QANTAS points upgrade as a couple

[pprofpopp]

Hi,

this is my first post as I have just found the site. looks a mine of information.

can anyone help with this question. My wife and I are flying Adelaide-London in May and i want to use my points to upgrade from Econ to Business.

I know that I need to book a flexi or dearer economy fare to be allowed to upgrade at all and I know that status level determines your chance of being able to upgrade. problem is a bit that I read on the Q website saying that your priority is determined by the individual's status. I am Platinum and my wife is Silver.

Obviously, I couldn't accept a points upgrade is she was not allowed to also (me in Business and her in Economy = divorce court!!!)

So how do I ensure that either both of us or neither of us are upgraded?

And, if there is slim/no chance of us being upgraded together, I'd be as well buying red deal fares and saving the money that I'd have to spend on the dearer economy seat as the only reason for that extra is to be able to upgrade.

I seem to remember everything being so much simpler....
thanks if anyone can advise

cheers


Profpopp, Adelaide

 

[Mal]

Welcome to AFF.

My understanding is that when you have tickets booked together (ie if both you and your wife are on the same itinerary) , then it's a both or nothing upgrade situation. You won't end up with one person upgraded out of the two.

 

[anat0l]

pprofpopp, welcome to AFF.

1) International upgrades on QF are not guaranteed. It's basically a lottery you enter where you register your intention to upgrade at least 24 hours in advance of departure. At T-24, QF determines who gets upgraded. You then find out the result at check-in. If you're successful, points are deducted and you get your upgrade. If you're not, no points are deducted and you fly in your original class.
2) With more than one person on the same itinerary, you will either all be upgraded or none of you are upgraded; never a mix.
3) For an itinerary with more than one pax on it, I believe that the upgrade probability depends on the status of the pax who registered the upgrade. This is why it's obviously a good idea to ask the pax on the booking with the highest status to register the upgrade request.
4) As a WP, you should stand a fairly good chance of receiving your upgrades. However, as usual, nothing is a definite....

 

[JetLagged]

4) As a WP, you should stand a fairly good chance of receiving your upgrades. ....

Ahh, call me a conspiracy theorist if you like - but I wonder if there is ANY deliberate intention on the part of Qantas to have in their new AIR edition an article on platinum - as being the desire of the rich and famous?

Or am I stretching credulity too far?

But any rate, your response to the actual issues was spon on, m8 - when applying for upgrades I always make the application etc - I'm WP while my partner is only a mere G - it seems to work, by crikey!

 

[anat0l]

Ahh, call be a conspiracy theorist if you like - but I wonder if there is ANY deliberate intention on the part of Qantas to have in their new AIR edition an article on platinum - as being the desire of the rich and famous?

Or am I stretching credulity too far?

I wish I could comment on that but I don't receive a copy of the exclusive AIR magazine.

I may be a WP but I'm not that valuable to QF.

 

[Batesy]

Mrs batesy and I have had success with upgrades for both of us on the one booking before. J-F on SYD to SFO and Y-J on the same route.
Applied under the member that had Platinum in both cases.

 

[cove]

To avoid a divorce you could consider booking your partner in premium economy so she ranks ahead of the platinums for an upgrade.Premium Economy is the equivalent of business class from a few years back.
If you have the outright points try all exit points including going backwards for an outright points ticket.
Be prepared to travel on different flights.Check the loads in business class.Sometimes I get lucky using either Melbourne or Sydney.
I grabbed a first class points flight ex Sydney and my partner is in business on another flight trying for an upgrade.

 

[pprofpopp]

Much obliged everyone. very helpful indeed.

But now as a card-carying indecisive, I'm swithering about paying an extra $1000 each and just buying a BC return from Sydney with Finnair, saving my 100,000 upgrade points towards 2 full BC tickets for next year (booked 11 months and 29 days in advance of course!) and earning some more points and SCs into the bargain.

(Or I could go air china for under $5k each on BC and credit those points to our Miles and More accounts.)

Does anyone else think that there are just too many choices in this life?

Choosing flights is worse than picking a breakfast cereal!

cheers

 

[markis10]

I know that I need to book a flexi or dearer economy fare to be allowed to upgrade at all

You dont need to book a flexi or dearer fare, some red-e deals are eligible for upgrades and book into a class that is upgradeable, for instance in May the $1300 fares are upgradeable while the sale fares are not. That may change the picture, mind you if you can see the value in the Finnair J flights I would be going for them.

 

[Mal]

Choosing flights is worse than picking a breakfast cereal!

The problem is that the more informed you become (esp. through sites like AFF), the greater your choices really are. Also, you tend to sometimes question where loyalty does get you and why you choose certain flights etc.

 

[pprofpopp]

You dont need to book a flexi or dearer fare, some red-e deals are eligible for upgrades and book into a class that is upgradeable, for instance in May the $1300 fares are upgradeable while the sale fares are not. That may change the picture, mind you if you can see the value in the Finnair J flights I would be going for them.

thanks a lot for that. I hadn't noticed that one! I checked other red deals and they were not eligible so I assumed that all were not.

Once again, check that small print! So now I'm back with that as an option too. I might just toss a coin

thanks a lot once again

 

[anat0l]

Choosing flights is worse than picking a breakfast cereal!

Choosing breakfast cereal is a piece of cake (yes that is a pun!)

Flight options...sometimes you'd probably have more luck finding out what women want... :mrgreen:

The worst part is that whilst one debates about flight options, time ticks on by, and sometimes those options disappear....

 

[pprofpopp]

The problem is that the more informed you become (esp. through sites like AFF), the greater your choices really are. Also, you tend to sometimes question where loyalty does get you and why you choose certain flights etc.

Thanks Mal,
yes, I've been thinking about this too lately. If i add up all of the hours and effort I've expended over the years (decades now) in accruing miles, changing credit cards (weeping about Ansett, yes it still cuts deep ;-( scouring websites, plotting status runs etc etc, i sometimes wonder about (and I apologise if this may be heresy) just using my half mill qf points on 2 nice BC flights to the UK and then forgetting about points altogether and just pay my QC membership for domestic comfort and book whatever the best money deal happens to be on the day with an airline that you think is pretty good.

gawd, I'm coming over all-a-quiver just contemplating it

I probably won't though as somehow, I think I might just be getting something for nothing, albeit an ulcer

happy trails

 

[simongr]

But now as a card-carying indecisive, I'm swithering about paying an extra $1000 each and just buying a BC return from Sydney with Finnair, saving my 100,000 upgrade points towards 2 full BC tickets for next year (booked 11 months and 29 days in advance of course!) and earning some more points and SCs into the bargain.

I would definitely take this option.

Guaranteed J seats and good earning (points and SCs).

My only concern would be whether you are having to route through HEL. Personally it wouldn't be an issue but you might have trouble explaining it to the missus.