Time to buy those Dec 2005 tickets with FF points

[danielh]

Well it's now New Years day and so the December 2005 flights are now available for use. I've just got my two return direct MEL - LA flights with the return back to Melbourne a few days later.

I'll just have to spend and additional 2 x 2,500 points to change my return date on Feb 1 2005 when the Jan 2006 dates become available.

Both tickets cost me 80,000 x 2 points + 2,500 x 2 points to change dates and about AU$361 in taxes.

It's cheaper then the 96,000 per ticket I'll be forced to use in May 25 2005 onwards.

Regards
Daniel

 

[arun]

Great work Daniel. This will help more people in this board.

 

[danielh]

Well I just booked my return flights from LA to Melbourne direct on Jan 14 2006. I wanted Jan 14 but no flights available.

It's a bit longer then I was hoping for and I'll have a horrible time at work when I arrive in MLB on Monday Jan 16th at 8.10am but i guess it should be a fun 32 day holiday.

As a word of warning, for those who are thinking of doing what I did, because I originally chose a return flight of LAX-MLB direct, this meant that if I wanted to get a return flight at a better date but via LAX-AUK-MLB or LAX-SYD-MLB I would have had to pay the penalty of 2,500 x 2 points.

It might have been better to have originally booked a return flight via LAX-SYD-MLB as that would have given me more options for when I changed it to a better date a few weeks later.

FYI, I paid no penalty for changing as I am an existing QAN SC.

Regards
Daniel

 

[Guest]

Well I just booked my return flights from LA to Melbourne direct on Jan 14 2006. I wanted Jan 14 but no flights available.

It's a bit longer then I was hoping for and I'll have a horrible time at work when I arrive in MLB on Monday Jan 16th at 8.10am but i guess it should be a fun 32 day holiday.

As a word of warning, for those who are thinking of doing what I did, because I originally chose a return flight of LAX-MLB direct, this meant that if I wanted to get a return flight at a better date but via LAX-AUK-MLB or LAX-SYD-MLB I would have had to pay the penalty of 2,500 x 2 points.

It might have been better to have originally booked a return flight via LAX-SYD-MLB as that would have given me more options for when I changed it to a better date a few weeks later.

FYI, I paid no penalty for changing as I am an existing QAN SC.

Regards
Daniel

It is interesting that there are "no available seats" for Jan 14 2006. Who the heck plans that far ahead?

Good to see you are making good use of the points now. You also got a good deal with the TAXES. Considerring the tax will go up between now and then, I'd say you got in nicely.

What is.... QAN SC?

 

[danielh]

QAN SC - Daniel speak for Qantas Silver Class. I think it is also known as SS (scumy silver) but not sure.

I think with all the changes to the QFF points system there were a lot of forward planners for this year. Also, the Jan 14 date is a bit of a popular one as it meant you will get back from a holiday on something like a Sat morningn and have the weekend to relax before going back to work on the Monday.

As it is I think ill be a bit 'sick' on that day as I will be arriving at 8.10am Mon morning.

At least they are both direct flights. Every other time I've gone to LAX it has been via Sydney.

Regards
Daniel

 

[Craigjodie]

We had to.

We booked a three one-way flight Mel to Lax business class going on the 28th December using points.

We then tried to book the return flight on 20 Jan no seats avaible but got one the next day.

A lot have people have been doing this to use up their points before the QF program changes.

 

[danielh]

Did you manage to get a return flight? If someone in your group has Silver or (preferably) higher status credits then you might be able to get seats.

I was just kicking myself when I tried to get my return seats as I was going to do it the day before but I thought they would not be available then. DOH!

Regards
Daniel

 

[Craigjodie]

Yep got the return tickets but only just .

Took a lot of phone calls as the seats were going as soon as they were released on each day. They were only releasing two business class seats on the direct flight to Melbourne and only on two of the direct flights in the week we wanted.

We are both silver flyers so we got those seats okay, the 3rd one was the harder one. We had to put in a request on a platinium membership. Although they had a black out on requests for 20/01/05 till i think the end of that month on flights out of LA we managed to get it.

It had to go up pretty high in the yeild department and the manger on the desk at the time was a great help.

 

[Kiwi Flyer]

QAN SC - Daniel speak for Qantas Silver Class. I think it is also known as SS (scumy silver) but not sure.

See some acronyms used by many here and on another board.

 

[bravoecho1]

I'm booked BNE-LAX departing on the 20/12 and returing on the 10/1, two J seats for 320,000 points.

Only problem in getting seats was that now that they have introduced QF175, they were only releasing J seats on QF25 so we are going via AKL .

Managed to get 1A & 1B

 

[NM]

I'm booked BNE-LAX departing on the 20/12 and returing on the 10/1, two J seats for 320,000 points.

Only problem in getting seats was that now that they have introduced QF175, they were only releasing J seats on QF25 so we are going via AKL .

Managed to get 1A & 1B

But by then they should have Skybeds on QF25, so that will be nice for the AKL-LAX sector.

 

[bravoecho1]

Totally agree NM.

Thats why I wasn't too fussed about trying to route through SYD or MEL.

The departure and arrival times suit us and an extra couple of hours sampling the skybeds shouldn't be too difficult :wink:

 

[NM]

Totally agree NM.

Thats why I wasn't too fussed about trying to route through SYD or MEL.

The departure and arrival times suit us and an extra couple of hours sampling the skybeds shouldn't be too difficult :wink:

And don't forget to sample a few Macs Gold in the QP on the way through AKL :wink: .

 

[Kiwi Flyer]

And don't forget to sample a few Macs Gold in the QP on the way through AKL :wink: .

If there's any there :x None at either QF or NZ the last time I checked (recently) :cry:

 

[bravoecho1]

And don't forget to sample a few Macs Gold in the QP on the way through AKL :wink: .

I was planning on that .

When I was in Queenstown last year, I certainly tested the theory "Beers are like peanuts - they don't come in 1's and 2's" with the Macs :wink: .

 

[Ekka]

FYI, I paid no penalty for changing as I am an existing QAN SC.

Regards
Daniel

I haven’t flown much for a year or so, so have dropped from Gold to Silver, and a month ago to Bronze. In late January I made a couple of international award bookings, using nominal dates, before the SC expired, under the impression (reinforced by the CSOs who made the reservations) that I would still be able to change them without points penalty even after my demotion to pleb because I had made them while still a Silver.

I made the bookings on two separate occasions, and was given the same advice by two different CSOs in the international area, both of whom told me they had confirmed the situation with their respective supervisors.

Today I changed one of the reservations, for the return leg CHC-BNE for my daughter next January, and was hit with the 2500-point penalty by the QF person I encountered, who said she had referred the matter to a “supervisor”.

I didn’t argue about it, but it is a considerable concern that misinformation is being dispensed by Qantas staff: either by those who told me there would be no penalty, or by those who have now insisted that there is to be a penalty. They've certainly managed to confuse me.

I may have been wrong in expecting to be spared the penalty (in which case so were the QF types who advised me at the booking stage), but would be grateful for any input and advice.

 

[danielh]

I would probably ask to have the 'no penalty' clause put into the ticket details for Qantas CSVc to read and refer to.

I've had issues in the past regarding penalties (back when I didn't read the fine print) and I remember insisting I should not get a penalty to change the name on a ticket.

From what I remember, the system is pretty rigid for the low level CSRs but when they go up to management/supervisor level suddenly magical things happen.

Regards
Daniel