So...what brings you to AFF?

[Hawkeye]

Ok, so I confess at the outset, that I am sitting here with nothing much to do on a Friday night. My wife has left to go out on the town with the girls; I have a nice Spanish red,some home-made chilli con carne, and some spare time to catch up on the murmurings of AFF.

A second confession - I feel I know many of you much more than you know me. I am an habitual 5 times a day viewer of posts on AFF - just a quick read in between other activities. Since joining 2 years ago, I have come here to share in the common passion of travel with many others. Sometimes I feel the relationship is one-sided: I have gained much knowledge but contributed vastly less. But so many of the wiser heads around here cast a very long shadow - and are much quicker (if not accurate) typists - and many of the questions I could have answered usually have already received a beautiful response.

Anyhoo, I thought it might be fun to find out exactly what brought each of us to AFF in the first place. We've had several threads before about what we all do to earn a crust, even what car we drive, but I can't recall anything about how we all became hooked.

To start the ball rolling ... about two-and-a-half years ago, I decided my wife and I needed to travel. Neither of us had really been OS at all, and we elected to dig into our long-service leave to spend 9 weeks abroad. Our only basic aim was to see as many places in that time as possible, but with the proviso that we travelled and roomed in style. I had no idea where to start ...

And that's where the internet is magic. I think I typed something like "Round the world airfare" into Google, and my life changed forever. Not only did I discover everything I needed to know about planning my trip, I developed an addiction that has yet abated. I am both richer and poorer, depending upon your perspective.

So ... what was it that brought you to AFF?

Oops, my glass is empty.

 

[Evan]

I can't remember what i was searching for when i stumbled across this wonderful place. As i traveled a bit for work and a bit for pleasure i naturally had an interest about optimising my expereince.

Since joining i have worked my way up from return journeys with additional stops, to circle Asia type fares to even an AONE5 departing from South Africa.

like you Hawkeye, i could say the same, i am both richer and poorer for the expereince but now i have a much better understanding of how to take maximum advantage of what is on offer and get a much better traveling expereince.

E

 

[drron]

Being in the grip of CRAFT I cant remember what exactly brought me to AFF.From my profile I joined in July 2002.I cant remember what my first posts were about and probably would be embarrassed to be reminded.I took 4 years before I started my first thread-on diners which I still use as my primary card and with whose help am rapidly closing in on LTG with AA.
I do remember this was not long after losing mega points with the collapse of Ansett-especially as I had pencilled in a date 2 days after the collapse to ring about getting award seats to the USA.
It was also about the time when I was dumped by SPG.I had signed up with the old Sheraton Club International in the early 80s on a deal of guaranteed gold status for life as long as I paid an annual fee of $25.They went back on the deal and it is only this year that I have begun staying at SPG properties again(I must be mellowing).
2002 was another occasion that I could not get a J award through QFF to the USA.I had found the companion deal with JAL that saved megabucks and you could get AA miles though not status then with JAL.On QFF you only got miles from Aust-NRT.So I guess it was when researching Aadvantage that I came across AFF.
Since then I have learnt so much about acheiving status,earning miles and getting awards.Gradually I have got more used to posting and now you get bombarded by these long trip reports(but docjames-verbose!).Be warned you are now going to get swamped by photos since I have now mastered the art-at least until i get bored.
Oh well,time to go and see where I can make my next post.

 

[munitalP]

Ahh - it seems so long ago I posted my first thread about people bagging QF.... Nothing's changed except my travel equavilent to the sun has increased 3 fold and Mrs! has lost her partner Gold this year...

I first come here looking like so many others...

I guess it took at least 6 months before I joined and posted my first. I now spend more time writing trip reports of which 2 out of 5 get cut and pasted int AFF. I don't frequent other sites and have met a few people from AFF.

I hope the GOLF torney next year will increase my AFF friend list


Mr!

 

[drron]

I forgot to say as far as I am aware I have not met anyone from AFF but I look forward to rectifying that next year.I should bring a smile to many faces as I try to steer a little white ball down a narrow strip of grass without losing it.

 

[tuapekastar]

Nice question Hawkeye!

I strongly suspect I read about AFF in a travel article (likely The Age's travel section) and checked it out, lurked for a while (months, I'd imagine) then posted my first question re 'Express Lane' security pre-clearance at AKL (I had to search to find that first post).

I enjoy gleaning useful info from this site, posting to assist people (though as you pointed out there are people here with much more experience and knowledge in this field), and have met a number of AFFers in person.

AFF also put me onto FT, and I enjoy the same sort of experiences there.

Must admit I need to consciously curb the amount of time spent reading these sites.

 

[Skyring]

Probably a keyword search and a Google hit. But I remember once I'd found the place (and FlyerTalk), I roamed the halls entranced, listening to conversations, following links, learning more about travelling than I really needed...

My first post was about a piece of carryon luggage I wanted to replace a backpack which had developed a hole, leaking dongles. Someone replied with a suggestion, and I took them up, buying the model they suggested, which has served me well, flying four times around the world and on countless minor trips, though I no longer stuff a water bottle into the side pocket.

Since then, I've read and rambled and rumbled my way through hundreds of threads, adding in my two cents worth of occasionally accurate information and starting off trip reports which usually don't finish.

Which reminds me...

 

[serfty]

November '04 - I had been perusing Not Good Enough - Australia's Customer Complaints Website :: Home on a regular basis and saw a reference to AFF ...

I wandered "over" and saw posts about people doing what I had been doing solo for the previous 10 years.

I had plenty of knowledge to impart and have learned much as well!

Until then I had been resigned to never being any more than Qantas FF Gold - Platinum seemed a mountain too high; any lifetime status was in the far distant future.

To illustrate the influence AFF (&FT) have had on me; I was on ~3.8K lifetime SC's in November 2004 - 48 months later, I have ~14½K.

 

[simongr]

Two and a half years ago I changed jobs. I was then travelling a little domestically but the new role would require me to not only switch from Diners to Amex but also require me to fly internationally.

So I started with question about linking personal and corporate Amex rewards programs.

From there the story exploded.

Sadly I did not heed the advice of some here early on and switch immediately to AA otherwise I would have been AA EXP a little sooner...

 

[JohnK]

Just over 3 years ago I stumbled across AFF when I was looking for ways to maximise SCs to retain QF Silver. I was only travelling a few times a year to Thailand and I wanted some suggestions on best possible routings. I was contemplating or had already booked SYD-BNE-SIN-BKK-SIN-BNE-SYD to earn 110 SCs instead of the usual 60 SCs for a SYD-BKK return.

I have managed to pick up some very good travel related advice in this time and it has been a pleasure to meet some of the people who post on AFF, and Flyertalk, at various social gatherings.

 

[straitman]

I joined AFF on 27th April 2003. Like drron I have I suffer from CRAFT so have no idea how I came across the site. Similar to serfty it may have been via the Not Good Enough - Australia's Customer Complaints Website web site. I do recall it took a fair while to actually post anything because compared to the 'experts' I knew (and still do know) nothing.

I started to get to know people at the Brisbane FT Oz Fest 'Do' and it evolved from there. I've now met AFF and FT people in Hong Kong, Brisbane, Melbourne, Hobart, Queenstown, Christchurch, Auckland, Cairns and possibly a few other places. The people are good cross section of the community that vary from a few sort of weird through to some almost normal ones. Almost without exception it's a great community that is very patient, helpful and friendly. Invariably the meetings are the fun bit and I encourage those who haven't done so yet, to catchup with people even if only for an hour or so for a drink or set aside the time now to go to "Oz Fest #6" - Cairns Queensland - Memorial Day Weekend, May 22-24, 2009 or Kiwi Mainland Do Toru (3), November 2009 These are really great weekends with a great mob attending.

 

[thegurio]

I can remember the day as if it was yesterday. I was sitting in a Hotel in Launceston, thouroughly bored with my company, as i had the witch-in-law there and was sick of spending time with her. Thank goodness the wife and daughter there to compensate! I was googling for a new piece of luggage as i was sick of my suit bag and that brought me to AFF and changed my life forever:shock::mrgreen:

So i was about to start another year at the lowly level of DJ Red after getting closer to silver but not quite getting it. So we had already booked our OS trip (and dont think i wasnt kicking myself for not finding AFF sooner!) So i thought as i was close to geting silver on QF that i would credit my trips to QF as i was so close. A decision i was later to regret as it meant i was exactly that many flights for getting silver on DJ this year. Lesson learnt!

So for the next year, i am convinvced i'll get silver at least on DJ, if not silver or gold on QF as we have a cruise planned for later on next year that leaves from Rome. I have managed to convince the wife to do a DONE4, which was a feat in itself but as always the hard part of paying and working out routing is still to come. Although the routing has all but been worked out there has been a few interesting spanners thrown into the works!

Like everyone else here, i contribute where i can but feel as if im a dwarf with the mountain of knowledge here - with the exception of the Amex thread where if you read every 5th response it saves you reading the same thing.

I only visit here, to be honest i dont really like the layout nor "environment" of FT but do visit occasionally. I havent met anyone face to face yet from here but do hope to one day, maybe even at the good walk ruined if i cn somehow wangle it into a trip. Like others here, work and family keep me so busy that my time with the wife and daughter is pretty sacred so i dont like to take too much time away from that.

 

[serfty]

... To illustrate the influence AFF (&FT) have had on me; I was on ~3.8K lifetime SC's in November 2004 - 48 months later, I have ~14½K.

To further illustrate this; I had more flights from Sep '98 to Nov '04 in earning ~3800SC than I have since then in earning another ~10,700!

 

[simongr]

Serfty - just saw that you have 102% of LTSG - have you made the switch to AA now?

 

[serfty]

Serfty - just saw that you have 102% of LTSG - have you made the switch to AA now?

Nyet - WP first then consider ....

 

[MelUser]

I joined AFF about 2 years ago searching for information on upgrades!

Since then I have received 6/6 Y-J points upgrades (2 pax) and all on AUS-US QF routes (and countless domestic upgrades) including 1 (US-Aus) where the request had not come through 10 hours before flight and I phoned QF (USA) and the woman said "no upgrade" and that request had been denied. Then she said 'enjoy your flight in business, oops I mean economy'. After hanging up from her I checked and it was showing business.

 

[anat0l]

I used to fly almost every year as a kid, since my grandparents were still in South East Asia. However, tightening budgets and progression through high school followed by uni all but made yearly travel impossible (let alone with all four of us in the family going together).

I applied for a vacation research scholar's position at the institute I currently work for and study at in December 2005. Although I've been a QFF since 1994, the last QF travel I had was many years ago (more than the old 5 year rule in the previous rolling-expiry system of QFF, and travel to SE Asia usually was on PR, SQ or, especially, MH) and so as at 2005 I was flat zero.

As part of my research position I had business-related travel to ROK and GLT in the early part of 2006 (after returning from my last SE Asia trip on MH). This was, of course, on QF and was the first time that I was travelling for work (and, of course, they were paying).

First flight on QF for years was BNE-ROK on a Dash 8 (also a first).

All of the sudden, my youthful interest in flying flourished within that time. When I was young, I was always very excited by air travel, but my parents virtually dissuaded me from maintaining that interest. (My parents are fairly cheapskate travellers, especially my mum, but that's typical Asian.) So for a long time I never thought of travel as an interest but rather a treat. Until I decided one day, I thought, "The internet has interests for everything. Surely there are some freaks (sic) out there that enjoy flying." So I put some words to that effect (sans "freaks") in Google, and the next thing that had me wide-eyed was the fact that there was a registered domain entitled frequentflyer.com.au.

The rest, as is oft said, is history. So many articles after I found this site, at one point I thought I could not stop reading. Getting through the verbiage of terminology and abbreviations was one major step for me. The multitude of anecdotes and the trip reports (notwithstanding the interesting reports written by one whose initials are LW) kept me on the site, so it was only a matter of time before I joined this crew (pun intended) of frequent flyers.

Not soon after that, I joined flyertalk.com, but that's another story.......

 

[Keith009]

I found FT in 2005 when I was getting cold feet on a bet I made with mum to go backpacking in Europe (fly in whY, can't upgrade even when offered, stay at backpackers) and was googling for info on QF whY service. Oh and that flight was QF9 via SIN. :mrgreen:

Looking back at my first post, I hardly know that person...:shock:

I then found AFF via FT. My 18 months of experimentation with *A also began shortly after. I then wasn't active on AFF for a while for reasons I can't explain other than perhaps the fact that FT seemed better for *A related info.

Then found my way back to AFF in early '07. And wondered why I'd drifted away in the first place, as I found everyone here most helpful, friendly and the atmosphere here is a lot more casual than FT.

I like the range of opinions featured here, and I like to be challenged with different perspectives. The collective experience contained here is formidable, and I often delight in posting queries about holiday plans and reading lots of v constructive and enlightening responses. I've derived great pleasure in giving back what I've learnt and am always happy that in some way I've made someone's holiday that bit more enjoyable because of what I've posted. I've greatly enjoyed reading the many interesting travel experiences in the TR section, and also had lots of fun posting about my own as a way of saying thank you.

I've also had fab opportunities to meet quite a few AFFers in person. I just had a v boozey Sat arvo with Flashware and Skoogle on their lounge runs. To me AFF is more than a website, it's a community that's v much alive - I've made many great friendships with AFFers I've met. Back in July I was wondering what to do to occupy my time in MNL as there didn't seem to be much to interest me; not long before I'd arrived I got a PM from Ric and suddenly I had company and a tour guide in MNL! And that's just 1 of many examples of how the AFF network has come in helpful, made my time on the road more comfortable, and been just enriching in general.

I had lots of fun during AFF1 in August and look forward to AFF2 this coming weekend, and hope that there'd be many such events to come in future so that I can catch up with both old faces as well as put more faces to handles. In between all that I'm always happy to host AFFers in MEL or meet up with the same in other cities.

And just for the record - I won that bet!

 

[Flying Fox]

Google

I travel for work and from memory ANZ changed their credit card conditions such that I wasn't happy with the points going to my QFF account. So I simply Googled something about FF Points and bingo, I found AFF.

Lurked for quite some time as I felt I had nothing to add (so in my opinion, better not to say anything) and then finally joined when I felt that I could contribute without sounding stupid (others may disagree ).

Since then I have:

- learnt plenty from lots of ppl

- accumlated lots of FF Points that I would have probably missed out on

- made Gold for the first time

- got myself a life time fee free Citibank Gold (now Platinum) VISA

- got a Rewards Maximiser Amex

Also -

- totally addicted to J

- want to do a DONEx

Most of all, thanks to everyone for their contributions!!!

 

[Alanslegal]

I signed up to AFF in June 07 so that makes me quite a baby here

I remember planning my USA trip last year and needed more information regarding 'interlining' baggage. As I had a tight connection between an US Airways and Qantas flight I really wanted my bag to automatically find its way - and with the magic of google - AFF pops up and guides me to read more.

Prior to this I was a 'point A to point B kind of' traveller. I did not absorb the info from a friend of mine who would tell me of his crazy routes just to maximise his mileage - and since I knew his work was forking the $$$ I'd assume that's the only way one could afford it. Little did I realise that one could fly around the world for the same price as a standard return to the USA.

From there on, I started to read and learn more about FF programs (namely QF) and other FG programs. I also made good on some CC promotions such as Amex's 2007 10 points per $1, Amex's 2008 5/5 bonus *hopefully*, obtained a Citibank's Gold Fee for life card to be used where Amex isn't accepted. I have also earnt alot of sign up bonus points but now my accumulation of points have depleted having redeemed for my partner a J award SYD-LAX-NRT-HKG-SYD. I wil be flying on the same flights as part of my remaining OW DCIR ex-MNL fare; (MNL-HKG-BKK-)SYD-LAX-NRT-HKG-MNL then for me MNL-HKG-SYD J award.

I have also met a number of you guys/gals at the AFF #1 gathering - a good friendly bunch I must say.