Luxe for Less: How to book first class airfare for under $1000

How To Book First Class Airfare for Under $1000

BY: JOURNEY WITH LIZ
Cost-Effective Ways to Buy First Class
Airfare for under $1000
FIRST class on a reputable airline is the finest
way to travel. You will enjoy personalized and
impeccable service from dedicated flight
attendants. You will have exclusive access to higher
quality food and drinks, the most comfortable seat,
the most exclusive airport lounges, and more travel
perks. This is all great, but first-class seats can be
pricey.
A first class seat on a world-class airline could cost
you thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars,
depending on the airline, the specific plane or aircraft,
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Use Travel or
Airline
Credit Cards
THERE are many travel or airline
credit cards that offer tons of
travel perks, such as earning free
flights, free seat upgrades, priority boarding,
concierge services, and exclusive access to
airport lounges. As you spend on airlines,
rental cars, and hotels through your travel
or airline credit card(s), you earn rewards or
bonuses, airline miles, and sign-up bonuses
that can be redeemed for free flights and
seat upgrades. If you have no loyalty to
any particular airline, a travel credit card is
right for you. Travel credit cards give you
the maximum amount of flexibility when it
comes to redeeming your rewards points.
Travel credit cards offer a constant value
and there is no minimum redemption
requirement.
Three of the top travel credit cards on the
market right now are:
• Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit Card.
• Bank of America Travel Rewards Credit
Card.
• Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite
Mastercard.
and the air route. If you want to fly in first class, but are unable to
pay serious money to afford the ticket, you will be glad to know
that there are cost-effective ways to buy first-class airfare for
under $1,000. Yes! It is possible to fly in first class without selling
your soul. Check out these cost-effective ways to buy first-class
airfare for under $1,000.
If you are loyal to a particular airline brand,
an airline credit card is right for you. It will
earn you rewards or bonus points only when
you spend on travel-related purchases with
the particular airline itself. You can take
advantage of airline miles for its own flyer
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program only. Some of these co-branded
airline credit cards also offer big discounts
on first-class fares on international flights.
Some airline credit cards offer rewards and
perks for cardholders who are frequent flyers
and who pay their credit card balance in full
each month. If you fly on a specific airline,
choose an airline credit card that lets you
earn and redeem rewards or bonus points for
that specific airline. If you get the right card,
it can offer discounts up to many hundreds of
dollars on many first-class airfares.
Three of the top airline credit cards on the
market right now are:
• Chase United MileagePlus Explorer Card.
• Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select World
Elite MasterCard.
• Gold Delta SkyMiles Credit Card from
American Express.
If you are not loyal to any specific brand, get
a travel credit card that lets you earn and
redeem rewards for trying out a wide range
of airlines. You can earn hundreds of dollars
in rewards value from your travel or airline
credit card. If you accumulate enough rewards
points through a travel or airline credit card,
you can be able to purchase first-class airfare
for cheap using these rewards points. You
would need a good credit score to qualify for
any major travel or airline credit cards. Use
these credits for your upgrades to first class
on long-haul flights to get more bang for your
buck.
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Loyalty Programs
IF you often fly on a specific airline,
you may already have an airline credit
card tied to that airline brand. If not,
simply join the airline’s loyalty program to
accumulate frequent flyer miles. You may
accrue rewards that can be exchanged for a
first class upgrade. Also, get a co-branded
airline credit card tied to that airline. An
airline credit card allows you to earn rewards
and bonus points that can be redeemed for
various travel-related purchases with that
specific airline. Depending on the airline, an
airline credit card can offer discounts up to
many hundreds of dollars on international
flights. You can be able to take advantage of
the big discounts to upgrade your coach seat
to a first class seat. Depending on the airline
credit card, you can get up to 30% off fares,
or more.
A big discount like 30% off fares through a
co-branded travel credit card may offset the
extra cost of purchasing first-class airfare.
You may get an upgrade or may purchase a
first-class air ticket at the last minute with an
even bigger discount using miles, rewards
points and sign-up bonuses, depending on
the airline, the discount, and your rewards.
Utilize your airline miles and rewards to pay
for first-class airfare, saving your hard-earned
cash.
You may accrue enough sign-up bonuses and
rewards or bonus points on purchases that
can eventually be redeemed for a free first
class upgrade or purchasing first-class airfare.
Using the loyalty programs, you can fly in a
first-class seat at an economy price.
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Fly During Off Peak Season
ONE of my top favorite things to do is
travel during off-peak season when
the first class seats tend not to be fully
booked, as you have a better chance of upgrading
your coach seat to a first class seat. If you book a
flight at quiet times, i.e. at times of the year when
business travelers are less likely to fly, you may be
able to fly in first class for under $1,000. You
may also get a chance of upgrading to first class
if you travel midday during the week or on
Saturdays because there will be less competition
for upgrades.
Use Air Miles
to Upgrade
IF you are a frequent flyer and fly thousands
and thousands of miles each year, one of the
best ways to fly in first class for cheap is to
use air miles to upgrade to first class. If you
have accumulated enough air miles, you
can use them for a free upgrade. For
example, if you have a stash of 60,000
frequent flyer or air miles, these
air miles can be used to upgrade
your coach or economy seat to
a first class seat.
Most of the upgrades are
generally available at midday
during midweek, and off-peak
season. It often helps to upgrade
with your miles or take advantage
of big discounts at the last minute on
unsold first class seats. This can mean
that you are paying less for a first class seat
using airline miles and other rewards. If you have
purchased an economy ticket under $1,000, you
may get an upgrade to fly in first class using free air
miles to pay for the extra cost. This way, you do not
need to spend any extra cash.
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Upgrade
at Check-In
IT is not going to be easy to
get the upgrade at Check-In
for cheap, but it is possible,
especially for longer flights. You will
have to pay something to upgrade at
Check-in, but it might be well worth
the extra cash. Cheap upgrades may
be available just before your flight
leaves. The reason for that is many
airlines offer discounted upgrades
if they have any first class seats left
unfilled just before their flight takes
off.
They make nothing on these pricey
seats if they are not sold yet. They
might offer even bigger discounts
at the last minute because they have
simpy got nothing to lose. That is
where you could be in luck. You
might be able to buy a first-class seat
for just under $1,000 at check-in.
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Volunteer Your Seat
and Get a Voucher
THE airline you want to fly with may offer you a cash voucher if you are
willing to volunteer your seat after the airline has overbooked a flight. If
an airline you have confirmed a flight reservation with has overbooked
that particular flight, you may choose to volunteer your seat so someone who has
also confirmed a flight reservation on the flight can get an assigned seat. In return,
you can ask for a cash voucher to the airline. You may choose to travel on the next
available flight or not to fly altogether.
This is a good tactic you can use to fly in first class. Volunteering your seat
could give you thousands of dollars in travel certificates. Generally though,
compensation starts with hundreds of dollars. If you can get a cash voucher that
is worth several thousands of dollars for giving up your seat on an overbooked
flight, you can use your cash voucher to pay for a first-class seat when flying
with that airline within a specified timeframe.
There is nothing like flying first class, but booking first-class airfare should not
send you to an early grave. Use these cost-effective booking tips and you will
be on your way to enjoying all that VIP travel treatment and service has to offer,
because hey… why not just go?