Kix

Never had an EK skywards card before, but now i do.

Realistically how many europe-dxb flights do i need to make in a year (economy, company don't throw cash around) to get silver or gold?

scrubbedexpat141

Lots. I flew between London and Dubai about 5 times last year and am still two flights away from silver I think

spartans53

If you get a saver fare cheapest you get 3000 tier mailes. Flex gives you 6000. 25,000 tier miles is silver 50,000 is gold.

Inside the GCC you get 1000 for a return saver and 2000 for a flex.

Just lost Gold now have to sit with the un washed at gate 120 T1

kittycat1

I'm silver and its a nightmare to keep it-I travel pretty much every month- I go back to the UK at least 4 times a year- 1 trip to the states a year, a couple of personal flights a year and a couple of flights to china, a few localish flights and i JUST about manage to keep silver- how anyone even gets gold is beyond me- however I do have a lot of airmiles saved up which I will be putting into use when I leave here for a bit of a round the world trip :-)

co durham boy

Skywards is rubbish now , it used to be the best programme around at one time.

It pains me to say it but 4 Flights to the U.K gets you Silver on Qatar Airways . I nail Gold every year but they're as tight as a nuns crutch when it comes to upgrades .

Nice new lounge at T4 in Heathrow though but the airlines mediocre at best but saying that there's no stand out airline for me in The Gulf it's all the same.

I get on zone out then get off , the less grief i get the better the experience , i just need to get from A to B.

weasel decentral

Etihad have a better reward program than Emirates if you can choose them. Even having a silver card doesn't get you much with Emirates, its still just essentially the conditions you get flying economy with maybe an extra baggage allowance and the remote chance of an upgrade.

The best value for money thing you can do I think, especially if you make a lot of connections is to pay for entry into one of the business lounges or first class lounges (a lot of airlines let you do this at reasonable rates) and at least you have comfort, food and drink at the terminals.

look up http://www.gosimply.com or priority pass, it will give you an idea of what I mean

spartans53

Silver gets you the Lounge in Dubai but more importantly for Saudi Flights, you can board first and avoid the mad crush. Also for Saudi flights everyone has a big carry on and if you don't get it in the rack you can lose an hour at immigration waiting for your bag.

spartans53

The fun one would be Al Fursan in KSA. If you get silver it says lounge access for you and your family. That could mean 4 wives and loads of kids trapesing in behind.

weasel decentral

one hour extra spent in immigration is one hour less to spend outside in the country

Kix

Thanks for the info, pretty much as I thought then, it's looking like I'll stick with BA, even though it adds an hour or so to my journey cos of connections, at least I get to Terminal 1 (less queues)? and usually get the club upgrade.

Etihad mind you, now there's a thought.

Millhouse

Well, as a man of distinction, I hold gold cards in Emirates, Etihad and BA (ok, the last one is only silver at the moment and Etihad will expire soon). But, I'd say the Etihad one was probably the most giving (including a driver home even if you flew economy).

Emirates cut its service recently, and the gold card now only offers a free e-gate and access a packed lounge. BA silver card: no tangible benefits to write home about from what I can tell.

commander

yea, im a skywards gold and i find the terminal 3 lounge a nightmate. I much prefer the old one in T1.

NorthernLad

Emirates are about to change again, too many gold cards.

A platinum will be introduced, making traveling with them frequently less appealing.

Try to use miles for their flights is a joke, they are only any use for upgrades now.

typical

I am gold on Saudia, BA and EK (and silver on BMI and titanium on Vietnam Airlines). EK has been by far the best for upgrades. Saudia is worthwhile for lounge access and waitlist priority - soon they'll be in Skyteam too, so widening the number of crappy airlines you can spend your miles on...

typical

Do you have concrete info on this? This rumour has been around for ages - I bet the number of golds will be dropping now so many cheaper fares only earn Saver miles.

Doubt I'll keep gold another year.