To burn or not to burn?

[Snoopydoo]

Hello AFF-ers, I'm very new and have a question for some of the experts out there.

I'm planning a solo US trip next year, the current plan is to buy a PE ticket and then upgrade to J using points (I'm a QF bronze member). I've read somewhere that the earn and burn method is good because your points might devalue if you wait too long to use them.

However, I also want to do the Northern Lights in the next couple of years for a milestone birthday and I was thinking of saving my points till then because I don't fancy paying full J fare to Iceland/Norway.

So my question is - am I better off using the points now and then worry about my flights for the hypothetical trip when the time comes? Or should I keep saving my points through cc programs and other cheaper J flights (I go back to SIN to visit family every year) so that when the time comes, I will have enough points to fly J (or even F if I'm lucky)?

I don't do any work related trips so won't be able to accumulate points that way. Thanks for reading!

 

[lovetravellingoz]

I would suggest aiming to build enough points for an award that you would really enjoy.

Upgrade rewards are hard to get if you do not have status.

I would not be that fearful about devaluations. Better to redeem on something that you would really enjoy even if it costs a little more than you expected.

Perhaps seta target of say whatever points you can earn i say 3 years. With CC sign-ons and points from various promos that should still up to a decent award.

 

[samh004]

Upgrade rewards are had to get if you do not have status.

This is the main thing I would be saying. As a Bronze member, you'll find it harder to get an upgrade to clear than simply buying the redemption really far out (and you will most likely have to look at booking really early/try for a partner booking.

How many points do you have right now?

 

[Steady]

When to use your points is really up to you but upgrades are one of the better ways to get the best return from them. You also should keep in mind that as a NB (QF Bronze) you are on the bottom of the priority list so SG (gold), WP (platinum) and WP1 Platinum one will get upgrades before you.

I would try to get upgrades on your PE flights as by the time you do the hypothetical Northern Lights trip you will have learnt heaps from AFF and have a better idea of your options

 

[Snoopydoo]

Thanks all. I've got about 99k points I'm currently in the process of applying for the HSBC card with 60k points so if that goes through I will have enough points to redeem return J flights. But no SC, lost the lot recently because I didn't know they were important...

Steady - are you saying that I should use the SC I earn when I book my PE tickets to try and get an upgrade to J? I've never flown PE so maybe it won't be too bad but I really want the flat bed and I really want to use the lounge at LAX before my connecting flight to JFK.

 

[samh004]

Steady - are you saying that I should use the SC I earn when I book my PE tickets to try and get an upgrade to J? I've never flown PE so maybe it won't be too bad but I really want the flat bed and I really want to use the lounge at LAX before my connecting flight to JFK.

From Bronze, in your membership year (everyone has a different 12-month period) you would need to earn 300 SC to hit Silver, giving you 1 lounge pass, or a perhaps more substantial level would require 700 SC to earn Gold, giving you a full year of lounge access. If you were paying for flights and earning SC up to this point, then not only would your point balance improve, but you would have a higher chance of receiving an upgrade from a paid ticket.

 

[Steady]

Steady - are you saying that I should use the SC I earn when I book my PE tickets to try and get an upgrade to J? I've never flown PE so maybe it won't be too bad but I really want the flat bed and I really want to use the lounge at LAX before my connecting flight to JFK.

no, I am suggesting applying for an upgrade on your PE flights as it is a good use of points if you actually got it IMO. Others have suggested keeping / saving them - in the end it is very subjective and both opinions have merit so you have to weigh them up and decide.

SC help with building status - status increases your likely hood of getting upgrades - in a few years when you do your hypothetical Northern Lights trip, you may do it in a way you have not even thought of at this time - AFF will give you more options to think about like buying miles and flying in F via some indirect route for less, or doing a RTW or.....

 

[Snoopydoo]

Thanks everyone. I'm a couple of months out from booking my ticket so have some time to sleep on it. If I do decide to use my points to upgrade from PE to J, can I only do it with QF or can I go with another partner airline like say JAL? The T&C says classic upgrade rewards are available for QF flights but doesn't say anything about partner airlines or even how to go about booking and then upgrading those flights. So much to learn....

 

[Steady]

with QF (and likely all other FF programs) you can only upgrade on a QF ticket and QF metal (so no codeshares operated by other airlines)

 

[Snoopydoo]

with QF (and likely all other FF programs) you can only upgrade on a QF ticket and QF metal (so no codeshares operated by other airlines)

Thanks again Steady, that makes my decision somewhat less complicated then.

 

[JohnPhelan]

I really don't like your chances of getting an upgrade from PE to J on any of the US routes. I'd suggest banking the points for your European plan.

 

[bismarck]

You may as well try and upgrade. As its a lottery, you may be successful or you may not. If you're not, well you've saved the points for your Europe trip. If you are, lean on AFF for some tips on how to get to Europe in business cheaply (eg award flight to BKK then cheap J flights on AY from there).

 

[Snoopydoo]

Morning all,

So to get upgraded from PEY to J is not simply a matter of having enough points, I have to have enough SC as well to even be able to put in a request for an upgrade using points?

As an aside, I'd like to give a crack at trying to find some cheap J flights myself if someone can kindly point me in the right direction. I'm aiming to be in JFK between 20th-22nd June and looking to leave JFK anytime between 11th-13th July. Because I'm travelling ex SYD with only hand luggage, I'm happy to take 2-3 layovers if need be (as long as I get lounge access to shower and refuel). I've looked on Skyscanner and the cheapest PE flights I can get are with JAL for $3551, next up is CX for $3860. From memory I think QF is about $4400+. If I can get J flights with any oneworld partners for less than the QF PE flights, I would be happy. Even better if it's less than JAL but I don't think that's realistic.

 

[Steady]

Morning all,

So to get upgraded from PEY to J is not simply a matter of having enough points, I have to have enough SC as well to even be able to put in a request for an upgrade using points?

SC are irrelevant to applying for an upgrade, you only need FF points. Getting an upgrade is as mentioned above akin to winning the lottery. As an example there may be 5 seats available in J and 20 passengers requesting an upgrade - the higher status FF will get priority over those below, with bronze at the bottom of the list. As you are bronze your chance of being successful very low (but not unheard of)

mattg and others comments here on ex NZ or Fiji would be worth a read

 

[Spongbob]

I think upgrades are a combination of points and status; the higher the status the higher priority for an upgrade.

Getting J award flights on QF, however, are close to impossible without status (especially to/from the USA).

An option for the OP is the QF "RTW" award, as you are not restricted to just Qantas, and the other OW / Partner airlines tend to have more J seats available (though you need to be flexible with your travel dates).

 

[bismarck]

Morning all,

So to get upgraded from PEY to J is not simply a matter of having enough points, I have to have enough SC as well to even be able to put in a request for an upgrade using points?

As an aside, I'd like to give a crack at trying to find some cheap J flights myself if someone can kindly point me in the right direction. I'm aiming to be in JFK between 20th-22nd June and looking to leave JFK anytime between 11th-13th July. Because I'm travelling ex SYD with only hand luggage, I'm happy to take 2-3 layovers if need be (as long as I get lounge access to shower and refuel). I've looked on Skyscanner and the cheapest PE flights I can get are with JAL for $3551, next up is CX for $3860. From memory I think QF is about $4400+. If I can get J flights with any oneworld partners for less than the QF PE flights, I would be happy. Even better if it's less than JAL but I don't think that's realistic.

I've seen AKL-LAX for around $3,500 on the new AA flight. Should be able to tie that in with a connecting flight to JFK for less than $4,400 I would expect. Not showing for your dates currently (but they're quite a long way away) so maybe keep an eye out for the next AA sale.

E.g.

 

[Buzzard]

Probably quite a good SC earn too bismark.

 

[Snoopydoo]

I read up some of the old threads including mattq's suggestion and played around with some flight options but couldn't get to the price point that I want. Finally I rang Flight Centre and got quoted $6300 return with AA, waiting for TA to send the itemised quote over. She told me flat out there is no way I can get J flights to JFK (no matter how many layovers I am prepared to do) for circa 5k.

The way I see it, I have 2 options. I could wait for the AA sale to come out (I've signed up for the fare alert special emails) and hope there's a sale on J flights or go PEY with JAL for $3600+. I'm happy to go PEY with JAL because the layover at LAX is only 1.5-2 hours so not really enough time for me to properly utilise the lounge and I've read gooe reviews about JAL. Of course that means no lounge access at SYD either but I just gotta put my big girl pants on and suck it up.