Frequent Flyer tix

I was told by both Delta and USAir that they will not hold an outbound ticket for 7 days until the return trip can be booked 330 days out. I know Delta used to do that because I had done it before with that airline.

Does anyone know if this is true, and how do you book a flight 330 days out to ensure they will still have a ticket 7 days later? Any tricks of the trade you can share with me? Thanks in advance for your help.

I booked flights to Hawaii for next March at the 300 day mark and they held my reservation for the trip over until I made the reservation for the return. My experience with Delta is that if you aren't a million miler the 1-800 number gets you a service rep in Timbuktu (ie., that outsourced country) and if you call back, you'll get a different answer. It's my biggest pet peeve with Delta, along with all the other mega companies (including my utility provider) who have outsourced jobs to other countries. Just keep calling.

I did just what you are asking this past week.
At 12:00 eastern time I called Delta reservations and was able to put a hold on 5 tickets to Cancun for March 24, 2007. I had to call back every 2 days to re confirm the seats till the return flight was available.
In total I was on the phone with Delta for about 4 hours over the past week, but 5 free tickets to cancun was worth it.
Jim Breslin

Just a friendly reminder:

Remember to check and recheck your flights. Delta is famous (along with other airlines) to change flights without letting you know.

Actually they auto re route you as part of a computer program that resets the schedule, but it may not be a good re route to your liking. Call and talk to a real person so you can fix them. We have had this happen on almost all flights booked far ahead. they shift schediules all the time. Sometimes it's just a few minutes other times connections get pretty horrid.

I called Delta again, and the lady I spoke to today seemed more knowledgeable. She said they just got a new bulletin on this. They will hold ticket the one-way first, but if you cannot find a return on the day you want, they will redeposit the miiles into your account without charge. She said that if the person you speak to does not do this, ask for a supervisor. (I probably should have gotten her name. Drat!)

NWA has been pretty good about this. The airlines have two problems;

1) the return flights are not in the computer yet so the can't book it
2) they have to do something for the people who are going for more than a week.

If they played by the rules and you were going for two or three weeks you would never get a FF seat, especially up front.

Cheers,

Paul

Paul,

You are 100% correct. They also eliminate whole flights because they want fuller flights on the remaining flights. They really want to eliminate FF seats but they know people will be really mad. So each airline chips away at the program a little bit and they all join in. I would not want too many miles banked up. I already see things like AA won't let you use FF miles except 2 for 1 in prime time to some places. This is how it has started.

You really need to stay on top of you FF miles and plan for the fisrst day you can use them way ahead. We fly to St Lucia and it's a PITA to book the tickets. It's at least 2 flights to get there and some times 3. so that is six flights to get booked and connected.

They don't make it easier for a reason. We have to stay on top of this game.

I see you are right. For the three airlines I have enough miles for free tix, each one requires double the mileage for the time period I need. So they don't advertise blackout periods, but they make the seats so out of reach it is as if there are blackout periods.

I also just booked to Cancun this week for 3/31 next year. On Delta you do have to book the one way ticket within 2 days of putting it on hold and then when your return date comes available they change it into a roundtrip ticket with no change fee providing you call early enough and there are sets available. 3 am worked well for me.

Tom -
Were there 30,000 mile tickets available? I am only seeing 60,000.

Generally speaking, if date changes are free (or elite status obviates change fees), just book something with the correct O&D and waitlist for what you want date-wise. A savvy reservationist taught us this. Call often to check, even if waitlisted. Sometimes yield management might be in a good mood

Pat

I am not a seasoned traveller. I do not understand your response. Please dumb it down for me. Thanks.

Pat, can you waitlist for a day that is more than 331 days out? And will you reliably get priority over people who call at 1AM on the day the seats load if you do that? Yesterday I called UA to put outbounds on hold at a fee of $15/ ticket for calling in instead of using united.com. My plan was to call back the night the inbounds loaded to get my return FF reservations. Alternatively, could I have booked online for example outbound 3/31, return 4/1 and just waitlisted for the return I really wanted?
(By the way, my return date was 4/8 and, while availability online was 4/6 or sooner, the CSR was able to book my returns on 4/8. I was very surprised and thought it must be an advantage that they offer to encourage people to call in and pay the supplemental $15).

jo-jo said:

I am not a seasoned traveller. I do not understand your response. Please dumb it down for me. Thanks.

Click to expand...

Unfortunately, there's no substitute for experience. I read as much as I could, but it wasn't until I started flying all the time that I truly could make sense of the nuances. Then there's the hours and hours spent on the phone with reservationists

1. Call your airline and get the award ticket desk. Ask, once you make an award reservation, if date changes (only) are free and if you can waitlist for your desired dates if they are not currently available. If negative, thank them, hang up, call back and repeat. If you get the same answer three times, it's likely correct. Come back here for another strategy

You've happened to mention two airlines which don't always have the best award availability out there, so patience and flexibility are required.

Can your travel plans be adjusted close-in? IOW, could you wait to finalize plans within 30-45 days of your desired travel dates? Often, airlines release award seats in this timeframe.

A couple of links, since you mentioned US and DL:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?s=&daysprune=30&f=505

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?s=&daysprune=30&f=489

These are the forums of US and DL, respectively, on FlyerTalk. Spend a minimum of 5-10 hours reading and searching for award ticket information.

Edited to add a couple of threads which might be of interest, pertaining to DL:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=549140&highlight=award+window

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=483860&highlight=award+window

Just like with timesharing, there is no quick and easy way to knowledge and expertise in airline travel. It's just a lot of hard work. Good luck!

Pat

calgal said:

Pat, can you waitlist for a day that is more than 331 days out? And will you reliably get priority over people who call at 1AM on the day the seats load if you do that? Yesterday I called UA to put outbounds on hold at a fee of $15/ ticket for calling in instead of using united.com. My plan was to call back the night the inbounds loaded to get my return FF reservations. Alternatively, could I have booked online for example outbound 3/31, return 4/1 and just waitlisted for the return I really wanted?
(By the way, my return date was 4/8 and, while availability online was 4/6 or sooner, the CSR was able to book my returns on 4/8. I was very surprised and thought it must be an advantage that they offer to encourage people to call in and pay the supplemental $15).

Click to expand...

Regarding UA, I'll share my experience...

I have never attempted to waitlist for dates beyond the 331 day reservation period. I do not think it is possible, but it never hurts to ask. IIRC, UA has shortened their hold period to 48-72 hours, I don't remember which.

Elite status helps, not so much with priority (unless 1K or UGS), but with getting better reservationists. This is critical with international awards and even hard to get domestic awards like Hawaii. If things don't feel right, end the call and try again.

I rarely attempt to make reservations at the outer window, rather I just find (on the phone or web site (phone for international)) availability and book what I can, if my desired dates aren't available. So, if I was wanting to travel next May (not available yet), I'd just find something in April, book it and waitlist for the May dates as they became available. Also, if I desired a different booking class (like XC or XF (Business or First)), I'd pay the extra miles and waitlist for that too. Also, IME, it's easier booking tickets as singles (different PNR's) and then linking the PNR's later, since UA/*A will often only release one seat at a time (especially XC/XF).

Since my wife and I don't mind traveling at the last minute, we just wait and see and often end up somewhere we never thought we would. I find lodging (even timeshares) much more flexible than airline award tickets so I just follow the path of least resistence

Lastly, I always plan a few days on either side of a planned vacation stay, to allow for flexibility when negotiating for our desired award dates. The important thing is to have something, because only the airline knows how many people are interested in what you have Or so I was told I would watch our PNR's online as my wife's client would manipulate them over the period of months between booking and travel and it was just amazing to see the things she did. I was sorry to see her retire, but UA shed a lot of good people during BK.

DaveM, for one, has extensive experience with UA, so I imagine he has a lot to share with you. Good luck!

Pat

BTW, speaking of NWA, they schedule/book 352 days out. I'm already sitting on the edge of my seat to book for my September 2007 Kona trip to bag a couple of RT first class tickets.

Yvonne

Poobah said:

NWA has been pretty good about this. The airlines have two problems;

1) the return flights are not in the computer yet so the can't book it
2) they have to do something for the people who are going for more than a week.

If they played by the rules and you were going for two or three weeks you would never get a FF seat, especially up front.

Cheers,

Paul

Click to expand...

Elite Gold must not be high enough status for NWA to do that however (unless it's changed in the last year). When we booked our December 2005 trip on NWA, it was a two week trip and we were unable to book until it was 352 days out from our return trip. I was worried that we'd strike out, but it all worked out.

I will keep your strategy in mind when I have to do it again this fall for September 2007.

Yvonne

For those of you familiar with UAL, when is the magic number, is it 330 or 331 days out. I also am looking to fly into Paris and out of Seville ,Lisbon or Madrid. In looking at UAL's route map I may be limited to Madrid. Any experience with a multi-city ticket? I was also wondering if anyone has any experience with booking award tickets through Lufthansa? I've flown Lufthansa I just never sought ff tickets from them but I understand they honor UAL ff miles- correct me if I am wrong. I have booked ff tickets before but clearly this is going to be more difficult and I would welcome further information, especially info that is UAL specific.

Jimster,

To best answer your questions, it likely would behoove you to peruse the UA forum on FlyerTalk. Everything is there, and in great detail.

Personally, I never bother trying at the booking window with UA (therefore I honestly do not know the answer to your question ) ); there are numerous other opportunities which present themselves. Knowing when UA is adding capacity to a certain route is one. Knowing the historical times when UA's YM adds award seats is another. Knowing how to book different dates and waitlist for your desired ones is another. This list is extensive

Regarding LH, you would want, if you don't have the requisite M&M miles, a *A award (Star Alliance), which you would book through UA's international award desk. Usually, you'll get a great reservationist; if you don't, thank them, hang up and try again. You'll pay a fee for such tickets, beyond taxes and security fees. Before calling, learning your routing options and having the timetables handy can pay off. Sometimes the CSR can't think of everything

Set aside a couple of hours to read FlyerTalk on this issue and I think you'll have no trouble getting what you want.

Normally, 330 days; occasionally 329 days.

Multi-city tickets are easy to book on ual.com. In the "Fare finder" box at the site's home page, click on "More Search Options" and then "Multi City". I just booked a Boston - San Francisco - Tokyo - Singapore - Hong Kong (primary destination) - San Francisco - Boston UA trip, which I priced out at ual.com, wanting all of those cities along the way to increase my FF miles. For a reason (upgrading) unrelated to the functionality of the software, I called UA to finalize the reservation at the same price quoted at ual.com.

Yes, you can book flights on LH using UA FF miles. In fact there are often more UA award seats on LH flights than on UA. Call UA to request what you want.