Delta Skymiles- Upgrade?

[patterson3]

I will be flying to Hawaii for my honeymoon next November and think it's highly unlikely I'll accumulate enough Skymiles to pay for a free ticket, but it seems like I should be able to accumulate enough miles to upgrade to First Class (based on the chart on Delta). Has anyone used their skymiles to upgrade, and if so, how difficult is this?

[FlyerTalker]

DL Skymiles upgrades are ONLY for certain fare classes. Unfortunately, the DL website does not specify which they are. For full-fare Y class, it's 7500 miles each way. Otherwise, you're looking at 15000 each way.

 

The lower fare buckets are not eligible for upgrades. So you will have to figure in the cost of the higher ticket price. In addition, upgrades are capacity controlled - not all first class seats are available for use as a mileage upgrade.

 

Best to call DL directly and try to get an answer for your specific situation.

[patterson3]

Thanks for the response.

 

What's a full-fare Y Class fare?

[6rugrats]

It's the most expensive economy fare.

[Shorex]

Posters on the DL board on Flyertalk report that the upgradeable fare classes are Y, M, and B, subject to capacity controls (Z class.) In your situation, I'd be reluctant to pay the premium for an upgradeable fare without being assured there was availability for two upgrades. This will take a phone call to a knowledgeable agent.

[patterson3]

Posters on the DL board on Flyertalk report that the upgradeable fare classes are Y, M, and B, subject to capacity controls (Z class.) In your situation, I'd be reluctant to pay the premium for an upgradeable fare without being assured there was availability for two upgrades. This will take a phone call to a knowledgeable agent.

 

Are Y, M and B the classes that you can upgrade for 7,500 each way?

 

According to Delta's chart you can upgrade for 7,500 from some classes and 15,000 from lower classes....Does that include the lowest fare? Or are you ineligible to upgrade from the cheapest coach tickets?

[Shorex]

Are Y, M and B the classes that you can upgrade for 7,500 each way?

Not sure, you'll have to call an agent.

 

According to Delta's chart you can upgrade for 7,500 from some classes and 15,000 from lower classes....Does that include the lowest fare? Or are you ineligible to upgrade from the cheapest coach tickets?

The cheapest coach seats are definitely not upgradeable with miles. You will pay a higher fare for a ticket that is, in theory, upgradeable, but in practice, there is only limited availability for upgrades on any particular flight.

 

There is a high demand for upgrades to Hawaii and a limited supply of first class seats allocated to the "upgraders." If that limited supply is gone when you purchase your "upgradeable" fare, you are SOL. I'd be on the phone with an agent to purchase the tix and confirm the upgrade at the same time. Otherwise you risk paying more than you have to for the same coach seat.

[6rugrats]

I will be flying to Hawaii for my honeymoon next November and think it's highly unlikely I'll accumulate enough Skymiles to pay for a free ticket, but it seems like I should be able to accumulate enough miles to upgrade to First Class (based on the chart on Delta). Has anyone used their skymiles to upgrade, and if so, how difficult is this?

 

Do you mean November 2008 or November 2009? If it's Nov. 2009, you can't even book this for quite some time. Delta is only booking through July 27, 2009 today.

 

That gives you some time to accrue miles and do some research to educate yourself how this process works.

[patterson3]

Are Y, M and B the classes that you can upgrade for 7,500 each way?

Not sure, you'll have to call an agent.

 

According to Delta's chart you can upgrade for 7,500 from some classes and 15,000 from lower classes....Does that include the lowest fare? Or are you ineligible to upgrade from the cheapest coach tickets?

The cheapest coach seats are definitely not upgradeable with miles. You will pay a higher fare for a ticket that is, in theory, upgradeable, but in practice, there is only limited availability for upgrades on any particular flight.

 

There is a high demand for upgrades to Hawaii and a limited supply of first class seats allocated to the "upgraders." If that limited supply is gone when you purchase your "upgradeable" fare, you are SOL. I'd be on the phone with an agent to purchase the tix and confirm the upgrade at the same time. Otherwise you risk paying more than you have to for the same coach seat.

 

Thanks for your help.

[FlyerTalker]

Y upgrades for 7500. B and M would be in the 15000 category, if those are the current DL upgradeable buckets.

 

Picking BOS-HNL for 11/5 and 11/13 (random dates in November with at least 7 day stay) you have the following published fares:

 

TLO30JH 648.40(USD)

TSO21JH 681.40(USD)

THO14JH 729.40(USD)

ULO30JH 794.40(USD)

USO21JH 843.40(USD)

UHO14JH 908.40(USD)

LLO21JH 973.40(USD)

KSO14JH 1070.40(USD)

QLO14JH 1184.40(USD)

QSO7JH 1281.40(USD)

QSP7JH 1311.40(USD)

QHO3JH 1346.40(USD)

HLO14JH 1411.40(USD)

HSO7JH 1476.40(USD)

HSP7JH 1506.40(USD)

HHO3JH 1590.40(USD)

A14N 1615.39(USD)

HLOA7JH 1655.41(USD)

MSOA3JH 1817.40(USD)

MHOA0JH 1915.40(USD)

A7UPN 2079.39(USD)

M06S 2127.40(USD)

B06S 2451.41(USD)

Y06S 2937.39(USD)

YUP 3103.40(USD)

Y 4101.40(USD)

C 4845.40(USD)

F06S 5103.40(USD)

F 6053.39(USD)

 

The cheapest M class fare is 1817.40 (without taxes/fees) - a significant difference from the lowest T class fare published. So just to get into the upgrade lottery will cost you almost three times the cheapest fare. Your choice.

[FlyerTalker]

One thought....look for A class availability. That is discounted first class, and is not much more than M (and cheaper than B or Y). Not always available, but often a better choice than a high fare and burning miles (in that you'll earn about 11K miles BOS-ATL-HNL-ATL-BOS - even more with the bonus for paid first).

[patterson3]

Do you mean November 2008 or November 2009? If it's Nov. 2009, you can't even book this for quite some time. Delta is only booking through July 27, 2009 today.

 

That gives you some time to accrue miles and do some research to educate yourself how this process works.

 

It would be November, 2009. So yes, I do have some time to accumulate a lot of mileage.

 

But it doesn't seem worth it to pay 2 or 3 times more than the lowest coach fare only to be entered into the "lottery" to be upgraded....

[FlyerTalker]

The "lottery" part comes if there is no availability in the upgrade bucket at the time of ticket purchase. You are betting that a) there will be availability at a later date and b) you will be able to score one of those seats.

 

That's why you really want to buy the ticket AND get the upgrade on the same phone call. Or at least buy the ticket and get the upgrade within the "free cancellation" period - so that if there is no upgrade, you aren't out the cost of the B or M fare.