Flying cheap / in higher classes - sounds like too much work.

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harvyk

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A work colleague of mine commented the other week that I obviously earn way too much money since I am always traveling and have done it in the higher classes (not much by AFF standards but a bit by normal person standards). I offered to explain to him how I do it and after about 2 minutes his response was "that sounds too much like work".

Has anyone successfully taught non FFers tips and tricks of flying on the cheap / getting into the higher classes? Or is it a journey which must be discovered by ones self?
 
Most people I talk to have the reaction you got from your colleague.
There is the odd one or two who wants to learn but by and large it's a waste of time telling most people.
There has recently been a plethora of courses aimed at those who are time poor to enable them to learn the ropes quickly. The online paid for content here and I also know someone who runs face to face courses on everything airline and hotel related.
 
That's the usual reaction. Tho other is of genuine interest, but they never actually follow up on the advice.
 
Pretty much exactly what everyone else has said.

I have felt a bit guilty saying what end of the plane I'm flying in but then I remember that any of them could do it if they wanted.

While they are all standing round talking about some show they watched last night I was planning what spend I need to make next.
 
Most don't understand the concept of buying points and looking for awards.

Most don't want to chase earning points. That's understandable. Sometimes I feel like I am mad doing same.

What we do is not normal....
 
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Frankly, I am of te opinion that telling too many people is a waste of time and only adds more competition (for seats) to an already competitive market
 
Ditto to previous replies. They feel it is all a bit too tricky. They want it to be simple and easy and seats to be available exactly when they want, 5 weeks before they plan to travel!

I don't mind if others aren't interested. Makes it easier for me to find seats :D
 
Don't waste your time - giggle inwardly and try to maintain concentration on any subject being discussed by 'non believers' - personally I try but find that very hard to do and the mind seems to always wander back to the next dastardly plan to maximise FF pts cultivation and harvesting.

OCD? Damn right! And loving it!
 
Most people I have tried explaining it to also think it's just too hard. I don't bother. I'd rather enjoy the wine and food myself! Plus there's already enough competition for award seats!
 
In many ways I think of ignorance as a stupidity tax, as those who have the information take advantage of it and those who don't get penalised for their ignorance.

Personally I'm not a fan of paying more for something than I need to but equally, if people don't want to know, that's their problem. Like most things economic, if everyone took advantage of this, the options would be eliminated. So happy to share but by no means evangelical, because I know if I was successful in converting too many others I'd be killing the golden goose.
 
Yes it is either too much work,no follow up or the one I dislike-here are the points I have,book it for me.Oh sorry nothing available when you want to go.
 
A work colleague of mine commented the other week that I obviously earn way too much money since I am always traveling and have done it in the higher classes (not much by AFF standards but a bit by normal person standards). I offered to explain to him how I do it and after about 2 minutes his response was "that sounds too much like work".

Has anyone successfully taught non FFers tips and tricks of flying on the cheap / getting into the higher classes? Or is it a journey which must be discovered by ones self?

I have passed on tips to some people who were beginners on this forum; now they are far from beginners, and some of them we now know quite well. :)

However, in general, I can tell people how I can do it, but they won't want to learn.

To be honest, this is not one of those "lifehack" article things - there's quite a few components to the whole idea. It's basically like learning a new hobby from scratch, like fixing old cars or fishing. If you can't keep engaged in it and dedicate time, you won't be interested to learn.

Some parts of this "hobby" require patience and can really suck; for example, dealing with call centres and checking ticketing statuses incessantly like a horrible overbearing mother-in-law (no offence to any mothers-in-law here). We won't even go into the super hack stuff like LM site scripting or loophole routings.

Some require a complete modification of patience and procedure thresholds; for example, finding a great fare but needing to tack on positioning flights, lengthening flight time.

And before any of you think everything we do to secure J or F seats takes trivial time, you have to be kidding. There is a marked time investment in most of what we want to do or find (e.g. searching for award seats). Even with the help of award search engines, subscription service alerts and the like, the patience required to persist with this effort to a goal must be built up through experience. People have to get used to the fact that some of these things have no easy straightforward method, no step-by-step instructions and nothing made easier by the airline(s) themselves, but this is what we do for experiences.

You can sometimes get more interest if you start with a dedicated example, e.g. link it to a travel goal they have, then go through the process of getting that goal with them.

I tell my parents and sister about these things, but of course since we are family, as long as I do it, they're happy to remain naive, particularly as they've benefited from my knowledge previously. That said, even after experiencing J and F, they have not lost their previous sense of "value" or comfort. For example, they are all happy to fly Y internationally on flights up to 8 hours or so.


Finally, we should all remember that just because they don't get it or don't want to get it, doesn't mean we don't like them or should hold them in a bad light or contempt.
 
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For the people I've tried (and failed) to bring into the fold don't I think don't its so much "too hard" as "we don't want to travel that much (and especially not as much as you)". Even things like huge credit card bonuses don't tempt them (which must be one of the biggest bangs for least effort there is).

Two, who I do travel o/s with from time to time, stick religiously to the back of the bus. The first time, I joined them back there, in solidarity and 'travelling together'. Only once. I keep saying that my being up the front doesn't cost as much as they think, but I can't shift them forward.
 
Many thanks to the OP and others, as I too have scratched my head many times wondering why others are not jumping at this as I did when first cottoned on to it. Whilst this site covers far more than just credit cards, they are the way to gain many points quickly and the sound of credit card sign-ups scares many people straight away.
For the record, I have only mentioned it to people that I know handle money well, as I appreciate many people struggle with spending within their means, regardless of income levels and I do not want to be recommending credit cards and then have people run up debt and the subsequent interest rates.
 
Even things like huge credit card bonuses don't tempt them (which must be one of the biggest bangs for least effort there is).

There are several resistances (fallacies, if you will) to credit cards which can send people packing (not for a holiday):
  • The perception that credit card will lead to more debt or endanger one's credit record / reputation, viz. someone who has lots of credit cards is assumed to be financially irresponsible. It does not help very well that the idea of credit cards and credit debt is lauded so much by the popular media and consumer agencies, e.g. Choice.
  • A generally poor understanding of how to use credit cards effectively without needing to pay interest (i.e. just pay the full amount each month on time; don't spend more than you could pay it with cash at the end of the month).
  • Not having a good enough job to meet income requirements to get some of the best cards with the best bonuses.
  • Not having enough will, dedication or understanding to achieve minimum spend targets to gain the signup bonus; e.g. if normal spend will not quite cover it all, then buying gift cards or the like.

Another main resistance I forgot to add is when a travel goal someone has involves more than 1 or 2 people. Since I plan, earn and travel for myself alone, that's somewhat easier to achieve the goal than when you need to cater for two people (they both need to do the same things, i.e. sign up for cards etc.) or more (e.g. a family of four where there are two kids who are too young to sign up for credit cards); this is without thinking about how difficult it can be to obtain award seating on the same flights for two or more people.
 
Perception and reality can be very different things; one of my previous employers flew me Business & First everywhere, 5 star hotels, lots of perks and very well looked after yet it was the worst salary of any job I've had in the last 15 years... The highest paid job I've had and always fly full flex economy so upgrade with points...
 
Im the same as previous posts.

Ive had a few passive aggressive comments via social media about "another holiday" or how J "must be good for some" so now I make a point to say something about being thankful for points if I post a cabin photo online.

My point/status chase amuses my boss.
 
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