Airlines in the United States have gotten increasingly good at monetizing their premium cabins. They don’t want customers to rely on complimentary upgrades, but instead, they’re trying to condition customers to pay for upgrades, whether it’s with miles or cash.
In recent years, this trend has been especially obvious at American Airlines, as the airline will now pretty consistently sell you instant upgrades with either cash or miles, any time between when you book and when you travel.
In this post, I’d like to go over the details of how exactly this program works. The truth is that there’s a lot of variability, so everyone’s experience may be a bit different, but it’s at least worth understanding how it works.
A great solo travel tip spotted this week on One Mile at a Time.
