My first paid premium fare. Was it a good idea?

[italdesign]

I haven't paid for an int'l flight in years. I always use miles to fly up front. Some things are simpler that way - better change policy (AA, WN), no fare difference for changes, no need to worry about status / where to credit miles to. However, with the advent of premium fare sales, I've been wondering if it makes sense to take advantage. I pulled the trigger on the QR CMB-BOS RT in J for $1,150. I don't live near Boston, and Colombo isn't my destination, so I have to book 2 extra tickets each way to complete the trip. That brings the total cost to around $1700, compared to burning 140k AA miles. Definitely more hassle this way - I likely have to go thru immigration at CMB, pick up bag & recheck it. On the plus side I will earn 17k AA miles and get Gold status if I credit miles to AA.

My main concern with this though is the increased IRROP risk. I will have THREE separate tickets on each one way journey. I do have Citi Prestige travel protections for some peace of mind, but here's the thing: usually these sales are for hub to hub (I don't live near one and am usually not going to one), so I would almost always end up with this situation (3 sep tickets; increased IRROP risk). I'm curious how you guys handle this. Do you give yourself an extra night / long layover between each ticket? Do nothing and pray nothing breaks? Or avoid these deals unless it's close to your origin/destination?

Also curious what options I have should my separately booked positioning flight delay and cause me to miss my QR flight. Would QR put me on the next available flight? Would I have to pay the fare difference (which might be massive)?

Thanks for any insight. These are things I didn't have to worry about on a single award ticket.

 

[italdesign]

I have a few more hours before the 24hr cancellation deadline. Trying to decide if this is a keeper. Would appreciate any knowledge on the IRROP questions:

Also curious what options I have should my separately booked positioning flight delay and cause me to miss my QR flight. Would QR put me on the next available flight? Would I have to pay the fare difference (which might be massive)?

 

[Matt]

The last flight I can remember paying for was about 7 years ago, I'm no expert here.. that said, in terms of the airlines making it right, it used to be technically better on OneWorld if you were flying within the Alliance, but apparently that has changed.

That said, I've had problems in the past and they get fixed... so with or without official support from the airlines they tend to do right by you (risk is here for sure).

BTW, we enjoyed MLE and CMB in the past, with about 4 nights in each (maybe more in CMB region) so worth the trip!

 

[Maverick17]

Depends on the location for me and the reputation of that locations for delays. In the US the few times I've done it, I give myself 4 hours or more to make up for a small delay. Where I've done it often is in the Philippines, where the airlines aren't partners with the alliances, and given the common delays at MNL, it is highly recommended to book into MNL the night before on the budget or local carrier, then head out the next day.

I'd be safe and give yourself a very long layover in CMB, as in overnight. BOS I wouldn't be too worried about, as your US connection should have better customer service to deal with and more options.

But I've never had to deal with an IRROPS, to be specific to your question. I've just planned for them a bit, but never had one show up and make things complicated.

 

[SanDiego1K]

I've done lots of trips in and out of CMB that required multiple tickets. It sounds as though you are flying for the miles. I didn't do that, I flew for the destination. If I were making the trip, I'd want to spend some time in Sri Lanka or even go on to Male and then some time in Boston or head north along the coast to southern Maine. That eliminated the risk of connections with multiple tickets. I looked at the ticket as it was a very appealing price. But I didn't want to go thru positioning at either end and decided against it.

 

[smittytabb]

I've done lots of trips in and out of CMB that required multiple tickets. It sounds as though you are flying for the miles. I didn't do that, I flew for the destination. If I were making the trip, I'd want to spend some time in Sri Lanka or even go on to Male and then some time in Boston or head north along the coast to southern Maine. That eliminated the risk of connections with multiple tickets. I looked at the ticket as it was a very appealing price. But I didn't want to go thru positioning at either end and decided against it.

I totally agree. Sri Lanka is fascinating. I cannot wait to go back. And in terms of them assisting with IRROPS on two tickets? YMMV. Helps if you have status and if your two tickets are on the same airline or alliance. Even without that it really depends who is on the other side of the counter when this happens to you and how you handle it. And of course what options there even are to offer you matter. I think it has gotten harder in general for anyone in this situation because the airlines used to just put you on another carrier much more easily than they do now. Allow a comfortable amount of time between the tickets depending on how risk averse you are.

 

[italdesign]

It sounds as though you are flying for the miles.

Not at all. I'm flying for the destination, but it isn't Sri Lanka. It's Singapore on the outbound and maybe China on the inbound - the trips were planned a while ago but lacked tickets, so I filled in with this ticket. I would like to explore Sri Lanka on the inbound of this itin (which you're right, would solve the multi-ticket problem) but for the outbound I think it's going to be a straight up connection.

Well, I'll try anything once.

 

[Coldmode]

Traveling internationally I get antsy if I have anything less than an overnight when positioning. Just seems like leaving too much to chance to trust an airline to get you someplace in a small window if your travel is split between multiple tickets, since the airline won't be obligated to make you whole if you miss the flight you're connecting to.