to LAX.  I'm not a fan of layovers below 2 hours, but the alternative leaves BKK at around noon, so it has a 5 hour layover (and requires leaving Pattaya much earlier)

There is a slight chance that I will need to spend some time in Seoul on business, so I think that I am going to stick with my not-so-convenient 2-stop route for now.  I have read that a stopover can be added to an SQ award for $100, so taking the slow way home could end up paying off for me (as opposed to having to find my way back from BKK-ICN-LAX at the last minute)

...although now I am starting to question that, because I just checked and there is NO availability on the non-stop ICN-LAX leg later that week (the only ones available now are ICN-SIN-LAX....so I would go BKK-SIN-ICN-SIN-LAX!  555)

Now I'm starting to think that I SHOULD change to the BKK-SIN-LAX flight and stick my client with the bill for the change fees and one-way ticket if I DO need to go to Korea!

 

[HimBadMan]

@Luv2Phuket   I was also very excited to see the SIN route LAX-SIN on their A350. Their biz class looks awesome and love the UR partnership.  I also have a November trip- leaving BKK on 11/25 so was taking a peak at the BKK-SIN-LAX Route-  88K Miles is a bit steep IMO but good product.

Also- This is my last year being an AA Exec Plat-   SO next year I think I i will be a free agent and may be choosing star alliance.    Singapore Airlines has amazing Prem Economy and Biz clas seats, plus SIN Airport is probably one of the best places for transit...    I have some thinking to do.

Also- It over a month and CX still not releasing any Biz award seats-  They sent me a DM yesterday via Twitter saying they are still having major issues...  But who knows...   

[skink]

It's nice Singapore Airlines is releasing a lot of saver award space on their new LAX-SIN route. I waited for their new EWR-SIN route to load and couldn't find anything in saver biz. I should probably go ahead and make a speculative booking for next year.

I'd forgotten that you can get a stopover on an award ticket with them for $100. After years of looking for saver award availability in their Suites class I finally booked BKK-SIN-FRA-JFK back in May. Looking back I probably would have stopped in Frankfurt for a couple nights. Another thing I didn't know about them was after changing the BKK-SIN leg from Singapore Air to Thai Air, Singapore Air refunded me around 7,500 miles.

[Short]

My round trip on AA/CA is still screwed up.  CA is refusing to release 6 AM seats between BKK and HKG for some reason.     At some point I will have to lock in and Air Asia to HKG along with an expensive hotel and leave BKK a day early.     Anyone know their way around HK?

[HimBadMan]

Yes.  Hk is an easy city.    Just get a hotel in Kowloon..  its 15 mins train ride from airport...   very simple process 

[Luv2Phuket]

On 7/11/2018 at 14:37, Luv2Phuket said:

BIG news -- Singapore non-stops between SIN and LAX can now be booked online.....and they appears to be wide open!

https://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2018/07/11/singapore-airlines-business-class-awards-lax/

I am flying BKK-SIN-ICN-LAX in late November, and looked to see if I had alternatives -- saver awards (88,000) were available both the day I am currently coming back (Monday, Nov. 26) and the following day (Tuesday, Nov. 27)

The shortest route leaves BKK at around 15:15, has a 1;30 layover, then goes non-stop to LAX.  I'm not a fan of layovers below 2 hours, but the alternative leaves BKK at around noon, so it has a 5 hour layover (and requires leaving Pattaya much earlier)

There is a slight chance that I will need to spend some time in Seoul on business, so I think that I am going to stick with my not-so-convenient 2-stop route for now.  I have read that a stopover can be added to an SQ award for $100, so taking the slow way home could end up paying off for me (as opposed to having to find my way back from BKK-ICN-LAX at the last minute)

...although now I am starting to question that, because I just checked and there is NO availability on the non-stop ICN-LAX leg later that week (the only ones available now are ICN-SIN-LAX....so I would go BKK-SIN-ICN-SIN-LAX!  555)

Now I'm starting to think that I SHOULD change to the BKK-SIN-LAX flight and stick my client with the bill for the change fees and one-way ticket if I DO need to go to Korea!

 

You snooze, you lose!

Found out over the weekend that there is very little to no chance that I will have business in Seoul, but all of the Saver Awards are now long gone.  I was able to waitlist a BKK-SIN-LAX itinerary.

Still ticketed on my BKK-SIN-ICN-LAX itinerary, which is very acceptable to me (first flight doesn't leave BKK until 20:15, so I can have a nice day before heading to the airport)

 

On 7/14/2018 at 19:25, Short said:

My round trip on AA/CA is still screwed up.  CA is refusing to release 6 AM seats between BKK and HKG for some reason.     At some point I will have to lock in and Air Asia to HKG along with an expensive hotel and leave BKK a day early.     Anyone know their way around HK?

I have spent a day in HK on a couple of trips and always liked it.  I usually cashed in a free annual night certificate to stay in the Tsim Sha Tsui ("TST") area.

I would highly recommend taking a taxi up to Victoria Peak (GREAT views for non-mongering photos).  They have an old rail tram/train to take you up and back down, but the lines can get REALLY long.  I found it faster/easier to take a taxi up and the tram/train back down.

LOTS of P4P available, but don't expect "Pattaya prices."  I LOVE the look of Chinese girls, so a couple of the hottest girls that I have had (IMHO) have been in Hong Kong and Macau.

The 141 websites (sex141.com and others) are a good starting point, although keep in mind the photos may not be that accurate. 

BM troniked has posted some GREAT stuff about HK (including a TR last December).

[Little Evil]

General points PSA: Amex has targeted Amazon 3X through 8/30/18, which happens to line up with today's Amazon Prime Day. Saw Bose QC 25's for $125. Pretty solid deal. 

[Little Evil]

On 7/14/2018 at 22:25, Short said:

My round trip on AA/CA is still screwed up.  CA is refusing to release 6 AM seats between BKK and HKG for some reason.     At some point I will have to lock in and Air Asia to HKG along with an expensive hotel and leave BKK a day early.     Anyone know their way around HK?

Train to Kowloon as others mentioned is very easy. Direct to/from airport. Can even check in on some airlines at the city-side train station. Just keep in mind to leave yourself a healthy pad of time to get back into the airport, as it can get a little clusterfucky at times. 

[Luv2Phuket]

3 hours ago, Little Evil said:

General points PSA: Amex has targeted Amazon 3X through 8/30/18, which happens to line up with today's Amazon Prime Day. Saw Bose QC 25's for $125. Pretty solid deal. 

I FINALLY got a targeted AMEX offer I wanted!  55555

Here is ANOTHER great Amazon/AMEX promotion that you can stack it with (along with Prime Day specials):
 https://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2018/07/17/save-20-amazon-purchase/

I just ran a purchase through, saving a good chunk of change with Prime Day specials, Prime Pantry and the 20% off.  In addition to the Prime Day discounts, the 20% off saved me around $10.50.

As noted in the blog post, you have to be VERY careful to mark it as only .01 to be paid by AMEX MR, as it keeps trying to default to paying the entire balance.

One of my purchases was a "Lightning Deal," so I had to run it through quickly.  Since he mentions a code that should work for future purchases, I am thinking about going back and seeing what else may be there.  The Bose QuietComfort headphones are tempting, but I already have noise canceling headphones and find that I rarely even take them with me on a trips.

 

 

[Luv2Phuket]

Another AMEX PSA:

If you have an AMEX Platinum Personal card, you now get a $100 annual statement credit for purchases at Saks (applied as a $50 credit for purchases made from January thru June and another $50 credit for purchases from July thru December).  You have to sign up for it, so be sure to do that first.

As noted here, you can leverage this credit with the current 15 miles per $ spent at Saks via the shopping portals for American, United, and Alaska:    https://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2018/07/16/saks-15-miles-per-dollar/

You also can get free shipping for your order with the code FREESHIP.

I bought looks like a nice casual dress shirt (hopefully it fits!) and a pair of dress socks for $9.32 net (including taxes) after the statement credit.  I should get around 815 Alaska miles (I used Alaska to get me above a 1000 mile increment, but, in hindsight, I should have used United), as well as the 60 MR for my purchase.  

[Little Evil]

Yeah. Me too! I typically never get the good targeted promotions, but I got this one.

I actually bought those Bose QC25's a year ago at around $225. Took them out for my first longhaul and proceeded to leave them on a CX flight. I just can't get myself to buy them again, even with this great deal. 

That hack looks interesting. May give it a go later--thanks.