Combining United Economy and Business Award Flights

[kangarooflyer88]

Hey Everyone,

I'm planning to move to Frankfurt next month from where I'm residing now in Canada. On the Velocity site there are no business award seats available between the two cities. However, I know that Velocity has a quirk where it won't show mixed cabin itineraries (i.e. flights where one of the segments is in economy and the other is in business). Indeed, checking online with velocity I can find a United economy flight from Toronto to Washington Dulles on the date I want to travel and another flight on United later that day from Washington Dulles to Frankfurt in Polaris business class. The connection time is just under 8 hours.

I called into Velocity to book this and the gentleman on the phone looked up the flights and told me that it could not be booked because the computer only showed him a connecting flight in economy between Washington Dulles and Frankfurt and wouldn't allow him to enter in the Frankfurt flight that has business class availability in. I was under the impression that the phone representatives could manually construct these awards but perhaps I am mistaken here. What am I missing?

-RooFlyer88

 

[BRIS_VA_HAWK]

My understanding is that award flights for UA in Velocity can't be mixed class - you'd have to book it as two separate legs.

 

[kangarooflyer88]

My understanding is that award flights for UA in Velocity can't be mixed class - you'd have to book it as two separate legs.

The Velocity website suggests that it is possible but each sector would be priced out separately:

• A Reward Seat is also calculated on a per sector basis when there is a change in class of travel within the journey or when combining a journey that includes airlines located in different Reward Seat Points tables.

Hopefully someone has first hand experience here making these bookings over the phone, as I'm unsure whether this is a case where I need to HUACA.
-RooFlyer88

 

[BRIS_VA_HAWK]

The Velocity website suggests that it is possible but each sector would be priced out separately:


Hopefully someone has first hand experience here making these bookings over the phone, as I'm unsure whether this is a case where I need to HUACA.
-RooFlyer88

May as well try again - what's to lose?

 

[jeppetto367]

I flew on an SA reward ticket last year from CPT-JNB (SA Econ), JNB-PER (SA Bus), and PER-MEL (VA Bus), all ticketed by the call centre under one PNR. The person above is correct though that the legs were priced separately.

 

[kangarooflyer88]

I flew on an SA reward ticket last year from CPT-JNB (SA Econ), JNB-PER (SA Bus), and PER-MEL (VA Bus), all ticketed by the call centre under one PNR. The person above is correct though that the legs were priced separately.

Was it booked as a multicity or a connecting itinerary?

 

[jeppetto367]

Was it booked as a multicity or a connecting itinerary?

Not sure, did it over the phone as you can't book SA Reward online, though I'd guess connecting as it says 1h35m layover between CPT-JNB, and it says 2h0m layover between JNB-PER.

 

[kangarooflyer88]

Ended up following the information provided in another thread regarding forcing the VA website to show multi-city international award flight options and that worked like a charm:


Flight was booked as same day multi-city: Toronto to Washington Dulles (United Economy) followed by Washington Dulles to Frankfurt (Polaris Business Class). Since the first leg was in economy it was priced out separately, so the total came to 71,100 points + $126 AUD in taxes and fees. For those wondering, yes the cost of the flight was 70,500 points, but decided to use the remaining couple hundred Virgin points I had to cover some of the taxes and fees. For the points purists about to rip me a new one on this alleged "blunder," look the points are likely going to expire if I don't use them. I'd rather .5 cents of value then having them rot away in purgatory!

To answer a further question people may have about booking this type of itinerary, baggage is based on the United Polaris business class flight I am taking and not the initial economy flight down to Washington Dulles:



-RooFlyer88