As part of a trip I have planned for a couple of months from now (I’m being intentionally vague, so stay tuned), I’ll need to book a one way ticket from London back to the US. I’ve decided I want to try out British Airways first class using American miles, and being the “maximizer” I am, plan on flying to the west coast of the US and then booking a separate, cheap ticket back home on United.
While I’m at it, given that American is also partners with Alaska Airlines, I figured I’d add a segment in Alaska Airlines first class to Seattle, just so I can write a quick review of Alaska (since I haven’t flown them before).
Anyway, my two practical options are either to fly London to Los Angeles to Seattle, with an overnight in Los Angeles, or London to San Francisco to Seattle, with an overnight in San Francisco.
Both routes have award availability, though I can’t for the life of me make a decision. Here are the factors playing into my decision making process:
Going via Los Angeles:
- Based on the recent trend, there’s not a very good chance of getting the new first class product, though my trip is only in a couple of months, so that could change.
- Seats 2A & 2K are available, which are the best seats on the 747 when traveling alone
- Not-so-great airport hotels near LAX
- As ridiculous as it might sound, flying from London to Los Angeles in British Airways first class just seems like a more fun city pair than flying from London to San Francisco… anyone know what I mean?
- The Alaska Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Seattle offers a meal service, as opposed to San Francisco to Seattle, which is a snack service. It’s not significant in and of itself, though the main reason I’m connecting to Seattle is to experience/review Alaska’s service, so it is a small consideration
Going via San Francisco:
- So far this year, the route has been operated by British Airways’ new first class product just about every other day. Of course the trend can change, especially since this trip is only in a couple of months.
- Seats 2A & 2K are occupied, so I’d have to settle for a different seat
- Since I’m spending the night, when it comes to airport hotels, I far prefer the Hyatt Regency SFO to anything at LAX
Thoughts? What would you do, all else being the same?
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