I have the option of using 60K FF miles for business class for free or $700 for RT with economy plus seating. Does anyone know what the business class is like on this flight? I'll have just flown from DC to Tokyo so I'm afraid of being a pretzel by the time I get to BKK. Thanks.

Looks like that is a 777. It would probably be their standard "bucket" seat. They are installing new lie-flat business class seats, but that is going to take a while. Don't know when it will be on that route.

I'd spend the miles instead of the dollars.

You can also take Singapore Airlines, ANA, or Thai on that route if they have availability. Only drawback to this is that after you start the trip you won't be able to change the return. If it is an award on United then you would be able to change the return date/time (assuming you are using United miles).

But if you have 90K miles you can make a free stopover in Tokyo enroute to OR from (not both) BKK.

Of course, with your 60K miles award, you would be able to depart from, and/or return to, other cities in Japan besides Tokyo.

Looks like that is a 777. It would probably be their standard "bucket" seat. They are installing new lie-flat business class seats, but that is going to take a while. Don't know when it will be on that route, but don't expect it. You will sleep on that flight on UA and it does beat E+

I'd spend the miles instead of the dollars.

You can also take Singapore Airlines, ANA, or Thai on that route if they have availability. Only drawback to this is that after you start the trip you won't be able to change the return.

If it is an award flying on United metal then you would be able to change the return date/time (assuming you are using United miles).

But if you have 90K miles you can make a free stopover in Tokyo enroute to OR from (not both) BKK.

Of course, with your 60K miles award, you would be able to depart from, and/or return to, other cities in Japan besides Tokyo.

I would never take the United flight between Tokyo and Bangkok unless I were on some very unusual schedule. UA's only Tokyo to Bangkok flight leaves around 7pm and arrive at midnight. ANA, Thai, and Singapore all have mid-morning departures that arrive in mid-afternoon, and the Thai and ANA evening flights both depart and arrive an hour earlier than United's. Plus, UA is *much* more susceptible to delays, because their flight is largley used as a connecting flight for ex-USA flights.

Seats on the United flight are better than those on Thai and ANA, but not by a whole lot. Service and food are better on Thai/ANA/Singapore. United service on their intra-Asia flights has in the past been several notches above their flights anywhere else -- their Asia-based cabin crews are generally very good.

Thank you both, mrwunrfl and rizzuto. I am arriving at NRT on United and the flight to BKK on United is a good connection. I think I'll spend the miles and hope for some sleep. It's always good to be able to get others' perspectives.

I am curious what your flight itinerary from/to D.C. You are taking the UA nonstop from IAD to NRT and connecting to BKK. Then you fly back to NRT and then what? Did you buy a ticket to Tokyo and then decide you wanted to go to Bangkok instead, or what?

The reason I am asking is that if you spent 90K miles you'd be able to fly the whole trip IAD-NRT-BKK in business class and make a stopover in Tokyo on the return.

Alternatively, if you purchased a ticket to Tokyo from D.C. you might be able to change it to a ticket to Bangkok from D.C with a stopover in Tokyo on the return. Might cost a bit more but an option to consider. Maybe even use 30K miles to upgrade IAD-NRT-BKK.

People don't usueally fly to Japan in order to start an award trip from there.

mrwunrfl,
I kept my original question brief on specifics but....I have a savers aware from IAD to NRT business for 90K. To get from IAD to BKK would have needed 200K for a standard award.

By breaking up the reservation, I now could use the 60K for an available standard award from NRT to BKK (again, no savers awards on this route).

Because the last leg is seven hours, I do think I'll use the 60K and try to congratulate myself total outlay will be 150K instead of 200K

Thanks for letting me think out loud about this.

gladtotravel, it sounds like you got one of United's not-very-well informed telephone agents -- of which there are many.

A saver award from IAD to BKK costs 90k miles, and you are allowed a stopover in Tokyo (in one direction or the other). If the agent said that no saver award flight was available from BKK to Tokyo, there's an overwhelming likelihood that the agent did not check the flights on the day after you arrive in NRT -- I believe that you could take any flight less than 24 hours after you arrive in NRT, and it would not even been counted as a stopover. I have never had any trouble getting a business class award seat on Thai or ANA for this route (Thai usually being easier than ANA). Even if you stay more than a day in Tokyo, it's no problem, as you are permitted that stopover.

Sorry, I should also have added that on a saver award, you can take any combination of Star Alliance partners. On a standard award, you can take only United.

rizzuto, it is the case that if the connection is made at NRT within 24 hours of arriving there that it won't be counted as a stopover. Once, when I called about an award I was told there were no available connecting flights out of Narita. I told the agent about the Singapore Air flight leaving the day after arrival (I think it was actually 23h 50m after arrival) and the agent put me on it.

gladtotravel, an example is Singapore Airlines #631 departing NRT at 9:25AM. Your flight from Dulles arrives NRT at 3:25PM. If you stayed overnight at a Narita Airport hotel then you could catch that flight (if award seat(s) available) the next day all for 90K plus the hotel cost ($100).

Or you could stay in Japan a day or two (a stopover) and then go on to BKK, as rizzuto suggested.

Another thing is that with your first award, the 90K one, there may not have been business class seats available for NRT-BKK, but maybe there were economy seats. You could spend the 90K for a business class award IAD-BKK but fly NRT-BKK-NRT in economy (and they should put you in E+ whether or not you have status).

If you already got the two awards then it would be 2x $100 to put them back in and rebook. But I would make an argument that they should waive one of the fees if you think the idea of downgrading NRT-BKK-NRT, as I just suggested, is a good one. The agent should have offered it as an option. Ask to speak to a supervisor if the agent doesn't help.

You really would want to have the NRT-BKK and BKK-NRT booked into NC (business class award) with an E+ seat assignment and waitlisted to business class (not sure if they would actually waitlist you, though, and I kind of doubt it).

Another option is to look for F availability at a 120K saver level, but I suppose you did that.

Actually the booking class would be XC.