Advice needed - booking Delta flights to/from Amsterdam

I am working out flights for cruise from Amsterdam and, after much reading and viewing of video reviews on Utube, have decided to go with Delta. Based on feedback from others, I've decided to book DeltaOne on flight to Amsterdam and return home in Comfort+ seats. Perhaps I am over analyzing this decision but am wondering whether to wait until January (as suggested by poster here on CC) - with the hope that there will be a sale on business class seats - OR - book the RT with Comfort+ seats in both directions and look for an opportunity to upgrade - OR - just go ahead and book the outbound flights with DeltaOne and the return flights with Comfort+ now.

As things stand, the increase in cost to go from Comfort+ in both directions to a DeltaOne seat on the flights going to Amsterdam and keeping a Comfort+ seat for the return flights is $1128 pp. The cost to upgrade to DeltaOne from Comfort+ on the return flights adds an additional $2078. I don't see the need to spend that much more for the return flights so that is not a factor in my "buy now vs buy later" decision. I am OK with Comfort+ for the trip home.

Another observation that I made which makes me wonder how the fares come about in the first place. I have looked at the available seats on each of the flights I am planning to book. None of the DeltaOne seats on the flight back from Amsterdam are showing as reserved. So, why is that flight so expensive relative to other flights leaving Amsterdam, or the flight to Amsterdam? Thoughts?

Anyone had experience with Delta Airlines, specifically, and the possibility/probability that a sale on business class seats would happen by the end of this year or in January? Experience with booking tickets at main csbin or Comfort+ fare and then upgrading to DeltaOne?

I am not experienced with the nuances of Delta's fare categories so I am relying on the info that I've found online. Any input you'd care to share is much appreciated.

Maybe the fare difference is related to your dates of travel? Fares can vary by date and by day of the week. You didn’t give dates of travel. Also the seat view may not accurately reflect the number of available seats-close but not always exact. So many other variables that trying to time your purchase to capture the lowest price is impossible-unless you have a crystal ball. Many will tell you to buy when you feel the price works for you and then don’t look back!

Have you looked a using Cruiseline Air? We booked using it and the price was better than booking directly with the airline. It might be worth taking a look.

We flew to AMS in May and fares were static until late March when the big SALE sign came out. Our seats were booked long before any fluctuations were evident. We also were in the front on the way over and chose to book a regular coach seat for our daytime flight back.

Date of travel will dictate fare.

What equipment are you looking at? Not all aircraft are created equal.

wondering whether to wait until January (as suggested by poster here on CC) - with the hope that there will be a sale on business class seats - OR - book the RT with Comfort+ seats in both directions and look for an opportunity to upgrade

 

Another observation that I made which makes me wonder how the fares come about in the first place. I have looked at the available seats on each of the flights I am planning to book. None of the DeltaOne seats on the flight back from Amsterdam are showing as reserved. So' date=' why is that flight so expensive

 

Anyone had experience with Delta Airlines, specifically, and the possibility/probability that a sale on business class seats would happen by the end of this year or in January? .[/quote']

 

Delta doesn't generally have scheduled "sales." Prices are fluid and can fluctuate constantly as a result of supply and demand. Airlines use complicated algorithms to decide when to increase or reduce the available tickets in various fare classes. Your flight may be higher because of the date and/or day or the week, or it may simply be that past experience dictates to Delta that they can sell those seats for that price. Keep in mind that many business travelers don't buy tickets way in advance like leisure travelers tend to do.

 

As far as looking for an opportunity to upgrade, how are you expecting that to happen? Even Delta medallion members don't get complimentary upgrades to business class, the way they might get comp upgrades to domestic first class seats. Upgrading to business on Delta generally mans paying the fare difference or using a global upgrade certificate, which is only available as a choice benefit to diamond medallion members. Occasionally if coach is oversold, DL might upgrade someone from coach to biz to make a seat available in coach, but those operational upgrades are rare and are usually offered to high level medallions members. If you're idea of an opportunity to upgrade is thinking that somewhere along the line you'll get an email offering to upgrade for, say, $200, keep dreaming. Delta offers those domestically for first class, but not for business class international flights.

Have you looked a using Cruiseline Air? We booked using it and the price was better than booking directly with the airline. It might be worth taking a look.

I have called Flights by Celebrity a number of times. First, while trying to decide on dates and then trying to do my final selection on flights themselves. We are cruising at the beginning of July so I am looking at flying to Europe at the end of June and returning mid-July.

The first time I called I was quoted a fare for DeltaOne going to Amsterdam and Main Cabin returning from Amsterdam that was roughly $300 lower pp (less than 15%) than what was posted on the Delta website. Not exactly the type of savings I was hoping for, given the posts on these boards, but a savings nonetheless.

I have chosen the actual flights I want - and repriced the tickets on the Delta website using DeltaOne for the flights to Amsterdam and Main Cabin for the return flights. The upgrade to Comfort+ is available at a cost of approximately $150 pp. I called Flights by Celebrity again on Tuesday morning - and the first person I spoke with gave me a price that was obviously pulled up as two one way tickets. It was over $3500 when the round trip tickets on the Delta website priced out at $2311. WOW! I explained to her that this was just not possible and that she needed to go back and redo her pricing. After more back and forth, she gave me the same price that is on the Delta website. No difference, no savings, and a huge sense of concern on my part that she could easily screw up my booking because she wasn't the brightest person I've spoken to at Flights by Celebrity. I got off the phone and resolved to call again later and hope someone else can help me.

Second call to Flights by Celebrity went a little better - but not much. The pricing I was quoted was now only $100 HIGHER than the pricing on the Delta website. So, I explained the issue and the gentleman repriced the ticket and came back with the exact same price as Delta's website. Again - no savings at all.

They actually do have notes about my first conversation with them when they quoted a lower price than Delta and could see the price I was given before. I asked the agent why is the fare higher now and he told me it is because the flights are different than the ones I inquired about the first time. Not buying that since both sets of flights price out identically on the Delta website.

So, I have given up trying to deal with Flights by Celebrity.

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We flew to AMS in May and fares were static until late March when the big SALE sign came out. Our seats were booked long before any fluctuations were evident. We also were in the front on the way over and chose to book a regular coach seat for our daytime flight back.

 

Date of travel will dictate fare.

 

What equipment are you looking at? Not all aircraft are created equal.

After reading many posts on these boards and flyer talk.com and elsewhere, as well as viewing lots of Utube videos of DeltaOne A330 flights, I chose flights which use the A330 hardware from MSP to AMS. The reverse herringbone layout and seats themselves get high marks and Delta business class, in general, appears to rate high among frequent business class travelers.

We are flying out on a Wednesday in June and returning on the day we disembark (Friday in July). I realize we are stuck with a higher fare coming home because it is a Friday. But the business class ticket is for the Wednesday flight so that cost is moderated. Unfortunately, the cost to go from comfort+ to business class on the return is $2000 pp. I'd rather put that money toward another cruise. So we will be sitting in Comfort+ on the way home.

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Delta doesn't generally have scheduled "sales." Prices are fluid and can fluctuate constantly as a result of supply and demand. Airlines use complicated algorithms to decide when to increase or reduce the available tickets in various fare classes. Your flight may be higher because of the date and/or day or the week, or it may simply be that past experience dictates to Delta that they can sell those seats for that price. Keep in mind that many business travelers don't buy tickets way in advance like leisure travelers tend to do.

 

 

 

As far as looking for an opportunity to upgrade, how are you expecting that to happen? Even Delta medallion members don't get complimentary upgrades to business class, the way they might get comp upgrades to domestic first class seats. Upgrading to business on Delta generally mans paying the fare difference or using a global upgrade certificate, which is only available as a choice benefit to diamond medallion members. Occasionally if coach is oversold, DL might upgrade someone from coach to biz to make a seat available in coach, but those operational upgrades are rare and are usually offered to high level medallions members. If you're idea of an opportunity to upgrade is thinking that somewhere along the line you'll get an email offering to upgrade for, say, $200, keep dreaming. Delta offers those domestically for first class, but not for business class international flights.

I was planning to purchase the upgrade. Per the Delta website, upgrades to either Comfort+ or DeltaOne can be purchased after the reservation in the Main Cabin is made. In fact, the upgrade can be purchased until the day of departure. My thought process was to purchase RT Comfort+ tickets and then watch the business class pricing. If it drops, I can purchase the upgrade to DeltaOne. I don't know whether it is possible to upgrade in one direction or the upgrade has to be for the RT.

Anyone out there who has purchased upgrades (paying for the upgrades with credit cards) care to share their experience?

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My thought process was to purchase RT Comfort+ tickets and then watch the business class pricing. If it drops' date=' I can purchase the upgrade to DeltaOne. [/quote']

 

Ok, just making sure you (and others who may be following) understood that UG'g to D1 generally means paying the full difference in fare. Sometimes people see the UG offers to go from coach to C+ or domestic first and think a similarly low offer will magically appear to UG to D1 when they buy a cheap coach ticket. :)

We were able to upgrade our comfort plus seats on a Delta flight to Copenhagen from JFK about 2 weeks after initial purchase.. Our base fares had gone down over $100 PP and the Delta one was then just $550 more RT ..however based on our fare that we booked, upgrading to Delta one was $650 more RT than our comfort plus fare..so worth it . The delta agent connected us to a supervisor for the refund of our comfort plus upcharge ... our upcharge to comfort plus was $119 each way

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We were able to upgrade our comfort plus seats on a Delta flight to Copenhagen from JFK about 2 weeks after initial purchase.. Our base fares had gone down over $100 PP and the Delta one was then just $550 more RT ..however based on our fare that we booked, upgrading to Delta one was $650 more RT than our comfort plus fare..so worth it . The delta agent connected us to a supervisor for the refund of our comfort plus upcharge ... our upcharge to comfort plus was $119 each way

 

 

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Thank you so much for your post. I was hoping it wouldn't be a complicated process. At the moment, the DeltaOne fares are pretty high for a RT from San Diego to Amsterdam. So, I am planning to book the flights to AMS with DeltaOne fare and Comfort+ on the way home from AMS. As it is, the current fare (DeltaOne to AMS, Comfort+ coming back from AMS) is $2500 pp. Upgrading to DeltaOne for the return flights brings the RT airfare to over $4500 pp which is out of the realm of possibilities for me. That is the reason I asked the question in the first place - and I do appreciate you sharing your experience with this.

Based on other posts that the best time to book airline tickets to Europe is 3 months prior to travel, and that business class fares could drop with time, I am willing to take my chances on that drop IF I have locked in seats on the flights I want now. I am nervous about not making any reservations at all until early next spring (for June/July flights).

I can only hope that the upgrades to DeltaOne end up being a lot less than $2000 each. I'd love to be able to upgrade to Delta One for the return flights for the difference in fare you experience. Not sure whether that ever happens. So, I will keep an eye on the fare. If the fares stay that high, we will stick with Comfort+ and use the money I saved toward another cruise. If they drop, I will be a very happy traveler. Either way, we get to enjoy a great cruise so life is good.

Based on other posts that the best time to book airline tickets to Europe is 3 months prior to travel' date=' [/quote']

 

I would be sure to verify the validity of that "advice" before committing to that strategy. If that's a average number, then it holds minimal validity for a specific time frame. And even if it is relevant to your time frame, does it also have relevance to your specific city-pair.

I would be sure to verify the validity of that "advice" before committing to that strategy. If that's a average number, then it holds minimal validity for a specific time frame. And even if it is relevant to your time frame, does it also have relevance to your specific city-pair.

I agree - which is the reason I am not going to wait. I did appreciate hearing from someone who was able to accomplish what I hoped might be possible. That is, upgrading to DeltaOne after purchasing their tickets for the Main Cabin or Comfort+ fare. If the upgrade works out, that's a bonus. If not, we have the seats we chose at the fare we were willing to pay. Not looking for free upgrades, just want to know whether it's within the realm of possibilities IF the fares do drop when we get closer to our departure dates.

just want to know whether it's within the realm of possibilities IF the fares do drop when we get closer to our departure dates.

Yes, it is, IF the fares drop.... Good luck to you! I recently flew in AF premium economy on a DL ticket to Europe. I kept watching the D1 fares hoping they'd drop so I could upgrade...no such luck. D1 was around $4500 RT when I booked and never went lower than that. At one point it was close to 10k, and then dropped and seemed to to hover around 5-7k most of the time.

To the OP, good luck with your plan. Please come back and let us know how it works out.

Doesn't sound like a good Choice Air experience. We are flying from SLC-LHR in mid July and returning AMS-SLC early Aug and our RT D1 tickets were $2,600/pp. I thought it was a good fare and it was $1,200 less using Choice Air over DL directly. We did book it as one way each way.

Hope you see a fare drop before leaving. Previously when we flew to AMS we had booked C+ and then upgraded to D1. The process was easy.

Doesn't sound like a good Choice Air experience. We are flying from SLC-LHR in mid July and returning AMS-SLC early Aug and our RT D1 tickets were $2,600/pp. I thought it was a good fare and it was $1,200 less using Choice Air over DL directly. We did book it as one way each way.

 

Hope you see a fare drop before leaving. Previously when we flew to AMS we had booked C+ and then upgraded to D1. The process was easy.

I would have loved to find a RT DeltaOne ticket for under $3000. I did find a RT Delta/KLM BC ticket for $3700 pp but that is still above my limit for this trip.

So, I have a new question - Has anyone flown Economy Plus on KLM and Comfort+ on DL? I've read that the Economy Plus seats on KLM are in a separate cabin and are bigger seats, unlike the Comfort+ seats on Delta. And that in order to book the Economy Plus seats on KLM, you have to purchase your tickets through them. You can't book Economy Plus through Delta, apparently. If that is, in fact, the case then I am shifting gears and will book flights through KLM - but select the same flights going to AMS so I can be in DL A330 fly flat seats which look very nice.

What plane is KLM flying on that route?

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I've read that the Economy Plus seats on KLM are in a separate cabin and are bigger seats' date=' unlike the Comfort+ seats on Delta. [/quote']

 

As you've learned in the other thread, KLM economy+ seats are NOT bigger seats, they just offer a tiny bit of additional legroom and recline...just like Delta Comfort+ seats. Personally I wouldn't worry about whether they are a separate cabin or just in the front section of economy; whether there is a curtain separating economy+ from regular economy has little to no bearing on the actual comfort of one's seat.

What plane is KLM flying on that route?

 

 

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747-400 - I think it is their new business class configuration

747-400 - I think it is their new business class configuration

All KLM 747 have the new Business class seats. Comfort class still has the same economy seats.