-
Hi
Sorry if this has been asked before.
When do Aer Lingus release their Avios availability? And is it any different between BAEC and Avios.com?
Cheers
Alex
AFAIK they make no commitment to making Avios seats available per flight. However the seats you see on Avios.com are the same ones you’ll see on BA. The difference being the charges, although recently these have equalised more or less.
AerClub higher elites get upgrade vouchers to use each year and these have to be booked in a blind manner whereby you book an economy seat, then email (yes seriously) the AerClub service centre who will reply in a couple of days (facepalm) as to whether there is upgrade space available. Checking on Avios.com in advance is no help as business seats are like hen’s teeth so by the time the AerClub rep gets around to your email you can be sure the J seat you saw is long gone.
The reason I mention this is due to lack of J seat availability, AerClub elites get waitlisted for if and when award seats do become available. So in short if you’re a non-elite and looking to find J seats on EI on Avios.com, you probably never will because they’re being trickled out to elites on the waitlist.
If you’re flying from MAN, don’t expect to ever see any J seats! Departing DUB seems to be the best option from what I’ve gathered here.
AerClub higher elites get upgrade vouchers to use each year and these have to be booked in a blind manner whereby you book an economy seat, then email (yes seriously) the AerClub service centre who will reply in a couple of days (facepalm) as to whether there is upgrade space available. Checking on Avios.com in advance is no help as business seats are like hen’s teeth so by the time the AerClub rep gets around to your email you can be sure the J seat you saw is long gone.
It’s the same procedure if you want to pay cash and upgrade with Avios. I’ve successfully done it twice (pre and post pandemic) but the turnaround is approx 3 days and you just sit there biting your nails and clicking refresh on the avios site to see when it’s been processed (or someone else has nabbed it).
It’s a disgrace davefl; no one ought to be sitting biting their nails in 2024 for a process that could and should be automated. Thry sent me an elite member survey last year and I laid into the laughable upgrade voucher benefit. It creates more ill will than goodwill due to the inability to effectively use them.
If you’re flying from MAN, don’t expect to ever see any J seats! Departing DUB seems to be the best option from what I’ve gathered here.
Crazy, I’ve noticed. Tbh, looking to do MAN-MCO in Y. Not the best use of miles but in half term the cash prices are crazy (sometimes in excess of £1k) so actually not too bad using miles and approx £300 in charges. The saving soon adds up for a family of 4.
If you’re flying from MAN, don’t expect to ever see any J seats! Departing DUB seems to be the best option from what I’ve gathered here.
Departing Dub is by far the better experience anyway. Pre-clear can save you hours and the 51st and Green lounge is far better than anything at Man.
After I burn my last VS voucher this spring Dub will be my route of choice to the USA in future even if I have to slum it at the back rather than the throne seats.
It’s a disgrace davefl; no one ought to be sitting biting their nails in 2024 for a process that could and should be automated. Thry sent me an elite member survey last year and I laid into the laughable upgrade voucher benefit. It creates more ill will than goodwill due to the inability to effectively use them.
They’re just a shambles. I don’t know what’s worse, AE having no IT to speak of or BA’s apalling IT.
How long has it been since they announced BA TP earning on AE flights was coming soon, 16 months or thereabouts? BA even pushed the web pages last year and then pulled them presumably because AE couldn’t provide the data.
Using Avios, I’ve noticed you can do MAN-DUB-MCO for the same fees, though additional Avios. I assume they charge the MAN-DUB separately.
I do wonder if it’s worth the additional Avios just for pre-clearance. A pain to connect with a family of 4, but I can’t imagine MCO immigration being much fun with a family of 4 after 8 hours in Y….
Could then get a direct on way back I suppose.
Just depends on the day of the week and month of the year. I arrived MAN-MCO on 2nd Dec on VS and waited precisely zero seconds at immigration and was attended to by the most delightful officer that I’ve ever had in the US.
That is not always the case 🙂
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
Popular articles this week:
