I asked the customer service rep what was up, didn't get a direct answer. I saw a flat screen monitor which provided details regarding the flight and saw there was still a spot open in first class. I told him that I was definitely on that flight, even if it meant putting me in business or first class. I obtained those tickets at least a month before the flight and was told seating was available.
My mood was heightened by the fact that I really hadn't eaten dinner and the smell of steak sandwiches from the restaurant next door didn't help. Luckily, he found a seat in economy class for me. I ended up sort of babysitting two girls who were traveling without their parents.
I have come to the conclusion, after my two recent visits to St. Louis on US Airways and Delta, that if you are in First or Business Class, you get special treatment. If you are in Economy, you get decent treatment. Using Frequent Flyer miles in Economy/Coach? You may have a heartbeat but you are dead to the airline.
So really, what's the value in frequent flyer miles if you have so many hurdles to getting a flight, which will probably be a red-eye flight?
Timing was perfect as I saw at CNN.com, a Fortune magazine article about Best Travel Reward Cards.
Their advice gels with my thinking about frequent flyer miles:
It's because they give you little bang for your buck and limit your options. Airlines are flying fewer planes with cheaper fares, while a record number of people are accumulating countless frequent flyer miles. That translates to fewer available reward tickets that are worth less and less. Plus by earning miles on one airline, you're severely limiting your options for your next vacation.Instead, the article reports, turn your attention to credit cards or reward programs that give you points toward free hotel stay.
'For some reason, people seem to forget they spend more on an average hotel stay than they do on their airline fare to get there,' says Randy Peterson, editor of Inside Flyer Magazine. 'It just makes more sense to be invested in a hotel rewards program.'Not only would you really be saving money, the hotel reward programs are a bit more flexible than air mile reward programs.
But while hotel rates are setting record highs, they're also relatively easy to find free. At Starwood (Research), the parent company for such brands as Westin, W, Sheraton, St. Regis and Le Meridian, you can use Starwood Preferred Guest points for any available room. (It's also pretty easy with the other big chains like Marriott, Hyatt or Hilton, but many have minor restrictions.)I remember my stay at the Westin Bonaventure in Loss Angeles back in May of 1996. What a great hotel. So yeah, count me in. Too bad none of the hotels at Cape May offer frequent sleeper rewards. Then again, maybe that's not such a bad thing. One of Cape May's best qualities is that there aren't any hotel or restaurant chains.
[...]
That's because not only will accumulated Starpoints work for any of the more than 800 Starwood hotels, they can also be transferred to 30 different airlines. And best of all, for every 20,000 points transferred to an airline's frequent flyer account, you get a 5,000-mile bonus. 'It's as close to the Swiss Army Knife of rewards cards as it gets,' says Tim Winship who publishes FrequentFlier.com. 'It all comes down to simple math.'
