Usually I buy Premium Economy on long-haul United flights, then pay $375 + 25K miles to get on the Polaris upgrade list. Works most of the time.
This time I paid $1100 for Premium Economy and joined the list then noticed United opened a ton of 80K award seats on my route. I canceled my paid ticket, got a $1475 credit back, and used 80K miles (net 55K after the refund) for a confirmed Polaris seat.
No waiting, no stress, just booked outright. Honestly feels like a slam dunk. Anyone else do this kind of switch?
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