Grandparents insist on taking my kids’ first class seats

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s economy, not cargo. The grandparents will survive. If they truly *needed* business class, they would have paid for it. They’re freeloaders. And I bet they are not 85.

Right? It's not that the OP is dining first class on the titanic and sending her parents to steerage. And come ON people, it's what - a 6 hour flight?

9 hours in the air to Athens. 10 on the return. Remember you have to fly all the way across Europe- it's quite a bit further than anywhere in western Europe.

So you people really think coach is that horrible? It’s not high comfort, but it isn’t torture FFS. Suck it up and save $4500 per person.

Seriously. Coach is not torture. I have flown 25 hours in middle seats for work trips. It’s not great but just suck it up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. DH has done some investigating and has an idea. Curious to people’s thoughts. My parents could cancel their current tickets and keep the $3K future flight credit. Then, DH can buy them two new round-trip business class tickets using FF miles. It will cost 744,000 FF miles for both at current prices. For reference, we spent about 320,000 for the four we already have, so they are way more expensive now, but still better than paying cash. Then, all 6 of us will be in Polaris business class both ways and all 6 of us can access the IAD Polaris Lounge before departure. In exchange, DH thinks we should ask my parents for $3K to help offset the FF costs since they’re still walking away with $3K in future flight credits that only my parents can use for themselves in the future.

I think my parents would go for this. They will have spent $6K total on airfare, $3K of which they can use in the future and the $3K they committed to spending on flights to ATH. The other alternative is to upgrade my parents current tix to business class using $8K cash (PlusPoints and miles upgrades are waitlist only and DH says they’ll never clear). The cash upgrade seems like a bad value vs. the FF miles option.

Okay now I am curious how you got 4 roundtrips to Europe in business for 320k. Even under the old.award chart (which United blew up last month), it was 60k each way per person, so would be 480k.

Yeah - I'm dying to know this. We look at FF tickets to go back home to Europe pretty much daily, and I have no idea how you made this happen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You know that your husband is United GS but don’t know that the flight doesn’t have first?
99% sure I am correct on that.

Calling troll on this one.

NP. They’re loving the pages of people going of on this.

I called it out on page 3 of this. OP was like oopsie! Definitely a troll.

My husband and I fly monthly internationally and we often use first and business interchangeably. Even though, I rarely fly first (always business). Some people just say it as an all encompassing statement for premium seating.

And some airlines have different first and business cabins, and other airlines have changed what they call different cabins, so it's all a bit confusing to me (I don't fly often) and I use business and interchangeably too. Not saying OP isn't a troll but I don't think that's a smoking gun.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Your wealthy husbands is asking your parents for $3,000 each? There is something so distasteful about this.

Between family members. It is not some business negotiation.

Sorry for you all. Values seem to have gotten lost along the way.

What makes you think he is wealthy? We are not, but my husband has high status on a different airline and millions of miles for his JOB. It doesn't make us rich in anyway. We get to travel the world, but it means I don't see him for 50% of the year.

Don't be a jerk.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You know that your husband is United GS but don’t know that the flight doesn’t have first?
99% sure I am correct on that.

Calling troll on this one.

NP. They’re loving the pages of people going of on this.

I called it out on page 3 of this. OP was like oopsie! Definitely a troll.

My husband and I fly monthly internationally and we often use first and business interchangeably. Even though, I rarely fly first (always business). Some people just say it as an all encompassing statement for premium seating.

And some airlines have different first and business cabins, and other airlines have changed what they call different cabins, so it's all a bit confusing to me (I don't fly often) and I use business and interchangeably too. Not saying OP isn't a troll but I don't think that's a smoking gun.

Yeah, that's such a weird thing to harp on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. DH has done some investigating and has an idea. Curious to people’s thoughts. My parents could cancel their current tickets and keep the $3K future flight credit. Then, DH can buy them two new round-trip business class tickets using FF miles. It will cost 744,000 FF miles for both at current prices. For reference, we spent about 320,000 for the four we already have, so they are way more expensive now, but still better than paying cash. Then, all 6 of us will be in Polaris business class both ways and all 6 of us can access the IAD Polaris Lounge before departure. In exchange, DH thinks we should ask my parents for $3K to help offset the FF costs since they’re still walking away with $3K in future flight credits that only my parents can use for themselves in the future.

I think my parents would go for this. They will have spent $6K total on airfare, $3K of which they can use in the future and the $3K they committed to spending on flights to ATH. The other alternative is to upgrade my parents current tix to business class using $8K cash (PlusPoints and miles upgrades are waitlist only and DH says they’ll never clear). The cash upgrade seems like a bad value vs. the FF miles option.

Okay now I am curious how you got 4 roundtrips to Europe in business for 320k. Even under the old.award chart (which United blew up last month), it was 60k each way per person, so would be 480k.

Yes, we need a spin off thread about this! When booking 4 tickets to Paris earlier this spring, 60k would maybe cover 1 ticket in Economy and I am not even sure it was both ways. I don’t have as high status on United, though. We ended up booking another airline

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Your wealthy husbands is asking your parents for $3,000 each? There is something so distasteful about this.

Between family members. It is not some business negotiation.

Sorry for you all. Values seem to have gotten lost along the way.

What makes you think he is wealthy? We are not, but my husband has high status on a different airline and millions of miles for his JOB. It doesn't make us rich in anyway. We get to travel the world, but it means I don't see him for 50% of the year.

Don't be a jerk.

It sounds like the grandparents are not poor. Her father retired from the military so he’s probably ok and they are secretive about money.

[Anonymous]

This has to be a troll. Of course grandparents should be in first class, unless the kids have special needs or a really large / tall.

[Anonymous]

My favorite part of this is that OP thinks maybe she should have her daughter sit in coach so she can see how normal people get to their Greek Isle cruises.

Normal people drive to their campsite or Grandma’s for their vacation.

This wouldn’t happen to me because I never would have been OK with my kids sitting in a better seat than grandparents. But I see how it’s awkward to change now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. DH has done some investigating and has an idea. Curious to people’s thoughts. My parents could cancel their current tickets and keep the $3K future flight credit. Then, DH can buy them two new round-trip business class tickets using FF miles. It will cost 744,000 FF miles for both at current prices. For reference, we spent about 320,000 for the four we already have, so they are way more expensive now, but still better than paying cash. Then, all 6 of us will be in Polaris business class both ways and all 6 of us can access the IAD Polaris Lounge before departure. In exchange, DH thinks we should ask my parents for $3K to help offset the FF costs since they’re still walking away with $3K in future flight credits that only my parents can use for themselves in the future.

I think my parents would go for this. They will have spent $6K total on airfare, $3K of which they can use in the future and the $3K they committed to spending on flights to ATH. The other alternative is to upgrade my parents current tix to business class using $8K cash (PlusPoints and miles upgrades are waitlist only and DH says they’ll never clear). The cash upgrade seems like a bad value vs. the FF miles option.

Okay now I am curious how you got 4 roundtrips to Europe in business for 320k. Even under the old.award chart (which United blew up last month), it was 60k each way per person, so would be 480k.

Yes, we need a spin off thread about this! When booking 4 tickets to Paris earlier this spring, 60k would maybe cover 1 ticket in Economy and I am not even sure it was both ways. I don’t have as high status on United, though. We ended up booking another airline

PP who posted the question here. There are a few possibilities. I think the most likely is that they bought 2 tickets as straight business class awards- I could see getting 2 tickets for say 60k one way as a saver, and then 100k the other way, for 160k/person, so 320k total for 2 people. And then bought economy tickets for the other 2 people and upgraded them using Plus Points. A GS member would have minimum 320 Plus Points per year, and you can upgrade on international flights from very low fare economy (usually S class economy fares are what the average joe booking well in advance would get) for 80 Plus Points per person, per direction. That would use the 320 Plus Points.

But there are other permutations of how you could do it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If the parents wanted to sit in first class so badly, why didn't they purchase first class to begin with?

Because they didn't want to pay for it. They figured they could whine and guilt their way into first class.

It's the typical Boomer mentality. They want the most expensive option, but want someone else to pay for it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This has to be a troll. Of course grandparents should be in first class, unless the kids have special needs or a really large / tall.

Nothing is stopping them from buying their own tickets in first class.

If I'm paying for my kids to sit in first class, my kids get to sit in first class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If the parents wanted to sit in first class so badly, why didn't they purchase first class to begin with?

Because they didn't want to pay for it. They figured they could whine and guilt their way into first class.

It's the typical Boomer mentality. They want the most expensive option, but want someone else to pay for it.

This.

Normally, I would always say put the kids in coach and put the adults in 1st class, but these grandparents are being awful. I would seriously want to cancel the entire trip.

[Anonymous]

Did the OP ever come back to say who is paying for the cruise? Are the parents paying their own way there or are OP and spouse paying for everyone?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. DH has done some investigating and has an idea. Curious to people’s thoughts. My parents could cancel their current tickets and keep the $3K future flight credit. Then, DH can buy them two new round-trip business class tickets using FF miles. It will cost 744,000 FF miles for both at current prices. For reference, we spent about 320,000 for the four we already have, so they are way more expensive now, but still better than paying cash. Then, all 6 of us will be in Polaris business class both ways and all 6 of us can access the IAD Polaris Lounge before departure. In exchange, DH thinks we should ask my parents for $3K to help offset the FF costs since they’re still walking away with $3K in future flight credits that only my parents can use for themselves in the future.

I think my parents would go for this. They will have spent $6K total on airfare, $3K of which they can use in the future and the $3K they committed to spending on flights to ATH. The other alternative is to upgrade my parents current tix to business class using $8K cash (PlusPoints and miles upgrades are waitlist only and DH says they’ll never clear). The cash upgrade seems like a bad value vs. the FF miles option.

Okay now I am curious how you got 4 roundtrips to Europe in business for 320k. Even under the old.award chart (which United blew up last month), it was 60k each way per person, so would be 480k.

Yes, we need a spin off thread about this! When booking 4 tickets to Paris earlier this spring, 60k would maybe cover 1 ticket in Economy and I am not even sure it was both ways. I don’t have as high status on United, though. We ended up booking another airline

PP who posted the question here. There are a few possibilities. I think the most likely is that they bought 2 tickets as straight business class awards- I could see getting 2 tickets for say 60k one way as a saver, and then 100k the other way, for 160k/person, so 320k total for 2 people. And then bought economy tickets for the other 2 people and upgraded them using Plus Points. A GS member would have minimum 320 Plus Points per year, and you can upgrade on international flights from very low fare economy (usually S class economy fares are what the average joe booking well in advance would get) for 80 Plus Points per person, per direction. That would use the 320 Plus Points.

But there are other permutations of how you could do it.

It is possible to upgrade award tickets purchased in coach for those carrying a co-branded United credit card. It is further possible (only for Global Services members) to pay for such upgrades using PlusPoints when either PN or PZ upgrade space is available. Supervisors working the 1K/GS help desk can also open up I, IN, PZ, and PN availability at their discretion.