US Dividend Miles - Award Booking Questions and General Discussion

[JohnK]

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

JohnK if I was you I would be thankful you found this thread and booked her business class!

Actually she would have been much happier going via the Middle East in economy. At least that way a lot of the people travelling with her would have had a common destination and she would have had company along the way instead of feeling lonely. I know that may not compute with a lot of people on AFF but my mother is from a totally different generation and culture.

This was not a good idea.

 

[Alanslegal]

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

It is traumatic but not the end of the world.

I think notification could have been handled better.

The cancellation and notification issue could have been handled better however to argue against that point, you should have realised that by reading all the posts on these thread it is well understood that USDM have poor notification system in place. For example, the majority of bookings do not even generate an automatic itinerary/booking confirmation via email, so I imagine any change notification will also be just as poor. That said, it is common understanding that TG (through their IT system or whatever) that when schedule changes take place, their new flights are often conflicting to other following flights eg. connection times are out of sync or totally illegal like your new arriving flight lands a day after your connecting flight has already departed. It is because of this US and TG issue that I always recommend at least once per week checking online of your bookings, and if within seven days of departure, I'd be checking daily.

 

[ferni]

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

In this case USDM are just like a travel agency. Your currency was miles.

You could have booked through Flight Centre, or WebJet or one of the many other travel agents with cash as the currency.

If Flight Centre offered you a Thai itinerary and you took it, would you be abusing Flight Centre?

Thai are notorious for this(cancelling flights/swapping aircraft) you must have known this before you booked it?

It doesn't' excuse the fact that it would annoy most people including seasoned travellers but it is part of travel and not really this 'rubbish schemes' fault....

This is a joke and I regret the day I discovered this rubbish scheme on AFF.

Apparently my mums TG flight FCO-BKK today has been cancelled and she has been put on tomorrows TG flight FCO-BKK. The same moron that processed the cancellation has left tomorrow mornings TG flight BKK-SYD the same.

She checked in at SKG this morning on Aegean flights SKG-ATH-FCO to connect to TG flights FCO-BKK-SYD and I have no idea where she is right now and she is more than likely under extreme stress and suffering.

This is all the one US Airways redemption. I have not received any notification of any changes/cancellations from US Airways. Standard practice? Morons.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

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

Thai are notorious for this(cancelling flights/swapping aircraft) you must have known this before you booked it?

.....

thai are not notorious for cancelling flights. aircraft swaps yes, but certainly not random cancellations. I have never had one in tens of TG flights.

 

[lmere12]

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

I've had 2 in 2 itineraries without notification. I kept a regular check, they moved me to the next flight but didn't change connecting flights. A call to US airways and all sorted.

 

[bcworld]

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

Good to see them back in LAX - would be a long but possible Pacific solution.

THAI Shelves Planned Osaka – Los Angeles Service Resumption in W13 | Airline Route – Worldwide Airline Route Updates

 

[markis10]

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

THAI Shelves Planned Osaka – Los Angeles Service Resumption in W13 | Airline Route – Worldwide Airline Route Updates

Thais' change of mind almost requires it's own website at times.

 

[bcworld]

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

Thais' change of mind almost requires it's own website at times.

Yup!

Although I got the impression (somewhere?) that there may have been regulatory issues with this one.

 

[ferni]

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

thai are not notorious for cancelling flights. aircraft swaps yes, but certainly not random cancellations. I have never had one in tens of TG flights.

Cancelling flights was the wrong term to use, I should have said changing flight schedules (ie from 4/week to 3/week etc..).... I've had it happen to me a couple of weeks before my trip.... also happened to my in laws a couple of months before trip... Both times the new flights that were put in didn't match up (ie departing one segment before arriving from last, all on Thai via USDM points).

 

[Aussie_flyer]

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

THAI Shelves Planned Osaka – Los Angeles Service Resumption in W13 | Airline Route – Worldwide Airline Route Updates

Thai still operate to LAX via ICN, they didn't stop serving LAX after the A340-500, it just switched to a via ICN route. It's still on the newer 2 class 77W product too

 

[MEL_Traveller]

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

Cancelling flights was the wrong term to use, I should have said changing flight schedules (ie from 4/week to 3/week etc..).... I've had it happen to me a couple of weeks before my trip.... also happened to my in laws a couple of months before trip... Both times the new flights that were put in didn't match up (ie departing one segment before arriving from last, all on Thai via USDM points).

changing flight schedules is not unique to TG... UA/CO are swapping planes left right and centre on east coast usa to Europe... going from three to two class and vv. it always pays to be reading airlineroute.net to keep up the the latest changes and calling USDM ASAP.

as for flights not matching up... that's not exclusive to tg either... didn't qf have the same issue when they rescheduled their Asia flights? pax arriving into syd two hours after their flight left for bne?

 

[JohnK]

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

The cancellation and notification issue could have been handled better however to argue against that point, you should have realised that by reading all the posts on these thread it is well understood that USDM have poor notification system in place.

I have not read every post in this thread but now know better for next time.

I really do regret putting my mother through this and yes I should have checked the itinerary more closely and perhaps avoided the trauma she went through this but I am not giving US DM or even TG a gold star for the part the played either.

 

[ferni]

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

changing flight schedules is not unique to TG... UA/CO are swapping planes left right and centre on east coast usa to Europe... going from three to two class and vv. it always pays to be reading airlineroute.net to keep up the the latest changes and calling USDM ASAP.

as for flights not matching up... that's not exclusive to tg either... didn't qf have the same issue when they rescheduled their Asia flights? pax arriving into syd two hours after their flight left for bne?

Yeah I subscribe to airlineroute.net RSS feed for exactly that reason

 

[thehound]

Re: US Dividend Miles - post your SUCCESSFUL award bookings here.

I've just booked my first redemption flight for October/November 2013.

Going over:
OZ602 SYD-ICN B772.
A few days in ICN.
OZ103 ICN-NRT B744.
NH1078 NRT-SEA B788.
UA1495 SEA-ORD B739.

Going back:
UA507 ORD-SFO. A320.
UA853 SFO-NRT. B744.
A few days in NRT.
TG677 NRT-BKK. A380.
Approx 20 hours in BKK
TG475 BKK-SYD. B744.

All in J. Mileage 110,000 points all purchased at 100% bonus promo rate. Taxes $188 and $50 US Air booking fee.

Very easy to book. Rang a few minutes after midnight Australian time. No wait on hold. Efficient operator who had it finished and emailed to me within 8 minutes.

DW

How did you manage to get two stop overs in there?

 

[Alanslegal]

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

Has anyone booked / or even flown BR (Eva Air) yet?

they just joined *A last month and I see good numbers of award availability ex-LHR to BKK direct flying BR in October, whilst everything else ex-LHR/CDG/FRA/others to BKK have sparse availability.

 

[markis10]

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

Has anyone booked / or even flown BR (Eva Air) yet?

they just joined *A last month and I see good numbers of award availability ex-LHR to BKK direct flying BR in October, whilst everything else ex-LHR/CDG/FRA/others to BKK have sparse availability.

Flew them once a while ago and swore never again.

 

[Nizar]

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

whilst everything else ex-LHR/CDG/FRA/others to BKK have sparse availability.

Not sure about in October but generally TG have really good availability from LHR/FRA/MXP to BKK in J and even F going by what I can see on LM ?

 

[Nizar]

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

Flew them once a while ago and swore never again.

Lol are they worse than Tiger ? :mrgreen:

 

[anat0l]

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

Has anyone booked / or even flown BR (Eva Air) yet?

they just joined *A last month and I see good numbers of award availability ex-LHR to BKK direct flying BR in October, whilst everything else ex-LHR/CDG/FRA/others to BKK have sparse availability.

Their award availability is pretty good at the moment.

Some people have started to book it based on the J product, and of course there are some who are jumping on to get their Hello Kitty product.

Flew them once a while ago and swore never again.

Any reasons? Is it safety?

 

[markis10]

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

Lol are they worse than Tiger ? :mrgreen:

Flew J and the food/service was below Y in standards, one and only J flight where I was not looking forward to the return leg.