US Dividend Miles - Award Booking Questions and General Discussion

[casanovawa]

Re: US Dividend Miles Buy/Gift Miles 100% bonus - Cheap way for F/J *A Awards

I did drop that in the conversation about requesting a seat from LH, but then said not sure if that's possible and she said they only have what LH make available.... But maybe i shouldn't run the white flag up the poll before they even have a chance to nix the idea and confidently ask the operator to request it...

How dumb though to have such a silly access to LH seats?!?!?

 

[zainman]

Re: US Dividend Miles Buy/Gift Miles 100% bonus - Cheap way for F/J *A Awards

My first booking with USDM today (haven't ticketed yet as am still finalising some things at work). Any feedback or concerns are welcome:

SYD-ICN OZ J (772) 14 hours layover
ICN-NRT OZ F (744) 12 hours layover
NRT-GUM UA J (777)

2 days in GUM

GUM-HKG UA Y (738) :-( no availability in J, used UA search engine to check

3 day stopover in HKG

HKG-BKK TG F (A380) 2 hour connection
BKK-SYD TG F (744)


First ever call to USDM. Agent unaware of Guam airport code, where it was and did not take my word that it was a USA territory. Unaware of airport code for NRT..

40,000 miles + USD 200 in taxes in fees per person.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Re: US Dividend Miles Buy/Gift Miles 100% bonus - Cheap way for F/J *A Awards

I did drop that in the conversation about requesting a seat from LH, but then said not sure if that's possible and she said they only have what LH make available.... But maybe i shouldn't run the white flag up the poll before they even have a chance to nix the idea and confidently ask the operator to request it...

How dumb though to have such a silly access to LH seats?!?!?

usdm is in the record of saying those seats can be manually requested, and there is a glitch. there is extensive discussion on how to request the seat elsewhere.

but of course u have to find an agent that can do it.

 

[casanovawa]

Re: US Dividend Miles Buy/Gift Miles 100% bonus - Cheap way for F/J *A Awards

Is this extensive discussion here or over at Flyertalk???

 

[casanovawa]

Re: US Dividend Miles Buy/Gift Miles 100% bonus - Cheap way for F/J *A Awards

My first booking with USDM today (haven't ticketed yet as am still finalising some things at work). Any feedback or concerns are welcome:

SYD-ICN OZ J (772) 14 hours layover
ICN-NRT OZ F (744) 12 hours layover
NRT-GUM UA J (777)

2 days in GUM

GUM-HKG UA Y (738) :-( no availability in J, used UA search engine to check

3 day stopover in HKG

HKG-BKK TG F (A380) 2 hour connection
BKK-SYD TG F (744)


First ever call to USDM. Agent unaware of Guam airport code, where it was and did not take my word that it was a USA territory. Unaware of airport code for NRT..

40,000 miles + USD 200 in taxes in fees per person.

This is a sort of itinerary i have thought of of doing, a GUM and HKG dest + stopover... Cept no F out of Perth unfortuantely which make spending the extra 10k miles in all likelihood a bit of waste, but now just need to fit it in the schedule somewhere...

And i would have been happier having the operator believe it was a south pacific territory rather than a US one, they might get their back up about giving it to you for 30k/40k miles..

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Re: US Dividend Miles Buy/Gift Miles 100% bonus - Cheap way for F/J *A Awards

This is a sort of itinerary i have thought of of doing, a GUM and HKG dest + stopover... Cept no F out of Perth unfortuantely which make spending the extra 10k miles in all likelihood a bit of waste, but now just need to fit it in the schedule somewhere...

And i would have been happier having the operator believe it was a south pacific territory rather than a US one, they might get their back up about giving it to you for 30k/40k miles..

$175 difference is worth it for the buggy transfer alone at bkk.

 

[casanovawa]

Re: US Dividend Miles Buy/Gift Miles 100% bonus - Cheap way for F/J *A Awards

I guess when you put it like that at such a small difference it might be worth racking up my first F flight(s)...

 

[Berlin]

Re: US Dividend Miles Buy/Gift Miles 100% bonus - Cheap way for F/J *A Awards

Has anyone here recent experience with booking US redemption flights to America? I've had quite a few great ones to Europe and Asia now but somehow don't have much luck coming up with anything to the US- United hardly ever has any seats in O or I class available, would that be correct or am I searching the wrong way? Alternatively, there could be an option using OZ via Asia but that's a looong detour, not even sure if that's allowed? Any ideas?

 

[sergeyvzn]

You will have almost no chance getting anything on United or Air New Zealand across the Pacific. I was looking at the same kind of redemption recently and rang US Aurways and was told the only way to get across the ocean from Australia was on Asiana or Air China. No availability in premium classes ever on anything else

 

[Berlin]

You will have almost no chance getting anything on United or Air New Zealand across the Pacific. I was looking at the same kind of redemption recently and rang US Aurways and was told the only way to get across the ocean from Australia was on Asiana or Air China. No availability in premium classes ever on anything else

Okay, thanks for that- this answers my question- bugger that! Add Air Canada to that list of airlines which never have availability.

So- turning this around, going via Seoul or China is allowed according to the redemption rules, do I understand this correctly? I eventually want to end up in Colombia so just wondering if that will be within the rules if I go something like Sydney-Seoul-Los Angeles-Miami-Colombia

 

[bcworld]

So- turning this around, going via Seoul or China is allowed according to the redemption rules, do I understand this correctly? I eventually want to end up in Colombia so just wondering if that will be within the rules if I go something like Sydney-Seoul-Los Angeles-Miami-Colombia

The maximum permitted mileage (25M) for this routing is either 14500 or 16500:

Your proposed routing is a shade over 15k so it depends which one they use.

UA is occasionally available and quite commonly close to departure.

[KVS Availability Tool 7.3.0 - Reference: Maximum Permitted Mileage [MPM]: SYD-BOG/US]

         GI       M      5M     10M     15M     20M     25M     
MPM      PA   11628   12209   12790   13372   13953   14535     
MPM      PN   13171   13829   14488   15146   15805   16463

 

[anat0l]

If you want Business availability, you may want to additionally consider BR - they are not too bad for availability to select places.

For First Class, OZ, CA (if that floats your boat) or even NH (mostly to the east coast only).

 

[Berlin]

All very helpful- thanks a lot guys!

 

[sergeyvzn]

You should check the MPM but I think you should be right considering I have seen here earlier a successful route Sydney-Rio via Europe and Miami

 

[Berlin]

The maximum permitted mileage (25M) for this routing is either 14500 or 16500:
Your proposed routing is a shade over 15k so it depends which one they use.

So that means- luck who's the agent I'm speaking to when making the booking or how is this determined?

You should check the MPM but I think you should be right considering I have seen here earlier a successful route Sydney-Rio via Europe and Miami

Via Europe! I hadn't even thought of that- of course, that could work as well!

 

[jgm]

Re: US Dividend Miles Buy/Gift Miles 100% bonus - Cheap way for F/J *A Awards

Has anyone here recent experience with booking US redemption flights to America? I've had quite a few great ones to Europe and Asia now but somehow don't have much luck coming up with anything to the US- United hardly ever has any seats in O or I class available, would that be correct or am I searching the wrong way? Alternatively, there could be an option using OZ via Asia but that's a looong detour, not even sure if that's allowed? Any ideas?

I had no trouble. Originally booked via SIN & ICN, but SWMBO wasn't keen on using a Korean airline, so we switched to MEL-LAX with UA in I. I had to book them over 300 days ahead, and could only find midweek availability (we're travelling on Wed early Feb next year). I couldn't find anything direct for the return, so instead of coming back TPAC, we are going via CPH (stopover) & SIN.

 

[Berlin]

Re: US Dividend Miles Buy/Gift Miles 100% bonus - Cheap way for F/J *A Awards

I couldn't find anything direct for the return, so instead of coming back TPAC, we are going via CPH (stopover) & SIN.

So you can even go via the pacific one way and the return via Asia? Looks like I need to be a bit creative here- luckily, I enjoy looking up flight options on Expertflyer much more than doing my actual work

 

[casanovawa]

Re: US Dividend Miles Buy/Gift Miles 100% bonus - Cheap way for F/J *A Awards

Put on hold a booking last night for PER-BKK-MAD-BRU//BRU-VIE-JFK//LAG-ORD-ICN-SIN-PER in J... When it went to manual pricing for taxes the operator told me the lady was saying it should be 120k miles because of Europe and i told her no done several of them in the past and US is the furtherest point and the destination while BRU is the stopover... I wonder if you went to Asia via the US whether you could claim a stopover in a US city and then have the destination as Asia and get it for 90k miles in J??

 

[anat0l]

Re: US Dividend Miles Buy/Gift Miles 100% bonus - Cheap way for F/J *A Awards

Put on hold a booking last night for PER-BKK-MAD-BRU//BRU-VIE-JFK//LAG-ORD-ICN-SIN-PER in J... When it went to manual pricing for taxes the operator told me the lady was saying it should be 120k miles because of Europe and i told her no done several of them in the past and US is the furtherest point and the destination while BRU is the stopover... I wonder if you went to Asia via the US whether you could claim a stopover in a US city and then have the destination as Asia and get it for 90k miles in J??

No, she is correct by the book. USA is your "destination" but you passed through a more expensive zone, which thus sets the price.

Some exceptions are made for forced routings through an auxiliary zone, but they are difficult enough to argue anyway.

Yes, people have gotten away with less but the agent was not wrong.

 

[stueyjones]

Okay, thanks for that- this answers my question- bugger that! Add Air Canada to that list of airlines which never have availability.

So- turning this around, going via Seoul or China is allowed according to the redemption rules, do I understand this correctly? I eventually want to end up in Colombia so just wondering if that will be within the rules if I go something like Sydney-Seoul-Los Angeles-Miami-Colombia

Just as an aside, and in terms of ending up in Columbia. I booked a Brisbane > Brazil > Bogota trip for June next year (world cup). Was having similar difficulties getting across the pacific and making the MPM. In the end I got Brisbane>Bangkok>Jo'burg>Brazil>Columbia though perseverance and finding an agent that was too busy talking up her recent visit to Australia to worry about such things. The return was then via Madrid (stopover) Thailand, etc, so I suspect I waved the MPM limits goodbye some time back, but as I say the nice young lady was too busy telling how good Brissy was to care. It was my 4th call, with the previous 3 referring to rate desk.

However, pertinent to your question of via Asia, when they disallowed the first few times they actually suggested going via Tokyo Narita etc.