Best usage of F.F. miles
Jan 02 '00
This may sound funny, but you get a better deal using your miles for first class than coach! Think about it. The average Frequent Flier program requires 25,000 miles for a coach ticket, and 40,000 for a first class ticket domestically. To redeem your points, often you need to book way in advance to begin with. You can buy a cross country ticket for about $300-400 in coach in advance. But there's no discount on advance First class tickets, which cross country can cost you over $2,000.
Doing the math, you can see that you getting 5-6 times more for your first class miles redemption. Plus, you're flying first. I don't recommend using miles for short trips, unless you are really strapped for cash.
When flying internationally, the difference is even greater. International flights are often 3 classes of service, coach, business, and first. To fly to Europe from the East Coast in coach is $400-500, and 3,500-4,500 in Business class. Miles are typically 60,000 for coach and only 80,000 fo business. Using an extra 33% in miles gets you a ticket worth 1,000% more! Anybody who has commuted to Europe will tell you that those coach seats can be hell after 8+ hours, and Business can really help ease the pain. Of course, there's always First class when you really want to enjoy the journey.
I am fortunate to have a LOT of miles, but even so, if you are saving up, don't waste them on coach. Either buy the coach seat and bank those miles to the next trip which is business or first, or just use those miles to the best advantage.
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Epinions.com ID:
jkeating1a
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Location: New York, NY
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