Buying AA miles

[theweaselsteve]

Hi all,

I've just joined Aadvantage with a view to potentially buying some miles at some point. Does anyone know how long I need to wait before I'm eligible to buy?

Thanks.

 

[RooFlyer]

From the web site (when I'm logged on):

AAdvantage accounts less than 30 days old are not permitted to Buy or Gift Miles.

 

[theweaselsteve]

Thanks RooFlyer. I did search but couldn't find anything. Not looking hard enough!

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Thanks RooFlyer. I did search but couldn't find anything. Not looking hard enough!

Worth noting that AA miles aren't particularly good value - their sales don't come anywhere near the same value as United or Lifemiles.

 

[DC3]

I've just joined Aadvantage with a view to potentially buying some miles at some point ...

Keep an eye out for AA sales/bonus offers, as these are much better value. Buy up to 150,000 miles per year (plus bonus miles).

The current Black Friday sale ending 28/11/16 comes with 120,000 bonus miles for the 150,000 purchased, although no good for you in this case.

 

[jarradbrown]

Worth noting that AA miles aren't particularly good value - their sales don't come anywhere near the same value as United or Lifemiles.

I've been trying to work this out myself and haven't been able to get a clear picture one way or the other.

How did you come to this conclusion if you don't mind me asking?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

I've been trying to work this out myself and haven't been able to get a clear picture one way or the other.

How did you come to this conclusion if you don't mind me asking?

Picking a couple of awards... Australia to Asia and Australia to Europe. Both AA and Lifemiles roughly charge the same number of points for business and first class. But the cost of AA points through their buy scheme is much more expensive than lifemiles.

AA's new promo out today offers a max 80% bonus - which is the highest I've seen for a while, but it's still more expensive than Lifemiles, even at the top 150K buy in (which is a hefty investment).

However - if you have Etihad's apartments on your bucket list, buying AA miles will still offer you the opportunity at price way below retail. So for some one-off redemptions AA might be worth your while.

 

[jarradbrown]

Picking a couple of awards... Australia to Asia and Australia to Europe. Both AA and Lifemiles roughly charge the same number of points for business and first class. But the cost of AA points through their buy scheme is much more expensive than lifemiles.

AA's new promo out today offers a max 80% bonus - which is the highest I've seen for a while, but it's still more expensive than Lifemiles, even at the top 150K buy in (which is a hefty investment).

However - if you have Etihad's apartments on your bucket list, buying AA miles will still offer you the opportunity at price way below retail. So for some one-off redemptions AA might be worth your while.

Thanks makes alot of sense. I guess availability and airlines is a facter as well?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Thanks makes alot of sense. I guess availability and airlines is a facter as well?

Exactly. Try finding premium space on Qantas... pretty hard. Ethihad is not so bad. Emirates is also not so bad, but not available through AA.

Lifemiles and United both give you access to Thai airways which is usually wide open. Pick a day and off you go. Unlike Lifemiles, United generally offers some pretty flexible routes when normal availability has dried up... I've seen UA route MEL-PVG-BKK if the TG flights are full for example. Not everyone's cup of tea, but if you need a seat it can be a worthwhile option.

 

[jarradbrown]

Is your preference United over Lifemiles?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Is your preference United over Lifemiles?

united. United has the best flexibility for award routings, which means more availability to leave on the day you want. United is easy to use and straight forward... no fluffing around with screenshots. United has lower award prices to south east Asia than lifemiles.

however... United rarely has 100% promo offers... maybe only one this year IIRC? their other promos are like 35% off, or 50% bonus miles. in that respect, lifemiles comes out ahead because they're cheaper on a day to day basis.

 

[Abdul_A350]

How did you come to this conclusion if you don't mind me asking?

It is so simplistic and generalized as to be useless in practice.

It all depends entirely on where you want to fly and the airlines in question. I buy both AA miles and LifeMiles, and get good value out of both.

 

[DC3]

As always, booking when seats are released (around 330 days on AA.com) provides the best opportunity to obtain award seats.

The cost is something that each of us need to consider. The current AA miles sale can provide 270,000 miles for $US4786.88 ($US4425.00 + $US331.88 tax + $US30.00 fee).

One J seat SYD-LAX, one way, is 80,000 miles (MileSAAver). So that works out at about $US1418 (based on buying the full 150,000 miles, plus bonus), unless my maths is out. If I wanted to book 2 x J seats SYD-LAX on AA72 on Friday 27/10/17 (for example), they're available, as is the following day. Availability is always limited, but if you can commit to planning 11 months out, then that's best.

Of course, the AA miles may be used for award seats on other airlines, but finding seat availability is always the issue.

As others have said, we all value airline miles differently. The biggest issue for me is availability/flexibility.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

So that works out at about $US1418 (based on buying the full 150,000 miles, plus bonus)

By comparison Lifemiles was ~USD1113 each way (excluding any purchase fees), a saving of ~300 each way. Availability transpac can be an issue, but options for UA and AC, even NH or BR. AA can't offer anything but non-stops unless willing to fork out for two separate awards.

There are two ways to approach the issue - either decide which airline you want (which can limit you), or choose the destination first and then the program to suit. Choosing the destination will almost certainly give you the choice of star or ow.