United Excursionist Perk: Journey extra for fewer miles

One invaluable characteristic of the United MileagePlus program is the Excursionist Perk, which lets you add a one-way flight to a round-trip award ticket with out utilizing further miles. The principles for this perk usually are not nicely outlined, however it’s an especially invaluable instrument for award journey.

Understanding and utilizing the Excursionist Perk could also be difficult for newcomers and even some superior award vacationers. It requires effort and time, however it might help you redeem United miles for incredible award itineraries at a low value — and see extra of the world for fewer miles. Here is every part it’s essential to know to benefit from this uncommon perk.

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What’s the United Excursionist Perk?

At its core, the Excursionist Perk is supposed to provide a free one-way section to vacationers on round-trip itineraries between two totally different areas as outlined by the MileagePlus program. The United web site is extremely obscure when defining the Excursionist Perk, which leaves ample room for artistic minds to stretch the bounds of this perk. Listed here are the principles revealed by United for the Excursionist Perk:

• Your journey begins and ends in the identical MileagePlus-defined area.
• The free Excursionist Perk flight begins and ends in the identical area.
• Your journey begins in a distinct area than the free Excursionist Perk flight.
• The free Excursionist Perk flight should be in the identical (or a decrease) award tier or cabin than the flight earlier than it.

To paraphrase: The primary route inside a single MileagePlus-defined area that is totally different from the area through which your itinerary begins and ends is free, so long as it is in the identical class (or decrease) because the previous leg.

For an instance of the only (and sure meant) use of the Excursionist Perk, contemplate a round-trip economy-class award flight between Newark Liberty Worldwide Airport (EWR) and London’s Heathrow Airport (LHR), which on this case prices 55,200 miles and $204 in taxes and charges.

By invoking the Excursionist Perk, you may get a free section inside the area you are visiting (so long as it is a totally different area than the place you are beginning). This implies you may guide the next itinerary for a similar variety of miles as a easy round-trip award (although you will nonetheless should pay taxes and charges on the free center section):

• Newark to Heathrow
• Heathrow to Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER)
• Berlin to Newark

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Here is the itinerary priced out utilizing United’s multicity search operate.

You pay no further miles for the center section, however you will additionally get to see Berlin and conveniently return dwelling instantly from there. You will even save a couple of miles as a result of award flights from Berlin are barely cheaper than from London, and you will avoid wasting money by avoiding the UK’s excessive departure taxes in your ticket.

While you guide the London to Berlin section, you will discover United expenses zero miles for it.

The method is fairly simple, and at face worth, United may win clients over with this unusual profit. Nevertheless, the worth you may get out of the Excursionist Perk is determined by the MileagePlus-defined area you go to. Europe is a superb one, since you may plan a visit one of many dozens of nations in that area. Japan, however, is classed as its personal area, so the one Excursionist flights you will have to select from will probably be from one Japanese metropolis to a different.

The right way to guide United Excursionist itineraries

You possibly can (and may) guide United Excursionist itineraries on-line. All it’s essential to do to make use of the Excursionist Perk is use the “Superior search” instrument on the United homepage.

On the following web page, choose the “Multi-city” choice and plug within the dates and locations you need to guide. You should examine the field to indicate the value in miles, because the Excursionist Perk does not apply to paid tickets.

In case your itinerary follows the Excursionist logic, it should value accurately. There isn’t any further button to pick or low cost code to enter; the free Excursionist leg will robotically seem for zero miles (plus taxes and charges). You possibly can mix United flights with companion airways, and there isn’t any minimal or most keep requirement for the stopover.

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United Excursionist examples

Under are 4 examples of Excursionist itineraries through which we apply the perk’s base logic to real-world award itineraries. These are simply examples that will help you perceive the Excursionist Perk; there are many different choices to discover when you get the cling of it.

The East Asian Excursionist hopper

Beginning in South Korea, you’ll be able to see numerous cities and international locations on a single ticket. For instance, you may fly between the next airports:

• Seoul’s Incheon Worldwide Airport (ICN) to Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK)
• BKK to Manila’s Ninoy Aquino Worldwide Airport (MNL)
• MNL to Taiwan Taoyuan Worldwide Airport (TPE)

Since South Korea and Taiwan are each in the identical area (North Asia) and Thailand and the Philippines are in a distinct area (South Asia), the center leg from BKK to MNL qualifies for the Excursionist Perk.

If you happen to’re already visiting South Korea, you may use the Excursionist Perk to see three extra international locations for as little as 35,000 miles and $51 earlier than you head dwelling from Taiwan.

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The Ecuadorian and Galapagos Excursionist turtle

If seeing the Galapagos turtles is close to the highest of your to-do checklist, you may additionally need to go to different locations within the area. With this itinerary, you’ll be able to cowl Ecuador’s two main cities and the Galapagos Islands for a minimal outlay of miles:

• Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) to Mariscal Sucre Quito Worldwide Airport (UIO)
• Jose Joaquin de Olmedo Worldwide Airport (GYE) in Guayaquil, Ecuador, to the Galapagos’ Seymour Airport (GPS) on Baltra
• GPS to IAH by way of UIO

For this itinerary, you begin in Houston (or wherever within the U.S.), go to each Guayaquil and Quito, Ecuador, for so long as you need, then go to the turtles (and different wildlife) within the Galapagos earlier than flying again to the U.S. The GYE-GPS section will value at 0 miles — you will solely be topic to $18 in taxes and charges.

This complete itinerary will set you again 63,000 miles (if you happen to discover saver availability) and $125. The one different step you are accountable for is getting from Quito to Guayaquil, a straightforward proposition.

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Dynamic pricing equals dynamic worth for the United Excursionist

The consensus is that dynamic pricing is a horrible growth for award vacationers looking for outsize worth for his or her miles. Nevertheless, there are occasions when it will probably work to your benefit. One such manner is with the Excursionist Perk.

Contemplate this state of affairs: You are primarily based in California and have already got a visit booked to Thailand and Indonesia. You want a one-way flight from Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta Worldwide Airport (CGK) to Bangkok, which usually would set you again no less than 17,500 United miles in economic system.

Nevertheless, moderately than leaping to guide that choice, contemplate the next:

• San Francisco Worldwide Airport (SFO) to Los Angeles Worldwide Airport (LAX)
• CGK to BKK
• LAX to SFO

SFO-LAX is on the market from 6,800 miles every manner. So, if you happen to nested your one-way CGK-BKK flight between journeys to Los Angeles, you may get the entire itinerary for simply 13,600 miles, saving you a couple of thousand miles — for the reason that CGK-BKK leg is $0 plus $18 in taxes and charges.

All you’d must do is go dwelling from Los Angeles the primary weekend after which all the way down to Los Angeles the second weekend (doubtlessly utilizing an alternate type of transportation). You’d thus get a round-trip flight from SFO to LAX and your required CGK-BKK flight for fewer miles than if you happen to booked the CGK-BKK flight alone.

That is one artistic manner to make use of the Excursionist Perk to avoid wasting your self much more miles. Simply bear in mind that you will need to fly the primary leg; if you happen to do not, the remainder of your itinerary will probably be canceled.

The impartial Excursionist

You possibly can take this concept even additional if you happen to prefer to plan and are keen to have three or extra journeys at a time on the books. To illustrate you are primarily based in Boston and also you need to plan three separate journeys: a February ski journey to Denver, an April getaway to Africa and an early-fall jaunt to New Orleans. With a little bit extra effort, you could possibly avoid wasting miles by reserving components of those journeys collectively and utilizing the Excursionist Perk.

On this instance, you’d fly the next itinerary (however spaced out as far aside as you want):

• Boston Logan Worldwide Airport (BOS) to Denver Worldwide Airport (DEN)
• Johannesburg’s O.R. Tambo Worldwide Airport (JNB) to Kotoka Worldwide Airport (ACC) in Accra, Ghana
• BOS to Louis Armstrong New Orleans Worldwide Airport (MSY)

The itinerary begins and ends in the identical area (mainland U.S., Alaska and Canada), with the center section wholly inside one other area (Central and Southern Africa) — and is thus eligible for the Excursionist Perk.

On this case, the entire itinerary prices 23,400 miles and $52.80.

Buying the Excursionist leg by itself would truly value extra miles than the above multicity reserving.

On this case, you are successfully getting three flights for lower than the value of 1.

After all, you will nonetheless should guide the opposite legs of those three journeys individually, which requires extra effort and time. And just like the SFO-LAX instance above, you will need to take the BOS-DEN flight first; in any other case, the remainder of the itinerary will probably be canceled. However this exhibits how one can doubtlessly save miles by reframing how you consider the Excursionist Perk.

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• After a number of searches, it’s possible you’ll must clear your cookies and begin over on United.com. The search engine can begin displaying errors and no outcomes after a number of queries.
• Through the multisegment search, the seven-day and 30-day choices might error out and say nothing is on the market even when flights have award area. On this case, you will need to change your search dates within the multicity search operate to seek out obtainable dates.
• There aren’t any most section or most permitted mileage limitations on United Excursionist itineraries.
• Remember about open jaws, that are potential when utilizing the United Excursionist Perk. If you happen to can journey by yourself to get to the following metropolis the place your ticket picks up, you’ve got added one more vacation spot to go to for no further miles.
• You can too combine lessons, so long as the Excursionist Perk flight is in the identical (or a decrease) cabin than the flight earlier than it. For instance, if you happen to discover a business-class flight from the U.S. to Europe, you’ll be able to then guide a free intra-Europe flight in enterprise class earlier than flying again to the U.S. — even if you happen to can solely discover economic system award availability on that final leg.
• Examine the areas of the United MileagePlus award chart. Giant areas sometimes maintain probably the most potential worth, as these longer interregional segments will probably be free. Reserving the most cost effective intraregional routes (e.g., Japan to Japan) means you continue to get the costlier Excursionist leg free. It does not matter if the Excursionist leg prices twice as a lot because the intraregional flights (see the dynamic pricing instance above).
• Do not name United. One TPGer spoke with 5 brokers on United’s Premier 1K line, and just one knew concerning the United Excursionist Perk (and never by identify). Your agent might don’t know what you are making an attempt to do, and if you happen to get an ill-informed one, you may be on maintain for hours and nonetheless find yourself with unhealthy data. We suggest solely utilizing United.com when researching and reserving Excursionist itineraries.

Lastly, it’s possible you’ll contemplate including a cobranded United bank card to your pockets if you happen to’re severe about reserving these itineraries. Playing cards just like the United℠ Explorer Card can present discounted award availability on United-operated flights, which might noticeably influence the ultimate value you pay.

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