I mentioned this last year that the difference between coach and first class is getting more and more narrow and I continued to see that in 2018. Sometimes, first is even less than economy, depending on the route and how close to departure you are booking. Since booking in First Class gets you double qualifying miles, I was able to keep my Premier Platinum status with United. Here’s how my year ended up – with the previous four years included as a comparison.
By the Numbers: (2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013)
Total Miles Flown: 83,138 | 81,978 | 68,278 | 72,293 | 53,322 | 73,825
Total Segments Flown: 44 | 55 | 45 | 41 | 37 | 44
Cabin Segment Breakdown (F/B/C): 20/8/16 | 21/3/31 | 8/5/32 | 2/5/34 | 0/5/32 | 7/4/33
Airlines Flown (new airlines bolded): 5 (United, Austrian, Brussels, Air Canada, EVA, Singapore) 8 | 5 | 4 | 7
Hotel Nights: 73 | 84 | 69 | 67 | 56 | 71
Hotel Stays: 33 | 35 | 35 | 47 | 32 | 31
Airline Miles Redeemed: 367,500 | 85,000 | 0 | 155,000 | 37,500 | 105,000
Hotel Points Redeemed: 90,000 | 12,000 | 106,000 | 283,500 | 134,000 | 13,400
Countries Visited (new Countries bolded): 3 + 2 (Austria, Belgium, Canada, Singapore, Argentina) 3+3 | 3+2 | 6+1 | 8+1
Longest Single Segment: ORD-TPE @ 7,457 | ORD-TPE @ 7,457 | ORD-CDG @ 4,153 | ORD-HKG @ 7,787 | MUC-ORD @ 4,535 | ORD-PVG @ 7,056
Shortest Single Segment: MDZ-COR @ 288 | GIG-GRU @ 210 | CUZ-AQP @ 195 | CVG-ORD @ 264| YUL-YQB @ 145
Northernmost Airport: BRU (Brussels) | CDG (Paris) | CDG (Paris) | LHR (Heathrow) | ARN (Stockholm) | LHR (Heathrow)
Southernmost Airport: EZE (Buenos Aires) | BKK (Bangkok) | LPB (La Paz) | HKG (Hong Kong) | MCO (Orlando) | SGN (Ho Chi Minh City)
The most frequent non-home airport: PDX (Portland) | DEN (Denver) | Tie between EWR & LAX (Newark and Los Angeles) | BNA (Nashville) | YYZ (Toronto) | BNA (Nashville)
I flew enough miles to:
Circumnavigate the world: 3.3 | 3.2 | 2.3 times | 2.9 times | 2.0 times
Make it a third | a third | a quarter | a third | a fifth of the way to the moon
