Asia Bound Business Class Barons Can Brag by Using United (and Amex Points) Partner All Nippon Airways’ Mileage Upgrades

March 2021
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It may be the last place you think to save money, but there’s potential for a $5,936 / 75% savings in this special report.

In lockdown times, we’ve been experiencing a lot of change in the world of air travel, but you need to stay open-minded. What worked yesterday might not work today, and vice versa. People who are stuck doing things the old way will miss new opportunities, and believe me, they’re out there waiting for anyone ready.

With that in mind, FCF’s research team is on the case. We will be reviewing the best trends in premium air travel, turning over rocks, and looking behind the fridge to find the latest and greatest deals for you. And it all starts with Mr. Upgrade’s favorite travel tactic over the years: the mileage upgrade.

There are lots of ways mileage upgrades are special. Start with the fact that they are the most overlooked and underutilized premium air travel price-slashing tool on the planet. Ok, maybe our Leg Stretch Strategy is up there too.

So let’s get specific – I’m talking to you, United loyalists.

Problem:
United’s Stingy Confirmable Upgrade Availability

United travelers typically look to use miles to upgrade instead of a free award ticket, because they want to earn elite status credit. But here’s the problem: United is famous for hanging its loyalty program members out to dry with expectations that a waitlisted mileage upgrade might become free, let alone the fantasy of having it confirmed at the time of ticketing. You “earn” miles, but good for what?

Solution:
Mileage Upgrade Opportunities With United’s Elite Status Earning Partner, All Nippon Airways

Forget about United mileage upgrades to Asia unless you want to roll the dice and play upgrade-waitlist roulette. If you’re a United Elite and still want to upgrade and earn PQPs, use All Nippon Airways, an Amex transfer partner, to confirm an upgrade at the time of booking. You do earn fewer PQPs with this method (LAX-Tokyo earns only 16% less PQP’s), but being able to confirm an upgrade at the time of booking easily makes up for it, right?

All Nippon Airways (ANA), an Amex points-to-miles transfer partner, allows upgrades from economy to both Premium Economy and Business Class with most low fares. Meanwhile, United charges 10,000 more miles and a $900 co-pay.

Sample Savings With All Nippon Airways / Amex Points

New York-Tokyo R/T
Lowest Business Class fare: $7,948
Lowest economy upgradeable fare: $2,012
Number of All Nippon Airways (or Amex transferable points) miles: 56,000
Savings: $5,936 / 75%

Value of Amex points you might use in this scenario is 56,000 divided by $5,936 = 10.6 cents per mile of value. In other words, stop getting one or two cents or less of value for miles and points!

Los Angeles-Tokyo R/T
Lowest Business Class fare: $5,602
Lowest economy upgradeable fare: $1,944
Number of All Nippon Airways (or Amex transferable points) is 50,000 miles R/T
Savings: $3,658 / 65%

United’s Skimpy Upgrade Availability Compared With All Nippon Airways

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Yes! ANA Flights Will Earn You United Elite Credit

Comparing ANA vs. United Mileage Upgrades

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Things to Know About ANA Upgrades

  • Upgrade mileage cost is based on distance
  • ANA’s website is user-friendly and it’s easy to check upgrade space online
  • Transfer time from Amex to ANA is often instantaneous
  • There’s no co-pay on ANA
  • Upgrades permitted on G, E, Y, B, M, U, and H fares
  • Refunds: ANA exchange up to one year with no fee, refund $300 penalty (waived if due to virus). ANA rules based on the fare purchased.
  • Redeposit fees: ANA will redeposit unexpired miles with no fee.

Don’t Live in an ANA Gateway? No Problem

ANA.co allows you to book connecting flights on United from your departure city, but note that it will be in economy (these short-haul United flights are not eligible for the ANA mileage upgrade).

How to Book in 5 Easy Steps

  1. Go to ANA’s website, sign-in, enter your departure and arrival cities, travel dates, and number of passengers. Choose economy class and “Fares which are eligible for upgrade to Business Class.” Click SEARCH.
  2. Under each fare type, you will see “YES” if this fare is eligible for an upgrade, along with which cabin you can upgrade to. If “YES,” scroll to mid-page and select “Reflect upgrade availability.” To the left under “Upgrade” you can see if Business Class seats are available for your chosen flight. Do the same for the return flight.
  3. Book and pay for your ticket.
  4. Then go to your account and click “view reservation” and request the upgrade one segment at a time. Finally, go to your account and click “view reservation” to request seat assignments in Business Class.

Process the upgrade right after you book the economy seat in a matter of minutes. Note that upgrade space changes by the second and is not a guarantee until you actually confirm your reservation, so do it immediately. However, All Nippon does allow you to cancel your ticket within 24 hours with no penalty, so you’re covered.

How to Book:

Here’s how I got a $7,948 ticket for just $2,012 and 56,000 miles.
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<small>*Months in <u>black</u> at least one seat available; in <span style="color: #6699cc;"><u>blue</u></span> at least two seats.</small>
[["Comparing <a href=\"https://www.united.com/en/us\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">United.com</a> Upgrading vs <a href=\"https://www.ana.co.jp/en/us/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">ANA.com</a> Upgrading","#colspan#","#colspan#","#colspan#"],["Los Angeles - Tokyo","Co-pay","Total Cost","Upgrade Mileage Cost"],["United Flight","$1,150","$2,270","60,000"],["ANA Flight","$0","$2,066","50,000"]]
[["Comparing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.united.com\/en\/us\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">United.com<\/a> vs <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ana.co.jp\/en\/us\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">ANA.com<\/a> Elite Earning","#colspan#","#colspan#","#colspan#"],["Los Angeles - Tokyo","PQF Earned","PQP Earned","PQP earn rate"],["United","2","870","<a href=\"https:\/\/mileageplusupdates.com\/mileageplus\/english\/qualification\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">1 PQP per every $1 spend.<\/a>"],["All Nippon","2","727","<a href=\"https:\/\/mileageplusupdates.com\/mileageplus\/english\/qualification\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Miles earned divided by 5.<\/a>"]]