We will be going to Paris in September and then Rome in December of this year. I would really like to fly business class if possible without actually purchasing business class. I do not really care which airline we use (we live in Houston and would prefer direct flights if possible). I have the United card and Chase Sapphire with quite a few points on the Sapphire. What can I do from now until we start flying to best position myself to get upgraded seats?
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Best way to try to get airline upgrade
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Last: 2 yr ago by Jock 07
Pay for a 1 month subscription to Seats.aero, put in your dates and cities and then hope availability shows up for a transfer partner from Chase.
United doesn't seem to fly direct from IAH to CDG or FCO, so you'd probably have to fly on a foreign carrier like Air France. You can transfer points to Flying Blue and book a business class ticket for 50k each way if there is availability on your dates from IAH-CDG.
Emirates operates a direct flight from IAH to Manchester England and they have a daily flight from JFK to Milan that you can book on points transferred from Chase, but neither of these get you where you want to go exactly without transferring planes.
Air Canada Aeroplan is a Chase transfer partner and you might get lucky with award availability on Turkish. I believe their flights to/from Europe can be as little as 45k each way in business. The caveat is you have to connect through Istanbul.
You can get to Rome on ITA Airways by transferring Chase points to Virgin and booking through them as a partner award. ITA doesn't fly direct to IAH but you could reposition to JFK, Chicago, Boston, etc.
Some airlines will let you buy economy and then upgrade to business later but I'm not familiar with which ones have which rules.
September might be slim pickings for award flights, but December if you jump on it should have a lot more availability right now since schedules would have just opened up.
For reference, for my honeymoon in September we are flying to JFK to reposition to fly Emirates Business class to Milan booked on points (87k per person, one-way).
We are flying back from Rome to Boston in business class on ITA booked through Virgin on Chase points (75k per person, one-way). All in we used 324k points that we had saved up (Actually a little less, since at the time of booking both Emirates and Virgin had transfer bonuses). We just had to come out of pocket for our positioning flights to New York and Boston, which can be pretty cheap if you're flying Southwest.
ETA: When I'm searching for routes I like to use a combination of googling "____ Route Map" and clicking whatever result pulls up the flightconnections.com website to see where all I can go direct. So if you google "IAH Route Map" you'll see where all in Europe you can fly without connecting. You can do the reverse by searching like "FCO Route Map" and seeing which cities in the US might be easiest to reposition to for better award availability.
United doesn't seem to fly direct from IAH to CDG or FCO, so you'd probably have to fly on a foreign carrier like Air France. You can transfer points to Flying Blue and book a business class ticket for 50k each way if there is availability on your dates from IAH-CDG.
Emirates operates a direct flight from IAH to Manchester England and they have a daily flight from JFK to Milan that you can book on points transferred from Chase, but neither of these get you where you want to go exactly without transferring planes.
Air Canada Aeroplan is a Chase transfer partner and you might get lucky with award availability on Turkish. I believe their flights to/from Europe can be as little as 45k each way in business. The caveat is you have to connect through Istanbul.
You can get to Rome on ITA Airways by transferring Chase points to Virgin and booking through them as a partner award. ITA doesn't fly direct to IAH but you could reposition to JFK, Chicago, Boston, etc.
Some airlines will let you buy economy and then upgrade to business later but I'm not familiar with which ones have which rules.
September might be slim pickings for award flights, but December if you jump on it should have a lot more availability right now since schedules would have just opened up.
For reference, for my honeymoon in September we are flying to JFK to reposition to fly Emirates Business class to Milan booked on points (87k per person, one-way).
We are flying back from Rome to Boston in business class on ITA booked through Virgin on Chase points (75k per person, one-way). All in we used 324k points that we had saved up (Actually a little less, since at the time of booking both Emirates and Virgin had transfer bonuses). We just had to come out of pocket for our positioning flights to New York and Boston, which can be pretty cheap if you're flying Southwest.
ETA: When I'm searching for routes I like to use a combination of googling "____ Route Map" and clicking whatever result pulls up the flightconnections.com website to see where all I can go direct. So if you google "IAH Route Map" you'll see where all in Europe you can fly without connecting. You can do the reverse by searching like "FCO Route Map" and seeing which cities in the US might be easiest to reposition to for better award availability.
Angling for an upgrade on long haul business class is not a winning proposition. You should use your points to book a business class ticket in the first place. Seats.aero and point.me are the best 2 search engines IMO.
I'm going to be honest. The chances of this happening are almost zero. I have status with United and upgrades very, very rarely happen these days on international flights. I was able to upgrade at the last minute on a flight from Houston to Bogota for about $150 but that was the first time that's happened in about 25 flights between North and South America. It's even more rare on flights to Europe. You're best bet is to either use miles if you have them or fork over the money for Business Class up front.
as mentioned, you are going to have to pony up hopefully with points. prioritize your points on the flight over there. if you can only get business one way, it's nicer to have the lay flat beds over night.
very slim unless you book with money or your points
they aren't handing out $5k upgrades based on charming personality either
do you have any status with any airlines? how many miles do you have?
they aren't handing out $5k upgrades based on charming personality either
do you have any status with any airlines? how many miles do you have?
furlock made a great point about getting rest over there, but i like to be wined and dined on the way back where i try to stay up the entire flight b\c the flight will leave in the AM in europe and get here in the PM.
I agree with not holding out for an upgrade unless you are prepared to fly in the economy seat you've already booked.
Seats.aero is a great way to find flights because you can search by multiple cities / regions and also a +/- date range. I've already used it to book $100k+ cash value of business class flights for this year for several international trips. It's not difficult to get over 10 cents per point in cash value.
If you have a ton of points/miles and don't want to DIY, there are websites out there like 10XTravel.com and Point.me that offer "Award Booking" where you pay them to help you find reward flights based on your desired dates, location, and point types.
Seats.aero is a great way to find flights because you can search by multiple cities / regions and also a +/- date range. I've already used it to book $100k+ cash value of business class flights for this year for several international trips. It's not difficult to get over 10 cents per point in cash value.
If you have a ton of points/miles and don't want to DIY, there are websites out there like 10XTravel.com and Point.me that offer "Award Booking" where you pay them to help you find reward flights based on your desired dates, location, and point types.
With no airline status, it isn't happening, even then top advertised levels still rarely get them. Too many people actually paying.
What about just getting upgraded to premium economy? Is this extremely difficult? Will it close a boat load of points? Do any of the airlines offer this for free for their lowest status members?
Premium economy has two different meanings for some carriers. For instance, on United, economy plus is an economy seat with a few extra inches of legroom. Premium economy seats have the feel of a domestic first class seat and come with more wine/dine type service. They also don't hand out premium economy very haphazardly.
For an international business class ticket with a flat bed, I'd look at the sites posted above and be prepared to either pay or cash in a lot of miles.
I've succeeded in buying a seat and then using points + paying a fee to get international business class on United but they've gotten a lot more stingy about it and you really do need to be prepared to fly economy.
If time comes at a premium for you, international business class is a godsend because you can just crash on the Europe-bound leg, force yourself to stay up until at least 8 pm your first day, and get out of bed the next day by 8 am. On the way back, you leave in the morning and arrive in the afternoon. A nip and a nap on the flight works well and you'll be good enough to go back to work the next day.
For an international business class ticket with a flat bed, I'd look at the sites posted above and be prepared to either pay or cash in a lot of miles.
I've succeeded in buying a seat and then using points + paying a fee to get international business class on United but they've gotten a lot more stingy about it and you really do need to be prepared to fly economy.
If time comes at a premium for you, international business class is a godsend because you can just crash on the Europe-bound leg, force yourself to stay up until at least 8 pm your first day, and get out of bed the next day by 8 am. On the way back, you leave in the morning and arrive in the afternoon. A nip and a nap on the flight works well and you'll be good enough to go back to work the next day.
DantheAggie said:
What about just getting upgraded to premium economy? Is this extremely difficult? Will it close a boat load of points? Do any of the airlines offer this for free for their lowest status members?
You could take a look at Singapore Airline's premium economy out of Houston. They have a flight to Manchester from IAH. You would have to fly with a partner airline from Manchester on to Paris. I bought a Premium Economy flight for June on Singapore from Houston to Dublin (the Manchester to Dublin leg is on Aer Lingus). At the time I booked, the Premium Economy seat was cheaper than what most airlines were charging for regular economy.
Agree w/all of the above re: getting an 'upgrade'. I think most were generous. You can file getting upgraded for international alongside unicorns in the "maybe" category.
Points, pay, or both. I've never done it but you can look at the points guy and whatnot to search for CC sign up deals that give you miles. I priced the Rome trip we just took in October for the same month/days in 2024. We did premium eco there and 'flagship business' back on AA. Both direct from DFW. The ticket is $6k per person. I think we paid about $5500 each last year but it's been a while.
That same premium eco out, business back is 490,000 miles. That is an insane amount of miles get to from zero these days unless you're expensing a business on a card. You'd also need to get them fast if you want to book soon.
We chose the nicer class on the return because it is a longer flight against the jet stream, we knew we'd be exhausted, and wanted the final pampering on a vacation. Premium eco on the way there wasn't bad - hell of a lot better than flying with the unwashed masses, goats, and emotional support buzzards in regular economy.
Points, pay, or both. I've never done it but you can look at the points guy and whatnot to search for CC sign up deals that give you miles. I priced the Rome trip we just took in October for the same month/days in 2024. We did premium eco there and 'flagship business' back on AA. Both direct from DFW. The ticket is $6k per person. I think we paid about $5500 each last year but it's been a while.
That same premium eco out, business back is 490,000 miles. That is an insane amount of miles get to from zero these days unless you're expensing a business on a card. You'd also need to get them fast if you want to book soon.
We chose the nicer class on the return because it is a longer flight against the jet stream, we knew we'd be exhausted, and wanted the final pampering on a vacation. Premium eco on the way there wasn't bad - hell of a lot better than flying with the unwashed masses, goats, and emotional support buzzards in regular economy.
I checked out United from Houston to Paris for the month of September.
Economy - 30K to 40K points one way per person
Business - 175K to 295K points on way per person
Do you have that amount of miles?
Or if you want to pay for the seat $1400 for Economy and $3400 for Business per person.
Economy - 30K to 40K points one way per person
Business - 175K to 295K points on way per person
Do you have that amount of miles?
Or if you want to pay for the seat $1400 for Economy and $3400 for Business per person.
I searched the Singapore Airlines website for that route you mentioned. It will be $1600 for a mixed cabin fare (premium economy from Houston to Manchester and economy from Manchester to Paris) in September, per person. And here is a review for the premium economy option on Signapore Airlines:
https://thepointsguy.com/reviews/singapore-airlines-premium-economy-a350/
That seems like the best way to get to Paris from Houston in September with more than economy seats from Houston.
And for booking with points on Singapore Airlines, the site was down when I searched, but safe to assume you will need 150K points to get there in premium economy.
https://thepointsguy.com/guide/ultimate-guide-singapore-krisflyer/
Everything I mention is one way for one person.
https://thepointsguy.com/reviews/singapore-airlines-premium-economy-a350/
That seems like the best way to get to Paris from Houston in September with more than economy seats from Houston.
And for booking with points on Singapore Airlines, the site was down when I searched, but safe to assume you will need 150K points to get there in premium economy.
https://thepointsguy.com/guide/ultimate-guide-singapore-krisflyer/
Everything I mention is one way for one person.
Heading to Europe, just take some NyQuil or similar and pass out as the flight will be in the dark the entire way, or darn near all of it. I'd say splurge for the return. Just like Garrelli said, the flight will be during the day the entire way back (highly likely) and you can get pampered for 12-13 hours and rest up from your vacation. You should be good to go back to work or care for kids the next day. Going over there, you will be excited when you land you will hit the ground going strong and stay up and see things that day and then get a good nights rest the first night and then you are good to go for your trip.
OP not sure if any of these dates work for.you but if you can live with premium economy there are a few options. The flying blue rates are especially attractive. I didn't personally vet to make sure they are real but seats.aero is pretty reliable. Don't transfer points till you know the seats are real.
Good discussion/info on this thread. Flew for work last year SBP thru SFO to LHR and then onto to STR. Used like 20k miles plus $200 bucks for the SFO to LHR upgrade. Similar amounts, maybe slightly higher, on my MUC-SFO return flight. This was all off an economy UAL booked ticket with gold status at the time. It was kind of funny, they took orders for meal service based on status and I was one of the last ones to order, still got the meals I wanted though. The Polaris lounge in SFO was pretty sweet as well.
I'm sitting on ~800k UAL miles that I plan on using one day for my wife and me to go to the Maldives or some ****, but with twin 2 year olds and an almost 8 year old I fear it might be quite a while before I'm able to make this happen. My primary fear is that the miles continue to be devalued before I can make something like this happen.
I'm sitting on ~800k UAL miles that I plan on using one day for my wife and me to go to the Maldives or some ****, but with twin 2 year olds and an almost 8 year old I fear it might be quite a while before I'm able to make this happen. My primary fear is that the miles continue to be devalued before I can make something like this happen.
Jock 07 said:
Good discussion/info on this thread. Flew for work last year SBP thru SFO to LHR and then onto to STR. Used like 20k miles plus $200 bucks for the SFO to LHR upgrade. Similar amounts, maybe slightly higher, on my MUC-SFO return flight. This was all off an economy UAL booked ticket with gold status at the time. It was kind of funny, they took orders for meal service based on status and I was one of the last ones to order, still got the meals I wanted though. The Polaris lounge in SFO was pretty sweet as well.
I'm sitting on ~800k UAL miles that I plan on using one day for my wife and me to go to the Maldives or some ****, but with twin 2 year olds and an almost 8 year old I fear it might be quite a while before I'm able to make this happen. My primary fear is that the miles continue to be devalued before I can make something like this happen.
Yes, they do offer cash + points upgrades that can clear but as far as I know, they aren't guaranteed. There is a long thread on flyertalk of people posting data points on the odds of these upgrades clearing but ultimately it's a crapshoot.
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/united-airlines-mileageplus/1885647-consolidated-chance-upgrade-clearing-my-flight-101.html
GarlandAg2012 said:Jock 07 said:
Good discussion/info on this thread. Flew for work last year SBP thru SFO to LHR and then onto to STR. Used like 20k miles plus $200 bucks for the SFO to LHR upgrade. Similar amounts, maybe slightly higher, on my MUC-SFO return flight. This was all off an economy UAL booked ticket with gold status at the time. It was kind of funny, they took orders for meal service based on status and I was one of the last ones to order, still got the meals I wanted though. The Polaris lounge in SFO was pretty sweet as well.
I'm sitting on ~800k UAL miles that I plan on using one day for my wife and me to go to the Maldives or some ****, but with twin 2 year olds and an almost 8 year old I fear it might be quite a while before I'm able to make this happen. My primary fear is that the miles continue to be devalued before I can make something like this happen.
Yes, they do offer cash + points upgrades that can clear but as far as I know, they aren't guaranteed. There is a long thread on flyertalk of people posting data points on the odds of these upgrades clearing but ultimately it's a crapshoot.
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/united-airlines-mileageplus/1885647-consolidated-chance-upgrade-clearing-my-flight-101.html
Correct, I should've made that more clear. There are instances where you can request an upgrade but not guaranteed. Sometimes, and I guess I just got lucky on that trip, there was availability for a guaranteed upgrade
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