ellen10
Established Member
- Joined
- Jul 18, 2008
- Posts
- 3,325
Just booked our award bookings with much angst, to the US for 2015.
I am writing this to maybe help others and to acknowledge the help and suggestions I received from AFF members.
This is what I have learnt and experienced in the process.
I started looking at availability back in June/July to try and get a feel for what is on offer. The flights we wanted to book were for September, so time to see what the possibilities would be.
I read many a thread on AFF and asked a couple of questions.
This was to be our first J award booking. Our travel is all self funded and with the added help of CC points we finally made the magic number of points.
Our first choice was Qantas SYD to NYC. I learnt early on in the process that Qantas awards are 353 days out.
So for 2 weeks prior to our preferred departure dates in September, every day I would check the QFF site with dismay at the lack of availability. I even rang Qantas to ask if they could see better availability than I could. The lady stated that September is a very popular month and couldn't offer any more help but to keep looking. I did ask if they were released at 10am but she would not confirm this.
My plan of attack was log on at say 9.30am check the no availability and then log back in at 10am. Sometimes if I got on by 10.04 all Qantas J awards gone, sometimes some economy was available, other days not even that.
I became a woman obsessed! And the angst and stress increased. Finally success! not our preferred dates but flights at 10.03 am. Only downside was the leg LA/JFK would be in Premium Economy but of course at Business points. But there was no way I would let the flights go. So book we did yahoo!
Now I thought that was the worst part. But getting the return flights was even a greater nightmare.
Long story short there was nothing on QF from NYC to SYD. Not even economy. Not via Brisbane , not via MEL, nothing. for over a week I searched. Yes I could have got flights with Ba via London but the LON/SYD leg was in economy (but Business points). I looked at the CX options but we didn't have enough points. I rang Qantas on 2 more occasions, one lady was very helpful and tried so many combinations but nothing matched. I even looked at using Dallas Fort Worth but best I could do was economy (Dallas Fort Worth flights were the only QF on offer for the whole 2 week period).
Our return dates passed by and it was looking like I would have to cancel the 1st leg and our plans would be dashed. My husband just said give up, the stress is not worth it, he was over it but I was determined.
So reluctantly I asked my son if we could borrow some points to make the cut to fly CX. Family transfer done. I logged back on the site and booked CX flights for 1 week later than my holidays, so I will have to beg for more time off. I could have got CX flights earlier but was hoping for QF to appear. But by the time I realised there was no hope the earlier CX flights were gone.
What I learnt from this:
Was that QF are offering nothing at the moment in Business class to and from the US
Or only economy from Dallas Fort Worth.
The Dallas flights came up at 11am, maybe because of daylight saving?
CX have many more Business class options but more points and offer them earlier than the 353 days out.
CX taxes are about half that of QF
I tried just getting flights from LAX but nothing also available to SYD/Mel or Brisbane. You would think that with so many flights from LAX to Aus there would be something.
This may be totally unrelated but ever since the massive thread post of a paying couple being downgraded from Business from LAX there has been no QF ward flights from NYC or LAX.
We will no longer save up our points for Business award seats, just buy economy and pay for exit row seats.
We are NB QF Frequent Flyers, we almost make silver every year but not quite.
I hope this may help others in their award flight endeavours, I will savour my hard earned flights next year.
I am writing this to maybe help others and to acknowledge the help and suggestions I received from AFF members.
This is what I have learnt and experienced in the process.
I started looking at availability back in June/July to try and get a feel for what is on offer. The flights we wanted to book were for September, so time to see what the possibilities would be.
I read many a thread on AFF and asked a couple of questions.
This was to be our first J award booking. Our travel is all self funded and with the added help of CC points we finally made the magic number of points.
Our first choice was Qantas SYD to NYC. I learnt early on in the process that Qantas awards are 353 days out.
So for 2 weeks prior to our preferred departure dates in September, every day I would check the QFF site with dismay at the lack of availability. I even rang Qantas to ask if they could see better availability than I could. The lady stated that September is a very popular month and couldn't offer any more help but to keep looking. I did ask if they were released at 10am but she would not confirm this.
My plan of attack was log on at say 9.30am check the no availability and then log back in at 10am. Sometimes if I got on by 10.04 all Qantas J awards gone, sometimes some economy was available, other days not even that.
I became a woman obsessed! And the angst and stress increased. Finally success! not our preferred dates but flights at 10.03 am. Only downside was the leg LA/JFK would be in Premium Economy but of course at Business points. But there was no way I would let the flights go. So book we did yahoo!
Now I thought that was the worst part. But getting the return flights was even a greater nightmare.
Long story short there was nothing on QF from NYC to SYD. Not even economy. Not via Brisbane , not via MEL, nothing. for over a week I searched. Yes I could have got flights with Ba via London but the LON/SYD leg was in economy (but Business points). I looked at the CX options but we didn't have enough points. I rang Qantas on 2 more occasions, one lady was very helpful and tried so many combinations but nothing matched. I even looked at using Dallas Fort Worth but best I could do was economy (Dallas Fort Worth flights were the only QF on offer for the whole 2 week period).
Our return dates passed by and it was looking like I would have to cancel the 1st leg and our plans would be dashed. My husband just said give up, the stress is not worth it, he was over it but I was determined.
So reluctantly I asked my son if we could borrow some points to make the cut to fly CX. Family transfer done. I logged back on the site and booked CX flights for 1 week later than my holidays, so I will have to beg for more time off. I could have got CX flights earlier but was hoping for QF to appear. But by the time I realised there was no hope the earlier CX flights were gone.
What I learnt from this:
Was that QF are offering nothing at the moment in Business class to and from the US
Or only economy from Dallas Fort Worth.
The Dallas flights came up at 11am, maybe because of daylight saving?
CX have many more Business class options but more points and offer them earlier than the 353 days out.
CX taxes are about half that of QF
I tried just getting flights from LAX but nothing also available to SYD/Mel or Brisbane. You would think that with so many flights from LAX to Aus there would be something.
This may be totally unrelated but ever since the massive thread post of a paying couple being downgraded from Business from LAX there has been no QF ward flights from NYC or LAX.
We will no longer save up our points for Business award seats, just buy economy and pay for exit row seats.
We are NB QF Frequent Flyers, we almost make silver every year but not quite.
I hope this may help others in their award flight endeavours, I will savour my hard earned flights next year.
