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Now I Remember Why I Never Fly United

Discussion in 'Getting There & Getting Around' started by nubia11, Jan 2, 2013.

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  1. nubia11

    nubia11 Low-Roller

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    We are currently booked to fly Southwest (as always) for an upcoming trip to Las Vegas. I booked a later departure than I like simply because the earlier departures are prohibitively more expensive. This morning, I'm poking around on the interweb and notice that United has an $76 one way fare for a much better departure time. Score! I go to the site, remember that I have some award points, check to see how many points each ticket's gonna cost me and, hey, its only 10K points per ticket. Even better! I proceed to joyfully go through the next couple of booking steps until, low and behold, a "service fee" of $150 smacks me in the face. Hmm, didn't I choose to pay with points? So, I go to the fee explanation page and, what d'ya know, United has reinstituted the fee for award travel bookings. :grrr: Really, a $75 per ticket fee for bookings within 21 days. Come on United!!

    Guess I'll use my award points at the MP mall and continue my loyal patronage with Southwest.

    Thank you for allowing me to vent. I feel better.
     
  2. nubia11

    nubia11 Low-Roller

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    Oh, I forgot to mention that I switched to the cash option for the tickets but, naturally, got to seat selection and there were only two middle seats left, located in the back of the plane. E-plus and first class were wide open of course.

    Yep, I'm sticking with Southwest. May not be the most luxurious but, the policies are generally pretty good, they don't charge me for a bag and you don't have to have status to get an aisle or window seat.

    I know, $79 for a one way is a great fare but, its UAL's jacked up fee structure that makes my little brain explode.
     
    Last edited: Jan 2, 2013
  3. weas

    weas Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Vegas Deals

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    Don't know if it will make you feel any better but United has always charged the $75.00 if you are within the 21 day booking period.
     
  4. tiffs17

    tiffs17 Tourist

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    Here is another thumbs down for United.
     
  5. ihatesnow

    ihatesnow Tourist

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    Agreed, United sucks. Another lovely innovation - not letting you choose your own seat before check-in without paying an Economy Plus upgrade fee, even when a flight is nowhere near full.
     
  6. xmarksx

    xmarksx VIP Whale

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    Legacy airlines like United, Delta, AA... make it almost impossible to use points without feeling like you got ripped off. I switched to a hotel credit card four years ago and convert as many miles as possible to my hotel accounts.
     
  7. gilly from philly

    gilly from philly Low-Roller

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    I am a 1K on United and have no issues using my miles for reward travel.

    Southwest, well I don't fly on it anymore, just as I don't shop at Walmart, both for the same reason.
     
  8. smartone

    smartone VIP Whale

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    I happily fly Southwest all the time and also enjoy shopping at Wal-Mart (whatever that has to do with it)... and what's this about SWA not being luxurious? Unless you fly first-class (which I occasionally do when I go cross country), I don't know what's so great about the cabin(s) of United, Delta or American? Dirty and stained cloth seats vs. SWA's leather seats? No comparison there. And I'll take SWA's staff any day... they actually seem to enjoy where they work, not like the tired and aging folks I see at the legacy carriers... no thanks. I can fly on any airline I choose and I choose SWA.
     
  9. booker

    booker VIP Whale

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    I used to be a loyal United customer. Now I haven't flown them in something like 12-14 years.
     
  10. gilly from philly

    gilly from philly Low-Roller

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    United, American and Delta have had leather seats for some time now. United also offers economy plus, the extra leg room is wonderful. United also has many flights with live DirecTV, something none of Southwest's aircraft have. As for the employees, I have delt with bad and good ones with all airlines, including Southwest. I too can fly on any airline I choose, and I drive PAST a Southwest hub, Midway Airport, to fly on United.
     
  11. LuckyDuckyDan

    LuckyDuckyDan High-Roller

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    The trick to flying UA is that you really, really need to marry them. For better or for worse, once you establish 25,000 miles in the air with them each year, the treatment gets much better. It gets better still at 50,000 in-air miles flown.

    I put between 35-45k miles in the air for work (out of Houston - if only I flew out of Newark!) with another 10-20k of personal travel (vegas, vegas, vegas, somewhere not important, vegas... :wink2:), so I'm generally well taken care of and wouldn't think of flying SWA.

    If I didn't have the luxuries afforded to me by that ongoing relationship and had to be part of United's proletariat.. I might well be singing another tune.
     
  12. nubia11

    nubia11 Low-Roller

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    I think that you hit the nail on the head. I used to fly United often enough to maintain status and, in my experience, you pretty much need status to have a reasonable experience. It is easy to feel great about United when you are super duper premier, 1K, etc. but not so much when you can't get a seat assignment, are the last person on the plane, pay excessive fees for every little change, bags and so on.

    I will note that I also frequently observed what I interpreted as disgruntled employees with United. Just a general vibe of dissatisfaction. I have certainly observed this on occasion with SWA as well but, in general, it seems that the staff generally like working for the airline and, that is important to me.

    At the end of the day it comes down to accessibility, budget and what you prioritize in terms of amenities, comfort, flexibility, etc. For my money, its usually Southwest. The flexibility alone is worth it and, since I am no longer a frequent flyer, I like the egalitarian nature of the experience.
     
  13. Jerseyguy

    Jerseyguy MIA

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    United is the big player out of EWR

    Used to be Continental before the merger. Going to LV the good thing is that theres plenty of non-stops coming and going. We usually grab a 25K flight with a $5 charge a few months in advance. Im 6ft.215 lbs,cant wait to get off the plane,but Spirit ,forget it ,I hate that Airline.
     
  14. Ezzy711

    Ezzy711 VIP Whale

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    The whole industry is a racket. They go hand in hand with hotels. Just like hotels, if you are a good customer you get the good seats/rooms and if not you get the seat in the middle back of the plane or the room off the elevator next to the ice machine. And...you'll pay more for it.

    I just went through the SWA/Delta decision. SW is the only airline with direct flights to/from Vegas and my hometown. The price is reasonable and the times weren't bad. I can take SW for a few hours, but 5? Man, that's a long time to be in one of those little seats with spotty beverage service. If I were younger and pinching pennies I'd go SW in a hearbeat. But I'm older now, don't want to be cramped, love the free drinks and big seats, I just booked Delta first class. I don't get the automatic free upgrade at my current level and don't want to chance it for the long ride, so the $100 each way extra to upgrade to have the extra room and service is worth it. It is just like many other discussions here on the type of room you take in Vegas. Many opinions from living with the basic to only top notch. I'm happy I'm first class and checking in to a suite. I never know if I will have the time/money in the future to travel this way. Life has a way to throwing you a curve ball so I try to make the best of every trip, as if it was my last.
     
  15. dmr

    dmr Registered Abuser

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    I don't fly Untied enough to warrant status, but they fly EVERYWHERE so often times they are the best/only choice.

    In all fairness, 90-some percent of their flights go without a hitch. Most of Untied's issues are simple delays, but often times you miss a connection and have to be rebooked. Some of their transfers are TIGHT! Sometimes you make it, your bags don't. Sometimes you don't make it and your bags are sitting there in the office waiting for you.

    However (comma) every so often things get {f-bomb}ed up really bad. I ended up sleeping on the floor of the Denver airport one night 'cuz I missed a connection and the line at the Untied Customer "service" counter was so long that I missed the last potential flight due to the wait! The old TWA used to put you up in a hotel on things like that. Untied said it was "weather" and said no. :( Lesson learned, when flying Untied, always book an EARLY flight!

    Another thing, at least when flying out of OMA, it's often times big-plane/little-plane roulette.

    Oh well ...
     
  16. nubia11

    nubia11 Low-Roller

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    If I could upgrade to first class for $100 each way on United then I'd probably have my behind in their seats a lot more often. :thumbsup: Definitely worth upgrading for a 5 hour flight. I'm blessed with 1hr 45min so, pretty easy trip.
     
  17. mdlee3_46041

    mdlee3_46041 MIA

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    Ezzy, I go through a similar decision every year. SWA is the only airline with nonstop flights out of IND, but I've always been a loyal Delta passenger. Ok I was really loyal to NWA and have been treated pretty well by Delta since the mergerso I've stuck with them. However, this year, Delta prices are WAY up out of IND so it looks like for this year at least, SWA will get most likely get the honor of flying me to Vegas this year. I've always been tempted by that $100 First Class upgrade, but have never done it. However, I definitely can't see myself spending an extra $200 almost on the flight itself and then paying for the upgrade also.

    IF something changes and I happen to choose Delta this year over SWA, I will probably go with Economy Comfort, which I did last trip and it worked out well for me.
     
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