Which SkyTeam Program?
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at 17:46 by LuganoPirate.
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Marc_ACBParticipantHi,
I’m looking for some advice on which FF program in the Skyteam alliance I should join.
I am a usual Oneworld flier (BAEC Gold) but in the next few months will be making several trips from the UK to Italy (and some within Italy). My client’s policy is to book with Alitalia where ever possible (they will be doing the booking). The flights will all be in business class (so some silver lining), but I was wondering which is the better program?I may have some flights in US in later part of the year where a Delta hub may be closer than an AA hub.
Off the cuff I am considering Delta or KLM. Should I be considering Alitalia’s own? Or any other airlines FF?
20 Oct 2016
at 09:05
canuckladParticipantMorning Marc
Before you join any club, I’d be considering the following……How do you want to spend /redeem the points gained?
If lounge access is important, how quickly can you climb the status ladder?And I’m not able to help with this one, but how transferable and more importantly , what exchange rate are you getting if you do move points from one programme to another?
Generally the rule of thumb is to join the programme that most of your flights will be with, but I’m sure that our Skyteam flyers can give you much better advice.
20 Oct 2016
at 09:42
christopheLParticipantYou should give a try to Alitalia as they are member of both Skyteam and Etihad Airways Partners
You may even get a status match giving you a skyteam elite + status, if lucky 🙂http://statusmatcher.com/report/55566
The fact that you are going to make a lot of UK/Italy flights in the following months should help you to get status match.
Good luck !
20 Oct 2016
at 10:43
TimFitzgeraldTCParticipantIf you join Delta you’ll get SkyTeam flights covered and Virgin (if you aren’t already with them). So you’d have redemption possibilities here.
20 Oct 2016
at 11:41
Marc_ACBParticipantThanks all.
@canucklad – I’m not 100% sure what I want from the program. Its generally for lounge access, and the odd miles for upgrades. I don’t like the idea of “wasted” miles when I have fly none oneworld airlines.
@christopheL Thanks for that recommendation, I’ll give that a a try and let you know how I get on.20 Oct 2016
at 14:05
maxgeorgeParticipantI’d avoid Delta. seatguru.com and frequentflyer.com, among others, report increasing restrictions on mileage accrual, and decreasing availability on mileage redemption with them.
No personal experience – I’m with AK and AA for US carriers – but that’s the buzz.
21 Oct 2016
at 03:40
NTarrantParticipantIt does depend on your circumstances and how quickly you would climb the ladder to Gold or Platinum. I quite like AF/KL and an Gold, but rarely actually fly AF or KL.
When I came to Saudi three years ago I could not find my AF details so joined Alfursan, but I had to gain points to get to silver as on domestic number of flights do not count. I also found that if I was to use the points for say LHR-AMS the redemption rate was very high in number of points required.
Lucky I found my AF card and of course every Saudia flight counts towards the next tier. If I find I’m no longer going to be using Saudia and back in the UK I have a better choice of being able to use my points that will go further.
21 Oct 2016
at 13:33
LuganoPirateParticipantI’m a member (Gold) with Alitalia – Freccia Alata, and they do have quite a few benefits including free upgrades for you or family members, extra baggage allowances, lounge access, priority lane etc. So for that reason I’d go with Alitalia, especially as they will be the airline you’ll most be using. The benefits also apply when you fly AF/KLM, Etihad and others.
21 Oct 2016
at 17:44
LuganoPirateParticipantSorry, I pressed submit too quickly and you can’t edit anymore!
I’d also add that Alitalia are actually very nice to fly with, and they have a good business class long haul. I find the crew always very friendly and helpful and wish I could fly them more.
21 Oct 2016
at 17:46 -
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