Establishing A Minimum Value For Delta SkyMiles

@Larry M and lucky: if you upgrade from the Gold to the Platinum, you can actually get a bonus of 25,000 miles after you spend $3000 in 3 months - I just called to upgrade a week ago! I'd be spending that money anyway, and since I'm already paying the $95 yearly fee, that's like getting 25,000 miles for $100. Plus, the Platinum card comes with a yearly free companion pass, which you forgot to mention, which works anywhere in the continental US. That's easily worth more than $195 since there are plenty of roundtrips in the US that cost more than that (mine to visit family for the holidays is twice that, and I'm planning to use the companion pass for my fiance). So yes, getting 1 cent/dollar on all spend isn't great, but the perks and sign-up bonus are much better than those of cashback cards.

Interesting, hadn't considered the cash value of the points. Got the platinum Delta business card a few months ago and been saving up the points. My guess is using them o/w in biz to Accra (Ghana) would be a great value, so I guess I'll save them for that.

Increasingly I find Delta's route map out of JFK to be the worst of the three legacy carriers. Delta doesn't even fly their own planes direct to Tokyo! As a Delta Diamond if I want to fly anywhere in Asia it means I have to fly one of their very sub par partners: China Southern, or Eastern to Hong Kong, Beijing or Shanghai. China Airways or Korean are nominally better, but I still don't understand the math or reasoning behind having a hub at JFK when you don't fly to Tokyo or Hong Kong Direct? Delta's route map to Asia out of JFK is just terrible with no actual Delta non-stops ANYWHERE in Asia. You have to go to Detroit or Minneapolis or Seattle or Portland or Atlanta, because, you know, there is no demand out of the small hamlet of NYC to fly to Hong Kong or Tokyo or.... And award tickets when I've look can be as much as 340,000 for a business class ticket often with 2 stops!!!! Factor in the ancient uncomfortable 767's they fly transcon and to Europe, they aren't worth the 160,000 miles they are asking! When they have flash sales for elites and you can nab a seat for 110,000 to Europe then maybe. Sorry to rant, but all of this goes back to how valuable their miles are and I think given the high rate of awards and the very limited direct route map out of NYC, ancient planes, uncomfortable seats of the 767, makes them nearly worthless. As much as I hate United (as someone who used used to be a top elite on them) they have the best route map of any Legacy carrier our of NYC. Sadly, they fly out of New Jersey and have a terrible product. Bottom line is like you say more and more Lucky: buy cheap business class tickets on the airlines you want to fly and give up on being brand loyal to any one airline .

Lucky, do you ever find one way Delta saver business class to Europe from LAX on a flight without high carrier surcharges ?

@Ross that's why a SkyMile isn't worth as much as an Amex MR or Chase UR. But it's already worth more than 1 c/mile if you use SkyMiles properly. So, no, it doesn't knock them down to .97 c or something.