Sometimes things are unintentionally funny. A recent discussion of a mistake fare on FlyerTalk is a good example. KLM have botched entering the fare from Helsinki to Singapore (and other Asian destinations), leading to the unbelievably low fare above. Regrettably, it’s a V class fare, so gets only 25% miles on Flying Blue.
However, some Americans on the forum were really excited about this fare (since it give 100% miles in some frequent flyer programs). This led to discussions about the cheapest way to go to HEL. It’s even funnier since this fare requires a connection in Amsterdam. So now you know it: The best way from HEL to SIN is via Amsterdam, but you must first find a way to go to HEL.
January 14th, 2008 at 03:42
Posted by
epsalon |
Funny Stuff, Frequent Flyer |
2 comments
… and I’m now a Platinum level frequent flyer!
Yes, I have completed 70,000 qualifying miles on a single alliance, and earned Platinum status for 2009. Here is a complete list of all flights this year:
| Month |
Flight (click for map) |
BIS Miles |
Status Miles |
Award Miles |
| January |
Tel Aviv - Hyderabad via Amsterdam |
13,298 |
13,276 |
19,914 |
| April |
Tel Aviv - Frankfurt; Stuttgart - Amsterdam - Tel Aviv (Award ticket ELAL + KLM) |
4,215 |
none |
- 5,000 |
| May |
Tel Aviv - Honolulu via Amsterdam, San Francisco, Newark, and Paris |
20,586 |
20,545 |
30,817 |
| May |
Honolulu - Hilo (not Skyteam) |
433 |
none |
none |
| July |
Tel Aviv - Frankfurt via Amsterdam |
4,575 |
5,606 |
8,410 |
| August |
Tel Aviv - Istanbul direct (not SkyTeam) |
1,408 |
none |
none |
| September |
Tel Aviv - San Francisco via Amsterdam (one way) |
7,533 |
7,513 |
11,269 |
| October |
San Francisco - Mexico City via Atlanta |
6,939 |
6,939 |
12,143 |
| October |
San Francisco - Frankfurt via Houston, Amsterdam and Newark |
13,309 |
13,831 |
24,204 |
| December |
San Francisco - San Diego via Salt Lake City |
2,449 |
2,449 |
4,287 |
| TOTAL |
74,746 |
70,148 |
107,388 |
| Previous Balance/Level |
|
Silver |
45,230 |
| New Balance/Level |
|
Platinum |
152,618 |
Mission accomplished!
December 17th, 2007 at 04:26
Posted by
epsalon |
Frequent Flyer |
one comment
Today I have concluded my first purely domestic itinerary and achieved my Platinum status by flying from San Diego to San Francisco via Salt Lake City (yes, it really isn’t on the way).
The flight to Salt Lake was delayed due to a ripple effect (the plane arrived to SLC late from the east coast due to weather). My seat selection tricks worked and I found myself next to the only empty seat on the plane (in a row of 3).
Even with the late arrival there was enough time to grab a burger at Burger King, especially as this flight was also delayed 20 minutes. As usual I asked if an upgrade is possible and surprisingly the answer was “sure!” and I immediately got my new boarding pass assigned to seat 2D (window seat in a 1-2 row on CRJ-900) with 2C next to me vacant.
The first class seats were slightly wider and with a lot more legroom. My drink was refilled as soon as I finished it was cleared just as fast. I rested most of the flight until our only slightly late arrival at SFO.
I’m now in the shuttle home. I’m the only passenger! Good to be back.
December 15th, 2007 at 11:00
Posted by
epsalon |
Frequent Flyer, San Diego, Travel |
2 comments
(that is, departure to Germany for those of you who don’t know German)
Yes, I’m flying again, this today my itinerary is SFO-IAH-AMS-FRA (that’s San Francisco, Houston, Amsterdam, Frankfurt), and then a train to Saarbruecken. The plan is to fly to Germany for a conference and visit my brother on the way. I’m going to be there for 10 days. I’m all packed (well, except my laptop) and in an hour I’ll be boarding the shuttle to the airport to start my journey.
In order to qualify for platinum I need about 3000 more miles. If I do not get any other trip funded this year, I’m considering doing a mileage run to West Palm Beach or to Boston. In the case of Boston, I might want to stay there for up to a week. Honolulu is also an option, although more expensive and with less miles.
October 18th, 2007 at 17:50
Posted by
epsalon |
Frequent Flyer, Germany |
one comment
In a previous post I talked about my frequent flyer miles plan for this year, and referred to the topic of a Mileage Run. This weekend I decided to make good on my plans and go on a weekend vacation to Mexico City practically free of charge.
How could I do that? Easy. I started by booking a flight from San Francisco to Mexico city via Atlanta on Delta airlines for $323 including tax and three nights in a hotel for $111 including tax. On the savings side of the equation are four nights in a bay area hotel which costs $220, 12,143 award miles and 6,939 status miles. The award miles are equivalent to half a one-way flight from Tel Aviv to San Francisco. If priced part of a return ticket this is worth about $200. So in all, I pay $434 and save $420. I also save on food due to visits to the airline lounges and on all expenses when I’m in Mexico City.
Anyway, the dates are 27/9 - 1/10/2007. On line updates will be posted.
September 2nd, 2007 at 17:15
Posted by
epsalon |
Frequent Flyer, Mexico, Travel |
2 comments
