How’s this for an indicator that premium-class travel isn’t selling: The recently-merged Delta and Northwest are permitting passengers of high-fare international economy fare tickets to upgrade to business class for just 1 mile each way.
2 miles to upgrade an international roundtrip? Two?!!
Northwest and Delta both sent e-mails to their lists. Here’s a piece of a Delta e-mail, but the gist is the same for flights on Delta’s subsidiary, Northwest:
You can now upgrade to our award-winning BusinessElite cabin for one mile each way when you fly internationally on a paid Y, B or M Economy fare between June 30 and September 15, 2009.
[...]
Terms & Conditions
Eligible Fares/Booking: All taxes, fees and blackout dates are governed by the rules of the Y, B or M economy class fare purchased. Additional upgrade tax may apply. SkyMiles members can request a one-way upgrade Award for 1-mile for paid tickets purchased in Y, B, or M economy class between the continental United States, Alaska, and Canada and any international destination that offers J class fares (BusinessElite) where upgrade class of service is available on Delta or Northwest-operated flights only. SkyMiles members must call a Delta reservations representative for upgrades. Tickets: Must be purchased and upgrade requested no later than July 13, 2009. Travel Period: Travel must be completed by September 15, 2009. Restrictions: Availability of one-way upgrade inventory is limited and may not be available on all flights. Some markets may have more availability than others. Members may reissue existing tickets to be eligible for upgrade offer, but will need to pay applicable fees. Customers may combine this upgrade Award with other one-way upgrade Awards. Upgrades not available on Air France and KLM or any other SkyTeam® or codeshare partner operated flights. Tickets are nontransferable. SkyMiles accrual will be for class of service originally purchased. Miscellaneous: All SkyMiles program rules apply. To review the rules, please visit delta.com/memberguide. Fares, taxes, fees, rules, and offers are subject to change without notice. Other restrictions may apply. Please refer Delta reservations representative to 970222.
“Additional upgrade tax” ??! Be sure to get a full quote before you finalize anything.
Also, and very importantly: Note that the eligible fares — Y, B, and M — aren’t the rock-bottom cheapie bucket of fares, they’re at the top end — the most expensive range of economy fares.
You may in fact be able to find a cheaper fare confirmed in business class by looking for a business fare outright. (Most likely a fare with a “Z” an “I” or “S” fare code.) Shop around.
All told, though, spending 2 miles for a roundtrip international upgrade is fantastic value. The airlines are obviously having trouble filling seats. Summer months are typically slow for paid business class travel, and that’s on top of the recession’s crimp on high-fare spending.
Take advantage while you can.
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July 6th, 2009 at 10:25 pm
Twitter Comment
#Travel – How’s this for an indicator that premium-class travel isn’t selling: The recently-merged Delt.. [link to post]
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July 6th, 2009 at 10:37 pm
No! You don’t have to move back to your seat after each mile.
July 6th, 2009 at 11:14 pm
Actually, the Z class is the upgrade inventory class, ie the class that you need availability in to actually use miles for international upgrades (which we show on Expertflyer). The cheapest business fares are I or S fares
July 7th, 2009 at 7:12 am
Thanks for the correction, Chris. I’ll amend the post. I know LH, UA, and several others use Z for their discounted business class, but I admit I didn’t look it up for Delta.
July 7th, 2009 at 1:46 pm
[...] out “Delta and Northwest allow international upgrades for 1 mile each way” for more details, and use the FareCompare Deal Finder for the best deals on international flights [...]
July 12th, 2009 at 12:37 am
Good advice to check cheap business fares – these are often cheaper than the high economy fares this upgrade offer requires (although perhaps less flexible).
The additional upgrade tax refers to some countries which charge more for business and first class passengers than for economy passengers. UK is one example, India is another. Most airlines outside USA just bear the increased cost for upgrading passengers, but US-based airlines generally collect the extra taxes off the passenger.
July 12th, 2009 at 9:15 am
Thanks Global Traveller for the reminder. I hadn’t connected the dots. Here’s a link from 2006 re: the Indian upgrade tax:
http://www.upgradetravelbetter.com/2006/08/29/flying-from-india-upgrading-prepare-to-be-extorted/
July 22nd, 2009 at 9:11 am
Actually, on Northwest at least the Z fare is a purchasable fare class. Upgrades from Y happen to go into Z, but that bucket is also used for paid Z fares. “U” is used for upgrades from B and M, and is not a purchasable fare class. Just pointing that out as the thread is talking about both NW and DL