The Smart Way To Get First Class Tickets With Frequent Flyer Miles

Airlines all over the world know how to generate business and they know exactly how to attract new passengers, and also earn their loyalty. These airline companies are savvy business machines especially when it comes to first class flights and frequent flyer miles. Why? Well, being the business giants that they are, they have a responsibility to maximize their revenue and make a lot of money for the company. They also have an obligation to their loyal passengers as well, who are also known as frequent flyers, and specifically the Elite Flyer. These members are given the option to upgrade their ticket if they have the required number of air miles, and they’re also given other perks as well.

1. Value of a frequent flyer program

The “value” of a frequent flyer program depends on maintaining and growing the base of their frequent flyer members. What is the value of the loyalty program based upon? The value of the majority of these programs is typically judged by the number of seats that are allocated for either free or frequent flyer upgrades in the very same luxury cabin that they are bound to sell.

In the last decade, airlines witnessed a huge decline in profits, which forced them to sometimes not release luxury seats for flight upgrades until an hour before the flight’s departure. Obviously, their first objective was to sell as many first class tickets and then allocate the remaining for upgrades at the very last minute. This resulted in long queues of frequent flyers trying to get first dibs on a first class upgrade. Every expert traveler or expert frequent flyer has their own version of strategies and tips for the coveted first class upgrade.

2. Valuable tips on getting coveted first class upgrade

Our very first tip is that you should think about using your accumulated frequent flyer miles for upgrades as early as possible. Flights are posted on websites 330 days prior to the scheduled departure. Even during the early stages, airlines do tend to post some seats for mileage upgrades, although these can’t be exchanged for awards. Before getting disheartened, this piece of advice is very important to consider, because this might be the strategy that will get you the desired upgrade. Purchase a cheap airline ticket for economy class and then use your miles to get an upgrade. Buying an economy ticket will benefit you because it will help you earn qualified miles for the paid economy ticket, on the flip side you don’t receive any credit when purchasing a premium seat when you exclusively use miles. For those who want to use their frequent flyer miles to pay for a ticket, without actually purchasing it, should follow the same rules of checking flight availability months in advance.

Another piece of wisdom that we can impart on our readers is to check the upgrade availability as often as possible. Even though upgrade seats may not be available at the time of purchase, the inventory for premium upgraded is constantly updated.