Airlines see last-minute or Business travelers coming from a mile away; they often leave tell-tale patterns, as clear as a jet’s white trail, against a deep blue sky. Here’s a way to fly under the airline-pricing radar.
Business travelers tend to book on short notice AND/OR they travel mid-week, as they want to be home for the weekend. With these signs, a little bell rings at airline HQ: “We’ve got another one: crank up the fare!”
Last-minute and Business travelers (particularly if they have their own business) detest paying these disproportionately-high fares, but they know that the airlines have them over a barrel (and the barrel is at the top of Niagara Falls).
We See Another Dynamic at Play
Now, here at FCF, we see another dynamic at play that most business travelers don’t take into account: close-in mileage-seat availability. On many airlines, “Sweet Redeems” (routes with unusual very-low-cost premium class award availability) become a lot more prevalent a week or two out from the departure date, often.
The airlines have learned how to play the final two minutes of the game.
And So An FCF Strategy Is Born:
The Stump, Jump, and Dump
Here’s how it plays:
- Stump up for whatever Business Class airfare your trip requires.
- Jump on a lucrative “Sweet Redeem” award when it comes up closer to departure. This could mean using existing miles, or buying miles (more cost-effective) if you don’t have them.
- Dump that high priced cash ticket. You may be able to get a complete refund, but more likely there will be a fee (relatively minor compared to the savings), to be able to use the cost of the ticket for a future flight, usually 12 months from the booking date.
Here’s The Stump, Jump and Dump in Screenshots
As an example, take the New York-London fare on American in the screenshot below. A typical Business Class walk-up fare (meaning within two weeks of departure) is $7,622. If you must get to your meeting in Business Class and there are no other options, Stump up for it in the meantime.
Next, short-term availability opens up at low-cost mileage rates (115,000 miles round-trip). We say: Jump on it!
And finally, the next screenshot shows the cost of that “Sweet Redeem” award opportunity if you have to buy miles: $3,392 (not including the current buy miles promotion, which offers a 10% cash savings and 35,000 bonus miles). So, instead of paying $7,622, it’s costing $3,392 to buy 115,000 miles, a savings of $4,230, less any fees for refunds and the like, which is what will happen when you happily Dump that first high-priced cash ticket.
If you already have the miles, you’re laughing all the more.
There’s Also a Play at First
Another way to play the Stump, Jump, and Dump is to use the savings to upgrade to First Class, always enticing for a transatlantic flight. For a First Class fare, normally around $10,000+, it equates to an upgrade for the price of a Business Class fare, if not less.
In other words, using your miles to get a First Class ticket (or by buying the miles required if you don’t have any or enough) can cost substantially less than the original Business Class ticket you bought.