All Questions
482 questions
61
votes
14
answers
9k
views
What techniques, tricks or otherwise have you used to get upgrades on flights?
I've travelled a lot. Living in New Zealand or the UK means anywhere is likely a flight, but I've always flown economy. Twice between LA and Auckland I managed to get the exit row after talking ...
- 160k
55
votes
7
answers
8k
views
Would a non-business traveler ever benefit from collecting air miles, as compared to simply buying the cheapest ticket available?
Looking at various air miles programs around the world, it seems to me that they're only useful for business travelers, who basically get free flights out of their employer's pocket. However for a ...
- 81.7k
47
votes
2
answers
123k
views
United Airlines joined my first name and middle name on boarding pass. How to correct this?
I am traveling within the US, but my boarding pass shows my first name and middle name joined as such: Firstmiddle instead of First Middle. How do I correct this, or is this something that shouldn't ...
- 461
39
votes
1
answer
5k
views
United Travel Ready Center rejecting COVID-19 Vaccine Documentation
I am flying to Japan via United, and their Travel Ready Center is rejecting my vaccine documentation even though I am fully vaccinated. What's wrong?
- 827
33
votes
5
answers
191k
views
Flying with a desktop computer (as checked luggage)
On an upcoming trip, I will be taking a desktop computer and monitor as checked luggage (on a United/Continental flight). What should I be aware of when doing this? What needs to be done to properly ...
- 7,955
31
votes
3
answers
9k
views
Unbookable column of seats on 777-200
I'm flying United, and at time of booking I can select my seat.
On one flight the aircraft is designated as a 777-200. The seat selection diagram shows a 3-4-3 seat layout, ABC-DEFG-HJK. At time of ...
- 4,558
26
votes
5
answers
39k
views
How to obtain the return flight boarding pass?
Believe it or not, I've never flown before... I am flying United Airlines for a vacation for about a week and then I'm flying back via United Airlines. I read online that starting 24 hours before my ...
- 363
21
votes
6
answers
3k
views
How can I calculate the value of any given airline's miles?
Very often, I'm torn between taking a cheaper flight, and taking a slightly more expensive one where I will accumulate airline mile and loyalty status. I'm torn about how to decide in these ...
user65735
20
votes
2
answers
8k
views
United Airlines cancelled my flight less than 24 hours after I booked it via Expedia - what are my options?
At 5:28 pm on Friday, Jan 28 I paid US$298.60 for a flight (business class) from San Diego to Los Angeles via Expedia. At 8:53 pm that same day I got an email - United had cancelled the flight. That's ...
- 11.3k
19
votes
4
answers
41k
views
Do gate agents really seat young children away from their parents in United Basic Economy?
According to United, for Basic Economy fares:
Seats will be assigned prior to boarding. Customers traveling
together, including families, will not be able to sit together.
My husband and I plan ...
- 291
19
votes
5
answers
24k
views
Is 54 minutes enough to transfer from domestic to international in Houston?
I'm currently scheduled to fly from New Orleans (MSY) to Mexico City (MEX), with a 54-minute transit in Houston (IAH). Both flights are on United, and I think they're on United mainline, not Express. ...
- 99.2k
18
votes
3
answers
10k
views
Delayed international baggage held by customs
This is a strange situation I am in.
Due to flight delays, I was rerouted into the US through a different airport.
My initial route London-->Philadelphia was changed to London->DC->Philadelphia.
...
- 181
16
votes
2
answers
6k
views
Can I travel multiple one-way back-and-forth flights to the same destinations on one day?
Flying between KUL and PEN on Malaysia in Business yield 40 British Airways Executive Club Tier Points, and costs only £50-55, which is a very attractive £1.25-1.38 per Tier Point.
If I book multiple ...
- 539
16
votes
9
answers
75k
views
Are bluetooth headphones allowed on flights in the US, particularly on United Airlines?
I have a United Airlines flight this week and I would love to listen to an Audio book for the duration. Unfortunately my only working pair of headphones are bluetooth. I've looked on United's web ...
- 373
16
votes
3
answers
7k
views
Can I claim miles if I bought the tickets but didn't take the flight?
Due to odd circumstances I didn't have a chance to take a flight. I already bought the tickets and I wasn't able to cancel anything.
Can I still request miles (Miles & More)?
- 263
15
votes
9
answers
16k
views
Is it possible to add a Frequent Flier number after the flight is booked?
My university is responsible for booking flights on my behalf. I wanted to know if it's possible to add my frequent flier number and credit the miles to it after the flight has been booked?
Is it ...
- 1,633
15
votes
3
answers
10k
views
Why would an airline put my bag on a different flight?
I’m currently on a direct United flight from Newark to Los Angeles. While boarding I got the dreaded “bag is on a different flight” notification. That’s a later flight that will arrive 4 hours after ...
- 81.7k
15
votes
2
answers
1k
views
"Complimentary" flight after my final destination
I just booked my round trip to India from USA with one of the travel agents.
Here is my trip
Outbound - Newark - > Delhi - > Hyderabad
Inbound - Hyderabad - > Delhi -> Newark
But I see in the ...
- 153
15
votes
2
answers
4k
views
If an airline goes bust or insolvent, what happens to frequent flyer miles and reward tickets?
I have a good number of frequent flyer miles with Jet airways, which is running into financial troubles. This is getting me a little worried and I have the following questions about it:
I have used ...
- 4,167
15
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Using status across other Star Alliance airlines?
If I have a status on one member airline in Star Alliance (SA), do I automatically get the same status on other SA airlines?
If I don't get it automatically, can it be requested?
- 1,974
14
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Is there a way to rescue orphaned and expiring Qantas Frequent Flyer miles?
My family member has some Qantas Frequent Flyer miles that are about to expire (18 months since last earn). My own account is not expiring, and I'm planning to use its miles for future family travel.
...
- 99.2k
14
votes
5
answers
8k
views
Can you let someone else use your boarding pass to get into a travel lounge?
Let's say I was traveling with a friend. My friend is flying economy whilst I'm flying first class. Could I visit the lounge, get the food and all that jazz, then exit the lounge, give my boarding ...
- 11.3k
14
votes
3
answers
7k
views
How do airlines make money or get some other kind of advantage when I book a flight using miles not earned from flying?
Let's say I have a credit card1 that awards me with miles for my expenses (each X dollars spent = Y miles earned).
When I use my card to buy products and services, the money goes to the places I spent ...
- 325
14
votes
2
answers
3k
views
What is a "backup" flight?
I was flying SFO-LAX-MEL on United. I had a 55 minute connection in LAX but the flight into LAX was ultimately delayed by 60 minutes. I spoke to a gate agent at SFO and she gave me a "backup" flight ...
- 243
14
votes
2
answers
22k
views
What do these warning/restriction codes in air tickets mean?
I bought airline tickets for a trip and received an email with these codes:
NONREF/0VALUAFTDPT/CHGFEE
What do they mean? I don't think they are specific to the airline's system (United), that is, ...
- 2,174
14
votes
3
answers
9k
views
What tips or tricks can you use to get "upgraded"/better hotel rooms?
(Inspired by this question on flight upgrades),
Most non-budget hotels have various categories of rooms - perhaps larger rooms, "Executive" rooms, suites, and so on. What tips or tricks can you use ...
- 12.4k
14
votes
1
answer
5k
views
When you fly for free using miles, do you earn miles?
Two questions:
If I "buy" a flight using miles, will I earn miles on that flight? In my case, I'd be using American Airlines miles to buy an American Airlines flight.
What about if I use American ...
- 2,401
13
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Privacy disadvantages of 'frequent flyer miles' program
I am flying quite often, but never signed up for frequent flyer miles card. I am skeptic about my privacy. I also don't understand very well how frequent flyer miles work.
With a search engine I ...
- 569
13
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Reward flight cancelled and denied rerouting
I had 3 BA flights booked using reward flights (Avios) cancelled for "operational reasons" well before 14 days and was told I would not be booked on next available flight but had to look for ...
- 131
13
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Can United make me pay for rebooking a flight cancelled due to snowstorm?
My United flight to Europe originally scheduled for tomorrow 3/14 has been cancelled. I got an email from United asking me to choose from various alternative flight options, however the "list of ...
- 1,714
13
votes
2
answers
655
views
How to find an appropriate frequent flyer program?
In the last months I flew a lot with different airlines, mainly Swiss, AirBaltic, Aeroflot and AeroSvit. Now I was wondering if there is a frequent flyer program covering as much as possible of these ...
- 51.6k
13
votes
1
answer
117k
views
What's the difference between MileSAAver and AAnytime reward tickets on American Airlines?
What's the difference between MileSAAver and AAnytime reward tickets on American Airlines, once they have been booked? Do they have different cancellation or change policies, for example?
I'm looking ...
- 12.4k
12
votes
2
answers
12k
views
What's the difference between SkyTeam and Flying Blue?
I am going to reserve a flight with Air France and I just subscribed to the Flying Blue program (Air France + KLM).
Is this program the same as SkyTeam?
I mean, the miles I earn in Flying Blue ...
- 389
12
votes
4
answers
2k
views
What ways are there to retain/gain AAdvantage status with American Airlines, apart from flying?
Let's say one is interested in gaining or retaining AAdvantage frequent flyer status with American Airlines (I am happy to broaden the question to other airlines if that's useful). Normally, this ...
- 12.4k
12
votes
1
answer
4k
views
Is it better to create a frequent flyer program with every airline or to use one from one of the alliances?
I have frequent flyer accounts with at least one US based member of the 3 major alliances. For ex, Delta, United, American Airlines
When I fly internationally on partner airlines (say Japan Airlines &...
- 769
12
votes
3
answers
802
views
How to Reduce the Price of an Awards/Points 'Free' Flight?
Yesterday, I did a redemption for a flight on American Airlines using AAdvanatge points. The flight costs about $800 when booked normally though AA or aggregators like Expedia (tried several and there ...
- 46.3k
12
votes
2
answers
483
views
Can I upgrade only a portion of my ticket with miles on Singapore Air (SQ)?
If I book a trip such as JFK-SIN-MLE (New York -> Singapore -> Maldives) RT (round trip), would it be possible to use miles to just upgrade the JFK-SIN portion of the trip? Or even simpler, if I have ...
- 1,974
12
votes
1
answer
692
views
Qantas FF level change ahead of flight
I'm currently a silver level Qantas frequent flyer. I'm going to hit the gold level requirement after a longhaul flight with a stopover (Oz -> UK) and I'm wondering if there's any way to get Qantas to ...
- 980
12
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Can you get back miles you didn't fly because you were rebooked on another Airline/Alliance?
I was recently due to fly on American Airlines, but my flights were cancelled at the last minute. They rebooked me on US Airways (not the same alliance), via a slightly different route, and I didn't ...
- 12.4k
11
votes
5
answers
4k
views
First time traveling by plane - concerned about short connections at Newark
This is my first time traveling by plane. I will fly from Madrid to State College and I have a lot of questions:
On the outbound trip to the United States. I have a layover of 1h and 50 minutes at ...
- 121
11
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Booking a trip to earn airline status
My partner and I are both very close to getting reward status by the end of the year, each on a different airline. We are considering making a quick weekend trip to put us over the edge, but we don't ...
- 2,660
11
votes
2
answers
16k
views
Can I gain mileage if I don't get on the flight but pass check-in?
This might be a ridiculous act but I still consider it. You purchase a return ticket and go to the country, and while you stay there you change your mind and buy another ticket to another country. I ...
- 14.8k
11
votes
4
answers
3k
views
Buying United miles from third-party sites
I can get a better deal on an international ticket by buying miles. I have reached my yearly limit with United - I can't buy any more miles. I found a site online that sells miles. Is buying miles ...
11
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Which miles rules apply in code share
I am a Lufthansa Star Alliance Gold status member. I plan to fly to New Zealand next year, buyng a ticket from Air New Zealand. Part of the journey is operated by Singapore Airlines. Who determines ...
- 111
11
votes
3
answers
11k
views
Do you earn miles for trips that you flew, but you didn't buy?
I am being flown out by a company for an on-site visit. Will I earn miles for this trip, or will the company?
- 2,401
11
votes
3
answers
500
views
With Airlines using the same programs, can I merge benefits?
I tried navigating the labyrinthine web sites for US Airways and Continental (both in the same alliance), and I gave up after the automated system made me rip my own ears off...
Does anyone know ...
- 468
11
votes
2
answers
19k
views
Can you earn miles with different airlines for the same one flight, if they are part of the same loyalty program?
For example, I flew British Airways LAX-LHR. I wanted to get miles on Alaska Airlines so I sent in the boarding pass, etc and received credit.
I also have a mileage plan with American Airlines. ...
- 113
11
votes
2
answers
4k
views
United Airlines does not comply with baggage policy from IATA Resolution 302?
My itinerary:
UA: Indianapolis -> Newark (operated by ExpressJet). Flight# UA**
ANA: Newark -> Tokyo (operated by UA). Flight# NH**
VNA: Tokyo -> Hanoi. Flight# VN**
ANA policy allows 2 free ...
- 113
11
votes
2
answers
23k
views
Miles & More: What is a booking class?
I'm member of the frequent flyer program Miles & More. Now I wanted to request additional miles for a flight during summer 2011 when I wasn't yet a member. To fill out the online form, I have to ...
- 51.6k
11
votes
3
answers
15k
views
Will I be able to use United Airlines ticket that was paid by a credit card of my friend from USA?
I am from Europe, and I live in a country that is not listed on the United Airlines site as an option country to buy a ticket from, and I need a ticket from NY to SF (I will get to NY with a ticket I ...
- 111