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Dear HFP’ers
I am planning a trip to the USA 23-28 Jan 2023.
Being that I’m based In Irael, the new BAPP companion voucher is a real win for me 1) as I now get to use a voucher for a trip starting outside the UK. 2) the extra redemption availability is a real win. 3) the taxes for 2 are about the same as they’d be for 1! if the trip started in the UKI’m looking at booking an open jaw TLV-LHR-IAD and EWR-LHR-TLV for 162500 Avios + £822.88 in taxes.
I’m actually headed to Miami, but with no availability in business and an almost childish neeeeed to fly the A380 (for a very first and perhaps last time), I am looking at flying into Washington Dulles as I’m happy to spend a day in DC. [This of course means being stuck on the old Club seats on the 787 TLV-LHR and A380 LHR-IAD].
A domestic AA flight from DC to Miami is a no brainer (why is there not a single business class redemption available?) for 9000 avios and £4.90
after 1 night in DC, 2/3 nights in Miami, I’ll be heading to NJ EWR again domestic American Airlines redemption and then Saturday night EWR-LHR (hopefully in club suite) and then a day in London and LHR-TLV Sunday evening.Questions:
should I hang around for any potential black Friday bargains?
What are the chances of Club becoming available to Miami?I’d love any input/tips/tricks from the experts for anything I’ve missed or any tweaks to my plans
You can book TLV-MIA on those dates for £1.9-2.1k cash (depending on how much stopping you want to do), so spending 162500 Avios + £822.88 + voucher doesn’t seem like excellent value unless you particularly want the time in DC and NY.
e.g. https://www.google.com/travel/flights/s/JXcMiP3hNfNBWA1J8
@aseftel – I think you’re comparing the cash price for one person, with reward flight costs for two.
totally correct @scott anyhow I’d never spend that kind of cash though.
the DC stop isn’t crucial, but NJ isJust my 2p but that is an awful lot of time spent in airports and in transit for a 5 day trip. For 7000 miles of flying I’d hope for more than a couple of nights in my final destination!
Various ramblings
There are seats TLV-LHR-BNA-MIA if you can forego the A380 to IAD, not sure how Nashville immigration is.
Immigration at IAD with the people movers from the international gates to the terminal isn’t great – is DFW an option if you want the A380
Book now ! Worst that happens is you pay the small change fee as it’s an Avios booking (same if availability to MIA direct opens up).
I presume you have to be in NJ else I would say there are more flights on AA from MIA-JFK and some even are on the 77W so fully flat in J
Thanks @e14 for your ramblings. that’s why I’m in the forum.
Gotta be in NJ and also have great options departing EWR Saturday or SundayThought I’d resurrect this instead of starting a new thread.
I don’t know if this was always the case or it’s happened since BA did all the award flight tweaking this week. With the old 241 vouchers it was possible to book for more than 2 people, so you could make a family booking. I’ve just tried to book MAN-LHR-GCM as the system is showing 8 CW seats with the extra availability. However, when I try and add a 3rd adult (or book for 2 adults plus a child), I get a message saying I need to use another voucher.
I now want to bang my head against the wall as we need 3 seats and there are none to be had in any class without using the 241!
Has it always been like this since the new vouchers appeared?Thought I’d resurrect this instead of starting a new thread.
I don’t know if this was always the case or it’s happened since BA did all the award flight tweaking this week. With the old 241 vouchers it was possible to book for more than 2 people, so you could make a family booking. I’ve just tried to book MAN-LHR-GCM as the system is showing 8 CW seats with the extra availability. However, when I try and add a 3rd adult (or book for 2 adults plus a child), I get a message saying I need to use another voucher.
I now want to bang my head against the wall as we need 3 seats and there are none to be had in any class without using the 241!
Has it always been like this since the new vouchers appeared?Yes, I think this has always been the case. The extra availability is not open to the third person.
unless of course you earn an additional new 2-4-1. Plus availability can always pop up, so set seatspy etc. for an alert and keep checking for newly added seats without needing the new voucher availability
I SCORED A SWEET VICTORY AGAINST BA!!!
Heeding @e14’s advice I went right ahead with my booking. that was 6 December. I couldn’t pay as they needed to price the taxes which would take them some time.
ON THE 7th DECEMBER THE GREAT DEVALUATION TOOK PLACE
To cut the long story short, when calling them to pay the taxes and fees, the Avios amount made no sense according to my initial calculations. (as a daily HFP’er, I knew the news sooner than BA’s YOU FIRST team did) after a ton of back and forth I finally got my way, that since I called to book on the 6th prior to the devaluation, I should not be punished due to their delay in pricing the taxes.
The cherry on the cake is that my taxes are actually slightly lower than they would have been before the devaluation and I’m paying around 50,000 Avios lessIt’s a win win for me and here’s to the flights going ahead as planned and thanks again @e14 for pushing me to just “Book now!”
I’m back to report on my trip
It was EPIC!
Things went off to a rough start with a long delay in the plane departing Tel Aviv due to icy fog at Heathrow forcing them to space out the landings. So we sat in the Plane for 1.5 hours. circled for 10 minutes before the final approach and SAT ON THE PLANE FOR 50 MINUTES!!! till we were allocated a gate at Terminal 5.
After all that we were no longer allowed to transfer to the A380 flight to Washington.Being first class passengers we were dealt with before the HUNDREDS of passengers needed help with cancelled flights and missed connections. Terminal 5 was chaos!
We were offered a flight on United business (no thanks to flying on an ancient 767) or to Baltimore on a BA 787. we chose to stick with BA. (2 groups totaling 55 passengers missed that Baltimore flight connection!)
Our flight from Tel Aviv which was going to be a 787-9 was in the end a 787-8, we were TOLD that there’s no space for us in Business and we’d be sat in Premium Economy / world traveler plus, and me and wife were each given £200 at boarding.
Due to missing our connection on the A380 to Washington we were downgraded to business and promised a refund.
BA are now repeatedly ignoring my downgrade claim citing the bad weather which caused the delay.
Do I have any claim for being downgraded if there was no first class option on any of the alternative options?Did you not ask this on the other thread? If so it has already had a reply over there.
You may wish to peruse EU261 text on reimbursement due to you as advised by BAFIS on the other thread- I can’t remember if there’s a higher or duplicate reimbursement since it sounds here like a double downgrade (of 2 classes) claim to be made for each seat, instead of just to J you were bounced down to PY from F
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