Anonymous
Post 07/25/2025 21:37     Subject: Re:People who pay for business class
Anonymous wrote:We landed four round-trip tickets IAD-VCE for end of August for $4,068.00 (total cost / tix only $1017 each) in W economy class and then used 320 United PlusPoints to upgrade to Polaris Business Class with immediate upgrade availability. Paying cash would have cost us $27K vs. $4K and PlusPoints.


The above is a unicorn. I am UA 1K MM flyer with 350+ PlusPoints. Flights where points buster will let one book with a confirmed PlusPoints upgrade at time of booking for more than one person are very rare.
Anonymous
Post 07/25/2025 04:51     Subject: Re:People who pay for business class
Anonymous wrote:Our family only flies business class. Need to know how to work the benefits of elite status and points. Paying for business class domestic? Sometimes, but depending on price. Paying for business class international? Never; always use points and benefits.

We landed four round-trip tickets IAD-VCE for end of August for $4,068.00 (total cost / tix only $1017 each) in W economy class and then used 320 United PlusPoints to upgrade to Polaris Business Class with immediate upgrade availability. Paying cash would have cost us $27K vs. $4K and PlusPoints.

We’ve also already booked our spring break for 2026. Four round-trip tickets IAD-HNL in Polaris Business Class all with United FF miles. Cost us 180,000 frequent flyer miles per ticket, but way better value than the $4.5K per ticket cash price.


What question were you answering?
Anonymous
Post 07/24/2025 12:07     Subject: People who pay for business class
Anonymous wrote:Typo: not "frequent flyer" instead "big spender" above. These days United status is primarily based on spend ($/year).

(Of course, one's employer might be paying most of that UA spend for work trips.)


Even so, you have to travel a ton to restock 4X180K "points"/"miles"/whatever it's currently called. Even with status (where you earn extra).
Anonymous
Post 07/24/2025 12:06     Subject: People who pay for business class
Anonymous wrote:PP is a VERY frequent flyer -- it is the only way one can accrue any United PlusPoints. Separately, normal people do not have 4x 180,000 spendable United miles in the bank at one time. And those HNL tickets were much cheaper (in miles terms) back when United had a fixed award chart.


Exactly! And if you drain that 4x180K, it will be a long long time before you can use miles again.

we prefer to keep miles for "last minute bookings" for other family members or when we know the travel dates might change for one of the kids. But we are not using 180K miles for each kid, they can sit in economy plus, they are kids.

Anonymous
Post 07/24/2025 12:04     Subject: People who pay for business class
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Having recently flown first class domestically and business class to Asia, I'm here to say that first class on a domestic flight is not worth any added cost. However, business class to Asia is so worth it. I'd spend that money again without any reservations.


Sure it's worth it. It's 2-2 not 3-3 and much larger seats. You are not packed in like sardines and if you are traveling with someone you are not truck sitting packed like sardines with a stranger.

When my spouse reminds me "that first domestic might not be worth it" I remind them "well fine then next time I will take the aisle and you can take the middle seat". And then we end up in first class because they don't want to sit in the middle


And, no competition for the overhead bins, along with priority boarding and deplaning. It is undeniably more less stressful and much more comfortable; whether it's worth the enormous dollar premium is entirely subjective.


Yes, it really depends upon your income. But for us in our 50s, close to UHNW, yes it is definately worth it. But we have limits. If it's under 3 hour flight, we won't pay $600 extra to sit in first. We will consider economy Plus. But for anything over 3 hours, we are paying.

Anonymous
Post 07/24/2025 06:55     Subject: People who pay for business class
Typo: not "frequent flyer" instead "big spender" above. These days United status is primarily based on spend ($/year).

(Of course, one's employer might be paying most of that UA spend for work trips.)
Anonymous
Post 07/24/2025 06:52     Subject: People who pay for business class
PP is a VERY frequent flyer -- it is the only way one can accrue any United PlusPoints. Separately, normal people do not have 4x 180,000 spendable United miles in the bank at one time. And those HNL tickets were much cheaper (in miles terms) back when United had a fixed award chart.
Anonymous
Post 07/24/2025 02:56     Subject: Re:People who pay for business class
Our family only flies business class. Need to know how to work the benefits of elite status and points. Paying for business class domestic? Sometimes, but depending on price. Paying for business class international? Never; always use points and benefits.

We landed four round-trip tickets IAD-VCE for end of August for $4,068.00 (total cost / tix only $1017 each) in W economy class and then used 320 United PlusPoints to upgrade to Polaris Business Class with immediate upgrade availability. Paying cash would have cost us $27K vs. $4K and PlusPoints.

We’ve also already booked our spring break for 2026. Four round-trip tickets IAD-HNL in Polaris Business Class all with United FF miles. Cost us 180,000 frequent flyer miles per ticket, but way better value than the $4.5K per ticket cash price.
Anonymous
Post 07/23/2025 18:10     Subject: People who pay for business class
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Having recently flown first class domestically and business class to Asia, I'm here to say that first class on a domestic flight is not worth any added cost. However, business class to Asia is so worth it. I'd spend that money again without any reservations.


Sure it's worth it. It's 2-2 not 3-3 and much larger seats. You are not packed in like sardines and if you are traveling with someone you are not truck sitting packed like sardines with a stranger.

When my spouse reminds me "that first domestic might not be worth it" I remind them "well fine then next time I will take the aisle and you can take the middle seat". And then we end up in first class because they don't want to sit in the middle


And, no competition for the overhead bins, along with priority boarding and deplaning. It is undeniably more less stressful and much more comfortable; whether it's worth the enormous dollar premium is entirely subjective.