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

[smit0847]

If you don't like ANA then why not use Aeroplan (or UA) which will offer much more creative routings & more options than LM search engine. Or if you're serious purchase the KVS tool for a couple of months to take the pain out of ANA!

I had a play around with the Aeroplan search function. Much, much more user-friendly than ANA (I like how it saves past searches).

Interestingly, when looking at routes to and from Europe out of MEL, the LM tool will mostly show TG long-haul to the point where it will then backtrack you through Europe on LH or TK. The Aeroplan tool almost always shows TK from Asia to Europe. Not complaining as I'm very happy to see TK availability - I'm most keen to try their J product and the IST Lounge rather than just sticking with TG all the way.

 

[Stephen65]

I'm liking this new user friendly search tool:

AwardTravelr - Searching across all possibilities to make your frequent flyer miles work for you

Just be aware that it shows all *alliance options including some such as Qatar Air that cannot be booked using DMs.

 

[bcworld]

I'm liking this new user friendly search tool:

AwardTravelr - Searching across all possibilities to make your frequent flyer miles work for you

Just be aware that it shows all *alliance options including some such as Qatar Air that cannot be booked using DMs.

QR isn't Star Alliance of course - but it's a clue that AwardTravelr is scraping it's results from United.com...that and the incorrect aircraft types shown in results like TG 777-300ER between MEL and BKK.

The QR results should disappear next month when UA and QR end their agreement.

 

[smit0847]

I'm liking this new user friendly search tool:

AwardTravelr - Searching across all possibilities to make your frequent flyer miles work for you

Just be aware that it shows all *alliance options including some such as Qatar Air that cannot be booked using DMs.

Thanks - I love the layout of this - so easy to search and read. If you could exclude carriers in your search results (i.e. QR) it would be perfect.

Let me get this straight, if I can find an available J *A award on this awardtraveller site, say, in any combo of TG/TK/AC/LH/NH/OZ (obviously ignoring SQ and QR), can I ring up and book it through USDM? Forgetting about stopovers, will they be able and book what I can see? If awardtraveller gives me 12 different options can I instruct USDM which one I would like and they will book it or will they only allow the most logical/direct? This would make the whole process so much easier.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Thanks - I love the layout of this - so easy to search and read. If you could exclude carriers in your search results (i.e. QR) it would be perfect.

Let me get this straight, if I can find an available J *A award on this awardtraveller site, say, in any combo of TG/TK/AC/LH/NH/OZ (obviously ignoring SQ and QR), can I ring up and book it through USDM? Forgetting about stopovers, will they be able and book what I can see? If awardtraveller gives me 12 different options can I instruct USDM which one I would like and they will book it or will they only allow the most logical/direct? This would make the whole process so much easier.

you can use the booking tool to find suggested routings, but you cannot instruct US to give you a particular one. US has the right to decide which routing you use.

You can ring and say that you found availability earlier, and can you please have a look and see if those flights are still available, then read off the flights when prompted.

 

[k3nnis]

Any sq j availability?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Any sq j availability?

SQ J is available on SQ regional aircraft - A330, 772 and 773 refurb. A380, 77W and A345 is not available for award bookings in J or F.

 

[arraitch]

I'm liking this new user friendly search tool:

AwardTravelr - Searching across all possibilities to make your frequent flyer miles work for you

Just be aware that it shows all *alliance options including some such as Qatar Air that cannot be booked using DMs.

QR isn't Star Alliance of course - but it's a clue that AwardTravelr is scraping it's results from United.com...that and the incorrect aircraft types shown in results like TG 777-300ER between MEL and BKK.

The QR results should disappear next month when UA and QR end their agreement.

Perhaps it's new or I just hadn't noticed it before ... on the LH side of an AwardTravelr search results page, under the Cabin Class, Itinerary Duration et al filters, there's an Advanced Filters link which opens up Airlines and Aircraft Type filters. The results obtained by using this may well vary by route, but I was able to exclude QR flights on a PER-SXB search by selecting TG and SQ in the Airlines filters (as any *A flight ex-PER has to be SA, TG, SQ or NZ). YM, of course, MV!

 

[shane2603]

Just at AirNZ lounge at Sydney and boarding Tg476 to bkk in F, looks like newer 10 seat config

 

[smit0847]

you can use the booking tool to find suggested routings, but you cannot instruct US to give you a particular one. US has the right to decide which routing you use.

You can ring and say that you found availability earlier, and can you please have a look and see if those flights are still available, then read off the flights when prompted.

Thank you - sorry for all the silly questions - I've just never really understood how you get the flights you want with USDM given how you cant see the booking process - I think I'd panic if someone was just reading off flight times and numbers to me and asking me to confirm the booking without me knowing transit times, aircraft types etc. When the LM search engine might only bring up one routing per day while the award traveller might bring up 20+ on that same day it's difficult to know which to concentrate on!

How would you approach a relatively simple open-jaw USDM Europe J return redemption? Use any of the particular search functions and request those flights or just ring up and see what they can find for you? I know exactly what I want but I would of course welcome other suggested routes/combinations.

 

[hummel]

Just at AirNZ lounge at Sydney and boarding Tg476 to bkk in F, looks like newer 10 seat config

Enjoy yourself When I flew the other week I was surprised how quickly people changed into their PJs... some before push back!

 

[anat0l]

Enjoy yourself When I flew the other week I was surprised how quickly people changed into their PJs... some before push back!

Seems to be a universally very F (or small J class) thing to do; that said, as advised by jb747, it can be rather painful if there's an emergency some time before cruising altitude is achieved.

 

[anat0l]

Thank you - sorry for all the silly questions - I've just never really understood how you get the flights you want with USDM given how you cant see the booking process - I think I'd panic if someone was just reading off flight times and numbers to me and asking me to confirm the booking without me knowing transit times, aircraft types etc. When the LM search engine might only bring up one routing per day while the award traveller might bring up 20+ on that same day it's difficult to know which to concentrate on!

I thought that us actually reading off the flights we want is much easier for the agents than making them find them for us. Of course, if the flights we want can't be booked by the agent, then things get slightly more complicated. That is why I always advocate to have a number of options ready to fire as a back up.

I'm not sure exactly how itineraries are created in GDS systems and whether there are checks in place for things like MCT (I know that an MCT could be checked for two flight segments in the same "ticket segment" (i.e. a single "direct" flight coupon), but across "coupons" - despite being the same itinerary - it may not). That said, it's a rather esoteric case because most people here wouldn't be silly enough to short-connect themselves. If flight times change after the itinerary is created which cases a violation of MCT, the US people should be helpful enough to help you reschedule.

For most cases, you can boil down a lot of routings back to simply a choice of who you want to fly (and who you don't). Timings then usually follow suit because it is dependent on who you are flying and thus choices of hubs / connection points. Once you realise that, reading quickly over a list of even 20 returned routings becomes quite simple.

How would you approach a relatively simple open-jaw USDM Europe J return redemption? Use any of the particular search functions and request those flights or just ring up and see what they can find for you? I know exactly what I want but I would of course welcome other suggested routes/combinations.

What destinations in Europe?

After that, decide on who you want to fly (and, possibly, how much indirect flying you're prepared to do to get there). That should reduce down options greatly, unless you want some odd looking 3- or 4-leg options to get to your destination, in which case you'll then be looking up timetables and then piecing an itinerary together before checking availability per segment.

 

[smit0847]

What destinations in Europe?

After that, decide on who you want to fly (and, possibly, how much indirect flying you're prepared to do to get there). That should reduce down options greatly, unless you want some odd looking 3- or 4-leg options to get to your destination, in which case you'll then be looking up timetables and then piecing an itinerary together before checking availability per segment.

Haven't 100% decided on the first destination yet (SWMBO would like KEF but I'm arguing it's way too hard - even awardtraveller has this as a minimum 35 hour journey) but would ideally like MEL-BKK-FRA-??? so that we can try the new TG A380 BKK-FRA (the flight times MEL-BKK-FRA are perfect). Maybe dest somewhere in Germany, maybe somewhere in Italy (we might just book FRA and then make our own way somewhere after that if we can't decide in time to book).

On the way back IST-MEL through either PVG or BKK. I think the most logical flight times are TK to PVG (I think TK to BKK then has about an 8 hour middle-of-the-day stopover). Very keen to try TK J so not particularly fussed if we then go CA (from PVG) or TG (from BKK) for the final leg to MEL as it's an overnight flight (leaning towards CA so it's not 3 long-haul TG legs)

Planning to go mid-May to mid-June next year.

I'll be booking through whoever has the next 100% buy bonus (USDM or LM).

 

[anat0l]

Haven't 100% decided on the first destination yet (SWMBO would like KEF but I'm arguing it's way too hard - even awardtraveller has this as a minimum 35 hour journey) but would ideally like MEL-BKK-FRA-??? so that we can try the new TG A380 BKK-FRA (the flight times MEL-BKK-FRA are perfect). Maybe dest somewhere in Germany, maybe somewhere in Italy (we might just book FRA and then make our own way somewhere after that if we can't decide in time to book).

Definitely see if you can decide on your final destination, since it is effectively another flight for next to nothing.

I can't imagine your having issues on getting TG availability.

On the way back IST-MEL through either PVG or BKK. I think the most logical flight times are TK to PVG (I think TK to BKK then has about an 8 hour middle-of-the-day stopover). Very keen to try TK J so not particularly fussed if we then go CA (from PVG) or TG (from BKK) for the final leg to MEL as it's an overnight flight (leaning towards CA so it's not 3 long-haul TG legs)

You haven't considered via SIN with onward on SQ? Regional SQ J availability (i.e. 333 services) should be relatively easily available. For other aircraft, it may be much more difficult, but since SQ started becoming more fluid about their premium availability on their newer aircraft, the difficulty has been downgraded from "Impossible" to "Very Difficult". Just don't rely on ANA to tell you what the availability is.

 

[Stephen65]

Perhaps it's new or I just hadn't noticed it before ... on the LH side of an AwardTravelr search results page, under the Cabin Class, Itinerary Duration et al filters, there's an Advanced Filters link which opens up Airlines and Aircraft Type filters. The results obtained by using this may well vary by route, but I was able to exclude QR flights on a PER-SXB search by selecting TG and SQ in the Airlines filters (as any *A flight ex-PER has to be SA, TG, SQ or NZ). YM, of course, MV!

Another way to do this is to use the Layover Airport option on the left to limit the results. So for example if you pick BKK on an Australia-Europe trip you will exclude all airlines such as Qatar that are not flying through BKK.

 

[Stephen65]

Thank you - sorry for all the silly questions - I've just never really understood how you get the flights you want with USDM given how you cant see the booking process - I think I'd panic if someone was just reading off flight times and numbers to me and asking me to confirm the booking without me knowing transit times, aircraft types etc. When the LM search engine might only bring up one routing per day while the award traveller might bring up 20+ on that same day it's difficult to know which to concentrate on!

How would you approach a relatively simple open-jaw USDM Europe J return redemption? Use any of the particular search functions and request those flights or just ring up and see what they can find for you? I know exactly what I want but I would of course welcome other suggested routes/combinations.

In my experience agents have always been willing to first check the itinerary that I suggest but I always pick straightforward and reasonably direct routes that at least two search engines are showing have seat availability. I have read on FT that you can get the occasional agent who refuses to do this and insists on doing the searching themselves but if you get one of these and you don't like or understand the routing she (it always seems to be a she when I ring) comes up with then there is always the option of saying no thanks and ringing back later to get a different agent.

There are people who seem to rejoice in being able to find very convoluted ways of getting from A to B so as to experience J and/or F on all sorts of different airlines but personally I'm after the most direct route I can get on a decent airline. For a first booking to Europe from MEL probably the easiest one to book is MEL-BKK-FRA-destination with the first two legs on TG and the third probably on LH (you can fly just about anywhere in Europe on LH from FRA) because it's simple to book, direct and there are good connections in BKK and lots of seat availability. Coming back you can open-jaw via an airport that TG fly to in Europe (FRA is the easiest, other options include MUC, LHR, MXP and BRU) or just do the reverse of your flight over and take the option of a stopover in BKK instead.

 

[smit0847]

Definitely see if you can decide on your final destination, since it is effectively another flight for next to nothing.

I can't imagine your having issues on getting TG availability.

You haven't considered via SIN with onward on SQ? Regional SQ J availability (i.e. 333 services) should be relatively easily available. For other aircraft, it may be much more difficult, but since SQ started becoming more fluid about their premium availability on their newer aircraft, the difficulty has been downgraded from "Impossible" to "Very Difficult". Just don't rely on ANA to tell you what the availability is.

Thanks - we will try to decide on a destination. I'm leaning towards Berlin but availability seems to be pretty slim - is TXL the best place to fly *A to? I'll make sure we pick somewhere TG doesn't fly direct from BKK to so we can do the A380 to FRA (the J full-flat bed for an overnight flight looks excellent).
KEF is going to an absolute nightmare to book through LM as, if it's even available, it is coming up with ridiculous routings like MEL-BKK-MUC-FRA-OSL-KEF (40 hours). I made the (mistake) of boasting to SWMBO that we could fly anywhere in Europe for the same price and she immediately said 'Let's go to Iceland!!' which is probably the furthest and most difficult major city to get to in Europe!

No issues with TG availability, I don't particularly want to do 4 flights with them if we have the option of some others.

I'd love to try SQ but isn't MEL only serviced by 2 x A380 and 1 x 77W which aren't available for redemptions? How would we get home?

 

[anat0l]

Thanks - we will try to decide on a destination. I'm leaning towards Berlin but availability seems to be pretty slim - is TXL the best place to fly *A to? I'll make sure we pick somewhere TG doesn't fly direct from BKK to so we can do the A380 to FRA (the J full-flat bed for an overnight flight looks excellent).
KEF is going to an absolute nightmare to book through LM as, if it's even available, it is coming up with ridiculous routings like MEL-BKK-MUC-FRA-OSL-KEF (40 hours). I made the (mistake) of boasting to SWMBO that we could fly anywhere in Europe for the same price and she immediately said 'Let's go to Iceland!!' which is probably the furthest and most difficult major city to get to in Europe!

To get to KEF on *A the only option is SK from OSL. Others are seasonal only.

One possibility is to try MEL-BKK-OSL-KEF. Problem is you would need to forgo TG A380. Another alternative, then, is MEL-BKK-FRA-OSL-KEF. One of the options by my crude use of ITA gives that routing a duration of ~30 hours, ~5 of which is spent in transit. (That said, a couple of connections are tight-ish: 75 minutes in FRA and 45 minutes in OSL. Then, no idea of availability.)

This is sometimes where you look at what search engines give you and go, "You've got to be kidding me," then you whip out ITA, timetables and the airline websites to piece together something that works.

I'd love to try SQ but isn't MEL only serviced by 2 x A380 and 1 x 77W which aren't available for redemptions? How would we get home?

See if you can find any availability. It might be hen's teeth, but give it a go.

An alternative could also be IST-HKG on TK then HKG-AKL-MEL on NZ. NZ also service PVG, NRT and KIX, but watch out for 763 aircraft.


Finally, another alternative is to buy a cheap positioning flight MEL-SYD, then SYD-BKK-... etc. and on the way back you also have at your disposal ICN-SYD on OZ J (sloped seating, but another option nonetheless).

 

[Alanslegal]

In my experience agents have always been willing to first check the itinerary that I suggest but I always pick straightforward and reasonably direct routes that at least two search engines are showing have seat availability. I have read on FT that you can get the occasional agent who refuses to do this and insists on doing the searching themselves but if you get one of these and you don't like or understand the routing she (it always seems to be a she when I ring) comes up with then there is always the option of saying no thanks and ringing back later to get a different agent.

If I get this type of agent, I will let them do their "own" search first and more often than not, will come back and say we can't find anything available. So that's when I proceed to ask the agent "Can I suggest a few routes and try that?" and that's when I list the flights and numbers and 15 minutes later we are booked, paid and ticketed.

Thanks - we will try to decide on a destination. I'm leaning towards Berlin but availability seems to be pretty slim - is TXL the best place to fly *A to? I'll make sure we pick somewhere TG doesn't fly direct from BKK to so we can do the A380 to FRA (the J full-flat bed for an overnight flight looks excellent).
KEF is going to an absolute nightmare to book through LM as, if it's even available, it is coming up with ridiculous routings like MEL-BKK-MUC-FRA-OSL-KEF (40 hours). I made the (mistake) of boasting to SWMBO that we could fly anywhere in Europe for the same price and she immediately said 'Let's go to Iceland!!' which is probably the furthest and most difficult major city to get to in Europe!

No issues with TG availability, I don't particularly want to do 4 flights with them if we have the option of some others.

I'd love to try SQ but isn't MEL only serviced by 2 x A380 and 1 x 77W which aren't available for redemptions? How would we get home?

Firstly, just remember that you should have no more than 4 sectors each way. This is not allowed. Some people have been able to push through 5 sectors each way but you are likely to end up with multiple frustrated calls before getting it done, if its done.

Also going the long way purely to enjoy X,Y or Z product is nice but when you do it a few times, you will realise that getting there faster is best. No matter which class you fly, travelling 40+ hours without a "real" bed and "real" rest will definitely drain you.

TG flies direct to MEL so there's a solution.