Several days ago, I wrote about my desire to fly Lufthansa Allegris first class. I shared the best deal that I found, and asked y’all if there were any good deals that I was missing. I want to share a little saga I’ve been dealing with in recent days regarding this, about Lufthansa’s bad IT, or something.
In this post:
Trying to upgrade to Lufthansa Allegris first class
Unofficially, Lufthansa is blocking award redemptions and voucher upgrades with its new Allegris first class. That’s not published anywhere (at least on any customer-facing webpage), but some people report being told that by Lufthansa representatives.
A few days ago, a longtime OMAAT reader reached out in regards to my post, and pointed out something that caught my attention. He explained how cash upgrades were seemingly possible from business class to first class, even for the new Allegris product.
He did a lot of research regarding which fare classes needed to be available to trigger this, etc. For example, if you book a business class ticket in the “Z” fare class that includes the route between Newark (EWR) and Munich (MUC), you can upgrade to first class for $1,260, assuming the “A” fare class is available in first class.
So he kindly helped me find an attractive business class fare, and I booked it, super excited to be reviewing the new Allegris first class. After ticketing my reservation, I saw the option to upgrade, exactly as I was expecting — score!
It worked all the way until the payment page, but then I got an error message, saying there was a technical glitch, and I should contact Lufthansa if the problem persists.
So I called Lufthansa’s US hotline, and the associate confirmed that the upgrade was available, and got ready to take my payment. After a moment, he said “sorry, it’s not possible, first class is sold out.” Obviously he was completely wrong — the flight still showed all three seats for sale, and I realized that arguing with him wouldn’t get me anywhere.
I then figured I’d try through the app. So I did that, and I got the same error message. However, this time around my ticket actually showed as upgraded, and I was able to select a first class seat, despite having not submitted payment. Huh?!
I knew this wouldn’t stick without payment, so I called Lufthansa, and wanted to see if an agent could process payment by phone, if the upgrade was already “confirmed” (or whatever you want to call it). The agent tried to accept payment, but this time around had a different excuse, telling me that cash upgrades aren’t available in advance, but can only be done at the airport. That’s of course completely wrong, once again.
At this point it occurred to me what was almost certainly going on. Clearly Lufthansa also blocks paid upgrades to its new Allegris first class. I had assumed that wasn’t actually the policy up until that point (or that it had changed), since you’d think the airline wouldn’t offer the upgrade in that way, or that at least one of two Lufthansa representatives on the phone would explain that this is the reason, rather than making up other excuses.
How ridiculous to block upgrades, but then to continue displaying the option, with an incorrect error message on the payment page. I suppose it should’ve occurred to me earlier, but for whatever reason, it didn’t. So consider this a warning, if you find yourself in the same situation that I do.
I don’t understand Lufthansa’s Allegris approach
I totally understand Lufthansa’s desire to sell its Allegris first class seats, given that there are only three of them per A350. So it’s not surprising that the airline isn’t making award seats available or allowing upgrade vouchers to be used in advance.
However, I find it a bit puzzling that Lufthansa is blocking paid Allegris first class upgrades even close to departure. For example, I’m seeing flights in the coming days with zero first class seats sold, yet the airline still isn’t allowing upgrades for cash.
Lufthansa can of course set the price, so if Lufthansa just wants a lot of money for the upgrades, the airline can always charge a lot. But to not sell upgrades at all — especially when the airline can set the cost — seems illogical. The value of an empty seat once the aircraft door closes is zero, so you’d think the airline would want to generate some revenue.
Hopefully this policy is updated over time, and this is just due to the novelty. In the meantime… *looks up fares to and from Bangalore*.
Bottom line
I can officially confirm that Lufthansa doesn’t seem to be allowing any sort of upgrades to its Allegris first class. I knew that award seats and upgrade vouchers couldn’t be redeemed, but Lufthansa’s website was suggesting that cash upgrades were possible. The entire process works seamlessly, until you get to the payment page, and then you get an error.
At a minimum, there’s an opportunity here to improve the technology and also train agents about the company’s policy. Though ideally Lufthansa would just update its policy for upgrades to be a bit less illogical, since no one wins when first class cabins go out empty.
An allegris F video reviewed by Nonstop Dan (around 26min mark) mentioned they block all other First seats after one has been booked on that leg, presumably part of a "training period" control for the crew. Could this be the reason?
might have an idea or two for ya
Keep repeating the process on the website and app maybe it will go through.
Weird if it was offered. I’ve only seen the same error with tickets books via a partner airline. booking with AC and trying to upgrade a LH/LX flight won’t work anywhere but at the gate. You get the same payment error / seat select issue.
I will be very curious to see if upgrades are possible on the YUL route with LX.
I’ve also noticed that discounted First Class prices NYC to Europe (on Lufthansa and Swiss) have jumped up a minimum of $12k RT. In the past you could secure a discounted paid First fare for about $8-$9k. Must be setting a new floor for Allegris First fares even if it’s the old First Class product.
@ JP -- I think it's more that ex-US premium fares have gone up considerably in recent years, especially in first class. There are still much better deals to be had for ex-EU tickets. Keep in mind that Air France has jacked up its first class fares by a lot more, so it's not surprising to see Lufthansa do the same (while still being much cheaper than Air France).
Off topic - but was just wondering if you know much about Emirates next batch of A350s - they announced yesterday they were going to be flying them to Adelaide to replaces the 777s. It was widely known that 12 of the 350s were going to be used short to medium haul as they don’t have crew rests and that the rest were going to be used for long-haul but in the press-release they said...
Off topic - but was just wondering if you know much about Emirates next batch of A350s - they announced yesterday they were going to be flying them to Adelaide to replaces the 777s. It was widely known that 12 of the 350s were going to be used short to medium haul as they don’t have crew rests and that the rest were going to be used for long-haul but in the press-release they said it’s going to be a 900 ULR - have they ordered the same ULR version as Singapore Airlines did for Singapore to New York, and do you reckon they may have a slightly upgraded business class product in line with the news that the 777x’s will get doors? Thank you!
@ George Lance -- Thanks for bringing that up! Unfortunately Emirates has confirmed they'll have the same business class seats as on the current A350-900s, which is disappointing.
Regarding the ULR designation, I don't think Emirates actually ordered the A350-900ULR (like Singapore Airlines), but rather that it is using that designation internally to differentiate it from the A350s without crew bunks. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but that's my understanding, and I also don't...
@ George Lance -- Thanks for bringing that up! Unfortunately Emirates has confirmed they'll have the same business class seats as on the current A350-900s, which is disappointing.
Regarding the ULR designation, I don't think Emirates actually ordered the A350-900ULR (like Singapore Airlines), but rather that it is using that designation internally to differentiate it from the A350s without crew bunks. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but that's my understanding, and I also don't see how Emirates would need the extra range.
I don't think anyone here would fault you for reaching out to LH Corporate Communications and ask for a favor
Have you attempted to book an award (or refundable J ticket) and upgrade at check in? If they don't offer it you can cancel the ticket
@ Brad B -- It's my understanding that first class upgrades are totally blocked on Allegris jets, even at check-in. But if anyone has a different data point, I'd love to hear it. :-)
Following your analysis, what are the chance for at airport upgrade since by that time they should know they’re not selling them. Risky for the flyer but any info on “at airport for sale upgrades?”
@ Bill n DC -- Every report I've seen suggests that it's not possible, unfortunately, so it's not something I've pursued.
This also sadly highlights just how much lying and misinformation is spewed by representatives. You were told several inaccurate statements and most likely even the best training would not cure this most common situation.
@ J Smithers -- Indeed, it's amazing how phone agents will so often say just about anything.
The fares from Bangalore to Manchester/Glasgow are fairly reasonable (cheaper than the Sofia example in your previous post), and you could combine it with the Global Airlines inaugural ;)
Hey :) ich habe noch einen Tipp für ein Booking in First.
Robag4891 ist mein Instagram !
Ich habe einen kleinen Trick genutzt :) Geht aber nur bei langfristiger Buchung .
LH is pulling every angle other than full fare cash bookings. I would not be surprised if LH extends this to the old F. You have to accept it is what LH's F has become.
While I really enjoy sitting in the Row 1 of the B747-8i, the writing is on the wall I’m using the rest of my miles & more with 3 long hauls and a one off Swiss First due to an equipment change hack
Even the FCT Ducks are simply white last month
Plus Future “Dynamic Pricing” also off putting to say the least. LOL
@ Jack -- Call me an optimist, but I don't necessarily see it that way. I think Lufthansa is still trying to figure out its best approach with revenue management and pricing with just three first class seats, and with one being a double suite. That inventory can be hard to manage.
It just wouldn't make sense for Lufthansa to totally block upgrades, etc., on older planes, with eight first class seats. The full fare demand just isn't there on many days.
Seems like they are using the StarLux policy… No upgrades until check in at the airport and then one constant flat ridiculous price even if first class is empty. Every time I’ve flown Starlux first is empty and every time I ask about an upgrade it’s a flat $5,000 from Business to First.
@ Jason -- Grrr Starlux, a first class product I still need to try. But I can't get excited about flying Starlux first class short haul within Asia, and paying $5K for a cash upgrade is absurd.
1) don’t book Lufthansa flights with the Safari browser
2) if that’s not the problem, you might be victim of another glitch: sometimes the booking goes through before payment, even an airline Filekey is created, but it gets cancelled automatically after an hour or so. The selected seats stay blocked for that time. So if there is limited availability (like in First Class), no new seat availability shows up before the automatic cancellation of...
1) don’t book Lufthansa flights with the Safari browser
2) if that’s not the problem, you might be victim of another glitch: sometimes the booking goes through before payment, even an airline Filekey is created, but it gets cancelled automatically after an hour or so. The selected seats stay blocked for that time. So if there is limited availability (like in First Class), no new seat availability shows up before the automatic cancellation of the „premature“ reservation. Wait and try again.
@ Neuron -- For what it's worth, I was using Chrome. Regarding the "wait and try again," I noticed what you're mentioning as well, and I did wait until the space went back into inventory, and it still didn't work.
Every time I've attempted to work with Lufthansa client services it's been a nightmare. Every time. Even with first class tickets purchased in cash.
Ben, this is an airline for whom client service is a foreign concept.
What are the top 3 carriers likely to react meaningfully after Ben posts something like this, and what are the 3 least likely to react (or most likely to react badly)? Let's omit from the discussion any carriers whose headquarters are near ancient pyramids.
@ DenB -- No EgyptAir?! Grrrr! How about TAAG? :p
I'm not actually surprised but a small part of me is surprised they never contacted you given that I think your review is still one of the only reviews I've seen of their first class product.
How disappointing! I hope you can cancel your Business ticket.
I recently was blocked from buying a ticket because “we blocked you because your browser appears to be a bot” on the payment page. Maybe LH just doesn’t want to sell any tickets?
We won't take your money because Excuse 5, Excuse 17, Excuse 23.
The opposite of Security is Convenience.