Anyone care to share their knowledge on these 3 ways to travel (and others if they exist) and how to best take advantage of them? Costs? Flexibility? Recommended techniques? How do you book Zed, and what kind of discount is it? Do you pay anything for pass travel?

 

I jumpseat everywhere.

 

That doesn’t even remotely help answer his question.

ZED fares are deeply discounted standby passes on every airline you can imagine. You are bottom priority for the most part. ZED fares come in brackets of High Medium or Low for cost structure. Most airlines tend to be medium cost. If you are trying to fly BKK-HKG for example you could see many different agreements. Cathay Pacific might be a ZED high and Thai might be a ZED low. So ship between airlines and you might be able to save some money on the same route. Also some airlines offer Business class ZED fares but they are often priced much higher than economy ZED fares. There is a huge break down of all our interline agreements in travel section of the company website.

List nonrev on United flights for a seat in the back. If you can’t get a seat in the back then list for jumpseat. If you commute and it’s on a different airline then you’ll list to jumpseat on them for either a cabin seat if open or flight deck. It’s all the same listing. If there is a seat in the back you’ll get it, if not then the jumpseat is your last option.

Hope this helps.

 

Take a deep breath, they'll go over non-rev travel and jumpseating during indoc.

 

I’ve used them all.

ZED are standby seats on other airlines. The cost is based on length of leg of flight. For instance, IAD-DEN is about $35. You sign up via myIDtravel.com for most although a handful use ID90.com. I’ve also called the 800 number to list. Basically, they issue you a voucher that you buy, then you use that voucher to buy a standby seat. You, your spouse, your kids, and your parents can use this benefit. Also other authorized travelers. I usually list for the jumpseat and then buy ZEDs for the family to save a few bucks if the flight looks open. They’ll usually give you a seat in the back if one is open. If you buy a voucher and don’t get on, then you can submit for a refund. If you buy a voucher and then decide before the flight to cancel, your money is automatically refunded after a few days. Basically you buy the voucher, use it to list for standby via the website or 800 number, check-in for the flight, and then wait for your name to be called.

 

Thanks, this is really helpful. Is the Zed fare the best way to get tickets through United also? Or do they have a different system to buy reduced priced tickets?

 

All ZED fare tickets are standby for other airlines. At United, if you’re an employee, you and your family standby for free. United does have discount tickets available for purchase for you, your family, and your parents, but those are actual seats that you don’t standby for. If you could by ZED fare tickets for United, you would just be paying for standby tickets on an airline you don’t need to pay to standby on. Make sense?

 

Yeah, ZED passes are basically buying standby rights on an airline other than your own. We have a very extensive list of agreements with various airlines, with some notable exceptions (No Singapore Air, for example). It’s a good option for traveling, ESPECIALLY in foreign markets where UAL service is limited/non-existent. I use them all the time- info is on flyingtogether under Travel. There is a breakdown of each airline with listing procedures, dress codes, checkin policies, etc. The cost is based on mileage under 3 types of agreements- Low, Medium, & High; (Medium is by far the most common.) & is refundable if you don’t get on. Most airlines will seat you in coach only. Turkish & Lufthansa are the only two off the top of my head that offer business seating.

I also HIGHLY recommend using StaffTraveler to check other airline loads when traveling on ZED passes- get availability & NR listing numbers similar to what we can look up on EmployeeRes/UAL App.

 

Domestically, jumpsesting is the best way to travel on other airlines, because it’s free, most airlines will seat you in the back if available, you have the added option of the jumpseat, and your priority for JS or ZED rider is going to be at the bottom either way. A couple of caveats. JS is not an option internationally except on your own carrier, and obviously, you can’t bring your family in the JS, so if you’re bringing your dependents, they’ll need ZED passes.

 

You can JS on many carriers internationally, but they need to seat you in the cabin.