On the day upgrades

I've got an H class PE ticket for an upcoming flight, and am interested in upgrading to UC.

I phoned VS who told me it was not possible to offer an upgrade price on this ticket, since it was booked as part of a Combi Fare (using miles to pay for the UC return leg) -- and the conditions of this deal mean it can only be used for outbound travel in Economy or PE (http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/en/gb/fr ... ifares.jsp).

Just wondering people's views on whether this would preclude upgrade possibilities on the day, once the tickets have been released to check-in staff? Is it likely that they would be able to offer me cash or miles upgrade deals (seats permitting of course) or would the same restrictions still apply? I've done a load check and there's good availability in UC (and interestingly PE is full, so may yet be the possibility of an op-up though I won't hold my breath ii)... ).

If it is a possibility, what's my best strategy -- just ask at the bag drop desk or somewhere else? And any ideas what sort of upgrade prices might be available?

I'm not concerned if it's not do-able (and if it's crazy pricey I won't do it anyway), just keen to understand my options. Thanks in advance.

The rules appear to go out of the window at the airport so well worth asking at the ticket desk rather than bag drop.

Remember though that VS will do op-ups only if it really has to.

I think the golden rule is that at the airport anything can happen. there are tales of people getting upgrades cheap on non-upg. tickets and tales of crazy prices.
yes you have a chance -how good depends on, availability (have you done a load check)and probably luck. Best place to start is the ticket desk. I have managed to get to UC using miles on more than one occasion, even after initially being told no. A nice polite 'would you mind checking please' didnt hurt.

then again I have had $250 each turned down at Barbados for a EC-PE upgrade when they were on offer at $500....and the seats stayed empty !! to my business mind plain crazy but there ya go

Thanks, guys, appreciate your thoughts. Sounds like it's definitely worth asking then.

then again I have had $250 each turned down at Barbados for a EC-PE upgrade when they were on offer at $500....and the seats stayed empty !! to my business mind plain crazy but there ya go

Yeah, perhaps naively, that was my thoughts -- load check suggests there will be empty seats in UC and you might expect VS to therefore sell cheap upgrades but I'm sure it doesn't work that way.

Yeah, perhaps naively, that was my thoughts -- load check suggests there will be empty seats in UC and you might expect VS to therefore sell cheap upgrades but I'm sure it doesn't work that way.

Correct it doesn't work that way! And it's the same as most other airlines too.

The price of an upgrade will be the price the airline wants to charge so no negotiation !

The problem with cheap upgrades is that passengers won't book to sit in UC but PE because they will expect to be able to buy a cheap upgrade at the airport and thus reducing revenue for the airline.

Exactly, airlines have to strike the right balance between having their premium cabins as full as possible and retaining their perception of exclusivity.

There's nothing worse for the reputation of a product like Upper Class than having one passenger who's paid full fare sitting next to another who loudly boasts about only paying £200 to upgrade at the airport.

Of course a lot will depend on how busy the cheaper cabins are - if they're oversold but there's still room at the pointy end, the airline will want to fill that room. But if it's a lightly booked flight, the airline gains nothing by undervaluing its premium cabins. Far better to have empty seats than risk driving away high-spending business passengers who think the airline's lowering its standards by selling upgrades on the cheap.

ah but conversely how about teasing a pax with 'waht you could have' by upgrading them..then next time they might pay for it.

My Mum and dad are avid crusiers, last one they were upgraded from a standard ocean view to one with a balcony. it was going to be empty, they eat the same food drank the same booze but got a nicer room...guess what , next trip she has to have a balcony stating ' oh we could never go back now'...........pah spending my inheritance !!!! IMO its a good marketing ploy, kind of like the free samples of food you see being handed out in malls

Very different scenario.

On a modern cruise ship the vast majority (70-80%) of cabins are balcony cabins so upgrades from cheaper inside or outside cabins are very common. As you correctly point out, the service you get is exactly the same so in terms of cost to the cruise line it makes hardly any difference. So an upgrade is a win-win - the passenger's happy and is more likely to book again (maybe at a higher rate) yet it doesn't cost the line any more money to fill a cabin that would have been empty anyway.

On a plane, however, the premium cabins are far smaller than the economy cabin and the service you get in them costs the airline more to provide (better quality food & drink and far more crew per passenger). Therefore it's not in the airlines' interest to fill scarce premium seats at any cost unless they have to (eg if economy is oversold or the amount they charge to upgrade more than covers their costs).