Oneworld Emerald: Why It's My Favorite Airline Alliance Status

I do not see much of a difference between Star Alliance Gold and one world Emerald (and I have both).
But I definitely see a huge difference between LH HON Circle and one world Emerald - maybe just because so far I have not been asked to pay up for a skipped leg . (And, yes, I am HON Circle member).
So my preferred top tier status of any airline alliance by far definitely is HON Circle.

I LIKE THAT, . . . simply because it is "mostly very true"!
...... "and please, no one tell me that Lufthansa Senator Lounges are in fact first class lounges" 😉

SkyTeam Elite (not even Plus) gives free baggage on ALL fares with ALL airlines in the alliance. That's worth more for short haul travel than access to a first class lounge that either doesn't exist or isn't the real F lounge. Oneworld doesn't even give elites priority baggage handling!

I do appreciate people will have different priorities around these things, but the thing you keep missing when you're talking about oneworld is that they are basically absent from THREE continents! You can't really use them for travel within Africa or S. America, and anything between Caribbean/C. America and South America needs to go via the USA (normally without international transit facilities). Worse still, their coverage of Eastern Europe/the Balkans/Turkey is also patchy at best, and they've got zero domestic flights in the world's two most populous countries (or indeed any country in the 100m+ club other than the USA).

I'm sure oneworld status works great for those travelling between LHR and the USA. Now they have Oman Air in addition to QR, it may well be pretty good for travel between the Gulf and the Indian Subcontinent...but it still doesn't really work for those who have more complex and/or global travel requirements.

I mean think about it, you're saying that Skyteam Elite Plus isn't competitive because it doesn't give you lounge access when taking domestic flights in the USA. Oneworld status doesn't give you any benefits at all when taking domestic flights in China or India!

HON Circle (had in the past) is must harder to achieve than Emerald (which I have for life). BA also has a tier above Emerald (and upgrade perks for 'super-Emeralds') which makes the comparison unequal.

HON status is plain old *G outside of the Lufthansa group. You'd still get no luggage when flying on cheap Avianca fares!

Just to clarify, those with One World Emerald via a non-US-based loyalty program can use Flagship First check-in for any flight, including wholly US-domestic flights and irrespective of cabin class. This has been the case for about six or so years. And, I pushed AA and BA to extend benefit reciprocity for CK and GGL, which affords CKs access to the Concorde Room and GGLs access to Flagship First Dining.

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These are fair points. Consider Rome to Frankfurt -- two primary cities. One World only has connecting flights. A hassle for many. And, it's fair to ask which One World lounges accessible by Emerald are "true" first class lounges with a la carte table service. For example, Soho at JFK and Galleries First at LHR are more business-plus lounges as opposed to "true" first class lounges. While Qantas LAX has table service, it's an underwhelming lounge.

I've had Emerald status for several years and intend to keep it. I even managed to select the blocked seats in JAL's new first class in advance. Excellent!

PS The Cathay Pacific LHR first class lounge is great. But, honestly, the business class lounge is just as nice as the Soho at JFK and Galleries First at LHR. As Throwawayname said, different people have different priorities. Final item: BA does not respect boarding groups on intra-Europe flights -- it seems like a Spirit Airlines free for all.

In your magical world, Kenya and Ethiopia equal Africa and, apparently, make intra-africa connections super easy.
OneWorld has historically been built around the biggest business destinations (at conception) and, for better or worse, that's not Africa.

Cute and Funny. But dumb.

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@Geneva Kerr, you are missing the point that you can fly via Kenya and Ethiopia between any two points in the continent, and both of their airlines also have a selection of fifth freedom routes. There's also SAA, which isn't what it used to be but still offers some connectivity.

The oneworld alternative involves backtracking to DOH or CMN for that connection...which I suppose is still better than having to take two international flights for a domestic itinerary in China or going from Peru to Argentina via Miami

@FCK , having to make a connection isn't quite the end of the world, that's how the hub and spoke system works. The issue is that, unless you are going to/from Spain (or Scotland/Ireland), oneworld doesn't really offer convenient connections and it doesn't even have year-round service to a bunch of important cities particularly towards the East of the continent (SKG, ADB, ZAG, LJU to name but four)

I have QR Platinum and therefore Oneworld Emerald. My home airport is SFO. However the one place where this status would help, it doesn’t - QR has no lounge in SFO; previously they used to send J passengers to the Golden Gate lounge which is the worst lounge in the entire airport and now they send them to the Alaska Lounge which is in an entirely different terminal and therefore useless as you need to add 30 minutes just for the walk to and back. Instead, I could go to the BA lounge in Terminal A, however BA blocks Oneworld Emerald not traveling on BA from accessing the lounge. So, what’s the point of the status?

I have QR Platinum and therefore Oneworld Emerald. My home airport is SFO. However the one place where this status would help, it doesn’t - QR has no lounge in SFO; previously they used to send J passengers to the Golden Gate lounge which is the worst lounge in the entire airport and now they send them to the Alaska Lounge which is in an entirely different terminal and therefore useless as you need to add 30 minutes just for the walk to and back. Instead, I could go to the BA lounge in Terminal A, however BA blocks Oneworld Emerald not traveling on BA from accessing the lounge. So, what’s the point of the status?

My point is looking at what your star & sky team intra africa options are

If you think Africa is a monolith continent, you'll do well
If you're smart, you'll know better

I never talked about monoliths. The fact is that oneworld is the only alliance without a hub in sub Saharan Africa .

I’m in agreement. When BA changed its scheme to be revenue based I considered focusing on Star alliance status as I live in Switzerland. But OW emerald is simply the best status out there, especially for someone who flies to HK and Australia a lot. So I switched to Qatar

Yes, oneworld Emerald is the real sweet spot, and the fact that there are true First Class lounges above the regular and business class ones with many airlines and airports. Like, at JFK, T8, you would otherwise be relegated to Greenwich (standard Flagship), but with OW Emerald, you get Soho (an elevated experience); still, you'd need to be flying First long-haul for Chelsea (oh well).

There are some of us who primarily fly domestically (within the US). I am Alaska ATMOS Platinum (née Alaska MVP 75k), which is also oneworld Emerald. I manage only 1-2 international trips per year, not including Canada, which more often than not is on Air Canada/United. So lounge access is limited (though not a problem as I hold a Citi AAdvantage Executive card), but I have been upgraded to F 12 times this year. And while domestic First is nothing like AF Le Premiere, it's also better than Economy.

It’s a pilot strike, not armageddon… cool your jets… (like a Canadian airline in winter…)

I agree, OW emerald (AA EXP) got me no charge J class seat assignment for several trips via the UK on BA and I’ve continued to enjoy the BA first lounge at LHR. It counts for nada within the US though.

I have OneWorld Emerald being a Qatar Airways Platinum Avios status member. I would like to start using American Airlines in the US and start building AA points. How can I do this while still getting the Emerald benefits (LAX) but applying the miles and flights to AA ?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I won't tell you that, BUT, there are no lines to get in(because it is above straight biz class. It's based on points). The experience is above most U.S. based clubs. And FC at LH is never crowded because just for FC or Hon Circle.

What you do miss is that the concept is different.

Ben, your reasons for One world over Star Alliance Gold almost identical. OK, so Star doesn't get intl. FC club access. I would call that a plus because it cuts down on number of people in FC club at a time. No waiting for entry or reservations.

Emerald One World, Cathay Pacific - The best
Diamond SkyTeam, Delta - Needs Improvement
Platinum Star Alliance, Thai - Mediocre, Better than SkyTeam

1) There are those of us who don't often (if at all) fly to Africa, and other places where oneworld doesn't go; for us, that would be irrelevant.

2) If, as you say, "Oneworld doesn't even give elites priority baggage handling," then what is my luggage doing with all those cards that read "oneworld Priority" on them?

3) I realize that OMAAT has a strong international readership, but just as not everyone flies in F/J all the time, not all of the readership flies intercontinentally multiple times a year. Some readers are based in the US and primarily fly within the US. When I fly to Europe (which I typically do once a year for pleasure, not business), I have no problem flying through LHR or MAD on BA or Iberia, respectively. Asia? JAL and Cathay Pacific work just fine. American flies to South America, and certainly Qatar and Royal Air Maroc fly throughout Africa...BUT we each have our own preferences.