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Comments (9)
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Save/ShareWhen I flew down to Virginia a couple of weeks ago, I forgot to check in at home, so when I arrived at LaGuardia I checked in at an AirTran kiosk. It gave me the chance to upgrade for $40. I couldn't resist! Have you ever done it? Was it worth it?
This was a business trip, so my flight was being paid for by my company, but the company would never pay for the upgrade. (I didn't even try.) But I'm 6'3", so the extra legroom and seat width is very appealing. And I was feeling self-indulgent. After I was done upgrading--it was so easy--the kiosk asked if I wanted to check in for the return flight later that day. (Most airlines make you go on the outbound flight first.) And then it asked if wanted to upgrade on that flight for $40. As Britney Spears once said: Oops, I did it again.
How come more airlines don't try to sell cheap upgrades the day of the flight? Is it just that the seats are already being used by people cashing in points?
I wouldn't do it every time, and I'm not sure how much I'd pay for the privilege (and now that my credit card bill has arrived, and I have to deal with the $80). At the time, however, I loved every minute of it.
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Right there with you Erik. That's one of the reasons that I like to fly AirTran! My husband and I got hooked on the upgrades back when they were $25 each way. That made the trip an additional $100. Which was do-able. Now they are getting to be a little to pricey for both of us to take advantage of. But it's a great idea that I would love to see other airlines offer. Cheap upgrades, what a concept!
Posted By E. Holmes on October 11, 2007, 11:26 AM
Even when facing the $80 charge on returning home, I think your back and legs are well worth the extra. That is a great idea for the airline to fill those empty seats at the last minute. I would definitely indulge for that fraction of the cost of what would certainly have cost much more if booked with the original flight.
Thanks for the tip, something to keep an eye out for.
Posted By Ryan James on October 11, 2007, 11:28 AM
Yes, I also bought an upgrade from coach to first class. I think mine was $125 though. I can't remember but it was worth it. My son bought one on a flight he was on but it was delayed and he never got to use it. American Airlines refunded his money on the next flight because there were no first class seats available.
Posted By Marilyn Heron on October 11, 2007, 11:39 AM
You called it: cheap upgrades only work when first class is empty, which is virtually never the case on the legacy carriers. But it's a pretty thought that the occasional off-hour flight may have one or two of those cushy chairs priced for us mere mortals.
Posted By Justin on October 11, 2007, 12:04 PM
Right there with you Erik. That's one of the reasons that I like to fly AirTran! My husband and I got hooked on the upgrades back when they were $25 each way. That made the trip an additional $100. Which was do-able. Now they are getting to be a little to pricey for both of us to take advantage of. But it's a great idea that I would love to see other airlines offer. Cheap upgrades, what a concept!
Posted By E. Holmes on October 11, 2007, 12:18 PM
Does this ever happen on American Airlines? We are flying one way from JFK to Rome. What can I do to get offered an upgrade to Business ?? We tried our AA points -- nobody knows what they are talking about
Posted By Lynn Primo on October 11, 2007, 8:20 PM
Yes, Lynn,it does happen on AA.
Learn more here:
http://www.aa.com/content/urls/selfService.jhtml?anchorLocation=DirectURL&title=selfservice
Sorry to hear that you haven't been getting good answers to your question from AA. You may want to try the FlyerTalk Forums and post a question there. FlyerTalk.com
--Sean,
Blog editor
Posted By Blog Editor on October 12, 2007, 10:23 AM
For the record, United also offers upgrades when seats are available. As a Milage Plus member, I've been offered opportunities to pay with miles or with a credit card. As other posters have mentioned, upgrades to first or business class can be expensive, but upgrades to Economy Plus on United can be very reasonable--the last one cost me $14. The few extra inches of legroom, even on a short flight, are worth it.
Posted By Krista on October 13, 2007, 12:51 PM
I paid $75 last on a flight from Atlanta to Newark last year on Delta because they overbooked coach. And I just recently paid $50 to upgrade on a flight from Memphis to Newark on Northwest. Well worth it both times. The Delta flight was supposed to get in at 11pm but we circled due to bad weather for almost another hour.
Posted By Jason on October 17, 2007, 11:50 AM