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

[Luv2Phuket]

Reminder to all that today is the last day of the US Air/Points.com matching campaign.  I'm personally torn whether or not I should top off or not.  I wish this devaluation wasn't hanging over us and future structure of the FF programs was cemented.

 

Against my better judgment, I dropped a couple of hundred $ to push my US Air account above 400,000 miles.  I'm very concerned about a devaluation and having so many miles locked up, but my AA account is at the lowest its been in a few years, and I'm looking forward to combining them (hopefully in a few months)

 

I did NOT prospectively book another Star Alliance flight to BKK before the devaluation of United miles later today.  I already have 2 trips booked & ticketed, and it was becoming a pain to even find open dates for travel.

 

I have read that there is no charge to change the date of travel of an award seat, so long as you do not change the routing (so LAX-ICN-BKK could be changed to same route on a later date).  It sounds like a GREAT way to lock in a future ticket, but I was having too many issues finding first class availability going to BKK, and the available seats coming back weren't at great times.  Wish I had one more run at Thai's first class service in BKK, but that appears done under the new rate structure....sigh....

 

I'm still considering trying to book a Star Alliance RT using some of those US Air miles, but the next time I would be looking at is next February.  Since they open up like 330 days out, I'll be cutting close to get it booked before US Air moves to Oneworld.

[OldAsiaHand]

Surcharges depend on the airline. Some like BA charge a shitload & others like UA charge virtually nothing. Twice I paid BA $450 or so for a transpac First Class ticket on Cathay. I'm not complaining. I don't think I'd have done that Ana deal. Not because of the money either. Because Regional Biz is usually pretty underwhelming. I'd rather use the 60K for a one-way transpac in Biz.

Thai Airways is the worse I've encountered for fee rip-offs. A few months ago we paid B35,000 each for 'fees' on a 'free' roundtrip biz class ticket BKK-JFK. This month we're paying B17,000 for a 'free' ANA ticket on the same route. That's about $1100 and $600 for 'free' tickets. It's a scam, pure and simple, particularly for Thai.

[wackyjacky]

Last chance to buy US Air miles w/100% bump. Log in to see if you're eligible. I am, but I know there's going to be a devaluation soon. A good deal if you're going to use them right away. Not sure what I'm going to do yet.

[Little Evil]

Thanks for the update. WTF Us Airways. Upgrade me to Silver out of nowhere, but then only give me 75% bonus? They know I'm a miles slut who might still bite. Dammit!

[Luv2Phuket]

Thanks for the update. WTF Us Airways. Upgrade me to Silver out of nowhere, but then only give me 75% bonus? They know I'm a miles slut who might still bite. Dammit!

 

Got the EXACT same story -- they bumped me up to Silver for no apparent reason, but only offered me a 75% bonus.  No thanks!

[Little Evil]

Got the EXACT same story -- they bumped me up to Silver for no apparent reason, buy only offered me a 75% bonus.  No thanks!

I was initially worried that maybe it was some indication of status, but I saw that The Point Guy only got 25%.

[Little Evil]

Most of you guys probably already know, but I read last week (haven't had time to post) that  US Airways is still keeping ties to EVA even after the 31st. Here's the full list:

 

Aegean, Air China, Air New Zealand, Avianca, Eva Airways, Hawaiian Airlines, Jet Airways, Qatar Airways, Royal Jordanian Airlines, Shenzhen Airlines, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways, TACA, TAM Airlines, TAP Portugal and Turkish Airlines.

 

Super happy about EVA now that I've had a chance to try them out. Also happy that I get more tries at trying to land Singapore awards.

[wackyjacky]

SQ in Econ is easy. Up front ain't gonna happen - like ever.

[Little Evil]

SQ in Econ is easy. Up front ain't gonna happen - like ever.

 

Very true. US Airway's award chart actually said SQ was not available for business/first for all of 2013. Still hoping for the stars to align on a business class seat some time in the future. They look fantastic. Still, not holding my breath over it. I'm pretty happy with EVA's herringbone seats anyway. Bed mode isn't the best (KINK at joint of back and seat when flat), but otherwise fantastic hard product and service. 

[wackyjacky]

I tried for 10+ years and was only able to nab Biz seats once. SQ was unable to block * Alliance partners for 36 hrs as they changed computer systems. Eva & Ana, are excellent, but IMO Asiana is probably the best if you get their Quadra Smartium seats (all 777s).ps: Eva didn't adopt the "herringbone" system thank God. That's what CX used to use and it sucked. I hated it so much that I paid all the extra miles for 1st until they ripped 'em out. It was like being in a fucking coffin. Eva copied CX's new Biz layout which is a 'reverse herringbone' and it's great.

Edited March 22, 2014 by wackyjacky

[Little Evil]

Those Asiana seats do look great. Like Emirates layout. My only concern with those over EVAs herringbone is that the two middle/center seats in the staggered layout can be elbow to elbow, every other row. Herringbone allows for more privacy, no matter which seat.That being said, I'd take the worst business class any day instead of flying a 13 hr longhaul in coach.

[Luv2Phuket]

Crap....I just typed a LONG post -- with a link! -- and hit some combination of keys that closed Chrome, so I lost everything!  I'm loyal to you guys, so I'm gonna try to re-write it....sigh....

 

Going a little off-topic, you guys may be well aware of this, but Citi currently has an offer for an AA World Elite Mastercard, as detailed in this blog:

 

http://boardingarea.com/onemileatatime/2014/01/28/citi-executive-aadvantage-100000-mile-sign-bonus/

 

Bad news:

 - HIGH annual fee ($450)

 - HIGH minimum spend requirement ($10,000 in 3 months)

 

Good news:

 - $200 credit with first charge, so annual fee is effectively reduced to $250

 - 100,000 AA miles upon hitting minimum spend

 - AA lounge access (great for frequent travelers)

 

Factoring in the minimum spend, you will end up with enough miles for a RT LAX-BKK business class ticket on Cathay using AA miles through Oneworld (which is 110,000 miles)

 

The minimum spend is a SERIOUS bitch for me (since I'm not smart enough to use Vanilla reloads and Bluebird...but I'm gonna look into it!), but my "worst case scenario" is to:

 - use WilliamPaid to pay my rent (costs me about $57 to incur a $2000+ charge)

 - pay my depressingly large income tax bill using the card -- I think this will cost me about a 3% service charge, so I'm looking at $240 to put $8000 on it (and that's barely over 1/2 of what I owe!)

 

I may put less of my tax bill on it, do a 2nd month of William Paid and/or come up with other charges to cover the minimum spend, but this "worst case scenario" nets me the $10,000 minimum spend for less than $300 in "unnecessary" costs.  Adding this to the "effective" annual fee means I have "wasted" $550 for a RT business class ticket on Cathay to BKK....I'm fine with that!

 

One last note that I have mentioned before, but always feel compelled to add -

If I charge a chunk of my massive tax bill, I will have the money to pay the bill in its entirety.  I'm just incurring the 3% fee to get the mile bonus; not because I plan to pay the charges over time.  The interest would quickly eat up the benefit of the mile bonus if you fail to pay it off each month.

[duke main]

Great info, footy. Thanks for going through the hassle of redoing this post. I'm not sure I'll apply for it; I don't know if I can come up with the minimum spend, but you've given me something to lose sleep over for a few nights thinking about it.

[Luv2Phuket]

I held off until I saw my ugly tax bill -- calculated it last night and went straight to the application!  

 

I figure if Uncle Sam is gonna f*ck me like that, I might as well find a way to get a trip to BKK out of it, so I can f*ck some Thai girls!  LOL

[wackyjacky]

There's a whole prepaid ATM scam out there (check Flyertalk). You buy these cards (say Bluebird) through a shopping portal (say Topcashback) which kicks you back 2-3% which negates the fees.on the cards. Pay your taxes and all your insurance bills w/the card. Sometimes you can pay your rent/mortgage w/the card too.

[Luv2Phuket]

For those of you who have been racking up US Air miles (like me), we're hitting a bit of a sweet spot -- US Air is now part of oneworld, so that opens up Cathay and JAL.  At the same time, they are continuing their non-oneworld partnership with some Asian carriers from Star Alliance that are options to fly to BKK, including EVA (must book by May 15), Singapore (must book by July 31) and Air China.  Depending upon where you are traveling from, Turkish may be another option to get to BKK, as well as Shenzen (I know NOTHING about Shenzen)

 

US Air requires RT bookings and does not allow one way flights for 1/2 the mileage (you can fly one way, but it costs you the same miles as a RT).  I'm not certain if you can do a "split" with oneworld and non-oneworld partners on the same trip (i.e., fly Cathay from LAX-BKK, but fly EVA from BKK-LAX)

 

Here are more details:

http://boardingarea.com/viewfromthewing/2014/03/31/us-airways-now-part-oneworld-means-booking-award-tickets/

 

As he notes, if you have both AA and US Air miles, it takes less miles for oneworld travel using AA to go from LAX-BKK (110,000 AA vs 120,000 US Air), but US Air is a much better deal if you're just going to HKG (90,000 US Air vs 110,000 AA)

 

I have built a pretty decent US Air war chest (400,000+ miles) in anticipation of the AA merger (since I love Cathay business and first class), and think I will look into booking an EVA RT for early next year before that option disappears.  I just need to wait until mid-April to book since there's a very slim chance I'll be moving from LA.

[Little Evil]

Share bonus is back for US Airways. Anyone interested in sharing miles?  Deal pretty much equals 50k miles for $500 + tax. 

[Luv2Phuket]

Share bonus is back for US Airways. Anyone interested in sharing miles?  Deal pretty much equals 50k miles for $500 + tax. 

 

I'm kicking it around in my head -- I have some minimum spends to meet, but I'm waiting for the 2 cards to get here.

 

For anyone else interested, you do NOT need 50,000 miles in your account to do this.  You just need an account that has been open for a while.  

 

Also, it can be set up so multiple people can get in on the same "trade" and get the 50k bonus miles -- A sends 50k to B (who gets 100k in his account - the 50k + the bonus); B then sends 50k to C (who gets 100k); C then sends 50k to A (who gets his original 50k back + 50k bonus miles).  You can add as many steps as you need, so long as it comes back to "A" in the end.  Every person's account goes up by 50,000 miles and they each pay the $500 + taxes.  

 

50,000 miles for around $500 + tax is such a sweet deal that I may have to partake, even though I already have 400,000 miles in my account (apparently, I'm not just addicted to Pattaya! 555555)

[wackyjacky]

IMO, it's a good deal ONLY if you're going to book right away - a devaluation is on the horizon.

[Luv2Phuket]

IMO, it's a good deal ONLY if you're going to book right away - a devaluation is on the horizon.

 

I agree that a devaluation is on the very near horizon, and I'm concerned that I already have too many miles "in the bank" (especially factoring in the 165,000 AA and 55,000 United miles I should be adding in the next 30-45 days with credit card bonuses and spending).

 

That said, I'm also thinking, even if they raise the required mileage to that of Star Alliance on United miles and it's 160,000 miles RT to BKK, then the 50,000 miles = about 31% of a RT business class ticket.  At $500 + tax for the 50,000 miles, that still isn't a horrible deal, as it shakes out to an effective cost of around $1700 for the RT ticket.

 

Still, a better way to bag them may be the US Air credit card through Barclays -- think that nets you 35,000 to 40,000, depending upon the offer.

[crumbs]

If you've been playing the Vanilla Reloads game, VR's went cash only on April 1st, can't buy them with a credit card anymore.

I got lucky and found $5,000 worth at a CVS in LA, but every store since then is cash only:(

[crumbs]

Didn't know that Oneworld biz class RT LAX-BKK is only 110,000 miles.

I've been using star alliance miles for the past couple of years.

Glad I used up them all up prior to devaluation.

 

110k miles is a great deal for $10k min spend. You can pay $10k in Fed & State tax with extension and then file for a refund right away. The refund will be issued as a check or direct deposit (whatever you prefer) and you'll get the miles!

The refund might take a couple of weeks, but if you time it right, you should be able to use it to pay off the card!

Great deal for a biz class even with fee!

Crap....I just typed a LONG post -- with a link! -- and hit some combination of keys that closed Chrome, so I lost everything!  I'm loyal to you guys, so I'm gonna try to re-write it....sigh....

 

Going a little off-topic, you guys may be well aware of this, but Citi currently has an offer for an AA World Elite Mastercard, as detailed in this blog:

 

http://boardingarea.com/onemileatatime/2014/01/28/citi-executive-aadvantage-100000-mile-sign-bonus/

 

Bad news:

 - HIGH annual fee ($450)

 - HIGH minimum spend requirement ($10,000 in 3 months)

 

Good news:

 - $200 credit with first charge, so annual fee is effectively reduced to $250

 - 100,000 AA miles upon hitting minimum spend

 - AA lounge access (great for frequent travelers)

 

Factoring in the minimum spend, you will end up with enough miles for a RT LAX-BKK business class ticket on Cathay using AA miles through Oneworld (which is 110,000 miles)

 

The minimum spend is a SERIOUS bitch for me (since I'm not smart enough to use Vanilla reloads and Bluebird...but I'm gonna look into it!), but my "worst case scenario" is to:

 - use WilliamPaid to pay my rent (costs me about $57 to incur a $2000+ charge)

 - pay my depressingly large income tax bill using the card -- I think this will cost me about a 3% service charge, so I'm looking at $240 to put $8000 on it (and that's barely over 1/2 of what I owe!)

 

I may put less of my tax bill on it, do a 2nd month of William Paid and/or come up with other charges to cover the minimum spend, but this "worst case scenario" nets me the $10,000 minimum spend for less than $300 in "unnecessary" costs.  Adding this to the "effective" annual fee means I have "wasted" $550 for a RT business class ticket on Cathay to BKK....I'm fine with that!

 

One last note that I have mentioned before, but always feel compelled to add -

If I charge a chunk of my massive tax bill, I will have the money to pay the bill in its entirety.  I'm just incurring the 3% fee to get the mile bonus; not because I plan to pay the charges over time.  The interest would quickly eat up the benefit of the mile bonus if you fail to pay it off each month.

[Luv2Phuket]

Didn't know that Oneworld biz class RT LAX-BKK is only 110,000 miles.

I've been using star alliance miles for the past couple of years.

Glad I used up them all up prior to devaluation.

 

110k miles is a great deal for $10k min spend. You can pay $10k in Fed & State tax with extension and then file for a refund right away. The refund will be issued as a check or direct deposit (whatever you prefer) and you'll get the miles!

The refund might take a couple of weeks, but if you time it right, you should be able to use it to pay off the card!

Great deal for a biz class even with fee!

 

Just went back and looked at my ticket from last year -- 55,000 AA miles for Cathay Biz class (one way).  Even better, one of my AA cards earns me a "rebate" of 10% of the miles used, up to 10,000 per year.  That effectively takes it down to 100,000 miles for RT biz class (assuming you can find the availability on Cathay -- that's usually the sticking point)

 

US Air is the better deal going to Hong Kong (only 90,000 miles for RT), but they jump to 120,000 to head to BKK.

 

67,500 AA miles each way (135,000 RT) for first class on Cathay is nothing to sneeze at -- only 25,000 more RT for an amazing experience.  

 

With the devaluation of Star Alliance via United, it's 25,000 miles LESS to fly first class using AA right now than it is to fly business class using United!

 

AA can't let that big of a difference last much longer.

[crumbs]

I've heard about oneworld availability issues, that's why I stuck with united/star alliance. Never had a problem with getting flights with them even last minute. But it's a mute point since the devaluation. I still just banked 50,000 chase sign up points that I plan to transfer to united, I'll transfer another 20k miles from my other chase accounts and that will get me a RT in economy with a stop in TYO. Yeah, economy sucks, but better than paying.

 

What do use to look up oneworld availability to BKK, footy?

I know it used to be BA and Qantas, but heard there's some issue with Qantas now.

[wackyjacky]

AA is moving to the US redemption chart from what I've read and then it'll probably get bumped up to UA levels soon. So the 110 for J will move to 120. The 90 to HKG is a sweet spot and you can get a cheap fare from there to BKK. Who cares about J, short haul Biz sucks anyway and it's a short flight. ps: Qantas shows phantom availability. BA's website has been improved, but it's stiil a pain in the ass. I like JL.

Edited April 8, 2014 by wackyjacky