Who Pays for Business?

[pshepvic]

QF have six rows of J on a 737 that flies SYD-CBR and CBR-MEL

Yes, or 5 rows as markis10 indicated, but I'd hardly call what you get in a 734 J-class seating! Those aircraft won't be around for that much longer anyway.

 

[amaroo]

So yes buying business class/first tickets is more expensive than economy, but if you play it smart it doesn't have to be the eye-gouging prices you normally see if you just did a random search for business class/first class airfares on a travel or airline search engine. For my money, paying 4000 to 6000 dollars more for a 24+ hour flight to have some level of personal space and comfort is well worth it, especially as I travel relatively often. In all honesty whenever I am flying in business and first, and go back to economy just to look I am disgusted how airlines have to cram people in to make money. It would be nice if somehow airlines could still make money, offer reasonable fares, and allow better space for passengers. Unfortunately I fear that its part the travelling public's fault as well which expect cut-rate fares. I would think even an increase of fares by 20% would allow some more space in economy, but passengers would probably flock to the airline with crammed in seating for 20% less.

Totally agree - with the sales you can't go wrong, I'm just learning about the benefits of EF/KVS but I'm a fast learner.

I recently took advantage of a BA sale:-

BNE-SYD-LHR-MAD......CDG-LHR-BKK-SYD-BNE. The long haul SYD-LHR-BKK-SYD is in F and the remainder is J all for the sum of $8,900 - 960 status credits & 70,000 points earn.

I'm sure there are/have been better but I'm more than happy with it....Robyn Jorgensen, the kids & I are really looking forward to it

 

[ozmille]

Totally agree - with the sales you can't go wrong, I'm just learning about the benefits of EF/KVS but I'm a fast learner.

I recently took advantage of a BA sale:-

BNE-SYD-LHR-MAD......CDG-LHR-BKK-SYD-BNE. The long haul SYD-LHR-BKK-SYD is in F and the remainder is J all for the sum of $8,900 - 960 status credits & 70,000 points earn.

I'm sure there are/have been better but I'm more than happy with it....Robyn Jorgensen, the kids & I are really looking forward to it

I think soon it will be time for BA IXMAS AXMAS sales again...

 

[quark]

Well. I fly international business (or at the least Y+) because economy sucks. I have never regretted any points/dollars spent on J and never will.

I pay for J when holidaying because I work hard enough (usually in Y) the rest of the time!

I also drop a bundle of points every year flying J to Perth - because I often do it twice a week and frankly, the fact that this enables me to work means I pretty much earn it all back it dollars.

 

[JohnK]

Life is too short to sit in economy

Not judging in any way but if this was true then airlines would only be selling first class seats.

For me life is way too long to throw away on perceived comfort when the value for money is not there.

And yes we all value everything differently....

 

[juddles]

...I hope I can restrain myself to this being the last thread I post in on this topic.

Think you failed on that! (just)

My twocents worth:

Am not rich, but have to travel a hell of a lot on long haul sectors. And am 6'7". Y is absolute cough. I used to justify Y travel as on a dollar per hr basis J seemed unjustifiable. But have ended up doing J all the way, with the occasional throwback to Y+. As I said, am not rich, and it hurts me financially, but I reached a point I just couldn't face more cattle class flights. (This year am spending 20 full days airborne - would be a cripple if I continued with the yoga in Y)

But, if I went back to just one annual holiday per year, on an average wage, I would definitely put up with Y and have the extra dollars for partying/enjoying on the ground.

 

[serfty]

Yes, or 5 rows as markis10 indicated, but I'd hardly call what you get in a 734 J-class seating! Those aircraft won't be around for that much longer anyway.

Actually, while not Business class, row 6 on these beasties is not bad at all.

 

[Maca44]

Not judging in any way but if this was true then airlines would only be selling first class seats.

For me life is way too long to throw away on perceived comfort when the value for money is not there.

And yes we all value everything differently....

I agree we all value things differently. However, as mentioned in other threads I am lucky enough to be able to afford F, sometimes award seats but mostly pay, but when you say life is way too long to throw away on 'perceived comfort' then I must disagree. You see, F class is not perceived comfort, it is very comfortable with great seats and great service, and when I walk off a long haul flight to say LAX I do feel about 90% healthy whereas in Y class I used to look and feel about 10%. This topic has been hammered many times, and its not whether you like to fly F or J, its whether you can afford to fly that class. Then, once you have been up the front it bloody hard to go back.

 

[Alanslegal]

This topic has been hammered many times, and its not whether you like to fly F or J, its whether you can afford to fly that class. Then, once you have been up the front it bloody hard to go back.

Yeah these topics pop up now and again and the same types of responses always bear fruit.

There are a whole range of reasons and factors why a person chooses to fly in a particular cabin. Some flyers can just afford it and not worry about cost, some aren't there yet but perceive other value to flying in that class class making it worthwhile, and some shouldn't be flying in [insert cabin] class but still somehow sneak into them. That said, not everyone values premium cabins like alot of us here. Take Ingvar Kamprad for example.

For someone, read me, who generally can't afford to pay outright cash* for premium cabin travel the joy, fun, chase and challenge to get into those cabins is part of the whole travel process. The game to maximise my points through whatever legitimate way possible so that my next long haul international flight is located in the nicer parts of the planes. Ok so sometimes with respect to points awards, I think I could fly twice in economy instead of once in business, but heck, the greediness in me tells that I must fly premium cabins - and you know what greed does to all of us!

* I have bought DCIR, DONE type fares in the past and will do so.

 

[rechoboam]

Yeah these topics pop up now and again and the same types of responses always bear fruit.

There are a whole range of reasons and factors why a person chooses to fly in a particular cabin. Some flyers can just afford it and not worry about cost, some aren't there yet but perceive other value to flying in that class class making it worthwhile, and some shouldn't be flying in [insert cabin] class but still somehow sneak into them. That said, not everyone values premium cabins like alot of us here. Take Ingvar Kamprad for example.

For someone, read me, who generally can't afford to pay outright cash* for premium cabin travel the joy, fun, chase and challenge to get into those cabins is part of the whole travel process. The game to maximise my points through whatever legitimate way possible so that my next long haul international flight is located in the nicer parts of the planes. Ok so sometimes with respect to points awards, I think I could fly twice in economy instead of once in business, but heck, the greediness in me tells that I must fly premium cabins - and you know what greed does to all of us!

* I have bought DCIR, DONE type fares in the past and will do so.

But Kamprad lives in Sweden. If he had to fly to Australia twice a year I doubt he would fly economy. We are in a unique position in Australia where nearly every foreign destination is many hours away.

 

[JohnK]

I agree we all value things differently. However, as mentioned in other threads I am lucky enough to be able to afford F, sometimes award seats but mostly pay, but when you say life is way too long to throw away on 'perceived comfort' then I must disagree. You see, F class is not perceived comfort, it is very comfortable with great seats and great service, and when I walk off a long haul flight to say LAX I do feel about 90% healthy whereas in Y class I used to look and feel about 10%. This topic has been hammered many times, and its not whether you like to fly F or J, its whether you can afford to fly that class. Then, once you have been up the front it bloody hard to go back.

I am not going to disagree with you. To each their own and all have their own reasons for justifying things.

Once I have been up front I can easily go down the back.

For me it is about getting away as many times as possible and if I can have a 12 day holiday in Thailand with 7-10 games of golf for <$4,000 then I have done well.

When I retire in a few years time I want to be able to go to Thailand 5-6 times a year. I cannot justify spending $3,000-$5,000 on an airfare alone. At the moment with BMI or US Airways I can have a business class flight for around $1,500 and another $1,500 spending money and there is my holiday for <$4,000. If these business class deals go away then I will go back to spending around $1,000 on economy flight and my total cost for trip will be <$3,000.

And for what it is worth I flew SYD-SIN in QF economy on Friday and then 6 CX short haul business class flights on Saturday getting here around 2:00am Sunday morning. Had a big day on Sunday with rugby league grand final and all and then shot 85 at Bangpra yesterday and shot 79 at St Andrews today (par 74 course) and feel great.

 

[drron]

Now just think how low your score could have been with tasteful,colourful golf gear!

 

[Berlin]

Jet lag etc is a load of rubbish.
Interested in how travelers justify this stupidity.

Isn't it great when you read a thread which calls others "stupid" and others' opinions "rubbish"?

Often wondered who pays for business and why. My business could have afforded it but I only saw it it the biggest waste of money.

Which is precisely why I would never ever work again for that sort of self-made stingy "business owner". I'm now in a Global corporation and fly Y domestically and J internationally. Luckily, not everybody "Generally in business" is as short sighted as the original poster to think it saved money if you stuck me on a trip overseas in Y only to absolutely get nothing at all out of it because on arrival, I will basically be brain dead. THAT actually is real stupidity!

 

[TonyHancock]

is precisely why I would never ever work again for that sort of self-made stingy "business owner". I'm now in a Global corporation and fly Y domestically and J internationally. Luckily, not everybody "Generally in business" is as short sighted as the original poster to think it saved money if you stuck me on a trip overseas in Y only to absolutely get nothing at all out of it because on arrival, I will basically be brain dead. THAT actually is real stupidity!

Isn't it great when you read a thread which calls others "stupid" and others' opinions "rubbish"?

I certainly agree with that, and probably would go as far as saying short sighted too!!

I think the issue of the "self-made stingy "business owner"" is a little more complicated. A business that is borderline profitable is not going to spend tens of thousands of dollars on J air fares.

Along the same lines when the powers that be finally decide to let the recession happen in Europe, or run out of money to prop up Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Ireland, I know I will be faced with a decision to fly J to Europe every two months or let people go........in case you are wondering I'll be hunting my bulkhead Y seats out and putting up with that.

Our business allows its employees a couple of days to get over jet lag...so pretty much four days lost on a long haul trip. :shock: This is a real cost but one that is not as transparent as a $8k flight in the monthly overheads. So I do agree there is some false economy.

 

[simongr]

Our business allows its employees a couple of days to get over jet lag...so pretty much four days lost on a long haul trip. :shock: This is a real cost but one that is not as transparent as a $8k flight in the monthly overheads. So I do agree there is some false economy.

I also think for people that travel a lot those four days aren't four days - they are ANOTHER four days away from family/friends/pets/xbox360/life and if you do it 5 or 6 times a year that is a month extra away from family - not something I am willing to do for no tangible improvement in my work but saving my boss money.

 

[TonyHancock]

I also think for people that travel a lot those four days aren't four days - they are ANOTHER four days away from family/friends/pets/xbox360/life and if you do it 5 or 6 times a year that is a month extra away from family - not something I am willing to do for no tangible improvement in my work but saving my boss money.

I agree with that simon, it does work where you have a person doing one or two trips in a year, which is the case for us, but not for 5 or 6. The novelty of travel soon wears off when you are spending 100+ nights away from home. :-|

 

[JohnK]

Now just think how low your score could have been with tasteful,colourful golf gear!

Just to stay off topic I shot another 79 today (on par 72 course) in my normal boring golf gear. Perhaps I can play better if I ask you for some fashion tips.

 

[TonyHancock]

Just to stay off topic I shot another 79 today (on par 72 course) in my normal boring golf gear. Perhaps I can play better if I ask you for some fashion tips.

You'll be passing Tiger on your way up as he continues to fall!!!

 

[lovestotravel]

Domestically always in Economy, but sometimes pay for the extra-leg room on Virgin

Internationally always Business but I tend to take advanage of 2for1 sales or sale fares which work out quite good when you take into account the number of FF points earned