American Airlines Makes Surprise Drastic Award Changes
American Airlines came out with a number of changes this morning concerning redeeming AAdvantage award miles. One of the things they got rid of was one of my favorite tricks when it comes to redeeming miles: The ability to book a one-way flight within North America and a one-way flight to Europe months later for just 20,000 miles total. Award chart changes are, of course, to be expected, especially with the merger of American Airlines and US Airways coming up. As more miles becomes outstanding, miles get devalued. However, in many cases, we receive a few months notice. This was the case with recent devaluations for United Airlines, Southwest Airlines and even the massive devaluation for Hilton HHonors last year. Although no one likes devaluations, a few weeks’ or a few months’ notice at least gives us the opportunity to get our miles together for that dream trip we’ve been collecting for, even if we have to scramble around.
In the case of American Airlines this morning, there was unfortunately no notice given whatsoever and that’s what ultimately hurts. I, for one, was in the process of planning a booking this week with a free one-way from California to Chicago added onto his trip to Europe this fall and now we have to rework the plan at a moment’s notice.
The lowest level award prices didn’t change so those mainly booking the simple one-way vanilla awards won’t be affected much. Here are the changes:
- No more stopovers at North American international gateway cities between awards between two regions.
- No more distance based oneworld explorer awards.
- AAnytime Awards (standard awards) are being split into three levels.
No More Stopovers at International Gateway Cities
To me, this is the change that hurts the most. American Airlines used to allow free stopovers on one-way awards at the international gateway city for award tickets between North America and another region. That is, you could fly LAX-NYC (stop for 3 months)- Paris. For those of us who live in an international gateway city, this would essentially let us book an extra free one-way trip in North America on almost every international award. Those that did not live in the international gateway cities probably seldom used these, but I personally booked pretty much every ticket this way and get a “free one-way” every time. I liked this trick so much, I had written a full tutorial on it:
Even better, we used to be able to get “cheaper than free” one-ways by adding a trip from another North American city to our home airport and the whole thing would price at off-peak pricing provided the itinerary would start in the off-peak period. I definitely used this trick on a regular basis:
- From Caribbean in Winter + to Europe in Summer for 20,000 American Airlines miles TOTAL
- Chicago Flyers: How to Save 10,000 American Airlines Miles on Trips to Europe This Summer
- Family Trip to Europe with Miles Tutorial: Adding a “Cheaper Than Free” One-Way from the Caribbean
As an example, my parents and sister booked one-way trips from Saint Martin in April and to Europe in June for 20,000 miles per person!
I personally am very sad to see this go. However, I understand this doesn’t affect the majority of American Airlines frequent flyers as many people either did not know about this trick or do not live in an international gateway city. Those who knew about it and took advantage of it, it was definitely nice while it lasted!
No More Oneworld Explorer Award
The American Airlines oneworld explorer award was a separate award chart that would allow us to book awards with multiple oneworld partners and would charge us based on the distance. I had just booked my first oneworld explorer award for a trip to Easter Island in December.
The oneworld explorer awards, although also seldom used, offered great value at just the right time. In my case, getting to Easter Island required transit through South America. American Airlines does not allow transit through a third region to get to a destination so I’d have to pay for two separate awards costing a total of 200,000 miles in business class. With the explorer award, I was able to book a round-trip to Easter Island in Business Class and include a stopover in Buenos Aires and Santiago for 130,000 miles total.
Also sad to see this one go, of course.
New Tier Award Chart for AAnytime Awards
Previously, AAnytime awards could be booked for around double SAAver level and gave access to any sold seat on American Airlines flights. That is, if I wanted to book a flight from New York to San Francisco, I could always do it for 25,000 miles in economy or 65,000 miles in first class – though I pretty much never did.
These anytime awards are being split into multiple levels. You can see the new award chart here. For the most part, the lowest level of AAnytime is lower than than then previous AAnytime award level, but the higher levels are significantly more expense.
We don’t yet know how the award seats will be distributed at these never levels. Previously, all actual award seats used to be offered at the SAAver level and we used to think of AAnytime as an “override” level that let us book seats not available as awards. What we may expect to start seeing is fewer SAAver award seats being released and some of them creeping into the lowest AAnytime award. The extent to which that happens is yet to be seen.
Conclusion
I am definitely not a fan of all these changes without notice. We can hope that we will get notice in the future of changes that may require to alter our plans. No one likes saving up for a specific award and then suddenly have the opportunity disappear. Unfortunately, the reality is that we just can’t rely on good deals being around and we need to always be prepared. We should never hold miles we don’t need or plan super far into the future. Opportunities disappear and, well, we just need to make sure we make the most of them while they’re available. That said, I still do value my American Airlines miles… though perhaps not quite as much.
I booked an award, at 20K miles, $15 cost total, from JFK to ZRH, with a free SAN-LGA thrown in, thanks to you. I did end up with some funky routing bc I have fly from AUS-SAN (hello SW CP!), and from NY, I end up with ISP-AUS (hi CP, nice to see you again!). We’ve been wanting to visit SAN for a while, and flying to ZRH in the summer would be nice.
No BA surcharge ($450+ per pax from DFW, on so-called award ticket to boot!) is nice.
It’s good while it lasts, just like the VR through CVS.
You haven’t noticed the trend toward no-notice changes? I have.
Surprise devaluations are becoming common precisely because blogs are doing a much better job of keeping customers informed. When a company has to choose between loss of goodwill and a run on the mileage bank, guess which one they will choose?
disagree, the currency is not that liquid. how many people would it really have effected if the announced it a month out? i bet those few that did redeem something in a hurry would still be sitting next to empty seats as well.
The issue I see is some people were putting together their miles for a specific award redemption and had plans to book it soon. While this may not have been many people, it really would have made a difference. It’s just very unfortunate when someone is saving up miles for a specific award and it’s just gone overnight.
Through you teaching we were able to add on retrurn trip from Cancun to Chicago in March on our way to Barcelona in October. Wish we had done it more. So how long can you now stopover. We want to go Ord to Roatan but spend some days in Miami as all flights to Roatan leave there at around 10 am (some flights from Dallas but then you are in Dallas) Is only way to do a multicity ORD-MIA- Roatan with only 1 nite therein Miami? Thanks
Are you sure these effects take place immediately? I’m seeing that it goes into effect on June 1st.
The award chart changes will actually start June 1; that is, the new AAnytime award levels. However, the explorer award removal and the stopover removal is effective immediately.
Boo hoo!. So AA is eliminating some of your “tricks” that you use to add a free one way? What did you expect AA to do. Once everyone started exploiting the loophole, AA was forced to close the loophole, as it was not being used as it was originally intended. AA is in the business of making money, and I’ll bet that AA noticed that more and more were exploiting this loophole in recent years, therefore they adjusted. Your post smacks of entitlement, and I’m not sure why you feel that you should be permitted to continue to use your “tricks.” Stop your wining, and use the miles as they were intended. If you continue to exploit other loopholes, AA will continue to adjust. The changes don’t impact me very much, and I will continue to collect AA miles to allow for 2 or 3 great trips with my family each year (by booking 11 months in advance for the lowest level awards in coach).
AA could have changed the rules to make the stopover be used as originally intended. They didn’t. They got rid of it altogether, and in a program that already is way less generous than several others in stopover privileges.
Hmm this sucks,
For those who were following your Easter Island plans do you think you could show/price the route now with the new award chart?
Thanks
That’s a very good idea. Although it will now cost 200,000 miles in business class with American Airlines, we can also use British Airways or US Airways miles. I am going to write a post going through those options.
No need to hedge your negative commentary with “unfortunately.” Much too polite.
At least you didn’t follow Dariaus in becoming a “shill” for AA, saying we mere lower class sheep should have expected this, that it’s all part of a big corporate business that wants to make as much money as possible. (how very Murdochian of him — and to hy*&^%$l with mere customers who are just supposed to thank him for sugar coating the news for us)
Big takeaway for me is to never, ever trust anything from any of these point giving programs. (least of all AA) As JO bluntly put it this morning, AA has just been transmogrified into USAir — the airline I’ve long considered my least favorite, a brutal inward focused airline with a very Philadelphia attitude, top to bottom…. (I’m originally from Philly — still despite that airport) Has been my lament ever since they ruined our beloved Piemont. Now they’re going to destroy American. very sad day.
a professor in Hoo’ville
I am thinking along the lines of your last question. What these no-notice changes do, in my mind, is devalue the currency, because the value of any currency depends not only on what it can buy now, but on its perceived value into the future. If I have, for example, 200,000 AAdvantage miles, I can value them for a certain amount now, but if know the company may pull the rug out from under me any night, and I know I can’t use them all today, I do have to take that substantial currency risk into account in strategies for which airline to fly, which credit card to get and use, how to credit flights to airlines and other decisions. Right now I don’t think AAdvantage miles are any kind of stable store of value. When a company always makes change with appropriate notice, they do preserve some of the currency’s value. When they pull garbage like AA did, they destroy the confidence of their customers, and thus the value of their products.