Emirates Skywards Programme......How I Use It.

[endure]

Emirates have a best price guarantee.

http://www.emirates...._guarantee.aspx

About 2 months too late. Are you trying to make me miserable on purpose?

"

To qualify for a refund you must fill out the

online claim form

in English and Emirates must receive your claim form

bymidnight

of the same day you booked your Purchased Fare using the time zone of your departure country. "

[theblether]

Sorry I'm a bad boy

Midnight on the same day seems a bit tight, however I suppose it's a small help in some circumstances. The booking method ( bank transfer ) I indicated earlier is the clever way to stretch out the window of opportunity re getting the correct price.

I'm very clever you know

[endure]

Sorry I'm a bad boy

Midnight on the same day seems a bit tight, however I suppose it's a small help in some circumstances. The booking method ( bank transfer ) I indicated earlier is the clever way to stretch out the window of opportunity re getting the correct price.

I'm very clever you know

Too clever by half as my Mum would say

[theblether]

Yes, yes, I know already

On the subject of being clever, I mentioned earlier that I paid a fee for changing the date on my flight from Shanghai to Glasgow, I forgot to mention this interesting little tip.

I had to go Shanghai quickly on business, I had to get a visa quickly too, plus attend to a bit of business in BKK. So, I booked a flight from Glasgow to BKK return. Chiang Mai Chinese Consulate has an excellent and rapid visa service, so I nipped up there and got the visa, then flew to BKK.

I then booked a one way China Eastern flight to Shanghai, and took care of business in Shanghai. I called Emirates UK and told them I was in Shanghai, so not only did they change the return date, they also changed the return airport. For £75.00.

That saved me having to return to BKK or buying a one way flight to Glasgow from Shanghai. For a simple phone call and £75.00.

Amazing.

Edited July 4, 2012 by theblether

[trotski]

Hi Blether,

Some useful info in this thread. I am Gold on Emirates and have been for a few years, I do 3 or 4 London BKK returns a year usually in Business Class so not too difficult to hit 50,000 tier miles. In my experience provided you have put your Skywards number on your reservation there is no requirement to show your Gold card on checking in. I have been upgraded numerous times at check in and at the gate without showing my card as the load controller can see your status in the system, and your upgrade (or not) has probably been processed long before you get to the check in desk or lounge.

Case in point I was travelling with the family at the end of March, London BKK return in economy (4 people including myself). I never showed my card and the upgrades I got were as follows - LGW to DXB no upgrades but baggage tagged as Business Priority at checkin. DXB to BKK all 4 of us upgraded from economy to business at the gate. On the return BKK to DXB just me upgraded to business. DXB to LGW all 4 of us upgraded to Business at the gate. And more recently I did a side trip from BKK to Hong Kong for a long weekend with a young lady friend, I needed to burn some miles so did BKK HKG return in Business paid for with miles. We were both upgraded to First on the leg to HKG on the A380 (Nice !!) but had to rough it Business as booked on the return, again no Gold card shown and the upgrades to 1st were obviously already in the system before we arrived at the airport.

One warning if you book through an agent such as Opodo or Expedia you may save a few £ but if you need to make changes, upgrades etc there could well be problems as the airline will probably require you to do the changes through the agent rather than directly with the airline. As an example a friend booked through Flightbookers and wanted to upgrade the flight and change the return date - all of which is doable yourself on the phone or through the website, however his reservation would not allow this and he had to go back to Flightbookers to try and make the changes through them which caused major problems as they were not really interested once they had sold the initial ticket that he gave up and stayed with the original booking. This is maybe not a good position to be in if you have an emergency.

Cheers

Trotski

[Darrel]

I just booked a flight for later this year via Opodo for GBP565. The same flight on Emirates' website was GBP650. Reading the T&Cs of the "price match" I doubt that they would actually refund this difference. The other conditions for changes/cancellation on my ticket appear to be the same (GBP75/GBP100) as if I had bought direct.

So I think that I'm more inclined to stick with buying elsewhere rather than buying direct, especially as I am not married to Emirates and will always go with whatever airline offers suitable departure/arrival times, good prices and acceptable standards of service and safety.

Also it seems to me that the coupon cashback scheme only pays out on the actual fare cost, and not the taxes and fuel surcharges elements (which often make up nearly half the cost) though this isn't very clear.

[theblether]

@Trotski,

I agree that you do not have to show your Gold card when you book in at the airport etc., if Emirates are offering you an upgrade at this point it's because they have already identified you as being a Gold member and have allocated the upgrade accordingly.

However, if you request an upgrade at the airport or on the flight you can expect to be asked for your Gold card. I sometimes get the impression it depends on who you are dealing with as to the genuine importance of being able to produce the card, however I strongly recommend that when you are flying with Emirates you have the card with you.

@Darrel, the primary purpose of the thread is to explain the benefits of the Skywards scheme and how to get the best benefit from it. I stated earlier that I have to constantly balance the price I pay with the requirement to maintain the tier mile level. I and other members have stated here that we are continually being upgraded to Business Class and First Class in some cases due to achieving Skywards Gold.

However, that being said, I noticed on another thread this morning that you had booked your flight through a flight consolidator, there is great value in chasing the lowest cost, I spend most of my life doing it. I noticed on that thread people were suggesting kayak.com and opodo.com as being decent flight search websites. I use them, as well as skyscanner.com. There are flights that I take that fall outside of the Emirates network and like you, I go for the cheapest suitable flight.

On balance though, when I find myself being upgraded approx 50% of the time I use my judgement and stick with the Emirates Gold programme. The level of service I get as a Gold member is excellent.

[timbershifter]

If i,m a gold card holder will i get a easy pass(if that is the correct word) on board to go through

immigration on Swampy?

Cheers

[theblether]

If i,m a gold card holder will i get a easy pass(if that is the correct word) on board to go through

immigration on Swampy?

Cheers

After being caught in Swampy immigration a few times, I always ask for the fast track pass if I need to traverse Swampy immigration, and always get it. I would be a liar if I told you that you were entitled to it.

These days I tend to transfer directly from Swampy to Chiang Mai, the immigration desk for people transferring to domestic flights is always stone dead. As mentioned earlier, Thai Airways code-share with Emirates, to me it's worth paying a few hundred extra baht to book my baggage all the way through from Glasgow to Chiang Mai.

All Gold members can notify Emirates of their drinks preference. It doesn't matter if you are in economy, you are entitled to your drink as soon as you get on board, unlike other passengers that have to wait until service begins after take off. A little tip is to make sure you take advantage of being on the aircraft first via the Gold members gate, and introduce yourself to the steward for your area. Request your drink, ( if you have your Gold with you show them it and remove any doubt ), and have a little chat with them.

When they know you are Gold you will get sharper service, at some point in the flight you will be approached by a "Head" steward and welcomed on board. They will ask you if you need anything, this is the point when you ask for the fast track pass .

Another little tip, if you are stuck at the back of the aircraft and want to get off quickly, give the steward a line about being late for a connecting flight blah blah and they will move you to Business class for the descent. ( They won't normally do that on the A380 by the way ).

This may sound ridiculous, but the Emirates stewards like knowing they have Gold members in their area. They know they are dealing with experienced passengers that are committed to Emirates, and as dezy1801 mentioned earlier, it's not unknown for the stewards to approach you on board and upgrade you so that they can accommodate other passengers seating requirements ( ie families trying to sit together ). It's happened to me once.

So in summary, get on board first, introduce yourself to your steward, get your welcome drink, and when you are approached by the Head Steward ask for the fast track pass.

Edited July 7, 2012 by theblether

[theblether]

Here's another one for you, I can't find any stats for how many Skywards Gold members there are, however the stewards have told me that in their experience there are lot's of Indian Gold members.

Hence if you are on a flight to India you can expect some competition for free upgrades at the airport. Emirates allocate a few Business Class reward seats on every flight, if you know you are going to India, this could be one of the times that it's worth using your Skywards miles to guarantee your seat in Biz Class.

[timbershifter]

Thanks for that Blether

Cheers

[bkk_mike]

Not sure I agree about choosing your meal if you're also on the lookout for free upgrades.

I got upgraded on the computer before arriving at the check-in, but checked in with a relative whose flights had been booked separately, but who they chose to also upgrade if the steward OK'd it. The ONLY question the steward had was whether a special meal had been ordered (presumably because of difficulty getting an extra vegetarian / kosher / whatever meal in business class at the last minute.)

Admittedly that was Thai, not Emirates, back when I had Gold on Thai... - during a period when I was getting regular free upgrades... After a couple of years though, the free upgrades seemed to go away (replaced with a once a year voucher that I found I was never actually able to use as I tend to book relatively late, by which time the free upgrade seats had been given out) and I ended up no longer flying with Thai because, although the service in economy is pretty good in general, the lack of IFE in economy on flights to London was grating more and more over the years.

One thing to note, if you choose to book flex fares on Emirates, you've got to be careful as the website will often flip back to the cheapest fares and you'll find yourself booking the fare with the low mileage points (if you care enough about the mileage).

Edited July 8, 2012 by bkk_mike

[timbershifter]

When arrive in Dubai from Rio for a connecting flight to BKK may Silver and Gold card holders use the business class lane through security up to international departures.

Cheers

Edited July 8, 2012 by timbershifter

[trotski]

For people with an interest in the benefits provided by the airlines frequent flyer programs take a look at www.flyertalk.com. Go to the forum section and there is a section for Airline programs with sub forums for most of the airlines, there is lots of good information and tips in there from frequent flyers and sometimes the airlines themselves. Give it a look you may find it interesting as it covers most of the major US, European, Middle Eastern and Asian airlines.

Cheers

Trotski

[theblether]

Not sure I agree about choosing your meal if you're also on the lookout for free upgrades.

Choosing your meal has no effect on upgrades with Emirates. Every time I'm upgraded I an subsequently offered the meal that I had special ordered, which I always reject as the food is far better in Biz Class.

One thing to note, if you choose to book flex fares on Emirates, you've got to be careful as the website will often flip back to the cheapest fares and you'll find yourself booking the fare with the low mileage points (if you care enough about the mileage).

There is an option to search for the flights with most miles. I normally do two searches, one for the lowest price, then one for the best tier miles, I'll look at the cost differential and make a judgement as to the best flight.

[xen]

Hi Blether ,

Interesting post . Coming from Oz to BKK means we miss out on some of the Dubai plusses (or minuses) but a lot of the other information is relevant and useful too.

However a couple of points I would like to make.

Point One : I have only got to silver and fell backwards out of it when I could not maintain the tier mileage. I was only making journeys from SYD to BKK . It is an enticement to keep flying with them tho and I have managed to get a few upgrades - usually when the economy is fully booked so they sell my seat and plonk me into an empty Business class seat. I am not complaining. Also they sometimes do the offer of an upgrade for 200AUD to business. Sell my seat and effectively charge me 200 bucks for a better meal and seating etc. I do not get the limo service but do get access to the lounge. Again not complaining - a business class seat for a economy price plus 200 bucks.

Second point I would like to make is that there is a Citi-Bank Master Card ($220.00 AUD per year) which boosts your mileage every time you use the card, plus if you use it pay for your fare then there is the free travel insurance and lounge access and I think one limo per year even you fly economy. Knocked me back when i applied and tried to sell me another card i would never use, but if you regularly use Emirates then it could pay for itself. I don't know if it is available in UK or other places.

Third Point. Have you any tips on reclaiming your frequent flier points with free flights rather than upgrades. I have done it once - getting an economy seat there and for the return on the approx. dates I needed. Usually I nominate a date for when economy seat is available and then search for a return flight in economy and usually that is all the miles I have in my account but it always comes up with a business seat fare which means I have to pay extra or buy extra mileage which then means the trip will cost more than if I just buy a ticket outright without using my mileage. It feels like a game they like to play. Plus, understandably, you do not receive mileage for the journey if you are claiming mileage points.

Fourth point: Emirates only seems to be able to book maybe 4 or 5 months in advance buying direct from them. No long term planning is possible .

Fifth Point: Making a booking last year I was not able to book for April (Easter rather than Songhan boosts the price and I could not book direct from Emirates so I booked with a private travel shop at the same price that the Emirates people told me the ticket should be. After paying for the ticket I managed to look at the small print and found that any change of ticket would cost me an additional 400 AUD . Usually Emirates give me one change for free and then I think it is $75.00 for each additional change. Just something to be very careful off. That is why I always book thru Emirates themselves.

Anyway, Thanks for the Post Blether.

[theblether]

My pleasure,

Your in a fortunate position in a way in that you don't have to traverse through Dubai, when it comes to upgrades the heaviest hitters are always traversing through Dubai. I was tipped off by a fellow traveler that stopping off in BKK before moving through to Oz and NZ as I did would result in a better chance of an upgrade, he was right.

Okay, taking into account all the rest of your points, the best way to ensure that you can travel using your mileage upgrade is to make it Emirates problem. I had to change my flight back to the UK when I was in Oz back in February, and from memory the Emirates office is in Brisbane ( kind of irrelevant ), I wanted to travel quickly so I appeared at the travel desk at Sydney airport and booked my flight for the next day.

I digress, Emirates have two help lines in place, one for general enquiries, the other for online booking support.

The online booking price is 10% cheaper than the general enquiry line. Never call that line if you are looking to book and pay for a flight, always call the online support line and tell them you have a problem with booking online. Tell them that the website keeps saying it's "unavailable at this time", and they are obliged to help you.

You may still get a little bit of resistance however they will eventually fold and direct you to the cheapest online flight during the period you want to fly, so if you are flexible in dates, make it their problem to tell you when the cheapest flights are.

The same applies to cashing in miles for flights, call them with the window that you want to travel in, and they will search for the best miles redemption deal. keep handing the problem back to them, they will eventually give you their best deal.

Just click on Help on the website and you will be directed to the local Emirates office. As I mentioned, always try to deal with the online support team, not the general enquiry team..

I'm not keen on the BKK Emirates office, it's the only Emirates line that I've called and it's been constantly engaged. UK passengers should just call the UK office direct when you are in Thailand. I would suggest the same for other nationalities, try to deal with your home country office rather than BKK.

[theblether]

I'm just back from Thailand, on the way out I used the lounge down by gate 122, on the way back I used the main Business Lounge.

I maintain that if you have time the lounge at gate 122 is far more relaxing and efficient than the main lounge. If you are looking at a longer stop over make your way down there.

[smokie36]

I'm just back from Thailand, on the way out I used the lounge down by gate 122, on the way back I used the main Business Lounge.

I maintain that if you have time the lounge at gate 122 is far more relaxing and efficient than the main lounge. If you are looking at a longer stop over make your way down there.

Did you get an upgrade on the way back?

[theblether]

No.....the flights were empty, I had enough miles to upgrade however the check in lady blocked me off 4 seats on the A380. I had been fed and showered in the lounge so I notified the Steward that I required no service and I went to sleep for 5 hours.

I was also amazed to get my preferred seats on the DBX-GLA leg so once again I didn't bother upgrading.

I now have enough miles to fly to Japan return in Business Class on a free upgrade..........I'll continue to play it by ear though.......I take the attitude that if you can get two seats to yourself in economy it's not worth upgrading, unless you can get into the bar on the A380.......however on a night flight as I was I was needing a sleep so 4 seats to myself was great.

[smokie36]

I wouldn't have minded the A380 bar on the way back....I wanted to get trolleyed...but Egyptair don't even have dolly's....frumpy Sprite old maids at best.

[theblether]

Does anyone know if the lounge at Gate 122 in Dubai has re-opened yet?

Edited January 12, 2013 by theblether

[notmyself]

As a member of Skywards, you are entitled to take advantage of the Family Bonus programme offered by Emirates. Simply nominate up to eight family members* and when they fly with Emirates, your account, as the family's head, will be credited with Skywards Miles equivalent to 20% of the base Miles flown, plus 20% of any bonuses for flying Business Class or First Class.

Please note:

• *Family Bonus members do not earn Miles themselves. If you wish, they can be enrolled as individual Skywards members. Family Bonus members will not earn Skywards Miles when using Skywards partners.
• Family Bonus members will receive their permanent cards at the same time as the family head qualifies.
• Family head can quote the family member's membership number to accrue Miles before the card arrives.

If I achieve gold status then the other (up to 8) family members also get a gold card?

[adinga123]

Hi Guys ,

I have been a skywards member for the past 6 Years,

But It really Sucks,

They blocked My Skywards account saying it is under audit and for the past one year i am not eligible for any skywards miles.

upon mail they repeate the same bullshit answer it is under Audit , What the <deleted> these mother <deleted> are doing audit for the past one year

It really sucks

<deleted> emirates

[stament]

As a member of Skywards, you are entitled to take advantage of the Family Bonus programme offered by Emirates. Simply nominate up to eight family members* and when they fly with Emirates, your account, as the family's head, will be credited with Skywards Miles equivalent to 20% of the base Miles flown, plus 20% of any bonuses for flying Business Class or First Class.

Please note:

• *Family Bonus members do not earn Miles themselves. If you wish, they can be enrolled as individual Skywards members. Family Bonus members will not earn Skywards Miles when using Skywards partners.
• Family Bonus members will receive their permanent cards at the same time as the family head qualifies.
• Family head can quote the family member's membership number to accrue Miles before the card arrives.

If I achieve gold status then the other (up to 8) family members also get a gold card?

Sounds rather generous, is it true?