The secrets of blagging an upgrade

The secrets of blagging an upgrade
By admin


Travel alone, be polite, join a frequent flyer scheme and point out an injury. They are top four ways of blagging an upgrade, according to a survey of cabin crew.

In its poll of 700 cabin crew from 83 countries, Skyscanner found 82% said being friendly and polite made a difference between getting that craved-for upgrade and being stuck in economy.

And if you're a smartly dressed single male in your 30s, you may be luckier than most with 61% of crew saying they have given upgrades to those fitting that description.

However, females in their late teens wearing revealing clothing and travelling as part of a group stand next to no chance of stretching out in business class with a glass of bubbly.

The survey found eight out of ten cabin crew said joining a frequent flyer scheme would help with 72% saying travelling alone would increase your chances of flying with the well-to-do.

Dressing smartly held sway with almost 60% of crew while 65% said they would take sympathy on those with an injury or illness.

Honeymooners also stood a good chance of an upgrade with 58% of those polled while 35% of cabin crew would be swayed by a "sob story".

In a separate poll of 600 travellers, 7% said they would ditch their partners during the flight if it meant getting an upgrade while 6% would feign injury and 14% would pretend to be newlyweds.

Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au

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