Crazy BKK prices for December!
 

DH is all booked for his arrival in BKK in early December. He arrives from ZRH. Me.. I fly in from ORD. In checking prices for the dates I need, the fare is over 2k for an economy ticket. I check flight details and see that all the cheap seats are taken. Anyone think they will have to open up more seats? This is on UA. DS would also like to find a cheap ticket. His dates are running about $1800 right now.

Wait it out? Cry in my beer? Let DH go it alone in BKK for 4 weeks over Chrismas and New Year...(NOT!!)...?

At this point, I'm waiting.......... but I hate to wait too long!

Carol

Try looking at flights from JFK or LA, the combo might be a little cheaper than out of O'Hare.

I'll look, Andy. SEA is a cheaper routing option, but I really don't want to go thru SEA. What I'd prefer is 881/882 on UA (ORD-NRT-BKK/BKK-NRT-ORD) but those are priced so high. UGH... I'm sure I'll find something.... patience...

if you can travel before Dec 9 and return before Dec 30 or after Jan 7 the fares are not too bad.

Or if you can connect via Singapore (UA - Dec 9 return Jan 7) the fare is only $980. Then connect to BKK from SIN using Tiger Airways for super cheap fares of < 120 SGD.

My dates are not flexible (by much). I wish they were! I need to go on Dec 15-16-17 and return on Jan 3-4. That's it. I can see that rates go down if I return on Jan 5... but I just can't do that.

why not look at a united partner??

Bob
I just did a search on star alliance. A UA/Thai mix (via LAX) is quite a bit more money! I'll just keep watching, for now.

Carol

call united and ask what they can offer

It is your return date, of course, that is the problem. The Jan. 4 return is on H fares (upgradeable for 30,000 miles or 1 SWU). Jan. 5 is a V fare that you would be able to upgrade with a SWU but not miles.

mrwunrfl
Now that I'm much more aware of those fare codes, I've been looking to see what is available. But, do they open up more fares later on? The planes aren't full yet!
Carol

Just did a check on Vayama AA is $1485 ORD-BKK leaving 12/16 returning 1/4

Nywoman... I'm a star alliance person. I really do not like AA, having had several problems with them some 10 years ago or so. They also have cheaper prices from ORD to BKK, but I am not going to purchase AA tickets!! I want UA!!

Sorry I'm going to miss meeting you at the BKK GTG, btw.

Carol

I just did a different sort of search. On the Jan 4th flight, the seats are almost all taken for the BKK to NRT portion, but plenty of seats available for the NRT to ORD flight! In that case, I could fly Thai to NRT and then UA to ORD. But how does one go about booking that configuration? It doesn't show up when I do a UA search. Do I need to call a UA rep? Thoughts?
Carol

In this case I think it would be well worth it to call UA and pay the booking fee. There is some luck involved, but I was quite pleased with the results of my call.

Yes, I'd call them, Carol. On complicated arrangements I always call them.

Femi
Now I'm curious... you were equite pleased with the results of your call?? Can you shed any light on that without giving away secrets??

I'll pay the $25 if it's worth my time.

Carol

There's no secret to it. I was looking for an award ticket to South Africa, and they routed me from LAX via Singapore which I would never have found on my own. In fact, I've tried to do a dummy booking and it's not allowed.

They've also helped with upgrades on other trips, to which I would otherwise have had no access.

Plus, there's no fee to call, you only pay if they find a booking you like.

P.S. I'm following your thread on the airlines forum. I had thought I would stick with Star Alliance forever, but all of a sudden (yeah, right ;) ) I've found myself with status on Skyteam via NW. Never say never.

Duh! I was referring to what you said on this thread about never going with AA.

I never was very good at multi-tasking!

Over the years, I've had really good experiences calling and talking things over with the airlines. This is the one area in which the US carriers excel. The responders have almost always been very helpful. It works especially well if you're online at the same time. A few years ago, i booked a BOS-BKK flight for $808 on the phne with United. At the same time, the online fare was $100 more. As Femi said, there's no charge to call them.

Thanks, guys. I'm encouraged to call them! I got our upgrades to HNL next Sunday (and return also) by calling the # on my UA gold star alliance card.

But... if the flights you want aren't available (by dummy booking).. and you book with the UA person on the phone, doesn't that incur the fee? I don't mind it at all, if they get me a good deal. And since I'm a very frequent flier, they should be nice to me... haha

Carol

Yes, they might offer tix at the lower priced booking codes. Maybe not.

I don't think I would buy an H fare unless I was going to ug w/ miles. I'd figure that they are not going to fill the cabin with H fares, so you should be able to get one at a later date than today.

You might call United and ask about their policy if the fare drops. They changed their policy back in the spring, but I did a quick check and didn't see the new policy (which I had seen before). Maybe they changed it again. There might be a fee but might be worthwhile.

Hey there. AA is really not that bad, especially the flights to Japan. The last Tokyo-JFK flight I had was one of the best flights I have ever had, on any airline. As you may know, ANA has a decent fare but you have to leave Dec 31. I feel your pain - we would have loved to go in December but the prices are astronomical.

mywunrfl
I've got plenty of miles to do an upgrade, but I didn't want to pay that price because I assumed I'd be permanently waitlisted for it and never clear, after paying the price!

puttakka, enjoy your trip! Did you get your hotels all figured out yet?

Register with Yapta.com they will notify you if prices drop. If you have already purchased your ticket and prices drop they will also let you know if you qualify for a discount. A nifty little site.

Thanks for that tip, Nywoman!

Hi Carol- We're having the same problem and can't justify spending nearly $2k for a ticket when we usually spend half as much. Seats are hard to come by with the agent we normally use. It bums me out because I've always fancied spending the Xmas holidays in Thailand. Mang aoy!

mango, As I said before, I WILL go to Bangkok over the holidays. So will DS. DH already has his Swissair ticket from ZRH to BKK. I am not going to have him spend the holidays on his own in BKK... haha I'll find something that I can live with. Hope you can do the same.

The chances of a mileage upgrade will be significantly enhanced by being a 1K.

When is the flight that will get you to 100K EQMs when the double EQMs post?

Would be a $250 change fee to a lower fare.

I'll be at 1K after the Oct/Nov BKK trip, and before I head to ZRH. But I'll bet we don't see the miles posted before I need to head back to BKK in mid-December. Depends on how long it takes for miles to post.

The offer said 4 to 6 weeks.

I don't know when your November return is, but they may post before you leave. You wouldn't be able to upgrade your outbound W fare unless you got 1K and were able to get an early deposit of SWUs.

But for the return trip in H, you just need the DEQMs to post by ~ Dec. 29 or 30. When you do get to 1K you call United to have them put you on the PA list (see the link below). You will still be behind some 1Ks, but when the 100-hour window opens (on 12/30 or 31 or Jan 1) you will be there as a 1K. If you still don't get upgraded by the time the flight goes under DM, then at that point you would jump ahead of other 1Ks (those with Q,V,W fares) because of your H fare.

At least I think that is what happens. You could post at flyertalk to see what they say.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/7967362-post233.html

Hi Carol!!

Haven't firmed up our Bangkok hotels yet - we are really hoping maybe to score a deal at one of the gorgeous hotels (we may never be able to afford such a hotel anywhere else). I have a feeling prices are going to come down.

Have you thought to fly on Xmas day? Sometimes you get good deals that way. Or try a travel agent that specializes in Asia? Sometimes they have access to good fares because they bought them in advance.

A

Sorry, didn't notice that your dates are fixed. I'd try a travel agent that specialises in Asia. I find that HIS is pretty good for Japan; they also have some insight into when the fare may drop! For example, I chanced upon a great fare for peak season Japan travel last Feb; called HIS and they advised me to wait til April. I didn;t listen to them and bought my $1000 fare; three months later, the same flight was $800! Grrrr.

Hi Puttakka
If you can swing the Peninsula in Bangkok, you'd love it, I think. I've stayed there a couple of times. I prefer it over the Oriental, where I've also stayed once.

Now, my hangout is in the Sukhumvit area. I may or may not go down to the river during a 2-week Bangkok stay. It's too far out of the way for visiting my friends and shopping places.. lol

I see on the Boston GTG thread that you may decide to join us. That's be great! Hope to see you there.

Carol

I see that my crazy BKK price today (for my dates) is over $3k. Seats are almost gone on the BKK-ORD return. I think I need to talk to UA and ask them about returning via Hong Kong instead of NRT. That sort of option doesn't appear in the list of flights when I put in my dates.

That's a reason to call United. I've often found that a good agent can find me something via a different routing. If you get someone who isn't helpful - call back.

Carol, I know you HATE American but I found a flight on expedia on your dates for $1213 RT, taxes and fees included.

Traveling to Bangkok
Tue 15-Dec-09


Chicago (ORD)
Depart 10:35 am
Terminal 3 to Shanghai (PVG)
Arrive 3:05 pm +1 day
Terminal 2 7,055 mi
(11,354 km)
Duration: 14hr 30mn
AA
Flight: 289

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3Economy/Coach Class, Boeing 777


Wed 16-Dec-09

Shanghai (PVG)
Depart 5:20 pm
Terminal 2 to Bangkok (BKK)
Arrive 9:15 pm 1,788 mi
(2,878 km)
Duration: 4hr 55mn
TG
Flight: 665

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3Economy/Coach Class, Meal, AIRBUS INDUSTRIE A340-600


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Total distance: 8,843 mi (14,231 km)
Total duration: 19hr 25mn (21hr 40mn with connections)


Traveling to Chicago
Mon 4-Jan-10


Bangkok (BKK)
Depart 10:35 am to Shanghai (PVG)
Arrive 3:50 pm
Terminal 2 1,788 mi
(2,878 km)
Duration: 4hr 15mn
TG
Flight: 664

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3Economy/Coach Class, Meal, AIRBUS INDUSTRIE A340-600


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Shanghai (PVG)
Depart 6:00 pm
Terminal 2 to Chicago (ORD)
Arrive 5:05 pm
Terminal 5 INTERNATIONAL 7,055 mi
(11,354 km)
Duration: 13hr 5mn
AA
Flight: 288

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3Economy/Coach Class, Boeing 777


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Total distance: 8,843 mi (14,231 km)
Total duration: 17hr 20mn (19hr 30mn with connections

I should add that I fly American all the time and they have a great frequent flier program.

Thanks puttakka, but I'm making 1K (the bottom in the seat way) this year on UA. I was talking about it on another thread, in the airline forum. I "need" that BKK flight on UA to assure reaching 1K. There's no way I'm going to fly on AA... sorry. I appreciate your time and attention to this matter, I really do!

Time to call UA.

Carol