My SWISS First Class Upgrade Experience (Finally)!!!

I’m excited to report that I’ll shortly be reviewing SWISS’ Boeing 777-300ER first class, as well as SWISS’ First Class Lounges Zurich. Let me explain…

SWISS’ consistent first class upgrade program

For those of us into miles & points, SWISS first class is a bit of an elusive product. The only way to redeem miles for long haul SWISS first class is to book through the Miles & More program, and to have at least Senator status (I say “long haul” because you can redeem United MileagePlus miles for SWISS first class between Sao Paulo and Buenos Aires, but that’s only a short hop).

More from OMAAT SWISS First Lounge Zurich Airport (ZRH) Terminal E Review: Terrace, Top-Tier Dining, And Bedrooms! Read more

So for most of us, if you want to fly SWISS first class, you actually have to pay with cash. There is one potential trick, which I’ve written about before — SWISS consistently offers cash upgrades to first class at check-in, assuming there are a good number of empty seats. Best of all, this is permitted even on award tickets that are booked through partner frequent flyer programs, like Air Canada Aeroplan or Avianca LifeMiles.

If you’re on an award ticket, there are two ways to upgrade, assuming it’s being offered:

• You might be offered an upgrade during online check-in, though the key is that your itinerary starts with SWISS; this detail prevented me from an online check-in upgrade on a recent SWISS flight where I was connecting off an Air Canada flight, as I was directed to use Air Canada’s online check-in
• You can also inquire about an upgrade at the check-in counter; while this is usually offered if there are open seats, the catch is that if you check-in too close to departure, they might not have sufficient catering for you in first class, and therefore may not be able to offer the upgrade

I was finally offered an upgrade to SWISS first class

I’ve been trying to find an interesting way to get to Europe for a trip I had planned, and I figured this was a good opportunity to try to finally review SWISS first class again:

• My goal was to fly SWISS’ 777 first class rather than SWISS’ A330 first class, since that offers SWISS’ best first class proudct
• I haven’t reviewed SWISS first class or the SWISS First Lounge Zurich in over seven years, so I figured it was time to revisit both, so I can update my rankings of the world’s best first class airlines and the world’s best first class lounges
• Aside from the US West Coast, the only destination in the United States to which SWISS currently flies its 777s is Miami
• I found a flight that not only had lots of business class award seats, but that also had seven of eight first class seats left for sale just a couple of days before departure
• So I booked a business class award from Miami to Europe with 70,000 Air Canada Aeroplan points, and intentionally planned a 10-hour layover in Zurich, so that I’d have plenty of time to check out all the lounges
• I booked the flight 36 hours before departure, and since Aeroplan allows award tickets to be canceled within 24 hours for no fee, I could always cancel the award in the event that I wasn’t offered a buy-up

So, I’m happy to report that this was a success… though it cost me a bit more than I was hoping.

My SWISS first class upgrade cost

Okay, let’s talk cost. Upgrades to SWISS first class aren’t cheap, though they are the most realistic way that most of us can access this product. SWISS first class upgrades seem to have dynamic offers, so you won’t always pay the same for an upgrade on a particular route. Generally speaking:

• SWISS first class upgrades on shorter international flights (to the Middle East, India, the US Northeast, and Canada) typically start at around $1,000
• SWISS first class upgrades on longer international flights (to Florida, the US West Coast, Southeast Asia, North Asia, South America, etc.) typically start at around $1,500, though are often priced at $2,000+

My hope was that I’d be offered an upgrade for around $1,500. Unfortunately that’s not quite how things materialized, as I was instead offered an upgrade for $1,920.

That’s obviously a bit more than I wanted to spend, but I figured it was a worthwhile opportunity, because it actually efficiently got me to my intended destination, it was from my home airport (so no positioning was required), it would allow me to maximize my time in the SWISS First Lounge Zurich, and I also wanted to try this experience again, to stay on top of the current status of various products.

I absolutely wouldn’t ordinarily spend that kind of cash to upgrade a redeye, as it’s simply not worth it. But for these purposes, it seemed like a fair investment.

For those curious about when in the online check-in process upgrades are offered, it’s after you enter all your travel details, and go through most of the check-in process. Then there’s a page with a bunch of options, and one of those is the ability to upgrade.

I have to say, SWISS could probably do a more compelling job selling people on these upgrades, in terms of how it markets the differences between cabins. 😉

Bottom line

I’ve been chasing SWISS first class (and the SWISS First Class Lounge Zurich) for quite some time, though I haven’t had much luck. I finally ripped the band-aid off, and took advantage of a SWISS first class buy-up offer. The Miami to Zurich flight was operated by a 777 with a mostly empty first class cabin.

While the cost was a bit more than I would have liked, it was time to give SWISS first class another try, as it had been over seven years. Stay tuned for my experience…