Airline Status: What benefits do you actually get?

[SecondAttempt]

Flying home from Europe a few days ago we had a 1:35 connection in Chicago (ORD). This was safe for an incoming Lufthansa flight connection to United according top our United booking. The Lufthansa flight was 20 minutes late arriving. We have global entry so immigration was seconds, not exaggerating to say it was so unbelievable fast they had to prod me along. I was face cleared several feet before the kiosk!

But the airline took over 30 minutes to get the bags to us to clear customs. one we got them customs took about 2 minutes. We had 10 minutes to make our connection. Doubtful but not impossible with Clear and TSA precheck at ORD. But when we went to the luggage transfer desk after customs we were third in line. The agent took the first person's bags then abruptly closed the transfer belt. We had no choice but to leave the customs area with our checked bags.

At that point it was obvious we were staying overnight in Chicago. I called United and a very helpful American-speaking agent rebooked us the next day. She tried to get us a hotel but could not because it was not United's fault. (It wasn't.) But she suggested we file a claim against Lufthansa which we will.

I am Star Alliance Gold and automatically reached the premium customer service. So this is one thing premium get's you. Quite frankly, most of the advertised benefits of premium levels are not worth that much but having access to good customer service when things go awry is priceless!

 

[Koolau]

Flying home from Europe a few days ago we had a 1:35 connection in Chicago (ORD). This was safe for an incoming Lufthansa flight connection to United according top our United booking. The Lufthansa flight was 20 minutes late arriving. We have global entry so immigration was seconds, not exaggerating to say it was so unbelievable fast they had to prod me along. I was face cleared several feet before the kiosk!

But the airline took over 30 minutes to get the bags to us to clear customs. one we got them customs took about 2 minutes. We had 10 minutes to make our connection. Doubtful but not impossible with Clear and TSA precheck at ORD. But when we went to the luggage transfer desk after customs we were third in line. The agent took the first person's bags then abruptly closed the transfer belt. We had no choice but to leave the customs area with our checked bags.

At that point it was obvious we were staying overnight in Chicago. I called United and a very helpful American-speaking agent rebooked us the next day. She tried to get us a hotel but could not because it was not United's fault. (It wasn't.) But she suggested we file a claim against Lufthansa which we will.

I am Star Alliance Gold and automatically reached the premium customer service. So this is one thing premium get's you. Quite frankly, most of the advertised benefits of premium levels are not worth that much but having access to good customer service when things go awry is priceless!

I can't imagine having a 1:35 connection at ORD for an international flight. We thought we were pushing it with a 1 hour connection between a commuter United flight for another United flight and no checked luggage. As always, YMMV.

 

[brett]

The only freebe we get now is free checked bags.

And it is worth absolutely zero to us because we only travel with carry on.

 

[audreyh1]

Flying home from Europe a few days ago we had a 1:35 connection in Chicago (ORD). This was safe for an incoming Lufthansa flight connection to United according top our United booking. The Lufthansa flight was 20 minutes late arriving. We have global entry so immigration was seconds, not exaggerating to say it was so unbelievable fast they had to prod me along. I was face cleared several feet before the kiosk!

But the airline took over 30 minutes to get the bags to us to clear customs. one we got them customs took about 2 minutes. We had 10 minutes to make our connection. Doubtful but not impossible with Clear and TSA precheck at ORD. But when we went to the luggage transfer desk after customs we were third in line. The agent took the first person's bags then abruptly closed the transfer belt. We had no choice but to leave the customs area with our checked bags.

At that point it was obvious we were staying overnight in Chicago. I called United and a very helpful American-speaking agent rebooked us the next day. She tried to get us a hotel but could not because it was not United's fault. (It wasn't.) But she suggested we file a claim against Lufthansa which we will.

I am Star Alliance Gold and automatically reached the premium customer service. So this is one thing premium get's you. Quite frankly, most of the advertised benefits of premium levels are not worth that much but having access to good customer service when things go awry is priceless!

Yeah, there were several United returning flight itineraries that didn’t leave enough time for layovers for customs IMO. And I just couldn’t find a way to lengthen the layovers, so I opted for a late flight out that had an overnight layover.

 

[Crewer]

I have lifetime Gold status on United thanks to DH's travel so I tend to use them as my first choice, though I will use other airlines to get nonstop or much more convenient flights. I have not used other airlines on international flights except when I booked through the cruise line. I also have the United Chase credit card. I have been doing quite a bit of travel on FF miles recently, including international.

I agree the good customer service is really nice. I like being in boarding group 1, though it's the 5th or 6th group to board these days. I don't fly first class and like that I can book economy for international and get economy plus seats at no additional charge. Not as good a premium economy but much better than economy. And exit rows are included in that with no fee. Bags usually come out sooner with the status tag and loading early makes flying with carry-on easier for me. Of course I never get upgraded even on short hop domestic flights because flights are always full these days and many people have higher status than I do because they pay more and not that's what United tracks for a lot of thing.

I do see first class flights in my future but so far the economy plus has been fine for the international flight.

 

[Sanstar]

We have SW Chase card since we fly to and from DD and DGS home 3-4 times a year. We use the card for everything; groceries, medical/dental/vision, gas, ect… Card allows us to fly free plus,early check in. I think they are going with assigned seats in the near future so we’ll see.

 

[OldConch]

Our Alaska status gets us free upgrades to premium seats at booking and priority for first class close in. I earn bonus miles flying on Alaska and its partners and I earned 100k bonus as milestone rewards flying in 2024. FYI, we flew LAX to AKL earlier this year in AA Flagship business for 85k miles and we're booked from our home airport to Tahiti in August for 60k Alaska miles each way in the front of the plane on Air Tahiti Nui. Another great benefit is OneWorld Emerald status which allows access to some nice OneWorld lounges. We enjoyed the British Airways First lounge passing through LHR earlier this year and plan to visit the Qantas First lounge in Singapore and Malaysia Airlines Platinum lounge in Kuala Lumpur lounge in 2025. Priority check-in and fast-track is also nice when traveling internationally.

 

[Koolau]

Our Alaska status gets us free upgrades to premium seats at booking and priority for first class close in. I earn bonus miles flying on Alaska and its partners and I earned 100k bonus as milestone rewards flying in 2024. FYI, we flew LAX to AKL earlier this year in AA Flagship business for 85k miles and we're booked from our home airport to Tahiti in August for 60k Alaska miles each way in the front of the plane on Air Tahiti Nui. Another great benefit is OneWorld Emerald status which allows access to some nice OneWorld lounges. We enjoyed the British Airways First lounge passing through LHR earlier this year and plan to visit the Qantas First lounge in Singapore and Malaysia Airlines Platinum lounge in Kuala Lumpur lounge in 2025. Priority check-in and fast-track is also nice when traveling internationally.

Alaska continues to grow, having recently acquired Hawaiian Air. That was quite a story locally. So far, there don't appear to be any significant changes. If you're ever heading to the Islands, your options for sky miles will likely increase significantly.

 

[OldConch]

Alaska continues to grow, having recently acquired Hawaiian Air. That was quite a story locally. So far, there don't appear to be any significant changes. If you're ever heading to the Islands, your options for sky miles will likely increase significantly.

Alaska also recently announced flights from Seattle to Tokyo and Seoul beginning in late 2025. Great to have some new options.

 

[Koolau]

Alaska also recently announced flights from Seattle to Tokyo and Seoul beginning in late 2025. Great to have some new options.

Let's hope Alaska's expansion lowers fairs (and for those of us who depend upon tourism to fund our state) let's hope it brings back the fantastic Japanese tourists. We love 'em.

 

[audreyh1]

Let's hope Alaska's expansion lowers fairs (and for those of us who depend upon tourism to fund our state) let's hope it brings back the fantastic Japanese tourists. We love 'em.

Has there been a big drop in Japanese tourists? I noticed in our 2023 and 2024 trips that the large Chinese (and other Asian) tour groups seemed missing. Traveling annually before 2020 these large groups were everywhere we went in Europe.

 

[Koolau]

Has there been a big drop in Japanese tourists? I noticed in our 2023 and 2024 trips that the large Chinese (and other Asian) tour groups seemed missing. Traveling annually before 2020 these large groups were everywhere we went in Europe.

Covid killed the japanese market which has not come back. It's very slowly returning, but there's a long way to go.

 

[big-papa]

Lifetime Gold on American. Benefits are basically that I can get on the plane before the very last overhead bin is taken and I'm eligible to get one of the seats towards the front of economy that have slightly more legroom.

Very rare to ever get an upgrade unless I'm flying to/from where nobody wishes to fly at a time in which nobody wishes to fly.

Hit Platinum several times while working and the upgrades were nice!

Cheers.

 

[Surewhitey]

We're currently paying bills in advance to maintain the AAdvantage Platinum for DW. Living in the hub city makes it useful for various extras. Lounge access for international is a minor one. Upgrade to FC is nice and DW knows how to maximize this, sometimes changing flights last minute (another one, no charge) for a lesser people flight for a better chance of first class access. We travel light so free checked bags are overrated IMO. Usually group 3 or better for boarding is minor for bin space.

The miles have gotten us a few European trips and whenever domestic are high, so this is a biggie too. This is her "hobby"... I'm just along for the ride.

 

[CO-guy]

Flying home from Europe a few days ago we had a 1:35 connection in Chicago (ORD). This was safe for an incoming Lufthansa flight connection to United according top our United booking. The Lufthansa flight was 20 minutes late arriving. We have global entry so immigration was seconds, not exaggerating to say it was so unbelievable fast they had to prod me along. I was face cleared several feet before the kiosk!

But the airline took over 30 minutes to get the bags to us to clear customs. one we got them customs took about 2 minutes. We had 10 minutes to make our connection. Doubtful but not impossible with Clear and TSA precheck at ORD. But when we went to the luggage transfer desk after customs we were third in line. The agent took the first person's bags then abruptly closed the transfer belt. We had no choice but to leave the customs area with our checked bags.

At that point it was obvious we were staying overnight in Chicago. I called United and a very helpful American-speaking agent rebooked us the next day. She tried to get us a hotel but could not because it was not United's fault. (It wasn't.) But she suggested we file a claim against Lufthansa which we will.

I am Star Alliance Gold and automatically reached the premium customer service. So this is one thing premium get's you. Quite frankly, most of the advertised benefits of premium levels are not worth that much but having access to good customer service when things go awry is priceless!

Excellent point about premium customer service, especially when things go wrong. When flights are cancelled due to weather, I'll often head to the local airport to get sorted by a gate agent I know (and that knows me) rather than take my chances waiting on the phone or navigating some AI chatbot through an app.

While value might vary, having easier access to better customer service is an important benefit I hadn't considered.

 

[SecondAttempt]

Yeah, there were several United returning flight itineraries that didn’t leave enough time for layovers for customs IMO. And I just couldn’t find a way to lengthen the layovers, so I opted for a late flight out that had an overnight layover.

Yes, I tried that and they wanted over $500 more for the different itinerary. I'm filing a trip insurance claim. If trip insurance recovers from United/Lufthansa it will cost them about $500. Just stupid!

 

[SecondAttempt]

Excellent point about premium customer service, especially when things go wrong. When flights are cancelled due to weather, I'll often head to the local airport to get sorted by a gate agent I know (and that knows me) rather than take my chances waiting on the phone or navigating some AI chatbot through an app.

While value might vary, having easier access to better customer service is an important benefit I hadn't considered.

I am a member of United's Club (lounge) and they have saved my butt many times over the years. I pay for it through the credit card I carry. Most lounges have agents to help with flights. It's easy to question the cost (I do). But the times they have worked miracles for me have made it worth it.

 

[SecondAttempt]

Covid killed the japanese market which has not come back. It's very slowly returning, but there's a long way to go.

I think it is correct to say covid killed the Japanese market but the very weak yen is perpetuating it! But is is making travel to Japan very cheap for Americans right now. But I don't think people outside of Hawaii are noticing!

 

[Lagniappe]

I think it is correct to say covid killed the Japanese market but the very weak yen is perpetuating it! But is is making travel to Japan very cheap for Americans right now. But I don't think people outside of Hawaii are noticing!

We recently returned from Iceland. We (sadly) got behind several busses of Japanese and Korean tourists at some of the very small eating establishments while on the journey.

 

[Koolau]

We recently returned from Iceland. We (sadly) got behind several busses of Japanese and Korean tourists at some of the very small eating establishments while on the journey.

DW and I had a favorite place we used to eat when we couldn't think of any other place. When we saw a tour bus outside, we just moved on. One or the other of us would say (in a sarcastic voice) "BUS PEOPLE."