It has been nearly two weeks since my trip from Zürich to Los Angeles in first class. Many have asked me, now that I’ve had time to reflect, was it worth it?
Let’s put aside the lawsuit for a moment. Instead, let’s just assume I am paying for this fully myself (which I do not plan on ultimately doing…).
I’ll start by saying this. I received exactly what I expected, and more, from SWISS. As I wrote already, the flight was lovely. SWISS offers one of the best first class hard products in the world and the service onboard was not flawless, but exceptional. The food was also amazing.
> Read More: Amazing Flight in SWISS First Class!
I appreciated the chauffeur service to the first class lounge. The first class lounge was superb. A quiet breakfast with my family was greatly valued and the farm-to-table Swiss food in the lounge is even better than the onboard cuisine.
> Read More: SWISS First Class Lounge Zurich Review
I first class primarily because it was the most direct and comfortable way to get back to Los Angeles and precisely the flight I wanted for my family.
And even if I ultimately never get a penny back, I’d do it again under the right circumstance.
A Serious Financial Decision
But these sorts of financial decisions (and let’s face, paying thousands for airline tickets is a serious financial decision) do come down to an issue of cost and priority.
My son is 15 months old–that restless stage where he sleeps beautifully through the night but can squirm during the day. I wanted a first class suite so he could spread out and play without disturbing others. That’s what he did.
I wanted a suite with a closing door so he could sleep on one bed and my wife I could sit across from each other in the other suite and chat. It worked out even better: my son had his own suite because the cabin was only booked 5/8. I simply cannot underscore how important that was for me, perhaps even irrationally so if we are judging based upon a cost/benefit analysis. But aren’t we all guilty of that at some point in our lives?
Business class was full. Economy class was nearly full. While of course we could have “survived” in business class or economy class, that wasn’t the flight experience I wanted. That was not how I wanted to spend 12 hours. Anything else would not have been the same. Flying out of Frankfurt or Munich in Lufthansa First, which did not open anyway, would have required a long train trip, car ride, or additional flight. Flying through Toronto or Washington or Newark or Chicago would have been more stress-inducing.
I took a calculated risk and paid for the tickets. I’m a points and miles guy: it hurt. But I would never had done it if I could not sleep nights because of it or if I could not afford to pay off my credit card bill at the end of the month.
Priorities
Ultimately, it does come down to an issue of financial priorities. I do think about where that money could have been better spent. The beauty of miles and points is that we can experience “champagne on a beer budget”. That was not the case here. And yet, I am reminded of Lufthansa’s former “All for this one moment” ad campaign.
This was one of those moments. And if you box me into a corner and force me to answer yes or no as to whether it was really worth it…
…I’d say YES.
Any chance you can give a range of what you actually paid for this fare because it’s impossible to even begin to answer your question of “Is first class worth it” without knowing that specific detail. I’m assuming you have a reason related to your case about being all secret squirrel about it but $3k vs $13k changes the entire situation.
Shaun, your question is fair, but for now I cannot answer that question.
Which court did you file the lawsuits in?
Name of the county or state.
No lawsuit has been filed yet and hopefully will not be necessary. This is where we are–
http://liveandletsfly.boardingarea.com/2018/01/03/aimia-demand-letter/
He didn’t actually file a case, so I doubt you will see that information.
yet…
LoL demand letter! Everyone can draft one.
What FF program did you credit your flights to?
I credit all Star Alliance flights to United.
Was this booked as a one way or round trip? It’s an interesting question because arguably your damages correlate with the one way ticket, but often that can be more expensive (and always more than half as expensive) as a round trip ticket.
Sorry, but it’s rather pointless discussing whether something was worth it if you don’t disclose the actual cost.
The question: is it worthwhile to pay “thousands” for a first class ticket. Even with that uncertainty, there is still room for discussion.
Although I totally understand why you would not want to publicly disclose the amount, I’m also not sure that an article entitled “Was Swiss First Class Worth It” has a point when you don’t say what “It” is.
Full fare F from ZRH-LAX is >$30K for two people. BUD-LAX, by contrast, is about $14K. I found that differential with 3 ExpertFlyer searches. I suspect you optimized far more than that. That kind of difference shifts the judgment significantly, for me. I’m not going to spend $30K for 2 personal F tickets, but I would consider spending $14K for the right trip.
By the same token, your personal financial situation may be such that you are indifferent to the cost, regardless of what it is. That also diminishes the point of the article.
If I were you, I would have held off on this article until you could actually speak freely about it.
What’s the reason you’re not saying how much you spent?
I understand your point and perhaps I should have held off on this post, but the issue of value doesn’t have to be tied to a direct dollar amount. It can be over the concept of ever paying for a premium ticket. That’s something I’ve done more lately, but still nothing something I am accustomed to doing.
Could you take the time look up the word “value” on google?
Value: importance, worth, or usefulness.
I really wasn’t trying to bag on the whole article, but relative value is tough to assess and highly personal. For instance, my wife door dashes. A lot. Others wouldn’t feel comfortable doing it as much as we do.
It’s the same thing with premium travel. It’s so uniquely individual whether it’s worth it and it changes depending upon circumstances. I’ve paid for intercontinental F travel, and I’ve sat in coach while the rest of my family flew to Europe in F because there were only 3 award seats available.
My $0.02 is to describe the facts (cost being high among them) and let people decide for themselves.
No “specious scorn” from this proud member of the peanut gallery: I fully support Matthew’s quest to take LX & Aeroplan to task. It has been fascinating to follow his efforts.
Thanks!
You are really milking the F out of this Swiss F thing. I was initially on your side but now that you are writing posts about the value of Swiss F but not saying how much you paid. That’s downright silly
I’m sorry you feel that way. I need to
resolve the matter with Aeroplan before all details are disclosed. I’m sure you can appreciate that. I’m not sure why it should matter if I paid $15K or $5K per ticket…I was writing about whether I found it worthwhile. I did.
Then keep it to yourself.
I, for one, am happy that Matthew took this stance. I didn’t get in on this deal (or any other “mistake” fare or award “glitch” for that matter), so I really don’t benefit one way or another. If this ticket helps his case (and perhaps countless others in the future) in actually getting airlines to take responsibility for their actions, then all the better!
Am I curious about how much he paid for his tickets? Of course! But, I’m under no delusion that he’s obligated to give us that information. However, I find it hard to believe that he *won’t* follow up and post about his experience, regardless of what happens. I’m just happy to see frequent updates, and I’m patiently waiting until this whole situation is resolved (I certainly hope it’ll be in Matthew’s favor). 🙂
You took the words right out of my mouth. I have all the confidence that Matthew will explain the whole issue at some point, and not to far in the future I believe.
Your son is adorable! Again, don’t understand all the haters on here, it’s an ongoing case, it’s completely understandable you want to keep certain information about this away from the public view for the time being. 110% support what you are doing.
Oh a side note, how do I get in contact with you regarding Award Bookings and your fee? Thanks!
Why won’t you disclose how much you paid for your first class tickets, Matthew? Swiss knows. Aeroplan can find out, and surely you’re going to disclose the sum in your ongoing efforts to obtain a resolution without resorting to filing suit. Why the secrecy here?
For all those antsy about knowing the cost it’s fairly simple to lookup and get a ballpark. That being said, while out of my price range for a family trip of 3 I completely understand and agree this was the best case for your little one on a long haul. If I could comfortably spend for first I would in a heartbeat I have a 16mo old and she just wants to fidget and move constantly. Thankfully if enough reaearch is done J is more than attainablewhen we travel long haul.
If it was much cheaper to connect from a European city to ZHR as others have suggested, as this is what Matthew did to save thousands of dollars, doesnt that counteract his argument that connecting award flights were an unacceptable solution?
Do you think it’s wise to directly state that you bought the flight, at least in part, to bolster your case? By saying that, don’t you undercut your case?
Just curious about that… since I feel like you should be saying only that you bought the ticket as an exact replacement because that was what you originally wanted. Period.
Not a lawyer, yet, so of course you know more than me, but I just feel like that line kind of hurts your case.
Can’t wait to see how this turns out, good luck!
I bought the flight to show all along that was the only flight I would have considered. Had I just accepted business class on Air Canada with an 8hr connection it would have showed that I didn’t really mean that I needed the SWISS nonstop.
Also, Matthew is putting a fixed cost to the flights (agreed upon by SWISS since they provided the fare.)
That, however, is not the extent of his damages.
Every person who flies or plans to fly at any time on an award ticket should follow this story closely. It will surely set a precedent for how far the airlines can push their frequent flyer programs on loyal flyers without recourse for its members.
I would believe this will result in better defined parameters as a result from the airlines, courts and the DOT
Bravo and Mahalo Matthew!
Thanks laptoptravel!
I flew Swiss Air SFO to Zurich then Geneva, over the holidays, economy, fully booked, no major delays, $1,600 rt, and thought it was not at all worth the comparatively high price. I dont have the worlds biggest butt but seat was an Asia airlines’ size, I was not in an aisle or window seat. Food was meh. Passengers were well behaved. I have been doing the retirement bucket list for 5 years, fly frequently, all over the world.
Well if he discloses the price paid, then it sort of makes the seemingly endless weekly posts pining over the whole incident less necessary. We’re waiting for an update, but the lawsuit hasn’t even been filed yet.
I get the frustration; but the whole “I’m gonna stop my foot and stick it to them until I get my way” approach/attitude is getting old. We’ve all been screwed over by airlines for one reason or another, and I’ve learned that the time wasted trying to get them to make it right sometimes isn’t worth it.
I hope I end up being wrong about this, but for the life of me I can’t see there being any reimbursement from either AC or LX for full value of these tickets. Sure you’ll get the we’re sorry hears 5-10k miles, but the value of the transaction/sale of space that AC would pay to LX in even a C class award booking is not at face value.
Thanks for reading!
For whatever it’s worth, I love the photo of Augustine looking out the window. Hope you print and frame that.