Live from Azamara Quest: Business Class Makes a Difference

As anyone who has traveled in coach on a Transatlantic or Transpacific flight knows, it is with longing that you pass by the business class seats when you board. While many of us have plenty of frequent flyer points with which to upgrade, it seems the cost of those upgradeable fares just keeps rising.

I was determined on this trip to fly in Business, as I have way too many accumulated miles, and upgrades are one of the best ways to use them for the greatest return. So I set out to find the best source for upgradeable fares.

I discovered that one of my consolidators, whom I thought was only really useful for purchasing business class outright, also has excellent discounted fares on the coach fare classes which allow for upgrades. Hallelujah!

I ended up in Business for a lower cost than many purchased the non-refundable coach fares (though higher than the absolute rock bottom coach purchased well in advance), and paid several hundred dollars less than the airline was asking for the exact same upgradeable coach class ticket. I arrived this morning in Rome rested, decently fed and hydrated, and ready to hit the road.

So if you're in the same position, seeking to purchase coach but upgrade, realize it will cost you a bit more than the lowest coach fare, but there are avenues so you may not have to pay the full fare of an upgradeable class of service. It's worth the effort to do the checking! And of course, for international, I can check my sources for you for this type of ticket as well. Not much I can do for the standard coach fares - even I go through sites such as Orbitz and the individual airlines' sites for those, but when you want something "up front", I can help!