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

[MEL_Traveller]

So I've just put on hold a couple of itineraries for the mrs and I.

I'm heading MEL BKK BRU in March next year in TG Business (If there was F out of MEL i'd take F but I can't be bothered stuffing around with an extra leg each way to get me to/from SYD). The Mrs is following me exactly a week after, same flights/days. Then we fly home together BRU CDG BKK <stop> MEL.. There was no Business flights available home out of BRU on the way home so routing via CDG (and get to check out the 380), the BRU CDG leg is only in econ, but with SN(Brussels airline).. the CDG BKK MELL is all TG J...

Anyway weird thing is despite exactly the same flights/days of week for the wife and I except her outbound flights a week later her taxes came to $194, mine to $284... I asked the lady on the phone why the difference (she did both bookings in one call for me) and she said she's not sure, maybe because my wife's flights were on different dates... That doesn't sound right to me? Anyone else got any ideas? I checked the booking with the Thai PNR on the Thai website and can see its been booked(put on hold) correctly for both of us

I tried to price it up on ITA to get the taxes and adding up all the surcharges they come to around $280 for both itineraries...

This is what ITA shows me... the only difference is this ITA one is business from BRU CDG as I don't think I can specify different class for different legs in ITA?

just get them to compare the two tickets and see where the pricing difference is. US is pretty good with adjusting taxes if they need to. YQ is not payable on USDM awards - I notice there is a $55 charge for YQ inlcuded in your list.

If you can - flying via SYD is worth it to fly F. It adds three hours, but so much better (chalk and cheese).

 

[ferni]

just get them to compare the two tickets and see where the pricing difference is. US is pretty good with adjusting taxes if they need to. YQ is not payable on USDM awards - I notice there is a $55 charge for YQ inlcuded in your list.

If you can - flying via SYD is worth it to fly F. It adds three hours, but so much better (chalk and cheese).

Thanks... So they can check the individual components of the surcharges/taxes and see whats different?

As for F - yeah we flew TG F a couple of years ago and it was fantastic... but it's not just 3 hours... Here are my thoughts/opinions on it:

1. Need to buy a MEL SYD return ticket, say around $200 each...
2. Adds another flight/segment/airport each way on the already long trip to EU
3. If you get the late TG flight(9:30PM arrival) into SYD if you try to fly back to MEL that night it will be a very late night... would be lucky to get to MEL by midnight.. plus getting bags and getting back home etc... or you stay in SYD overnight, theres another couple of hundred dollars and another night lost you could have spent overseas?
4. The biggest issue is that if for some reason the flight you take MEL to SYD has an issue/delay (like say this mornings issues at the airports) then you could miss your F flight out of SYD and there goes the whole ticket/trip... big risk to take/added stress etc... same on the way home but not as big of a deal as if you missed your SYD MEL leg home then another one might only cost 100-200 each...

We did consider doing F again, we have the points, but one of the legs was going to be business as no F available around the dates we wanted (BKK BRU leg) even checked other hubs in EU, only one i found availability was BKK FCO and only for my wifes flight over, not mine... so she would then need to get a FCO BRU flight to have the same destination as me which had about a 10 hour gap... So the missing F leg (out of 4 segments) which would have removed access to the F spa in BKK plus the risks above we decided to just suck it up in J

The main thing for us is the more room/lie flat bed for sleeping which J gives us (not quite as nice as F).... Like I said, if we could get F out of melbourne then it would be a no brainer... or if we could some how get the UA840/UA839 flights to/from SYD as part of the redemption then that would be good as well - but I don't think that's possible, I think you can only book those if you are heading to/from LAX with the plane?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

fermi... you don't need to convince me! I fly via syd because I'd rather much around for three hours then sleep for 8 rather than stay awake for 9.5 hours on the direct flight each to their own. I would however use the additional miles even if there was only a single flight in F, no brainer for me! it costs nothing and easily replaced on the next miles round.

 

[lmere12]

is anyone able to use award travelr, i haven't been able to use it in days. Site does say they were having prob's..

 

[MEL_Traveller]

is anyone able to use award travelr, i haven't been able to use it in days. Site does say they were having prob's..

It's down.

 

[ferni]

fermi... you don't need to convince me! I fly via syd because I'd rather much around for three hours then sleep for 8 rather than stay awake for 9.5 hours on the direct flight each to their own. I would however use the additional miles even if there was only a single flight in F, no brainer for me! it costs nothing and easily replaced on the next miles round.

haha yeah don't get me wrong, i'm torn with the decision I was just putting my reasoning out there Although you have got me doubting myself as i'm remembering how good the F flights were

I did manage to sleep like a baby on a NRT-BKK flight earlier this year which was on the TG Jetairways leased 777-300 in J.... One of the reasons i've picked the BKK-BRU route is because it is suppose to be the new TG 777-300ER with 180deg flat beds in J... Besides we are on day flights MEL-BKK so no need to sleep as that will be for the BKK-BRU leg....

Am I the only one that worries about the MEL(or wherever you come from) - SYD positioning flight being delayed/cancelled causing you to miss the connecting USDM redemption flights?

PS Saying it costs nothing is a bit of an understatement... adding up the cost of the 30,000 miles for F and the MEL-SYD return positioning flights still costs around $750 PP.... still cheap for a J to F upgrade but just saying

 

[MEL_Traveller]

haha yeah don't get me wrong, i'm torn with the decision I was just putting my reasoning out there Although you have got me doubting myself as i'm remembering how good the F flights were

I did manage to sleep like a baby on a NRT-BKK flight earlier this year which was on the TG Jetairways leased 777-300 in J.... One of the reasons i've picked the BKK-BRU route is because it is suppose to be the new TG 777-300ER with 180deg flat beds in J... Besides we are on day flights MEL-BKK so no need to sleep as that will be for the BKK-BRU leg....

Am I the only one that worries about the MEL(or wherever you come from) - SYD positioning flight being delayed/cancelled causing you to miss the connecting USDM redemption flights?

PS Saying it costs nothing is a bit of an understatement... adding up the cost of the 30,000 miles for F and the MEL-SYD return positioning flights still costs around $750 PP.... still cheap for a J to F upgrade but just saying

I think if you stick with QF or VA then the chances of making your flight in SYD are fine (I'd allow a couple hours transit to make the connection). But flights are every half hour. No way I'd pick JQ or TT. In the worse case scenario I'd pre prepared to fork out for a full fare I guess if there was a delay. But with an 11am departure from SYD there is the 6, 630, 645, 7 departures x 2 airlines. Fingers crossed I haven't jinxed myself for future travel!

On the return I take the 720pm departure from BKK, arriving 720am. Then usually pick something around 10am. I like to take a QF J ASA for that - so potentially some flexibility if I am really early. If QF won't change then I have a dom J lounger and a shower. (My friend last week bought a cheap $89 QF fare for 11am but just rocked up at 9 and was put on the next flight!)

I know it's a day flight MEL-BKK - but not getting a good sleep on that flight can make me overtired for the next one. And that's no fun. Coming home, the flights FRA-BKK can be as little at 9hrs45mins. Which is ok for a few hours sleep, but by the time they serve dinner, then wake everyone 2.5hours before landing for breakfast, it's not that much time to sleep well. Nice to then be able to go to sleep on the next leg to SYD as well.

I guess it's relative... if they startthe 77J aircraft to MEL that will make it a lot easier and out the need for SYD. But until then I'd rather pay the $500 extra, even for just a couple of segments.

 

[bcworld]

Am I the only one that worries about the MEL(or wherever you come from) - SYD positioning flight being delayed/cancelled causing you to miss the connecting USDM redemption flights?

I went up to SYD the night before...often those late evening flights will be cheaper than the early morning departures anyway. Found a cheap hotel room close to a station making for a relaxed next morning's trip to the airport. I'd far rather do it that way. As you say, what if yesterday's domestic check in chaos happened on your day of travel.

BTW, isn't BRU now scheduled to be operated by the ex Jet 77W with F class? Rather than TG's new 2 class 77W?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

BTW, isn't BRU now scheduled to be operated by the ex Jet 77W with F class? Rather than TG's new 2 class 77W?

It is scheduled for a 77W with F... I had that option for my way home next year and I just don't trust it I'm assuming they'll change to a 77J as they they get delivered?

 

[wafliron]

I went up to SYD the night before...often those late evening flights will be cheaper than the early morning departures anyway. Found a cheap hotel room close to a station making for a relaxed next morning's trip to the airport. I'd far rather do it that way. As you say, what if yesterday's domestic check in chaos happened on your day of travel.

Same here - I flew up the night before too. I just didn't want to risk it before such an "important" journey - 99 time out of 100 you could take a flight dep MEL at 6am-7am and be fine, but Murphy's Law says that the 1 out of 100 would be the morning before your USDM journey

Also, departing MEL so early means you're getting up at 4am - 5am so you'll start your journey tired - not ideal when flying F and want to enjoy the journey itself.

I'd probably reconsider this position if there is ever an AU dom airline who will interline bags with TG as that would save a bunch of time at SYD though.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

oh i hate the internet. now you all have me worried my 6am to syd ain't gonna connect

 

[Aussie_flyer]

you will be fine . 6am flight rarely delayed and lots of other flights around it. I've done it myself. Tg aren't that bad anyway they'll probably move you to the next flight if you missed it ( which you won't )

 

[hummel]

We flew up the night before for our journey. So glad we did as it was foggy in Melbourne the morning of our departure from Sydney.

No brainier for me.

 

[ferni]

oh i hate the internet. now you all have me worried my 6am to syd ain't gonna connect

haha as wafliron said, 99/100 you'll be fine... it's just the exceptions like the Qantas grounding or a computer outage or bad fog etc... that may impact you... I'm not so sure TG would be that helpful, at least in finding you you're F seat on the next day all the way through to EU or where ever you are heading...

I did it for my last F trip, flew up QF in the morning to connect to a TG F 4:30PM flight... but i'd be lying if i said in the back of my head I wasn't a little worried about a misconnect...

At least if you fly up the night before and you find out there are issues at the airport, worst comes to worst you jump in a car for a 10 hour drive and still make it

Anyways, as much as I loved F the extra effort of that connecting flight coupled with the extra costs/time just means I've 'settled' for J

As for BKK BRU - Not fussed if its the ex jet 77W or TG new 77W, both have 180 deg lie flats in J.... I'll be happy if it doesn't get swapped out for something without lie flat - if it does that's when I'll be kicking myself for not going F

 

[lmere12]

I'm feeling tempted to change my flight next May to Europe from J to F on TG.... with a 10 hr delay in BKK could be a nice option Everytime I read an F story feel like changing. Might just do it.. !!

 

[k3nnis]

Do it!!! You won't regret it lol

 

[Insaneous]

Everytime I read an F story feel like changing. Might just do it.. !!

Imagine trying to tell your friends you turned down F travel because it was a couple hundred bucks more expensive! Do it, probably once in a life time opportunity for a lot of people, will be a good story to tell.

 

[NDiddy]

I'm one of those people who is taking QF400 at 6:00am out of Melbourne to Sydney to connect up with TG F at 10:00am. Hopefully it should be plenty of time even if we don't get to at least step into the Koru lounge. It was a Citibank PMG redemption so it cost peanuts in terms of $'s but reading how most of you went up the night before has got me twitchy. Not that there is anything that can be done about it as we have a wedding the night before that we can't miss. Fingers crossed!

I do have a quick question though, does anyone know if Thai F passengers get access to the Lufthansa F lounge in Munich? From what I can read it seems to be the case but wondering if anyone else can confirm this?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

I'm one of those people who is taking QF400 at 6:00am out of Melbourne to Sydney to connect up with TG F at 10:00am. Hopefully it should be plenty of time even if we don't get to at least step into the Koru lounge. It was a Citibank PMG redemption so it cost peanuts in terms of $'s but reading how most of you went up the night before has got me twitchy. Not that there is anything that can be done about it as we have a wedding the night before that we can't miss. Fingers crossed!

I do have a quick question though, does anyone know if Thai F passengers get access to the Lufthansa F lounge in Munich? From what I can read it seems to be the case but wondering if anyone else can confirm this?

don't worry. together us 6am-ers will stick together. safety in numbers!

not sure where you have read TG F gets access to the LH f lounge. you don't. LH f lounges are purely for LH and LX F pax (includes if you are flying economy or business and connecting to or from an lh/lx f service) and for HON members of miles and more.

you have access to senator lounges if you are flying TG f, but arriving TG f and connecting to business class intra Europe you can only use the business class lounge if no other star status.

 

[NDiddy]

don't worry. together us 6am-ers will stick together. safety in numbers!

not sure where you have read TG F gets access to the LH f lounge. you don't. LH f lounges are purely for LH and LX F pax (includes if you are flying economy or business and connecting to or from an lh/lx f service) and for HON members of miles and more.

you have access to senator lounges if you are flying TG f, but arriving TG f and connecting to business class intra Europe you can only use the business class lounge if no other star status.

Ah MEL_Traveller your words have reassured me - The friends wedding has thrown somewhat of a spanner in our travel plans as I wanted to go the night before and stay in a club room at the IC but we'll leave that experience for another time When are you off?

Regarding the lounge I got my info from here: Munich Airport - Lufthansa (Non-EU) Just to clarify I'll be arriving from CDG on LH J and then connecting on TG F to BKK. From what you're saying there is a difference between the LH F lounge and the Senator lounge? From the website it seems to be one in the same but I will admit the wine has hit me so there is a strong chance I've misunderstood.