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In a recent interview I gave to Million Mile Secrets I gave the following piece of advice:
An award redemption is always a good one if it’s for something you truly want. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.
Yes, those of us who collect miles & points by the hundreds of thousands may believe that a coach award between Dallas and London is a poor use of American Airlines miles. But, if it’s saving you money you’d rather not spend, then what we think doesn’t count for anything. Enjoy it.
And, after reading that, MMS reader CB asked: “Can you share the reason that folks in the know believe a Dallas to London coach run is not a good use of American miles?”
Well CB, here’s my answer.
A lot of people who collect miles and points do so to use them to fly in cabins that they otherwise couldn’t afford and an American Airlines Economy Class cabin doesn’t really fall into that category for most.
The idea that redeeming miles for an American Airlines transatlantic economy class fare isn’t a good use of miles also comes from the value that people assign to their balances – generally people like to think they’re getting outsized value from their miles and an Economy Class redemption often doesn’t give them that.
Allow me to explain with real world numbers.
Outside of a good fare sale you can expect to pay around $1,125 for a roundtrip Economy Class fare between Dallas and London if you’re prepared to plan ahead…..
….while an Economy Class award on American Airlines will cost you 45,000 miles and $174 in taxes during off-peak dates…..
…or 60,000 miles & $174 in taxes during the regular season:
So this how the math works out.
Off Peak Season
In off peak season you would be choosing to spend 45,000 miles and $174 instead of purchasing a cash fare of $1,125 so, essentially, you’re paying 45,000 miles in exchange for $951 ($1,125 – $174).
You would be getting 2.1 cents of value out of every mile you spend.
Regular Season
In off peak season you would be choosing to spend 60,000 miles and $174 instead of purchasing a cash fare of $1,125 so, essentially, you’re paying 60,000 miles in exchange for $951 ($1,125 – $174).
You would be getting 1.6 cents of value out of every mile you spend.
In reality getting 2.1 cents of value out of an American Airlines mile is pretty good going considering how hard the miles can be to use….but some will disagree.
Some will point to other possible uses of American Airlines miles where the perceived value can be higher. A lot higher.
A Cathay Pacific roundtrip First Class fare between North American and Hong Kong can cost in excess of $9,000…..
…while an award for the same flights will cost 225,000 miles and some relatively insignificant taxes.
Here, some will claim, you would be getting over 4 cents per mile in value – almost double the best return you would get from the Dallas-London Economy Class redemption.
Personally I don’t subscribe to this idea as most of us in the miles & points game would never pay over $9,000 for an airfare….but some people do really think this way.
A more sensible comparison would probably be to look at something like a Business Class redemption between Europe and the Middle East on a carrier like Qatar Airways.
Here the roundtrip fares are often in excess of $3,000 (often over $4,000 if departing London)…..
…..while a roundtrip award would cost just 85,000 miles and around £100 in taxes and fees.
Booking this award would see you getting over 3.8 cents per mile in value from your AAdvantage miles…and that’s both realistic and excellent.
It’s Not Always Just About The Numerical Value
There is another element to consider when thinking about how much value you’re getting out of an award your booking – the numbers don’t tell the whole story.
Even if you get 2.1 cents in value out of an Economy Class booking between Dallas and London you’re still flying in American Airlines long haul Economy Class:
American Airlines 777-300ER Economy Class Cabin
You’re probably going to find yourself in a cabin with 10-across seating with a seat width of around 17″ and a seat pitch (legroom) of no more than 31″ ….so it’s not going to be glamorous or comfortable.
A lot of us who collect miles & points like to use our balances for the nicer things in life so an Economy Class cabin is just not going to cut it. We’d far rather spend more miles to sit in Etihad Business Class…..
…or perhaps even Qatar Airways Business Class……
…and feel like the miles we worked pretty hard to collect are getting us something truly worthwhile (from our point of view).
A lot of people are in the fortunate position of being able to afford to pay for a $1,125 Economy Class fare so they don’t want to use their miles to do the same thing – the miles are to be used for something they can’t afford.
What This All Comes Down To
I firmly believe what I told MMS in that an award redemption is always a good one if it’s for something you truly want. The difference in outlook simply comes down to the different reasons people collect miles and points in the first place.
If you’re collecting miles & points to travel the world in comfort and style an Economy Class redemption on a legacy US carrier isn’t what you’re looking to spend you miles on – an Economy Class award between Dallas and London doesn’t give you the value you’re looking to get out of your miles.
If, however, you’re collecting miles and points to save money or to be able to travel to places you wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford to travel to, then the cabin you fly in probably means a whole lot less. To you an Economy Class award is a way of getting somewhere you may not otherwise go and for that reason it should be considered good value.
A Dallas to London Economy Class award may indeed be poor value to one traveler….but to another it could be the key to taking a trip they may never have otherwise been able to take.
