For those of you foregoing those miles, did you ever wonder how one could quantify (money-wise) the value and services that a Frequent Flyer Elite status brings. Well, United has a program where you can buy-in to an elite status for a limited time, but checkout the fees for the privilege.

"Card level fees:

1K®
$20,000 (USD)

Premier Executive®
$10,000 (USD)

Premier®
$5,000 (USD)

Enjoy your elite status right away.

Access to Economy Plus® seating, with up to five more inches of legroom.
Receive our higher level of customer service.
Enjoy exclusive services, such as priority check-in, priority boarding, priority status on the waitlist and a dedicated reservations number.
Earn a 5% discount on qualifying domestic travel purchases with a Prepaid Travel Card at united.com.
Card may be used to purchase tickets on United®, United Express®, TedSM or any Star Alliance® airline.
Cardholders pay market rate for flights, with no minimum fare level restrictions.
Use the card to purchase miles, upgrades, airport ticketing fees or United Red Carpet Club®, Silver Wings Plus® and AmenitiSM memberships."

Take those miles every chance you get.

If you like CO, figure two EVA RT's to Asia increases you one level.

Two RT's get's you CO Silver.
Two more get's you CO Gold.
Two more gets you CO Platinum.

Plus by the time you made those 6 flights you should have ~140,000 CO miles that will get you free first class to Asia or 4 free economy trips to Columbia or ..........

Total cost of 6 trips LAX-BKK in EVA econ. Less than $5,000 plus by the time you reach Platinum it really starts getting good.

The prices above for the United program are not prices to buy into the various elite levels. Rather if you PRE-PAY for tickets to be bought over the next year you get the status that corresponds to how much you pre-pay. For example, if you are going to buy a business class round-trip from the U.S. to Buenos Aires, that alone will cost over $5,000. You might as well pre-pay the first $5,000, then buy the ticket from your pre-paid account, and you have automatic premier elite status. Etc. The only significant catch might be the possibility of further bankruptcy problems for United; you may, for example, want to think twice about pre-paying for trips that are a year off.

A friend of mine bought the 1K card. Along with that you get 6 systemwide upgrades that you can upgrade 1 way travel internationally as if you purchased the business class ticket.

He flies regularly (about 6 times a year)to Sao Paulo for work. His company's policy is any flight over 8 hours or 6 hours over an ocean they will buy business class. Business from DC to GRU is about $5K a pop using this card saved his company $10K for his trips using the systemwide upgrades on half the flights. He gets a little screwed on the systemwide upgrades but he rarely makes it to the 1K level on his own. There are a few other perks that come with it as well.

At the end of the year he'll get a refund of 50% of the unused balance and he'll get to pocket it probably about $1,500 bucks in his pocket. He's happy and the company is happy as he just saved them $10K but he gets to keep the miles (double miles) and other upgrades that come with it.

Seems like United is losing money on him but at least they get a cash infusuion up front for his flights.

United is having a promotion where if you pay $200 you'll earn double elite qualifying miles until Dec. 15.

Another benefit of Premier Executive status: even on an economy class ticket, you have access to the Red Carpet Club in layovers on international flights. On a wait in Sao Paulo, there's no club in the in-transit area, unfortunately, but in Narita (Tokyo), there are showers (until 5:30 PM) and free wireless internet (and cheese and crackers--too bad United's clubs aren't like Singapore Air's.

With regard to the United promotion, it should be noted that while you earn double elite qualifying miles, you do not earn double redeemable miles, meaning the doubling is only with respect to how your miles will qualify you for elite status. Second, the doubling only applies to United and Ted flights, not those operated by other members of the Star Alliance even if you have those miles credited to your United frequent flier account. Therefore, flights on Varig, for example, would only earn the normal amount of qualifying miles during the promotion period, not double.

The Red Carpet Club in Sao Paulo is just past immigration but before the metal detectors. So, if you're coming in on the flight from Rio or entering the departure area from immigration in Sao Paulo, you end up at the same place - in front of the metal detectors, and the club is upstairs.

One benefit of Premier Executive is that you can get bumped up. The last time I came back from Europe, I was bumped from Economy to Business without my asking.

BTW, Business class on a transAtlantic flight is quite nice.

Catacony,
They have actually moved the metal detectors back and now you don't have to go through them again as you come back from the RCC. BTW, RCC in SP sux. I love the Varig club in Rio though.

Where did they move the metal detectors? I was just through there six weeks ago and they were where they always have been. Since you walk right behind immigration to get to the club, I don't know how they have room for that, unless they have closed off the back and route your through the detectors, then hang a sharp left u-turn to go back to the clubs.

Porker,

Do you have a link, I don't see it on UA website.

Cat--if you are in transit from Rio to US in Sao Paulo, is there any way you can get to the RCC? I didn't see any allowed routes except through the metal detectors, but then again, I'm rushing to get through the metal detectors before everyone else.

Well, assuming the metal detectors are in the same place, when you arrive at Sao Paulo from either Dulles or O'hare or from Rio on the way back, you hang a left when you get off the jetbridge and walk up all the way to the end of the hall. You then have four options. 1, go straight to go through customs/immigration to either leave the airport or switch to a domestic flight. 2, hang an immediate sharp right u-turn and go through the metal detectors to catch your flight to either the US/Europe or to Rio. 3, hang a regular right, walk past the back of immigration and take the escalator or elevator up to the clubs. It's fairly straightforward. You never go through immigration/customs in SP if you're going to Rio, and you have to go back through the metal detectors to get to your connecting flight anyways. I've never taken more than a minute or two to get through the metal detectors, so going to the club doesn't cost you any time at all.

Cat,
I returned 9/12 and pretty sure that either they moved it or the have a direct walkway bypassing it. I don't think you even have to go through it anymore if you hook the right. You used to have to through even if you connect. It seemed weird to me as I didn't go directly to the RCC, I was looking for a friend who's flight was on Varig but didn't find him, went back to the RCC and never hit the security.

Thanks, Cat, I'll look for it next time. Damn, the stuff you learn from this board!

I'm cashing in my miles for the 3rd free FF ticket in ~12 months, and I used the miles for a 4th free ticket on two 30K each One way upgrades last year...

Airline PIMP status gets fees waived, double miles multipliers, free upgrades on many domestic flights, but the reality is, that unless you travel for business or as a weekend-NUT (like Sancho), you can't really expect to rack up both status AND free trips, unless you have more vacation time than GOD... Or, again, are a weekend travel nut like SANCHO!!!

My FF odyssey on 1-pass-Mileage+ is likely coming to an end. It got an artificial boost the last 2 years from 2x-EQM promos by the airlines, then from an unexpected family emergency trip last year. My normal expected travel level balancing paid/free tix is SILVER, But from '08-12 I have been:

SILVER, SILVER, NADA, PLATINUM, GOLD, SILVER... Star*A Gold or better is very nice, 2xmiles, free lounge access on int'l flights, etc., but I get 3 trips a year, MAXIMUM. Might do one year OFF, one year ON for the near future, assuming CO/United continues to say 50K BIS miles is STAR GOLD.