How do you GET an upgrade?
 

I keep reading about all these folks who magically get an upgrade to business or first class...how exactly do you go about doing that? (Asking 'cause I just priced a rt ticket to London at $782 for economy, $6385 [!] for business, and !!!$11,045!!! for first class!)

Travel a lot, and remember that those of us who have gotten upgrades didn't get one 90% of the time. But having a high number of frequent flyer miles supposedly helps.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

But what do you DO? Just walk up to the desk attendant and say "Hey there, I wanna fly first class!"???

Assuming you are an "elite" frequent flier, try the following.<BR>1. Look for friendliest person at check-in counter and try to get him/her to check in.<BR>2. Make small talk whilst checking in. Be nice.<BR>3. Ask, "is it possible to upgrade on this flight?" Some fares they won't upgrade no matter who you are.<BR>4. If yes, ask "how many miles?"<BR>5. Think about it, then say "no, I can't do that. I'm saving my miles to take my gramma on vacation. Any chance of a complimentary upgrade?"<BR>6. Smile sweetly.<BR><BR>It's worked 50% of the time for me and I _am_ saving my miles for gramma.

It doesn't happen much any more, as the planes are already packed, so there are no seats available to upgrade you to. <BR><BR>The advice from kt about being nice (and being a frequent flyer) is right on the mark. You're not in a hurry, you think the world of the airline and its staff, etc. Being incredibly patient while the guy in front of you is having a melt down is especially good. <BR><BR>Dress nicely. Dress like you belong in business class. <BR><BR>Even if you don't end up in business class, you may end up with a better seat (emergency exit row or bulkhead seat, both of which I prefer to regular seats, maybe even an empty seat beside you). <BR><BR>Where you're flying out of makes a difference as well. I fly Delta out of Atlanta. Sometimes they don't even bother to pre-board flights (though these are usually domestic), as pretty much everybody on the plane is already medallion.

Sometimes you don't even have to be a frequent flyer to get an upgrade. Being pleasant of course is key. Before 9/11 about 50% of the time I was able to get an upgrade on domestic flights and once I was able to do so on a transatlantic flight without being a frequent flyer. Have not been as sucessful since but have asTherese stated ended up with a better seat. My theory is that it never hurts to ask. That ASK, not DEMAND.

We got an upgrade from Gatwick to Atlanta without even asking. Of course, the fact that the plane was full, and business class was not, helped. Also, that I was booked on 3 flights on Delta in an 8 week time frame, helped a bit too.<BR>We walked up to the tkt counter, and the agent said that the computer bumped us into Business class. <BR>BTW, it was an exceptional flight(I wouldn't sleep, cause it was so much fun!), and my hats off to Delta. If I had the extra cash, I would alwys fly BC, I hardly felt any the nasty jet lag the next day! Oh well, you never know,<BR>Judy :-)

Upgrades on trans-oceanic flights are a tough commodity, even for elite status flyers. I always buy the cheapest seats I can, which are not upgradeable with miles. But on a recent trip back from Paris, I was first in the check-in line for 1st/business class (a perk of being mid-level elite). I noted that I believed coach was overbooked, but business class was underbooked. I smiled and said I would happily volunteer to give up my coach seat -- in exchange for a seat in business class. It was a good laugh at the counter, but I was placed on the waitlist and voila, I flew home in biz. (And incidentally, it is NOT like domestic first class -- it's absolutely decadent by comparison). Sometimes, you just get lucky. :o)

I was upgraded last year because of a strike, which meant my entire routing had to be changed. The ticket agent kept apologizing all over the place. I said it certainly wasn't her fault. And I said that I am sure she was going to have a bad enough day as it was rebooking everybody. Others in front of me had already yelled at her. Anyway, she still kept apologizing. <BR><BR>I am slow, it took me awhile, and then I sweetly asked if I could have an upgrade. She even looked relieved that I had given her an out. <BR><BR>I agree, business class trans-Atlantic is the best, especially flying Europe to U.S. which I find more dreadful than the other way. I really wish I could do it all the time.

ttt, EVER

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I just had my first-ever upgrade on a domestic flight. I had no idea why I was chosen, but it seems to fit with what others are saying. I was flying for business, with two cross-country trips within a few weeks of one another. I was dressed for business. The only other factor may have been the fact that I arrived at the airport exceptionally early. Other than that, while I'm a frequient flyer, I'm not special status, and in this case I didn't even ask for the upgrade. Sometimes it IS magic!

It's not really magic, it's computers! No honestly it really is, well at least it is on United. <BR><BR>I was watching a belligerent man one morning at O'Hare being very unpleasant to a gate agent. The man's travel agent had assured him that he was first on the stand-by list for that flight out. The gate agent very nicely explained to him that United's waitlist is not a "first come/first serve" proposition. It constantly changes and re-prioritizes according to frequent flyer status and ticket price. <BR><BR>So I'm not surprised when someone says they were picked to upgrade and don't know why. The previous poster may have been picked because of a more expensive ticket and/or from having flown cross country recently. Airlines don't give away things for "free." They have an empty seat in first class that is going to fly with the plane whether someone sits in it or not. They wanted to please this frequent flyer into sending more business their way.

David, that's not always the case. On a domestic United flight that was overbooked recently, my daughter volunteered to be "bumped" to a later flight. She was given a voucher for a free trip and also upgraded to first-class on the later flight. She's a student with no frequent flyer status and was traveling on a cheapo ticket. The only thing I can figure out is that some kindhearted agent decided to brighten her day.

Traveling economy on a Lufthansa flight from Boston to Frankfurt, I was seated in a row of three towards the back near the bathrooms. The middle seat was empty and a well-dressed, aloof woman was sitting at the window. A married couple came down the aisle and approached our row. The couple said to the well-dressed woman that she was in their seat. The woman raised her eyebrows and sighed, then begrudgingly compared her tickets. When they realized that they were booked for the same seat, the seated woman shrugged and simply looked out the window. The married couple were shocked and turned to report the situation to the stewardess. As they were walking away, I smiled and said "I'd be happy to give up my seat so you can sit together." They thanked me appreciatively and approached the stewardess. I watched their conversation and had a hunch that I should stay on my toes. At one point, they all looked over at me, and I smiled and waved. When they came back to the row to let me know that they were moving me to first class, the seated woman who was so rude before could barely breathe as her jaw dropped wide open. She made a pitiful attempt to protest, but was too late, as the stewardess was leading me to my new seat smiling, and saying "good trade eh"<BR><BR>I think that usually you just have to be lucky, but being alert, attentive, and friendly has its rewards as well!

Same thing happened to my boyfriend and I traveling from Sydney to Seoul on Singapore Airlines...we were in a double-booked seat; as the people arriving after us started to have attitudes with the stewardess, we simply starting re-gathering our things to move- we were then shown to business class...and on Singapore, it's amazing!! Unfortunately, I fell asleep half-way through the wine list; the seat was too comfortable.

It's pretty much covered above but let me add that it varies tremendously by airline.<BR>United- Strictly by the book<BR>American-Same<BR>old TWA-Easiest upgrade lots of gate agent discretion.<BR>Continental- Also very friendly with lots of gate agent discretion. Expensive ticket helps FF helps too even at the lowest level.<BR>Delta- Somewhere between Continental and United. Full fare you can usually get a bump.<BR>USAir- Used to be a little flexible, now just like United and American.<BR>Tranatlantic is a very tough upgrade and depends almost entirely on luck (dress and demeanor DEFINITELY make a difference) Being young (20-35)and good looking sometimes helps a little too.

Great Cinderella stories. J.

I recently saw something about Delta Airlines offering very inexpensive upgrades (if available) when you get to the airport. I suspect this may only apply to domestic flights, but it's certainly worthwhile asking about.<BR>

<BR>SIA, I totally agree with you. Getting a lucky upgrade on Singapore Airlines is luckier than being granted a miracle. No one I know of who has flown that excellent airline (except you, now) has been so fortunate. I flew them from LA to Singapore via Tokyo several years ago and despite making non-smoking seat reservations months in advance, ended up being seated in the midle of the then smoking section at the back of the plane. I am allergic to smoke in a confined space and valiantly tried to explain my situation to the purser, complete with itching eyes and wheezy speech (asthma) but they would not budge. Extremely polite but no moving an inch, not even to offer a non-smoking seat elsewhere in economy. She even admitted that the business section was less than a quarter full but that she couldn't move me elsewhere.