Marilyn xxxxx

We're planning a trip to Thailand, Vietnam - probably Smartours or Pacific Delight. We've heard horror stories about Northwest. Any experience with the 3 airlines flying economy class to Orient. (They won't let us use miles to upgrade and we're too cheap to spend the extra money!)

jill

Flown on both Korean Air and NW to asia several times, while my husband swears by Korean Air(we're Koreans)I thought NW was o.k. too. Major difference I've noticed: Korean Air has cleaner newer looking interior, cabin attendants are a lot quicker with your request and smile alot more. Downside, their English could do with some polishing, although if you run into serious block in communication, they seem to fly with at least 1 native speaker, 2nd NW probably have better safety record.

NoneOfMyBizBut...

Marilyn, you need to think in terms of your overall travel program instead of thinking about one trip in isolation. If you do that, you will be a long way toward finding the very best VALUE. <BR><BR>On a long haul like that, you need to examine affiliation agreements to see what your choice could really mean to you. That is an individual thing that relates to your personal travel patterns. In short, FF miles count and that is REGARDLESS of those who will decry that fact here on this board and elsewhere.<BR><BR>There is a general standard of service with coach class travel, with some airlines being better and some not quite as good, but there is really a limit to how bad things can be. Any of those airlines is likely to get you there in about the same condition on a more or less consistent basis.<BR><BR>Here's the bottom line in my case: if I fly NW as a gold elite, I assure myself of a lot of domestic upgrades in the coming year and double miles for everything I do. A trip to Bangkok gets me enough miles for a free ticket to Rio, plus change. So how hard do you think I'm going to look at flying a different carrier that can provide me with none of those spiffs? Answer: not very. <BR><BR>Better meals and a few inches of legroom over a couple of days of travel can't come close to negating the value I can receive by making the correct choice in this case. Neither can a couple of hundred dollars in ticket price (although I've never seen that much difference in the fares when I compare my plans anyway).<BR><BR>What is flying Korean Air going to do for you beyond this trip? What about United? What about Northwest? What's the price difference and how does it compare to what you will gain and/or give up on an OVERALL basis? It's as simple as answering those questions as they apply to you.

Marilyn

Dear none of my business but...I would agree with you if I flew often, but lately it seems most of my trips are tours and you can't use ff miles anyway. Aside from that, my travel companion recently had knee surgery so comfort for a couple of days does make a difference. <BR>Thanks Jill - the NW and KA comments help.

Kathie

I'm assuming you must not be frequent fliers on United, or you'd know about Economy Plus. United has a section reserved for their very frequent fliers that has about 5" more leg room. If you are a Premier (25,000 a year or more) in the Mileage Plus program, you'll be assigned a seat in that area. If you aren't a member of mileage plus, sign up anyway, and see if you can get a seat in that area. Otherwise, economy class is pretty much the same everywhere.<BR><BR>By the way, I agree that managing your frequent flier miles - and even more important - your frequent flier status can make all the difference in how you travel.

Marilyn

Thanks for the information. I do have ff miles on United so I'll check out the premier plus economy.

Roberto

UA has little or no planes that are crossing the Pacific that have Economy Plus at this time.<BR><BR>Frankly, all three airlines listed have economy seating that is about the same and equally painful for a long trip like crossing the Pacific.<BR><BR>Hopefully, you do not have three of my problems:<BR><BR>1. Having long legs<BR>2. Not sleeping well on planes<BR>3. Not sleeping on my back<BR><BR>But each day, hundreds of passengers survive just fine and have great trips!

John G

I just flew United from Newark to Bangkok and there was no Economy Plus available.<BR><BR>Service on United was very uneven. On leg from Seattle to Narita, the air hostesses were unbelievablly friendly and accomodating. On return, from Narita to Chicago, the air hostesses were morose, and even surly (some).<BR><BR>I don't agree coach service is all the same, I have flown Cathay Pacific and their coach service is head-and-shoulders above the rest. I think most Asian carriers are more service oriented.

Kathie

I fly United regularly across the Pacific from Seattle. I fly Business Class, so may not always be aware of how rapidly they've added economy plus to their trans-Pacific planes. But when I made my most recent reservations, they noted that they had economy plus. So do check with them before you book. Thanks for the "heads up" Roberto.

Marilyn

Thanks all. We just discovered that Korean Air and tour company will not guarantee an aisle seat, which would make trip of that length impossible, so now we're back to checking w/United and NW. As a last resort we might take land tour and make air arrangements on our own.

Elizabeth

I've flown NWA and UAL between China and the US extensively (back in cattle class most of the time) and they're about six of one, half a dozen of the other. Where are you flying to? One big attraction of UAL from Chicago is that it goes directly to Beijing, avoiding Tokyo and saving many hours. It's been awhile since I did that, though, so schedules may have changed. That direct flight gets booked fast, so if it's something you will consider, do it fast. NWA used to have a great direct route from Detroit to PEK but dropped it last spring because business travel was down so much. <BR><BR>I'd also suggest you look at airfares before deciding to take the tour's land-only option and booking your own air since tour companies usually get very low prices on the air and you might do better going with the default.<BR><BR>Elizabeth<BR><BR>

Marilyn

Thanks Elizabeth - it really is cattle class. We're flying from Chicago to Vietnam and returning from Bangkok. The nice thing about Korean Air is that it goes directly from Chicago.