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

[casanovawa]

Yeah, moving the last part of this discussion to a new thread has its merits..

We are considering how to earn DM miles at around rates of $1 per mile because these are incidental miles over and above whatever we have actually spent our money on (fuel/movie tickets/etc)... Yes you can buy DM miles at a much better rate directly during bonus promotions, but you only get the miles themselves, the credit card spend is obviously for bonus miles for topping/speeding up and at around the $1 per mile (or $1 per 0.6 DM mile) rate is not that far off the same rate for QF or KF earning... It is lower than QF but obviously in wokring out the package you look at the earn and the burn plus taxes rate and for QF it catches up on the burn/taxes side of the equation but its sounds perhaps like KF might come out ahead overall... AA could be another goer although I haven't looked at that so much recently although on buying their award points alone I think DM stacks up better...

What I also like about DM is the option at least i have heard of (haven't booked one yet) of getting a flight to your designated continental zone or destination and then, as long as its not an open jaw, a stop over in another one (so ineffect a return flight plus a second flight to another location on the one redemption) which i don't think you get with QF redemptions and AA award flights are one way point to point aren't they... That might not be much of a selling point to another person though...

One obvious advantage is if people are thinking of using DM miles program from time to time, the fewer programs you are earning points/miles with the better and the sooner you will qualify for rewards... If you are buying DM miles periodically, transferring Amex MR points to KF and earning QF points at Woolies etc you are splitting your earnings across several programs which maybe necessary, but is hardly the most efficient... Adding AAvantage would be a 4th program...

I originally just put the calculations out there just to see if there is anyway on a $ for $ basis of earn and then redemption DM could in anyway be justified even with the convoluted route you would need to take advantage of it... It probably does but not sufficiently for me I guess... I have never really used KF and have no cards that convert that way so have little experience in that either...

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Yes thanks for the analysis!

[for personal non-business funded status holders...]

I think a better question however is the cost of flying on ANY airline to get status vs buying all your tickets outright through DM?

I guess there are a lot of domestic flyers here, but for me, I fly pretty much exclusively international and I cannot justify even a few flights on QF in order to maintain status. And why would I? I get all the benefits of international First or business for the same price as QF Y, and less then the price of Y+.

Sure I might lose status with QF in the long run, but as LTS I will always get priority check-in (which is the main issue for me) and I can buy lounge access for $300 a year through QF club which will give me the same as gold for the airlines I often fly if choosing one world (main exception is CX and I can buy lunge access in HKG if really necessary). That $300 a year seems to be far lower than spending hundreds or thousands of dollars in premiums for QF flights to get QF status?

 

[casanovawa]

Practically all my travel is personal, and for that i go for best value... My small amount of work travel i try to fly Qantas but will never get me to any status level worth having and through work i can buy a partial year membership for QP (just covering the months i plan to travel) for $85 and then probably write part of it off against tax anyway which for me delivers pretty much everything Gold would and there are no First lounges in Perth anyway...

I have thought about earning status vs buying award redemptions and in my case just can't make the status chasing thing add up... Obviously everyone is different..

 

[Stephen65]

I have previously put all my CC points into QF and then used JASA's to get QF status - not so much for the QP access (I get that flying J and even if I didn't I'd just buy it tax deductibly) but because I have flown QF internationally out of habit and being SG gives you better options for award redemptions.

Learning via this thread about buying DM during their specials has really opened my eyes to flying J (and F) on *A airlines very cheaply and I took advantage of it during the last offer to buy a lot of cheap DM and book TG flights for next year. If I could figure out a way of adding to my DM balance at will by using some sort of CC points on Amex spend I am going to make in any event that could be icing on the cake. The problem is that unlike the US there aren't any cards that earn DM or SPG points directly and our Amex MR:SPG conversion rate is not very good.

I still need QFF points for domestic travel but I am really thinking about new options now for my MR points such as SQ KF and I am eagerly awaiting the next DM sale to stock up on bought DM.

 

[Shanye2233]

What is the best route coming out of LAX back to SYD , which airline in J offers the best product?

Thank you as always

 

[Flashback]

What is the best route coming out of LAX back to SYD , which airline in J offers the best product?

Thank you as always

Read the thread again, it's been mentioned several times.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

What is the best route coming out of LAX back to SYD , which airline in J offers the best product?

Thank you as always

you need four seats... so it doesn't really matter which is the best... it is really a case of availability... you will have to take what you can get I'm afraid...

united pretty much forget... very hard even with flexibility for that number of seats. that leaves air new Zealand... their non stop to Auckland has nice flat beds... but I think you may be limited to their regional service which stops in Rarotonga or somewhere. that is operated by a 767 I think, with regular seats that are recliners.

you could look at flights via Asia, but that will add maybe 15 hours on to the journey over a non stop or direct... and there I think you will be limited to Thai. again... 15 hours in Thai business would not be my first preference. I would take the air new Zealand 767 instead.

I also don't believe, if you are still on your original plans to go from australia to lax, via Europe, that the itinerary will even be allowed as it will exceed the maximum allowed mileage.

certainly if they do allow you to go to lax via europe, the. I think also getting the return via via Asia will be nearly impossible (bacause of mileage).

you may need to split your return party into 2 if you possibly can for the last lax-syd flights... maybe 2 on the non stop service to Auckland, and 2 on the flight via rar. or possibly 2 on united (if you can find them) and two on air new Zealand.

I think what some people forget is that there is limited enjoyment on flights, even in first and business class. the service is usually the same for all long hauls... you get a nice meal and wines at the start, then you are left alone to watch movies and sleep.

the only difference is how long you are left alone to sleep. so on a 15 hour flight you just get left alone for 8 hours, rather than 4 hours on a shorter flight...

it is not a case of magical non stop service for the entire time. it is never worth taking a 15 hour flight when a 10 hour flight will get you there.

the only exception is ultra short long hauls... like sin-syd or Mel. I would, in that case, route my travel ex Bangkok to allow more sleeping time. 6 hours sin-syd/Mel is just too short for me to eat, unwind, and get a decent sleep.

but there is no way I would do lax-bkk-syd for the experience if I could get lax-akl

 

[Shanye2233]

What if you have never been to BKK before and never will again would you sit for an extra 5 hours to experience it. 4 seats is very hard I mean it I been searching for a month on any airline but if I do have to split into two groups then it makes sense to get the best out of it. I'm still doing the SYD europe lax route seems it's allowed at 120k in J 150k F .

Just availability is a pain

 

[MEL_Traveller]

What if you have never been to BKK before and never will again would you sit for an extra 5 hours to experience it. 4 seats is very hard I mean it I been searching for a month on any airline but if I do have to split into two groups then it makes sense to get the best out of it. I'm still doing the SYD europe lax route seems it's allowed at 120k in J 150k F .

Just availability is a pain

well the membership guide does talk about maximum mileage allowed for an award... so I dunno

the thing is... if, and it's an if because each person finds comfort differently... if you find the seats on thaimuncomfortable, then your 15 hours rather than 10 means you don't sleep at all for 15 hours... it can actually be the reverse of 'getting the best' in that you just end up wishng the flight would end

going lax-bkk-syd in first, yes maybe... you are guaranteed a full flat bed... so sleep is possible. but unless you know thatnyou can sleep on an angled bed... I wouldnt be racing to do it (even if I hadn't been to Bangkok before.. and in any event you'll only be at the airport because you have another stopover already planned)

it is not worth it for a transit at Bangkok airport!

 

[Shanye2233]

Not a transit a layover

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Not a transit a layover

yeah, but with three flights a day to Sydney, and because you are not taking the most direct routing, there will most likely not be any opportunity for a 'lay-over'. you will be made to take the first available flight, so maybe 8 hours at most, which is not enough time to leave the airport and see downtown Bangkok for more than an hour or two. and with hand luggage in tow that is almost impossible... unless you organize a van to pick you up and take you around...

PLUS is you decide to leave the airport you will need to pay the Bangkok departure tax, 700 baht per passenger. even if you have your boarding passes, without paying the tax you will be sent back to pay the tax before you can clear immigration.

 

[Stephen65]

How about on Asiana via Seoul i.e. LAX - ICN - SYD?

Asiana often seems to show lots of J seats available using the Aeroplan tool but whether they are actually there is another question.

 

[Shanye2233]

yeah, but with three flights a day to Sydney, and because you are not taking the most direct routing, there will most likely not be any opportunity for a 'lay-over'. you will be made to take the first available flight, so maybe 8 hours at most, which is not enough time to leave the airport and see downtown Bangkok for more than an hour or two. and with hand luggage in tow that is almost impossible... unless you organize a van to pick you up and take you around...

PLUS is you decide to leave the airport you will need to pay the Bangkok departure tax, 700 baht per passenger. even if you have your boarding passes, without paying the tax you will be sent back to pay the tax before you can clear immigration.

Thanks this info is what I'm looking for very helpful. They can't MAKE you take the next flight as long as it's not greater than 24 hours it's still a layover . I was thinking of landing just taking hand luggage enough for a nights paying the 700 baht which is what $20 explore stay the night and take the early flight next morning. This is all theory of course.

OZ has availability but I'm reading no AVOD or lie-flat seats unless you get the QS seat which seems nothing short of a miracle.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Thanks this info is what I'm looking for very helpful. They can't MAKE you take the next flight as long as it's not greater than 24 hours it's still a layover . I was thinking of landing just taking hand luggage enough for a nights paying the 700 baht which is what $20 explore stay the night and take the early flight next morning. This is all theory of course.

OZ has availability but I'm reading no AVOD or lie-flat seats unless you get the QS seat which seems nothing short of a miracle.

you are completely wrong about the layover unfortunately.

there have been many posts outlining this..

you need to use the star alliance tool, found on the star alliance website.

enter in your origin and destination.

if it lists lax-syd as being available via bkk, the you indeed can take a layover. if it does not list it, then it may be considered a forced connection.

a forced connection may be treated as a stopover. at best, a forced connection will be allowed provided you are just connecting to your next flight.

a brief look that I had today does show the Asian flight via icn... but not the Thai flight via Bangkok. but that may be because of freque cy of service... I dont know... although it doesn't list the sq flights via sin, and I think they are daily...

no avod is really not a problem, you still get regular channels of viewing (and plenty of them) via your own screen... you just have to start watching the movie at the same time as everyone else shortly after take-off, or again after the main meal service (the movies are generally on a two-three hour loop).

 

[Shanye2233]

i see so you still get a screen to watch just not movies.I would like to put some movies on for the kids cartoon , etc to keep them busy. Finding availability for this itinerary is to hard for me i had to hire a professional who is looking into it for me.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

i see so you still get a screen to watch just not movies.I would like to put some movies on for the kids cartoon , etc to keep them busy. Finding availability for this itinerary is to hard for me i had to hire a professional who is looking into it for me.

avod simply means audio video on demand... it is just like your video or DVD player at home where you can play something when you want, pause, rewind, or fast forward.

it means people can select the program on the plane and start it when they want, pause it while they go to the bathroom, or stop and then start again when they wake up.

regular systems (which are now rare for long haul flights) mean that all the movies and programs start at the same time. they are switched on by the crew.

you will still have multi channels of movies, documentaries, kids cartoons and movies etc etc, just you have to start watching at the beginning of the flight (they make an announcement when they are gng to start).

you en select the channel you want to watch.

the whole sequence the. repeats itself over and over, until the flight ends.

so if you miss the movie the first time, you can just go back when it starts again in two hours time (there is always a little counter on the screen where you first go to it that tells you how far into the program it is at that stage ... so you can work out when to come back if you want).

there will certainly be a kids channel with cartoons and other movies.

 

[Shanye2233]

avod simply means audio video on demand... it is just like your video or DVD player at home where you can play something when you want, pause, rewind, or fast forward.

it means people can select the program on the plane and start it when they want, pause it while they go to the bathroom, or stop and then start again when they wake up.

regular systems (which are now rare for long haul flights) mean that all the movies and programs start at the same time. they are switched on by the crew.

you will still have multi channels of movies, documentaries, kids cartoons and movies etc etc, just you have to start watching at the beginning of the flight (they make an announcement when they are gng to start).

you en select the channel you want to watch.

the whole sequence the. repeats itself over and over, until the flight ends.

so if you miss the movie the first time, you can just go back when it starts again in two hours time (there is always a little counter on the screen where you first go to it that tells you how far into the program it is at that stage ... so you can work out when to come back if you want).

there will certainly be a kids channel with cartoons and other movies.

i would prefer the AVOD do they have that on TG SYD-BKK-CDG or what about TK BKK-IST-CDG.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

i would prefer the AVOD do they have that on TG SYD-BKK-CDG or what about TK BKK-IST-CDG.

that question has already been answered for you on FT, and you can also do a quick check of the Thai airlines website. speaking of which, you can also look at the asiana website to see the roll out of the quadra seats. the main routes they operate are listed there. remember it's not too polite to waste people's time and ask the same questions over again, especially when they have been answered by authoritative sources

 

[Shanye2233]

that question has already been answered for you on FT, and you can also do a quick check of the Thai airlines website. speaking of which, you can also look at the asiana website to see the roll out of the quadra seats. the main routes they operate are listed there. remember it's not too polite to waste people's time and ask the same questions over again, especially when they have been answered by authoritative sources

Point taken , my apologies. Could you suggest a routing for me coming out of SYD-ZAG-LAX-SYD in J . Let's just assume this would be allowed. What route would you take. TG syy-bkk-cdg-zag-fra-lax and then im stuck late may early june.

Does availability tend to open up more closer to the dates ?

 

[vlado]

Could you suggest a routing for me coming out of SYD-ZAG-LAX-SYD in J .

Cant see this happening and all you are doing by pushing for it is undermining your likelihood of getting good flights to Europe. If I were you, I would book the return trip to Europe NOW, enjoy a stopover in Asia (BKK would be great fun) and save the US trip for another time. Trying to cram LA into your trip will likely make it painful in my view, and you are less likely to enjoy it

If you keep up your current approach, I fear you may end up with nothing to show for it.....