Upgrading Flights

[Conkozan]

If you book your air through ABD, is it possible to use miles to upgrade to business or first? Has anyone done it?

 

[beachbunny]

No, because they purchase tickets in bulk (I think that's the right word) and are not upgradable. Also, you most likely can't earn miles on these tickets.

 

[sayhello]

No, because they purchase tickets in bulk (I think that's the right word) and are not upgradable. Also, you most likely can't earn miles on these tickets.

Actually, ABD does not purchase tickets in bulk like DCL does. They act more like a travel agency (it's actually Disney Travel that does it). You can call them & get the exact flight you want, at the exact price you find it (assuming it's still available). Or you can allow them to find the best ticket they can (but it's usually not better than what you can find yourself). Not bulk purchasing. It's not like with a cruise, where they have thousands of people arriving at the same port on the same day. Each destination only has 40 people max at a time, of which many won't book through ABD.

Whether or not you can upgrade is a question for ABD, I guess. I've never tried to do that. I imagine you'd have to call Disney Travel & have them apply the upgrade if they can, since they would be your "travel agent", and you would not be able to make the changes yourself.

ETA: I called ABD with this question, and they confirmed they don't buy in bulk, and said that whether or not you could upgrade would depend on the ticket purchased (class, etc) just like if you bought it yourself or through a TA.

Sayhello

 

[beachbunny]

You know that's why I never bought my ticket with ABD. I got burned with DCL and then when I booked my first ABD trip I was told my ticket wouldn't be upgradable. OP you should actually try to do it and if you can't, don't make the purchase. I might have to re-think Africa...

 

[Pakey]

When I booked through AbD in 08, I was told no. I could pay cash for the upgrade but I could not use my miles.

 

[jjb52]

No, because they purchase tickets in bulk (I think that's the right word) and are not upgradable. Also, you most likely can't earn miles on these tickets.

I booked my air through ABD for Germany in fall of 2008 and told them what flight I wanted. They arranged it and I did get miles.

 

[lb4747694]

Hi All,
As someone that does a lot of international travel, that I book myself, I'll throw in my $.02. Tour companies do typically buy in bulk, which gives them access to really discounted fare buckets. While heavily discounted, these types of fares come with a bunch of restrictions (i.e. such as the ability to earn miles or upgrade the seats).
If you're going to book through any tour agent, you'll probably get a better price for the ticket, but if you upgrade (assuming you can) it will cost more miles and more $. Now all of this will depend on the airline you end up getting.
You should check with your travel group at work and see if they can do anything for you. For times that I need to actually buy tickets, I usually go through them, as my company has a significant discount with a couple of airlines. This allows me access to non-discounted fare buckets at a reduced price.
I consider myself pretty knowledgeable about all things United (and to a lesser extent Star Alliance). If you have specific questions, I'd be more than happy to answer them.

 

[lb4747694]

I should add that if you book your tickets through a tour agent, don't bother talking to them about the upgrades. They probably won't know the answer and they won't have access to the systems that can do the upgrades. Just call the airline that you're booked on and talk to them about it.

 

[Mirthrindr2]

I cannot speak to using miles since I didn't discuss it, but I to just spoke with ABD about this last Sunday as well and they assured me you are NOT purchasing your airline tickets 'from' them but rather just 'through' them. All they do is go online or in whatever system they use and coordinate purchasing the airline tickets for you on your behalf.

They indicated I could have my laptop in front of me with airline prices on the screen that I looked up myself on other sites and just tell the ABD agent on the phone the exact flight I am looking at on my screen and ask them book that same exact flight (assuming it comes up for them by the time you call them and they check for you).

This was enough to convince us to ONLY purchase our airline tickets through ABD for our trip. Their policy is, if you purchase your tickets through ABD and they cancel your trip for any reason, they will first attempt to re-book you on another departure of the same itinerary, but if you cannot reschedule they will fully refund the full price of your airline tickets (along with your actual ABD tour cost).

As I understand it, most often when you book air yourself, unless you specifically get a refundable ticket, when canceling airline reservations the airline will only give you a "credit" back towards a future purchase with them specifically and even then you must use the credit within a short period of time such as one year. So if you purchase on your own and ABD cancels for some reason and you do not re-book for another date with them, you may not be able to just call the airline and get a full refund on your airline tickets.

Lastly on a related note, whether you purchase airline tickets yourself or have ABD coordinate it for you, if ABD cancels your trip BUT you re-book for another date, they will cover the rescheduling fee the airline imposes for changing your flight dates (though ABD does use the terminology "we will bear any reasonable airline re-booking charges".

So as far as I can tell unless Im missing something, for those NOT using Miles or upgrading, it appears you have more to gain by coordinating purchasing your airline tickets through ABD then you do to lose.

 

[lb4747694]

So as far as I can tell unless Im missing something, for those NOT using Miles or upgrading, it appears you have more to gain by coordinating purchasing your airline tickets through ABD then you do to lose.

I don't think you're missing anything. Buying through the tour provider does eliminate some of the hassles involved with ticketing. It does sound like ABD is a little more generous by allowing you to pick specific flights. The other tour providers that my family members have used just send you tickets a month or so out.

As you mentioned, if you're not using miles or upgrading (or worried about earning miles on the flight), you probably are better off just booking through the tour provider.

 

[sayhello]

I don't think you're missing anything. Buying through the tour provider does eliminate some of the hassles involved with ticketing. It does sound like ABD is a little more generous by allowing you to pick specific flights. The other tour providers that my family members have used just send you tickets a month or so out.

As you mentioned, if you're not using miles or upgrading (or worried about earning miles on the flight), you probably are better off just booking through the tour provider.

Actually, it's not ABD being "generous". They don't negotiate tickets in bulk. They don't sell airfare. Disney Travel (not ABD) is actually acting as a Travel Agent for you, and purchasing the airfare for you just like any Travel Agent could or would. They'll do the research, and come up with a ticket for you if you want, but, again, they are strictly acting as a Travel Agent. They really treat the whole airfare thing as a service, not as a product.

Sayhello

 

[sayhello]

I cannot speak to using miles since I didn't discuss it, but I to just spoke with ABD about this last Sunday as well and they assured me you are NOT purchasing your airline tickets 'from' them but rather just 'through' them. All they do is go online or in whatever system they use and coordinate purchasing the airline tickets for you on your behalf.

They indicated I could have my laptop in front of me with airline prices on the screen that I looked up myself on other sites and just tell the ABD agent on the phone the exact flight I am looking at on my screen and ask them book that same exact flight (assuming it comes up for them by the time you call them and they check for you).

This was enough to convince us to ONLY purchase our airline tickets through ABD for our trip. Their policy is, if you purchase your tickets through ABD and they cancel your trip for any reason, they will first attempt to re-book you on another departure of the same itinerary, but if you cannot reschedule they will fully refund the full price of your airline tickets (along with your actual ABD tour cost).

As I understand it, most often when you book air yourself, unless you specifically get a refundable ticket, when canceling airline reservations the airline will only give you a "credit" back towards a future purchase with them specifically and even then you must use the credit within a short period of time such as one year. So if you purchase on your own and ABD cancels for some reason and you do not re-book for another date with them, you may not be able to just call the airline and get a full refund on your airline tickets.

Lastly on a related note, whether you purchase airline tickets yourself or have ABD coordinate it for you, if ABD cancels your trip BUT you re-book for another date, they will cover the rescheduling fee the airline imposes for changing your flight dates (though ABD does use the terminology "we will bear any reasonable airline re-booking charges".

So as far as I can tell unless Im missing something, for those NOT using Miles or upgrading, it appears you have more to gain by coordinating purchasing your airline tickets through ABD then you do to lose.

Mirthrindr2, I totally concur with this. When they canceled my Canadian Rockies trip last year, they paid the fees (which weren't cheap) to switch my airfare (which I purchased myself) from Montana/Calgary to Alaska (since that was the only other trip I could switch to). I had the ABD concierge on the phone, searched through various flight options with her (she was mirroring what I was looking at online) and once we found one that worked for me, she went off & had Disney Travel book it for me. I got Alaska Airline's confirmation code along with ABD's, and I could use Alaska Airline's code on their website just as if I had booked it myself. Selected seats, etc, no problem. There really was no downside to it.

And since they say they will refund if you can't reschedule after a cancellation, that is important. Because Trip Insurance will not always reimburse you if a tour operator cancels a tour. We had someone on this board who recently found that out the hard way when her tour got canceled.

And you're also right that most airlines will not give you a refund on a ticket unless you specifically buy a refundable fare. They will give you a credit, good for a specific period of time. So, since ABD has said they will refund your money if you can't rebook, that definitely makes booking through them a no-brainer. (Assuming you're not using miles).

After the great experience I had booking through them last year, I plan on buying through them going forward, as long as they don't change their policies!

Sayhello

 

[lb4747694]

Actually, it's not ABD being "generous". They don't negotiate tickets in bulk. They don't sell airfare. Disney Travel (not ABD) is actually acting as a Travel Agent for you, and purchasing the airfare for you just like any Travel Agent could or would. They'll do the research, and come up with a ticket for you if you want, but, again, they are strictly acting as a Travel Agent. They really treat the whole airfare thing as a service, not as a product.

Sayhello

That sounds great! As I mentioned, it's a bit different than what I've heard from other tour companies.

 

[nordkin]

The last trip we booked with ABD was flying into Prague and departing from Vienna. We booked our air through ABD and selected our own flights. We were able to upgrade with miles on the flight to Frankfurt enroute to Prague with miles, but could not on the flight back. It was all due to availablity. It is more difficult to upgrade on some flights because those with a higher status with the freqent flyer programs get the upgrade over someone with a lower status. By the way, we were flying United and have 1K status.

 

[sayhello]

That sounds great! As I mentioned, it's a bit different than what I've heard from other tour companies.

Yes, I agree. I think it's very different from what other tour companies do, and honestly surprised the heck out of me (but in a good way!)

The last trip we booked with ABD was flying into Prague and departing from Vienna. We booked our air through ABD and selected our own flights. We were able to upgrade with miles on the flight to Frankfurt enroute to Prague with miles, but could not on the flight back. It was all due to availablity. It is more difficult to upgrade on some flights because those with a higher status with the freqent flyer programs get the upgrade over someone with a lower status. By the way, we were flying United and have 1K status.

Thanks, nordkin. It's good to have that all verified!

Sayhello

 

[deckes]

Be very careful if you are booking your air with Adventures by Disney. We did not get the seats that we requested and were actually all seated separately in different aisles on one flight (including our 9 year old). We had a very hard time changing the seats with the airline and Disney told us there wasn't anything they could do about it. We did the Africa trip so it was a huge inconvenience for the long flight. We are doing the Egypt trip next year and will definitely arrange our own flights.

 

[lb4747694]

Sorry that happened to you.

Regardless of who does the booking, you always have to keep an eye out on seats. Aircraft and even sometimes a scheduling change might cause the computers to re-rack and stack all the passengers, prior to your departure.

 

[Bobo912]

Be very careful if you are booking your air with Adventures by Disney. We did not get the seats that we requested and were actually all seated separately in different aisles on one flight (including our 9 year old). We had a very hard time changing the seats with the airline and Disney told us there wasn't anything they could do about it. We did the Africa trip so it was a huge inconvenience for the long flight. We are doing the Egypt trip next year and will definitely arrange our own flights.

Sorry that happened to you. I booked flights for both of the ABDs we've taken through Disney travel. They gave me the confirmation numbers and said I should go to the airline website and select our seats. Which is what i did and we got the seats we requested. I got the impression that ABD only books the flight and does not do any seat assignments, but maybe it's not always the same. We flew of US Air on the first ABD and Air Alaska on the second.

 

[sayhello]

Be very careful if you are booking your air with Adventures by Disney. We did not get the seats that we requested and were actually all seated separately in different aisles on one flight (including our 9 year old). We had a very hard time changing the seats with the airline and Disney told us there wasn't anything they could do about it. We did the Africa trip so it was a huge inconvenience for the long flight. We are doing the Egypt trip next year and will definitely arrange our own flights.

I'm also sorry this happened to you. It could happen any time you let a TA choose your seats for you. Although things may have been different for South Africa. I always suggest that people get the airline confirmation code and deal directly with the airline for seat selections, either through their call center or their website. That's what I did when I booked Alaska Airlines through ABD.

Regardless of who does the booking, you always have to keep an eye out on seats. Aircraft and even sometimes a scheduling change might cause the computers to re-rack and stack all the passengers, prior to your departure.

That is so very, very true! I had a flight where they kept re-scheduling it, and every time they did, they'd either re-assign or lose my & my friend's seat assignments. And we frequently were moved not next to each other. One change, they ended up assigning me a seat that didn't even exist! (Since they'd changed the aircraft). I've become paranoid about monitoring my flights now (especially if I'm flying Delta!)

Sayhello

 

[lb4747694]

That is so very, very true! I had a flight where they kept re-scheduling it, and every time they did, they'd either re-assign or lose my & my friend's seat assignments. And we frequently were moved not next to each other. One change, they ended up assigning me a seat that didn't even exist! (Since they'd changed the aircraft). I've become paranoid about monitoring my flights now (especially if I'm flying Delta!)

I don't think you're ever "safe" until you're sitting in the seat. I once had assigned seats for about 4 months. Checked in, boarded the flight, and found someone sitting in my wife's seat. So, somewhere in the 90 min between check-in and getting onto the flight, somebody at the airline reassigned the seat (even though the seat was already taken. Fortunately, since it was one seat, it was easy to get it back.