[Anonymous]

[Swissdiver]

Lets stick to the usual ones, i.e. Gold for BA (aka Emerald), AF Platinum (aka Elite Plus) and LH Senators (aka Star Gold), and leave aside the “specials” like BA Premier or M&M Hon.

How would you rank them in term of benefits (objectively, leaving aside your preference for a certain airline)? What’s to you the best benefits they offer?

[Swissdiver]

Allow me to shoot first here.

The upgrade vouchers at LH are nice. I love BA T5 First lounge. But to be honest, can’t find a special one for AF Platinum…

[LuganoPirate]

For me it has to be M&M or Star Gold.

Upgrade voucher, good availability of seats for miles. One way tickets for 1/2 miles. Ditto for a companion ticket. Guaranteed seat, even if last one on plane for miles + 50% I believe.

Cannot beat them.

[MartynSinclair]

For my travel pattern the best reason to have a Gold card is to accumulate airmiles quicker and using for free flights (yes, they can be booked).

In fact I am wondering what are the other benefits of a top tier card.

I have no issue with getting a good seat (ok on BA I dont have to pay to reserve 60J. Lounge access is always a gimme – upgrades, nice to have, but always happy to get the seat purchased.

I cant think of any other benefit I have ever used with a top tier card that I would nt have access to anyway.

[RichHI1]

AA you get a reserved inventory of upgrade and free seats particularly in First. You get 8 system wide Upgrades vouchers (on any fare type) you get access to first class lounge whenever you fly international and you get a higher level of service form the EXP desk when you call in. ALso you get 100% bonus non status miles.

All in all I think they give you a good deal. No experience of BA, AF or LH. I was elite with UA for a while and they offered 6 vouchers instead of 8 and the telephone service was not a patch on AA> redeeming First CLass Seats or upgrades was always a real drama.

[janrotterdam]

Hello Swissdiver – I think a benefit of AF Platinum is that – after 10 years continued Platinum membership – you will be Platinum for Life, which saves you the annual hassle of making sure you have earned enough points.

[LuganoPirate]

There are some other benefits such as top tier status with certain hotel or car rental companies, though I’ve not really explored this.

Anyone have any idea of what these benefits are?

[LPPSKrisflyer]

For all my lifetime status with SQ, I have, since they joined *A in 2000 banked all my miles in LH M&M and been a SEN in that programme since then. I’m also BA G and don’t belong to AF/KLM – got an AZ basic card.

In terms of *A LH SEN gives me everything I want, I find I always get awards I want which of course can even be booked in premium cabins on SQ and I have no trouble getting F on LH or LX. I put more than enough miles in that account to be an HON but of course not enough are with the LH group to count and I couldn’t make that change. I also find I can get what I want at short notice on almost all occasions. I’ve never had to accept the guarantee of a Y seat and wouldn’t anyway. Someone always has a premium seat if you are willing to pay and I think all the airlines know these days that a frequent flyer knows the game well enough to go straight to the competition if they don’t deliver.

BA G isn’t something I try to keep but I seem to. I do enough BA shorthaul to gain enough points to qualify but the bulk of the mileage comes from QF and CX. The only real benefit of the card is seat selection but for short haul business or domestic it’s no big deal and that I get to use the F lounge in T5 when flying shorthaul. I could live without those benefits. I very rarely try to redeem miles on BA except for weekend breaks in Europe on routes that *A don’t fly directly from LHR. If I dropped to BA S or even nothing at all, I wouldn’t be bothered, I’d lose access to the F lounge on shorthaul and the ability to choose a seat on domestic flights, choosing in CE is no big deal.

[MartynSinclair]

the one benefit I would love to see from BA Gold is the benefit janrotterdam mentions with AF Plat – an award to provide Lifetime membership. This has been mentioned before – but when the business travel does stop, it would be nice “retirement” touch to be awarded a lifetime benefits card to enable retired travelers to enjoy some additional benefits in recognition of continuous membership to to top tier status.

[NTarrant]

I’d agree that a lifetime benefit on BA would be good. If you had held a minimum of Silver for say 10 or 12 years then you would keep it.

[Henryp1]

I appreciate the extra baggage allowance with Emirates Skywards gold membership, along with the 50% extra miles on every flight.

Also the same for BA gold the extra Avios each flight.

[Swissdiver]

Agree, Janrotterdam. But the question is “Is it worth it”?

[RichHI1]

Henryp1, yes I was pleased when AA brought back 70lbs bag limit fro elites after BA introduced it.

[Henryp1]

I’ve been thinking it through, and believe that it would be nice to give a gesture of a time limited period of retained status, to retiring top status members but not lifelong. This would then maintain the overal integrity of the FFP.

[Author]

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