How Much to Bid for Flight Upgrade to Premium Economy

harthagan on 23/10/2018 - 20:11
Last edited 23/10/2018 - 20:11

So flying to LA (from sydney) on monday with virgin and they sent me an email to bid for a flight upgrade to either premium economy or business class. The lowest bid possible was $490 for the upgrade and i think the maximum bid is something ridiculous like $1600 each way and thats for premium economy.

Was wondering if anyone had any experience with what is the average amount that these things go for. I guess id be willing to pay up to $600 or $700 tops for the upgrade just for the way over. But not sure if its worth trying to snag it for less?

Travel

Comments

  • theoracle30 on 23/10/2018 - 20:22
    +2

    It does depend on the final load, but quite often you'll get away with being close to the minimum bid.

    I would personally go about $550 or so.

    Have you considered Economy X? It's about $180 one way, and includes extra legroom, priority check-in & boarding, noise cancelling headphones and first choice of meal guaranteed.

    Premium Economy gets the same + more legroom, a wider seat and much better food (domestic Business class quality with separate entree/main/desserts, linen, proper crockery/glassware).

    Worth the extra $350+ from Economy X? Probably not in a strictly money sense, but then again it is fun to splurge on premium cabins if it's easily in your budget.

  • harthagan on 23/10/2018 - 20:44

    Thanks mate. Yeah we did economy X last time. Just paid $169 for it at the airport when we checked in our luggage. It felt exactly like economy just with a bit more leg room which is honestly all i expected for the small price difference. As a gold member i already get priority check in and boarding so its really only the in flight differences that matter to me.

    Might lowball it with a $550 bid and then try and get economy X if im not successful

  • madreece on 23/10/2018 - 20:51
    +2

    We did this Mel- LAX about seven weeks ago and there were about ten people in the entire Premium cabin. I wouldn't be bidding too high.

  • jace88 on 23/10/2018 - 22:13
    +2

    Depends on the flight but always check how much it would cost if bought outright to make sure you don't overbid.

  • hawkeye on 23/10/2018 - 22:17

    Scoot do this and don't let a seat go for under the original asking price. If it's anything like that it's a scam and you should have booked the better seat selection before hand as those will have already gone before the bid.

    • SirFlibbled on 24/10/2018 - 16:20

      Scoot also sell upgrades on the plane for $150 more if you really want to take a risk. Well they did, it's been a while.

      • pennae on 24/10/2018 - 16:33

        Yes they still do this - I flew with them a couple of weeks ago.

  • JimmyF on 23/10/2018 - 22:43

    How Much to Bid for Flight Upgrade to Premium Economy

    At a wild guess, try

    I guess id be willing to pay up to $600 or $700 tops for the upgrade just for the way over

    If you get it, you'll be happy. If you don't, then oh well.

    • harthagan on 23/10/2018 - 23:38

      Um the question was more in terms of can i get it for less. I know that noone can give an exact answer to that but other people's experiences with what they paid might be an indicator of what is attainable.

      This is ozbargain afterall so if i can get something cheaper than what i'd be willing to pay then i'll try and do so haha

      • JimmyF on 24/10/2018 - 09:05

        Put a lower bid in and see what happens then.

        Its really going to come down to the day and flight, how many seats are free and how many people have put a bid in for the upgrade.

        A low bid could be successful or not. Hard to tell really and it will vary each and every time.

        A min bid that was successful on a past flight, might not be on a future flight.

  • sane on 23/10/2018 - 22:52
    +1

    Frankly I wouldn't pay more than 20% of the difference between what you purchased, and the seat in question.

    So if economy return was $1200 and Premium Economy was $4600, the difference is $3400. Thus the maximum would be $680. Even then, I'd be looking at less than that - particularly if I checked the flight and could see they still had lots of seats left. A free seat by the side of you trumps an upgrade.

  • jace88 on 23/10/2018 - 23:04

    Don't let the 'range' trick you either. It's based on price/demand but may not necessarily reflect value.

  • TheMindsetTraveller on 24/10/2018 - 06:39

    Personally, don't do it. Economy is still economy even if there is a Premium word in front.

    Save the $700 and buy a pair of Sony WH1000XM3 with leftover change to buy multiple rounds of drinks in West Hollywood…. that said, you will have to suck it up for around 15 hours though and hope the dude in front of you doesn't recline all the way; and you will line up (at check in, for boarding) like ordinary folks, you won't get a slightly nicer plate of food but airline food generally is pretty ordinary anyway, even if flying the real premium cabins in the real premium airlines.

    • Pecan on 24/10/2018 - 11:32
      +1

      food generally is pretty ordinary anyway, even if flying the real premium cabins in the real premium airlines

      Have a feeling this is an assumption rather than being based on actual experience :)

      • TheMindsetTraveller on 24/10/2018 - 13:08

        Feelings can be wrong, I am more than happy to PM my Facebook profile and you can see my lovely airline photos - food, the lounges, the wines, the SPACE, my boarding passes and so on :)

        Or you can go to my blog but I can't post it here.

        • Pecan on 24/10/2018 - 13:46

          In that case, I'm surprised you consider the food "ordinary" in First.

          • TheMindsetTraveller on 24/10/2018 - 14:07

            @Pecan: Everybody's different that's the key.

            Airline food, even in First, is reheated precooked food.

            Next time at home, try cooking a nice steak, fish or a lobster in the morning - put it into the fridge for the day - and then reheating it later that night for dinner. If the steak is soft and juicy, or the lobster is firm yet creamy remains great … let me know

            • Pecan on 24/10/2018 - 15:38

              @TheMindsetTraveller: I'm not saying it's better than home cooked or any other food served on the ground. It is however, miles ahead of the slop served in Y.

    • j0hnd0e on 24/10/2018 - 16:23

      SQ serves lobster in J :)

    • jace88 on 29/10/2018 - 23:04

      I found premium economy worthwhile on a trip Sydney to Singapore to Paris recently. After 8 hours cramped in regular SQ economy, being front row in premium economy for SIN to CDG was amazing. The little touches like a place to put your drink, much bigger screen and just 'airiness' made it significantly more enjoyable.

      FYI I bid $410x2 (for wife and me). Interestingly the range started at around $205 from memory whereas SYD to SIN was more expensive in range! The return flight had SIN to SYD bid range starting at $400!

  • harthagan on 28/10/2018 - 00:10
    +2

    Was successful with the minimum bid of $490 :)

    • madreece on 29/10/2018 - 14:04

      That's great mate. Looks like people still aren't booking the Premium economy. Let us know how many end up in the cabin for the flight.

    • esty on 29/10/2018 - 16:04

      how much is RRP and how much did you end up paying?

      • harthagan on 30/10/2018 - 02:53

        There were at least 5 or 6 empty seats. I paid $820 return for the cattle class ticket and then $490 more for the upgrade. So the 1 way on premium economy cost me $900. Felt just like economy but a lot more leg room and seats recline back further.

        The other frills like the food service are not even worth $50 extra (at least in my book) let alone what they normally charge. Definitely doesnt even come close to business but then again its for a tiny fraction of the cost aswell

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