USAir Freq Flyer seats - how easy to get?

[travelplanner70]

I have had great luck with booking Delta and United freq flyer seats 330 days out. How is USAir in setting freq flyer seats aside? Thanks for your thoughts.

 

[wheaties]

I have had great success wtih USAirways booking 330 days out. However, my children, trying to book only a few months in advance, find that everything is sold out and are finding it very frustrating.

 

[Dave M]

Those are the three airlines that I use most often for award seats.

I find US Air the easiest of the three to book for domestic flights. I have not tried to get Europe or Caribbean seats, which I would guess to be difficult to get in high season.

 

[mariawolf]

I have had great success with US AIR==got 6 tickets to use to Caribbean this past January and did not call that far in advance--sometimes as the flight times get closer I think they open up more seats to get the plane full.

 

[travelplanner70]

Thanks for your help. I am hopeful I can get some seats.

 

[vettebuf]

I wish you luck.

I just tried to find PHL to LAS ff seats on USAIR for this September and couldn't. Trusty old American came through for me. The downside is that we have connecting flights.

 

[tashamen]

I think it just depends. Last year I was able to book tickets to Barbados online with USAir about 10 months out or so. I have also had good luck with Delta with much shorter-term bookings. Just last week I booked two tickets on Delta to St. Maarten for this July, and last September booked first class to Palm Springs for next month. All of these were done online, and all flights were on weekends. I have also had good luck to Europe with several FF programs, but in those cases have had to call in as the itineraries were more complicated (stop-overs).

I do think that some seats may open up later on (depending on the airline), but obviously the earlier you try the better.

 

[scotlass]

Saturday blackout

I booked a flight on USAirways from Boston to Scotland for July 2005 330 days ahead. At that time, there were no ff seats on a Saturday. I don't know if it's still that way.

 

[BethH]

So far we've only been able to get Friday departures from PHL, booking about nine months ahead online. Had no trouble getting PHL-SLU or PHL-CUN but not on Saturday. (We had Sat-Sat timeshare weeks in both cases...once we just rented another night at the resort, the other we booked a Friday-Friday exchange.)

Beth

 

[frankhi]

When you book a reward 330 day ahead with USAir, do you wait until 330 days b4 your return date, or can you book your outbound at 330 days ahead and then add you return later? Thanks!

 

[scotlass]

I always book the first leg as soon as it's available and put it on hold until the return is also avaialble.

 

[frankhi]

Thanks, I booked the out bound, but they will only hold it 3 days. I need two weeks. Did you call back every 3 days, or were you able to get a longer hold time?

 

[Sandy]

Similar question:

I am trying to get USAir FF tix to the Caribbean. I know to wait until 330 days out.

My question is - do you have better luck calling on the phone or doing it online? Also, should I call/log online at precisely midnight? Eastern Standard time or some other time?

Thanks!

 

[Blondie]

I just got 3 FF tix to Mexico for next Feb on American. I did the get up at midnight thing as I had been watching flights the entire week before and saw that many went in the first 24 hours. Booked the outbound (and they held them for 2 weeks) and then I was able to book the return. Get this- the tix on the return were not available for Sat even though I went online 7 minutes after midnight-- so I got Sunday return. Then, I called to complete the deal as the first leg was on hold and I could not finish it online. The agent told me the Internet tix are indeed avialable at midnight but if you call they become available 24 hours earlier than that- hence the reason all the Sat seats were already gone!! I dod not know that so it would pay to acll and ask. I very easily could have lost out and this was a big fam trip we have been planning for awhile. If we did not get the tix we coul dnot have gone.

 

[turkel]

I booked a flight on USAirways from Boston to Scotland for July 2005 330 days ahead. At that time, there were no ff seats on a Saturday. I don't know if it's still that way.

I just tried to book USAIR FF tix for this august to hawaii Sat is totally Blacked out and they want 70000 miles per ticket for dates that don't work for us. We also have united miles ( but not enough) they are wide open on availability at 35000miles per tix.

I know they are partners so my hope is to call US AIR and get seats on united, we shall see if this works. I could not book 330 days out as I didn't have enough miles, actually Iam still 20000 miles short on US air but I am hoping that I could get 3 tix from them and 1 from United. Wish me luck, I am going to need it.

 

[Sandy]

Well - No Luck

I tried at exactly midnight 330 days out, and they told me that there were no seats available. Tried again in the morning, no luck.

I find it incredible that there were no seats, we are not even flying on a weekend! I thought a Monday flight would work.

I will keep trying.....