Rare Hlitner Posted September 19, 2019 #26 Share Posted September 19, 2019 When it comes to booking international business class on US carriers, it really is important to check the actual aircraft type and seating configuration (there are some good sites like seatguru.com). For example. United is still phasing-in their Polaris Class and some aircraft have upgraded seats and others do not. Even when we book foreign carriers we do some research on aircraft and seating configurations. Some good airlines still have older aircraft with lousy seats and configuration. Our goal is to get lay-flat seats where every seat is on the aisle. When flying overnight to Europe we do not get too concerned with the quality of food...but tend to put more stock in the airport lounge. So, for example, if you book business/Polaris on United from ORD to Europe you would get access to the highly rated Polaris Lounge at ORD. You can go in that lounge, enjoy decent booze and wine, have a nice sit-down meal (or the buffet) and head to your flight well nourished. Air Canada also has a fantastic "Signature" Lounge at Toronto that is a nice way to start a Business Class flight to Europe or Asia. Hank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
galveston gal Posted September 19, 2019 #27 Share Posted September 19, 2019 1 hour ago, fluffybunny22 said: Lufthansa on the way there and Air Canada on the way back. These are true business class with lie flat seats and real silverware and glassware. It was around $2150 each. Yes those are good carriers. We got Air Canada both ways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steelers36 Posted September 19, 2019 #28 Share Posted September 19, 2019 1 hour ago, Hlitner said: When it comes to booking international business class on US carriers, it really is important to check the actual aircraft type and seating configuration (there are some good sites like seatguru.com). For example. United is still phasing-in their Polaris Class and some aircraft have upgraded seats and others do not. Even when we book foreign carriers we do some research on aircraft and seating configurations. Some good airlines still have older aircraft with lousy seats and configuration. Our goal is to get lay-flat seats where every seat is on the aisle. When flying overnight to Europe we do not get too concerned with the quality of food...but tend to put more stock in the airport lounge. So, for example, if you book business/Polaris on United from ORD to Europe you would get access to the highly rated Polaris Lounge at ORD. You can go in that lounge, enjoy decent booze and wine, have a nice sit-down meal (or the buffet) and head to your flight well nourished. Air Canada also has a fantastic "Signature" Lounge at Toronto that is a nice way to start a Business Class flight to Europe or Asia. Hank Especially when booking well ahead, airlines can change equipment on a whim. And sometimes you might be in a situation where they have old and new and the day you fly could get assigned a great plane or an old plane. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeeTO Posted September 19, 2019 #29 Share Posted September 19, 2019 38 minutes ago, galveston gal said: Yes those are good carriers. We got Air Canada both ways. Can I ask when you booked your AC flights and are they for 2020? Just tried 3rd Princess agent again for booking May2020 flights - no go. They did agree I would get the$200pp discount whenever(if ever) their system accepted the booking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
galveston gal Posted September 19, 2019 #30 Share Posted September 19, 2019 7 minutes ago, DeeTO said: Can I ask when you booked your AC flights and are they for 2020? Just tried 3rd Princess agent again for booking May2020 flights - no go. They did agree I would get the$200pp discount whenever(if ever) their system accepted the booking. I booked on Tuesday morning. June-July 2020 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
galveston gal Posted September 19, 2019 #31 Share Posted September 19, 2019 13 minutes ago, steelers36 said: Especially when booking well ahead, airlines can change equipment on a whim. And sometimes you might be in a situation where they have old and new and the day you fly could get assigned a great plane or an old plane. So true. You never know what will show up 🙂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haleygirl Posted September 20, 2019 #32 Share Posted September 20, 2019 Hi, I'm new to EZ Air and would like to know how I would change my air fare when I see that it has gone down. Do you Modify or Cancel your flights? Thanks for your help. Helen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pisamoorings Posted September 20, 2019 #33 Share Posted September 20, 2019 I'd like to know that too Helen as I'm a newbie. Can you have two lots of flex flights in your Cruise Personaliser and cancel one of them before final payment day? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steelers36 Posted September 20, 2019 #34 Share Posted September 20, 2019 47 minutes ago, haleygirl said: Hi, I'm new to EZ Air and would like to know how I would change my air fare when I see that it has gone down. Do you Modify or Cancel your flights? Thanks for your help. Helen Select Change and see what is out there. Only time you need cancel is if you were changing from 1-way to round-trip or vice-versa. Or, if changing route I suppose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steelers36 Posted September 20, 2019 #35 Share Posted September 20, 2019 23 minutes ago, pisamoorings said: Can you have two lots of flex flights in your Cruise Personaliser and cancel one of them before final payment day? No. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pisamoorings Posted September 20, 2019 #36 Share Posted September 20, 2019 Okay, thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knickearth Posted September 20, 2019 #37 Share Posted September 20, 2019 19 hours ago, galveston gal said: When did you get your seat assignment? I have never waited to get a seat assignment. Whenever I book ezair, ezair gives you the booking no. for the airline. I go into the airline site (for my upcoming cruise it is american airlines) and I type my name and booking number and my reservation comes up and I am able to choose the seats I want. For my Dec. cruise I did this several months ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreaminofcruisin Posted September 20, 2019 #38 Share Posted September 20, 2019 If you book with some airlines (Delta, for example), you pick the seat right on the EZAir site while booking. You can then go into your skymiles account later and confirm that you have the seats you selected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
galveston gal Posted September 20, 2019 #39 Share Posted September 20, 2019 1 hour ago, dreaminofcruisin said: If you book with some airlines (Delta, for example), you pick the seat right on the EZAir site while booking. You can then go into your skymiles account later and confirm that you have the seats you selected. Ok I’ll probably have to go directly to the airline as it is not an option or wasn’t an option when I booked. Thanks. At this point our cruise is 10 months away and not critical. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
palolake Posted September 20, 2019 #40 Share Posted September 20, 2019 Here's a huge problem with EZ Air that I didn't know about. Twice now, two weeks in a row, Delta has gotten rid of a flight we were booked on. Meaning, there is no flight with that flight number at that take off time any longer. I used to love it when that happened because I would call the airline to get what I wanted even if it cost more. You can't do that if you are using Flexible on EZAir because you aren't ticketed. The first time I called Delta and requested a great flight. She said "no problem" and went to change it. She came back on and asked if we had booked with a travel agency (Princess) and said they would have to change it. We didn't want to do it ourselves because our outbound leg had gone up so much in price that we would be paying a lot more. So I called up Princess, explained that I didn't want to change it myself because it would cost more and asked if she could contact Delta to do it for free. She was gone for maybe 45 minutes and came back and said you are now booked on ….flight. I said great. Then she tells me it will be over $100 more. I ended up talking to a supervisor who was able to change it for free to an ok flight, not our preferred. It happens again one week later. This time I call the supervisor direct. (she gave me her extension number) Delta had us leaving FLL at noon, getting into Atlanta at 1:30 and leaving Atlanta at 10:00! There was no other flight to take. Now the supervisor tells me that Delta is under no obligation to make changes for us because we aren't ticketed! So she tries to find a flight for us (which I could have done on my own) and all are much more money. I begged her to talk to the Delta desk at their headquarters. A day later she tells me they changed it for us again, not the flight I requested, but an ok flight at no price difference. And she said Delta was better about doing that than some of the other airlines. She told me the only way to keep our good flights was to book them restricted so they can't be changed. Sometimes we don't have that option and she said to call Princess immediately to get them ticketed. At least for us, the advantage in price on EZAir is that we get the Economy seats for the price of Basic Economy going through the airlines. So if you get a good flight at a good price, get ticketed! Then you can call the airline with problems and not deal with Princess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
galveston gal Posted September 20, 2019 #41 Share Posted September 20, 2019 42 minutes ago, palolake said: Here's a huge problem with EZ Air that I didn't know about. Twice now, two weeks in a row, Delta has gotten rid of a flight we were booked on. Meaning, there is no flight with that flight number at that take off time any longer. I used to love it when that happened because I would call the airline to get what I wanted even if it cost more. You can't do that if you are using Flexible on EZAir because you aren't ticketed. The first time I called Delta and requested a great flight. She said "no problem" and went to change it. She came back on and asked if we had booked with a travel agency (Princess) and said they would have to change it. We didn't want to do it ourselves because our outbound leg had gone up so much in price that we would be paying a lot more. So I called up Princess, explained that I didn't want to change it myself because it would cost more and asked if she could contact Delta to do it for free. She was gone for maybe 45 minutes and came back and said you are now booked on ….flight. I said great. Then she tells me it will be over $100 more. I ended up talking to a supervisor who was able to change it for free to an ok flight, not our preferred. It happens again one week later. This time I call the supervisor direct. (she gave me her extension number) Delta had us leaving FLL at noon, getting into Atlanta at 1:30 and leaving Atlanta at 10:00! There was no other flight to take. Now the supervisor tells me that Delta is under no obligation to make changes for us because we aren't ticketed! So she tries to find a flight for us (which I could have done on my own) and all are much more money. I begged her to talk to the Delta desk at their headquarters. A day later she tells me they changed it for us again, not the flight I requested, but an ok flight at no price difference. And she said Delta was better about doing that than some of the other airlines. She told me the only way to keep our good flights was to book them restricted so they can't be changed. Sometimes we don't have that option and she said to call Princess immediately to get them ticketed. At least for us, the advantage in price on EZAir is that we get the Economy seats for the price of Basic Economy going through the airlines. So if you get a good flight at a good price, get ticketed! Then you can call the airline with problems and not deal with Princess. And what happens if you cancel? Seems like there may be a charge. We are holding great prices but are hoping the cheap mileage seat come out and we fly for free LOL . It’s all a game at this point but most folks seem to be happy with the option to book with them so I will gamble away for a bit before I lock it in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
palolake Posted September 20, 2019 #42 Share Posted September 20, 2019 11 minutes ago, galveston gal said: And what happens if you cancel? Seems like there may be a charge. We are holding great prices but are hoping the cheap mileage seat come out and we fly for free LOL . It’s all a game at this point but most folks seem to be happy with the option to book with them so I will gamble away for a bit before I lock it in. Pretty sure you’d have to pay for the flight if you canceled the cruise. Just like if you’d booked with the airline. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
galveston gal Posted September 21, 2019 #43 Share Posted September 21, 2019 On 9/20/2019 at 9:54 AM, palolake said: Pretty sure you’d have to pay for the flight if you canceled the cruise. Just like if you’d booked with the airline. I called Air Canada directly. They were able to assign seats since they are business class. The agent was funny. He said seat assignment is great but you need to be ticketed to go LOL. Regardless we got our spots. And i I looked at fares today and they are back up by $750. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DebbieMacG Posted September 21, 2019 #44 Share Posted September 21, 2019 (edited) On 9/19/2019 at 3:24 PM, MotownVoice said: What airline, do you know yet? Because I can tell you "business" on American Airlines doesn't mean what it used to mean. Depending on the flight's itinerary you can be sitting in a coach style seat but getting your first two cocktails and they're calling that business class. The only true business class environment I've been able to book for less than 3 or 4 thousand dollar pp has been British Air. Some airlines are talking about phasing out the whole first class/business class terminology all together. This is worrying, I’m flying with AA on a 777-300w from Miami to Heathrow and specifically picked this flight and plane because of the lie flat seats and cabin layout. The only other option was with AA in a 777-200 and BA on the old 747 that is great in the bubble but not in the main cabin, you’ve also got to step over each other to move when the seats are flat, same as the 777-200 I’m disabled so couldn’t go in the bubble and can’t step over folk so spent a long time researching AA different aircraft, settling on the 777-300w. If I don’t get a lie flat seat I wouldn’t be able to travel that distance comfortably. All the reviews show a very nice product on this plane and it reviews much better than the BA aging 747’s that are to be phased out. Edited September 21, 2019 by DebbieMacG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now