S7 mile card. How are S7 miles restored?
The s7 Priority program was created for those who constantly travel by plane and want to do it in comfort. When using the program, participants can accumulate bonus units - miles. They can then be redeemed for award flights, upgrades, and so on.
But it is also permissible to give them to another person. Now is your chance to help a friend. At the same time, it is important to understand that if bonus units are not spent within a certain period, they will still be burned.
Transfer to another person's account
Transferring your s7 miles is a necessary procedure that helps those who travel rarely and do not take advantage of their opportunities. Now such people will be able to help family members who fly frequently or friends. In order to make such a transfer, you must be a user of the s7 Priority system.
To give a person s7 miles, you need to be a system user or register. In addition, the following conditions must be met:
- Anyone who transfers units to another person must have at least 1 flight on their account at a fare that accrues bonuses. The flight must be completed after registration in the Priority system.
- The account must have at least 500 miles. This is the minimum number of units to be transferred.
You can transfer your kilometers to another person not only in your personal account, but also by calling a call center operator.
To prevent your miles from being burned, you can simply buy a ticket in the name of the person to whom you want to give your bonuses. This will work quickly and reliably. But to do this, you must have enough credits in your account to purchase an award ticket.
Commission
When transferring from one member of the system to another, a commission is collected, which is equal to 375 rubles per 500 m., that is, for the minimum package. At the same time, it is important to remember that this procedure does not have a reverse effect, and you will not be able to pick up your gifts, as well as return the money.
Therefore, you should be careful when performing the operation. Otherwise, you may pay for your mistake. For transferring 1000 miles, the fee is 500 rubles. Can be used . It turns out 50 kopecks. for a bonus.
Restrictions
The s7 Priority program has limitations. First of all, this is the minimum number of bonus kilometers sent - there must be at least 500. There are also restrictions on the maximum. In one calendar year, a program participant cannot send more than 10 thousand units to another person. At the same time, the person to whom the bonuses are transferred must also be part of the system.
More recently, company s 7 did not provide such a service as transferring bonus accruals to another person. Therefore, now people are happy to take the opportunity to help someone who needs bonus units much more. This is convenient, for example, if the whole family is enrolled in the program, but most often one person flies alone. Then, after a joint flight, the rest of the family can transfer the accruals to the participant who needs them more.
I want to tell you one very interesting and exciting story.
How I bought air tickets from s7.
So, let me start by saying that I previously preferred to use the services of this particular company. The service was no worse or better than others, but the fleet consisted only of European aircraft. This made me happy. When purchasing tickets online, sometimes difficulties arose, but in the past they were always resolved.
More than a year ago, I decided to join the s7-priority program and started accumulating miles. The moment came when the number of miles was enough to purchase a ticket. From this moment on, an exciting show begins.
It is impossible to find instructions, a link or any mention of the possibility of buying a ticket with miles on the s7.ru website. There is a “spend miles” page containing textual information that you can spend them.
After spending 10 minutes searching, using all the search query options on the s7 website and Google, studying the faq section and finding nothing, I called the call center.
After waiting 10 minutes and explaining the situation to a specialist, I received an offer to write down the phone number of the s7 priority call center. He asked to connect me to the new call center. After waiting another ten minutes and talking about my problem, I received a question verbatim: “Have you ever been to our website?!” After some time, they finally helped me and gave me some guidance: we buy tickets for miles on the “Order an award” page.
OK. No problem. Already at this stage, suspecting something was wrong, I asked the specialist in detail about my further actions.
Gentlemen, sit back and listen :-) you won’t find this information anywhere on the Internet.
Steps on how to buy a ticket for miles from s7:
1. Go to the interface for purchasing tickets on the s7 website in the usual way
2. Find the flights you need
3. Call the call center (here it is very useful to write down the direct telephone number of the call center. :))
4. Find out whether there are tickets under the s7 priority program for the flights you need. If they are not there, it is better not to hang up :)
5. Next, go to the website in the S7 priority section on the “Order a premium” page
6. On the page, enter everything manually about the route and passenger (not tired yet? It’s all just beginning :))
7. Within 24 hours you will be sent an email containing your details and the cost of the ticket that you need to pay. Yes! You heard right :) According to experts, this is the cost of airport taxes. In my case, the amount in the letter was 1980 rubles. OK. The letter also includes a proposal to choose a payment method. There are few options: Call the service center and provide the details of your bank card, or pay the payment in the Svyaznoy salon or in the Qiwi terminal.
I decided not to tempt fate with voicing the details over the phone. This payment method caused me concern.
8. Send a letter in response with a payment option. Wait for a response with the payment ID.
9. We are trying to pay for tickets via the qiwi-wallet website. S7 --> payment for reservation. Result: System error.
10. Call technical support. We find out that payment via the qiwi online service is impossible. Only through the terminal.
11. Let's go to Svyaznoy. The Svyaznoy cashier employee is trying to process the payment. Function S7--> payment for reservation. Result: no connection with the provider. I ask the employee to read the letter. He spends a long time looking for a payment option at the cash register. The reservation ID and payment ID contain letters. All Qiwi services support the introduction of digital identifiers only. In the end, he finds an interface where you can enter the payment ID and announces the cost of the payment, 880 rubles. The system interface does not provide any more details. We compare together the cost of payment from my letter (1980 rubles) and decide that it is not worth paying.
12. I’m going to office S7. 1st Tverskaya-Yamskaya, no. 28. There are no signs or banners with the combination of the treasured S and 7 on the house.
13. I look for the office phone number on the website - they explain to me that I need to find a store selling kitchen utensils, go through the store hall to the second floor. Office s7 is one of 5 different airline desks in a small, shabby room.
14. I start communicating with an employee of the s7 company. The employee sincerely wants to help me. Her system shows that the cost of a ticket is 880 rubles. But the letter says a different amount. This confuses her, and we call the call center. The call center explains to us that the s7 company office cannot accept the payment, because this s7 company ticket is priority.
I have a strong feeling that someone doesn’t understand something. I insist on making the payment. To which an s7 employee who sincerely wants to help me explains to me that s7 airlines is a large holding company. She has a company called s7-tickets, which sells tickets, there is s7 priority, and there is also a company that transports animals. And “s7 tickets” cannot transport animals, and tickets from the company “s7 priority”. OK.
15. I’m going to the messenger to try my luck. I hope for a miracle. Alas. Attempts by Svyaznoy sellers to accept payment end in failure. Error communicating with the provider.
16. In another office of Svyaznoy the situation is repeated.
17. Last attempt - Qiwi street terminal: Pay for tickets --> Air carriers --> S7 --> Enter the phone number (the call center confirmed this payment method). Wait 3 minutes and go to the main page of the service. I make 3 attempts. All end unsuccessfully.
A curtain.
I want to believe that our wonderful airline has problems only in this process.
Results: 5 hours of wasted time, no tickets purchased.
I’m afraid to use the second payment option - dictating credit card details to someone from THIS company over the phone would be very reckless on my part.
Today's review from our reader Sergio, the material of which was being prepared for publication back in November, but was only published now for technical reasons. The text has been updated with the latest December changes to the S7 program.
I have been in the S7 Priority program since 2011, this is actually my first mileage program. Now I have gold status in it, which I actively use. I also have two co-brands out of three possible. During these four years I flew a lot, both for money and for miles.
S7 airline review
S7 Airlines(brand of Siberia Airlines) has a wide network of domestic routes. S7 Airlines also operates regular flights to the CIS countries, Europe, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and the countries of the Asia-Pacific region.
The S7 fleet consists of 58 aircraft, of which 20 A319 (C8 Y126), 19 A320 (C8 Y150/156), 4 A321 (they seem to be all C8 Y189, but I haven’t flown on them, I heard that there is some kind of economy aircraft only), 13 B737-800 (C12 Y154/156) and two old B767-300 (C12 Y240/C18 Y222). The boards are generally unified, without “surprises”. You can go into detail.
The route network includes two large hubs in Moscow (Domodedovo) and Novosibirsk and covers about a hundred cities in Russia, the CIS and Europe, as well as several Asian destinations, including Dubai, Hong Kong, Beijing, Seoul, Tokyo, Phuket, Hong Kong.
Classes of service
The S7 is doing very poorly with this. Bad economy and bad business.
As a status flyer, I certainly don’t complain, always flying for money in the third row on an A319/A320 and fourth on a B737 and in the first row when flying for miles. But without status, the layout, of course, leaves much to be desired. There are generally bad places, such as the non-folding row in front of the emergency row or the second row (this is in business!!!) in the A319
Service in business is always lame (worse than economy in normal airlines), in economy, in principle, it sucks quite tolerably. Not the worst, of course, but it still sucks.
I just want to say: “To hell with this S7, fly Aeroflot planes!”
//I wrote this with faint hope that the S7 management will pay attention, hear me! I see how AK is changing, “Priority” is now the best program available to Russians, the site has become quite functional. Train your female workers, AK is lame in terms of service. Complete indifference to passengers!//
But, oddly enough, I can’t say anything bad about both sides of the B767; there are very good seats in economy, and the seats in business, although covered with gray hair, are quite comfortable. But the service there consistently sucks, with no surprises. For example, water in the bathrooms can easily run out towards the end of the flight, and caring flight attendants will put out a pack of wet wipes. You won’t get more tea; you have to beg for water.
In business, you can easily run out of everything edible, and you will have to suffer with a brick that was mistakenly placed instead of a steak. Any request is a personal favor.
Alliance and partners
//or rather one and only partner for today//
This is where the S7 shines. AK has been a participant for five years now OneWorld– the best of the three and a half global alliances available. The status is fully supported by all participants. And the participants themselves - Cathay Pacific, British Airways, Qantas, Qatar Airways– very strong partners. Well, and a few more airlines.
Well, the only non-alliance partner is Emirates. What can I say - such a partnership is worth a lot. Although with status support in this case there is a small but very offensive embarrassment.
Changes in the S7 Priority program
The program has undergone many changes over the past year. Mostly, of course, negative. But there are also advantages. Extensive changes introduced since December 2015.
First, the possibility of registering transfer transportation using miles was cancelled. Then they partially returned, but it didn’t get any easier. The list of exceptions is ridiculously small.
Horse fees have been introduced for some destinations. Try to take Beijing-Krasnoyarsk miles, for example, you will be very surprised.
A new zone “Near Abroad Countries” has been introduced.
A set-up with the introduction of the new zone “Russia 4”.
Now you need to fly for money at least once every two years in order to be able to spend miles.
The accruals for co-brands were greatly reduced.
Promo tickets can no longer be upgraded using miles.
It is no longer possible to convert Svyaznoy Club benefits into miles.
On the plus side, a 300% charge for business has been introduced. Combined with the business pass, it wasn’t too bad. Then they cut it to 150% or 250%.
There is a discount on award tickets for children.
Children can now also earn miles on their flights.
You can get an award on Emirates (but the fees are killer).
It has become possible to issue one-way tickets to a number of partners – a very strong step.
We stopped at Domodedovo in the upper hall, which used to be Transaerovo. This was my favorite lounge. It's a shame that C7 ruined it. Food appeared, but space completely disappeared. It became some kind of “deluxe waiting room.”
Various promotions are carried out, for example, “how many years, so much discount” - participants with experience were very well rewarded with additional miles for flying on their own flights.
Or remember when they used iPhones to catch planes? And now they give out 1000 miles on Facebook (I heard that with promotion it was possible to do much more).
Or the promotion has just ended - a 10% discount on the tariff for S7 Priority members.
Well, the main changes introduced on December 1, 2015. That rare case when the changes are positive and not negative. A new fare schedule has been introduced, now most economy tickets are charged 100% of the distance, at least 500 miles, with the exception of baggage-free fares, which charge 50%. Well, these baggage-free tariffs were introduced. So far the price has become cheaper. Although, of course, a low price is only potential for further growth.
Registration in the program
After online registration on the site you will receive 500 miles to your bonus account. The most interesting thing is that if you register after the flight, then within 6 months you can restore previously completed flights. But flights with partners cannot be restored retroactively ( I flew on an S7 to Moscow using Avangard miles - credited when registering for S7 Priority in December - approx. Shtirlitz).
After your first flight, you will receive a basic level card in the mail. Taking into account that some company shares are tied to length of service in the program, I recommend everyone to register right now - there will be no harm.
Benefits of statuses
The program has four levels of participation - basic, silver, gold and platinum. Starting from the silver level, you can get additional luggage, access to lounges, the choice of any seat in the cabin for yourself and fellow travelers, and you can buy tickets for double payment with miles, even if there are no seats for miles. Well, I won’t dwell on this, the status people already know everything.
Earn Miles & Banks
Earning miles on flights is simple. You fly and you get it. On C7 and on alliance partners. In some places and with other partners you can get miles - on flights to Minsk, for example on BelAvia.
Accumulation with partners - you can get 500 miles for renting a car, and you can also get miles for booking hotels on ostrovok.ru. I pay for renting a car to another place, so I can’t comment on anything. But it’s probably convenient for “monogamous people.” As for Ostrovok - there is a transfer through their internal currency, I think if anyone uses it, it is better to change their “dreams” for the night, and not for C7 miles.
There are also several chains and hotels that I am not familiar with, so I cannot comment.
Another very strong partner is Tripadvisor. Leave reviews on the site and earn miles. The conditions are very good. You can earn money on flight reviews alone. Credit up to 1,500 miles per month. There are a lot of restrictions.
There is also the opportunity to open a deposit in Alpha and receive miles instead of money. But this is for those who are really bad at math. The conditions are not favorable, I don’t think anyone takes advantage of this at all.
And the most important thing is accumulation by co-brands.
Today there are three co-brands - Alfa Bank, Bank of Moscow and Unicredit Bank.
Let's look at each in detail.
Alfa Bank
They issue credit and debit cards. Debit only within service packages.
There is an interesting way to get an expensive credit card by issuing it as an addition to a cheap credit card. But not everyone succeeds. Perhaps no one will succeed now, but this trick worked before.
Charges: standard mile for 60 rubles, gold for 48 rubles, platinum 40 rubles, black 34 rubles (credit, debit 40 rubles). They don’t pay for all the most interesting things, so any 4900, 4814, 4812 – no miles.
Also, for debits, regardless of the card category, when linking the card to accounts in euros and dollars, one mile is credited for spending 1 euro or 1 dollar. But no problems with conversion.
I myself have been using debit gold alpha for many years, and in principle I’m happy with everything. Everything is logical and understandable, the most convenient online banking, it’s very convenient to link one card to different accounts - it’s strange that all banks don’t do this, it’s very convenient to connect SMS information on different cards to different phone numbers.
In your S7 personal account, miles are reflected on the first days of the month, as a total amount for spending in rubles, a separate total amount for spending in dollars, and a separate total amount for spending in euros. Despite the worst conditions among co-brands, I continue to use cards from alpha (I have two of them, one in my name, the second in my wife’s name, with her S7 number), since in terms of service neither the Bank of Moscow nor Unicredit with Alphas don't stand next to each other.
UniCredit Bank
They issue credit cards. It is possible to issue a credit card with a zero limit. Accruals: standard - mile for 60 rubles, gold for 48 rubles, platinum for 40 rubles (or 48, but with rather stupid “additional benefits”).
Internet banking is very inconvenient. Perhaps even the worst of all. In terms of the number of ATMs/branches, everything is terrible. Especially when it comes to ATMs with a cash deposit function.
I cannot discuss the topic of charges in sufficient detail, since I do not actively or willingly use the card. But all the most delicious things pass by.
I have a standard credit card with a microscopic limit. It was released free of charge as part of a promotion (I don’t even remember whether there was a promotion on Facebook or VKontakte). Considering the terrible service and such a small accrual, I don’t think anyone will be interested in this card.
Sometimes there are interesting promotions for additional miles accrual. It is for these shares that I hold the card. Miles in your personal account are reflected at the beginning of the month, in a separate amount for each transaction. Another significant disadvantage is that there is a fee for withdrawing your own funds from a credit card.
Bank of Moscow
In terms of accruals, the bank is the best. Issues debit and credit cards.
For classics, a mile costs 40 rubles, gold costs 32 rubles, platinum – ~22.85 rubles. per mile (1 , 75 miles for every 40 rubles spent on the card).
I don’t use a card from BM; according to the owners’ reviews, you shouldn’t expect anything good in terms of accruals; all the goodies pass by. Well, since I was a client of the bank before, I can say for sure that the bank is absolutely not focused on the client, the service is terrible.
Promotions are being held to issue cards for free. But I was not attracted even by these shares. The only interesting option is a card for 20 thousand per year, with which you can upgrade two tickets to a business, and the tickets can be on a rather complex route, with several stopovers. But there are a lot of restrictions on such an upgrade.
Buying miles
On the S7 website you can buy the missing miles, up to 15,000 miles per year, at a price of 1 mile for 1 ruble, in blocks of 500 miles. To be able to buy miles, there is a condition for paying for a flight in the current or previous year.
You can also give your miles to other members, up to 15,000 miles per year, for a fee of 0.5 rubles/mile.
Spending miles
For your own flights, an award ticket can be issued on the website; both the amount of fees and the availability of seats are immediately visible. It seems like these are the most ordinary things - but just a year ago one could only dream about this. For your own flights, you can buy a round-trip or one-way ticket for half the price (which is very nice; Aeroflot also has a surcharge for vanwei).
Here is the bonus table:
Russia 1: Astrakhan, Volgograd, Voronezh, Yekaterinburg, Kazan, Kaliningrad, Krasnodar, Moscow, Nizhnevartovsk, Nizhnekamsk, Nizhny Novgorod, Perm, Rostov, Samara, St. Petersburg, Stavropol, Surgut, Tyumen, Ufa, Chelyabinsk.
Russia 2: Abakan, Barnaul, Bratsk, Gorno-Altaisk, Irkutsk, Kemerovo, Krasnoyarsk, Nadym, Novokuznetsk, Novosibirsk, Novy Urengoy, Omsk, Salekhard, Tomsk, Ulan-Ude, Chita.
Russia 3: Blagoveshchensk, Vladivostok, Magadan, Mirny, Norilsk, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Khabarovsk, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Yakutsk.
Russia 4: Adler, Anapa, Vladikavkaz, Mineralnye Vody, Simferopol.
CIS countries: Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine.
Europe: Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Cyprus, Croatia, Montenegro, Czech Republic.
Near East: UAE.
Far East: China (excl. Hong Kong), South Korea (Seoul), Japan.
Southeast Asia: Hong Kong (excl. China), Thailand.
The price is for a round-trip ticket, one segment in each direction. If the ticket has stops, then the cost is taken as for two separate tickets (with a number of minor exceptions). For example, GOJ-DME will cost 7,500 miles, and within the same zone, but with a stop in Moscow, GOJ-DME-AED will cost 15,000 miles. But, according to the additional table, from the same Nizhny Novgorod, through Moscow, but to a more expensive zone, to Tivat, a ticket will cost 12,500 miles.
The most interesting expense for own flights now (in my opinion) is business from Moscow to Spain (if you find seats available). Cost 20,000 miles one way.
Another option to profitably spend miles is business OVB-DXB, 22,500 one way.
For triple the amount, you can buy a ticket for miles, even if there are no seats in the corresponding classes. And for status participants - for only double the price.
Also for tickets for children from 2 to 12 years old there is a 30% discount on the mileage rate.
It is also possible to upgrade using business miles. But there are a lot of restrictions, so it’s unlikely that such a waste of miles is now reasonable. A ticket at Promo fares cannot be upgraded, the cost of an upgrade for the Economy fare group is almost equal to the cost of a full ticket for miles, and the cost of tickets for the Standard group is almost equal to the cost of tickets in Business.
Although situations, of course, are different, and sometimes an upgrade for miles won’t be the worst waste either. An upgrade is made upon written request through the website, the upgraded ticket must be a verse directly in S7, miles for a paid ticket are credited upon request. If you want to fly exclusively for business, then a mile upgrade is the best option for making the necessary paid flight.
It is possible to reschedule the departure date for a fee (subject to availability of seats in the appropriate fare). No returns allowed, no changes to destinations allowed.
Spending miles on partners
Here is the bonus table.
Russia: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Kazan.
Europe: Austria, Albania, Algeria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Great Britain, Hungary, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Georgia, Denmark, Cyprus, Iceland, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Libya, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Morocco, Moldova, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Svalbard and Jan Maen, Slovakia, Slovenia, Serbia, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Montenegro, Sweden, Switzerland.
Near East: Jordan, Israel, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Syria, Lebanon, Bahrain, Kuwait, Iran, Oman, Iraq, Sudan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Yemen.
Far East: China (excl. Hong Kong), Japan, Korea.
Southeast Asia: Hong Kong, Sanya (China), Taiwan Island, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, Myanmar, Indonesia, Guam, Palau, Brunei, Christmas Island, Cambodia, Philippines, Laos.
Australia and Oceania: Australia, New Zealand, Fiji (Nadi), New Caledonia (Noumea), Vanuatu (Port Vila), Papua New Guinea, Norfolk Islands, Nauru, French Polynesia, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Samoa, Marshall Islands, Cook Islands, Northern Mariana Islands .
Africa: South Africa, Tanzania, Angola, Zambia, Mozambique, Kenya, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Uganda, Cameroon, Ghana, Senegal, Guinea, Chad, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Togo, Mauritius, Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Cote d'Etat Ivoire, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Comorres, Cape Verde, Djibouti, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Liberia, Malawi, Niger, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Reunion, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles.
North America: USA, Canada, Greenland, Saint Pierre and Miquelon.
Central America: Mexico, Cuba, Guatemala, Panama, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Cayman Islands, Bahamas, Jamaica, Haiti, Guadeloupe, Dominica, Trinidad and Tobago, Bermuda, Puerto Rico, Aruba, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Grenada, Montserrat, Martinique, Turks and Caicos Islands, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Virgin Islands (UK), Virgin Islands (USA), Santa Lucia, St. Kitt and Nevis, Cocos Islands, Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, Antilles (Netherlands), Anguilla, Hawaii .
South America: Suriname, Chile, Argentina, Peru, Ecuador, Uruguay, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Falkland Islands, Paraguay
India: India, Maldives, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan.
There are a lot of restrictions - no more than two segments in each direction, stopovers cannot be made, OJ is prohibited, returns are prohibited, the only changes allowed are changing the date. A ticket can be issued only for one of the partners; one-way tickets can only be issued for Japan Airlines, American Airlines, British Airways and Qantas, for all others only RT. There is no discount for children.
The fees can be quite humane, for example on American Airlines and Cathay Pacific (both do not fly to Russia), or simply extortionate, for example on Emirates. But, flying Emirates business to the Maldives (DME-DXB-MLE-DXB-DME will cost 75,000 miles in business), it’s not a sin to pay about 50K rubles in fees. Although on this route it is better to choose Qatar Airways, which is not inferior to Dubai, the fees will be “only” 24,000 rubles.
From economy, the most profitable routes are distant Europe - the Canary Islands, Iceland. From business - as I already indicated - the Maldives. Residents of the Asian part of Russia may be interested in the PEK-HKG-CEB-HKG-PEK route (Cathay Pacific, economy 30,000 miles + 2,000 rubles fees, business 45,000 miles + 2,000 rubles fees).
Comparison with other loyalty programs
Here I will write very briefly. In Russia, I see only two competitors for the S7 Priority program - Aeroflot Bonus and Miles&More. I have to accumulate miles in all these programs, since each has its own purpose. You cannot buy first class with S7 miles. S7's route network is much smaller than Aeroflot's. S7 has much fewer partners for accumulating miles than Miles&More. Therefore, a lot is moving away from the S7 to its competitors.
Well, I’ll repeat my thought, which I have already mentioned many times in the comments - accumulating miles - flying in business. The only way. Otherwise, why is all this needed? And for economy flights there are other tools - “pseudomiles of ticket offices” - the best for today - World Map from VTB24, iGlobe from Gazprom and the Travel option from MTS Bank.
AIRLINE S7:(formerly “Siberia”) – the fourth largest in Russia; 8 million people used its services in 2014. The company's base airports are Novosibirsk Tolmachevo and Moscow Domodedovo. From here there are routes to 83 destinations, including Russian regions and 26 foreign countries. Now the company has 58 aircraft, the oldest of which is the 20-year-old Boeing 767-300, and the youngest Boeing 737-800 is not even a year old.
Since 2010, S7 Airlines has been one of 16 member companies of the OneWorld alliance, which also includes British Airways, Air Berlin, Qatar Airways and American Airlines. Passengers of these air carriers have access to the S7 Priority bonus program, which allows them to earn and spend miles.
REGISTRATION IN THE S7 PRIORITY PROGRAM AND TYPES OF MILES
There are three ways to register for the S7 Priority program:
- By filling out a special form on the official website of S7 Airlines.
- By obtaining a bank card from a partner bank. Currently there are three such partner banks: Alfa-Bank, UniCredit Bank and Bank of Moscow.
- By calling the S7 Priority Service Center 8-800-100-77-11 (calls within Russia are free).
After registering for the S7 Priority program, you can start accumulating miles. There are two types of accumulated miles - bonus and status.
Status miles allow you to upgrade your membership status in the S7 Priority program to elite. The higher the class, the more miles you will be awarded for your flight. You can accumulate status miles in only one way: - making regular flights on S7 airlines and airlines that are members of the OneWorld alliance.
In total, S7 Priority provides three elite statuses:
- Silver – increases the number of miles awarded for flights by 25%.
- Gold – increases the number of miles awarded for flights by 50%.
- Platinum – increases the number of miles awarded for flights by 100%.
To achieve one of the elite statuses, you must accumulate a certain number of status miles in 1 year: 20,000 to achieve silver status, 50,000 to achieve gold, 75,000 to achieve platinum.
All elite statuses have a limited duration. Each of them is valid for one year following the year of the flight after which this status was assigned. However, if a bonus program participant is under 12 years old, his miles do not expire.
Bonus miles
are accumulated for flights on airlines participating in the OneWorld alliance and purchases from program partners. This type of miles can be exchanged for an air ticket, an upgrade to a class of service, or for goods and services provided by partner companies.
Unlike status miles, bonus miles accumulated as a result of making purchases from program partners do not expire a year after they were accrued. But you can spend them on purchasing an air ticket only if during the current calendar year you have made at least one flight on S7 airlines.
HOW TO ACCUMULATE S7 PRIORITY MILES
Upon registration in the S7 Priority loyalty program, each new participant is assigned 500 welcome miles. You can increase their number in several ways.
Method No. 1. Flights on regular flights of S7 and partner airlines. The number of miles accrued depends on the flight distance, fare and class of service:
- Promotional rate: 0.25 bonus miles per 1 real mile.
- Economy class: half bonus mile for every real mile.
- Standard: 1 bonus mile per 1 real mile.
- Business class: 2 bonus miles per mile flown.
When purchasing an air ticket or when checking in for a flight, do not forget to indicate your participation number in the S7 Priority program. This is important because otherwise you may end up without miles.
If for some reason you did not indicate your S7 Priority membership number, bonus miles can be restored within 90 days after the flight. To do this, you need to provide electronic tickets and original boarding passes to the S7 service center or send documents through your personal account on the airline’s website.
By the way, in the same way you can return bonuses for flights that were carried out within six months before registration in the S7 Priority loyalty program.
Method No. 2. Registration of a plastic card in one of three partner banks - Alfa-Bank, UniCredit Bank or Bank of Moscow.
Alfa-Bank credits from 1 to 1.75 miles (depending on the type of bank card) for every 60 rubles spent on the card and from 5,600 to 1,000 welcome miles. UniCredit Bank estimates 60 rubles per 1 to 1.5 miles, but credits from 2 000 to 6,000 welcome miles. But the Bank of Moscow awards miles for every 40 rubles (from 1 to 1.75) and from 1,000 to 3,000 welcome miles when issuing a card.
Miles are credited to your account automatically once at the end of each reporting month; you do not need to indicate your S7 Priority membership number each time when making a card payment.
Method No. 3. Accommodation in partner hotels, including:
- Radisson Blu.
- Park Inn.
- AZIMUT Hotels
- “Grand Hotel Polyana”, etc.
Most of these hotels award 500 miles per 1 night stay. When booking a hotel, as well as when checking in, do not forget to mention your membership number in the S7 Priority program for timely and accurate miles accrual.
Method No. 4. Points are also awarded for purchases in grocery supermarkets of the Perekrestok chain (1 mile for every 10 Perekrestok Club points), as well as Globus Gourmet grocery stores (1 mile for every 30 rubles spent).
It is also possible to receive miles through special promotions, which often appear on the airline’s website. For example, crediting 1,500 miles when purchasing YotaPhone 2.
Method No. 5. Rent a Car. S7 Priority partners also include car rental companies Avis and Sixt and Komandir.taxi. By using their services, you can replenish your collection of bonus miles.
And finally, the most time-consuming way to receive S7 miles is Method number 6, - writing reviews on TripAdvisor.
All of the above and additional options for receiving miles in the S7 Priority program can be found directly on the airline’s website.
HOW AND WHAT TO SPEND S7 PRIORITY MILES ON
The lowest price for an award ticket is S7 - 15,000 bonus miles. These are flights within Russia in economy class in both directions or to Europe in one direction.
However, there is one important point: taxes and airport taxes are always paid in real money, so such cheapness can be deceptive. What are the best ways to spend your miles?
Purchasing an airline ticketS7.
The “cost” of an S7 airline ticket in miles can be found on the airline’s website, but we provide this information (valid as of October 21, 2015) for reference:
According to data from the S7 airline website
Unlike Aeroflot miles, the S7 Priority program is beneficial when purchasing air tickets to many European destinations.
In both programs, a comparable number of miles will be written off for such a purchase, but the fees in real money in the S7 mile program are significantly lower. For example, fees for a flight to Alicante (Spain) and back will be only 1,000 rubles.
Upgrade your service class
When flying on regular flights with S7 Airlines, you can exchange an economy ticket for a seat in business class for 3,750 miles. However, such an upgrade is impossible if the air ticket itself was also purchased with bonus miles.
Fly long distances in business class.
If you have accumulated a large number of miles, it is profitable to use them for a business class ticket to remote points of the country and the world. For example, in the following areas:
- Moscow-Khabarovsk-Moscow. The monetary value of such a ticket is 115,540 rubles. When paying under the bonus program, you will need 70,000 miles and an additional payment of RUB 6,000. in the form of a dachshund. The savings will be 109,540 rubles.
- Moscow-Baku-Moscow. The monetary value of such a ticket is 60,000 rubles. However, 40,000 miles will be deducted from the bonus program participant’s card, and you will have to pay additional fees of only 3,500 rubles. Saving 56,500 rubles.
Fly on other OneWorld member flights.
You can use S7 miles to pay for a ticket on one of 150 flights operated by 15 member airlines of the OneWorld alliance. So, for example, a one-way domestic flight within Europe* can be completed for 7,500 miles, and a one-way flight from Russia to Europe costs 12,500 miles.
* In this case, by domestic flight, S7 means a flight within one country, as well as flights between China and Hong Kong and flights between the USA and Canada (excluding Hawaii).
Donate miles to charity.
Among S7 Priority’s partners is the Tomsk Ordinary Miracle Foundation. He provides assistance to families with a seriously ill child. The accumulated miles can be transferred to a fund - they will be used to purchase air tickets for children who need to fly to another city or country for treatment. In order to transfer miles to those in need, you can use your personal account on the airline’s website or call the service center on the hotline 8-800-100-77-11.
S7 Airlines has started selling additional paid services for miles: now S7 Priority program members can spend miles on choosing a regular or comfortable (Extra Space) seat, as well as additional baggage. Other Russian airlines do not have this opportunity: additional services are sold only for money, but this practice is common, for example, among the airlines of the oneworld alliance, which includes S7. So here are the details:
Selecting a regular seat costs 1,000 miles, while selecting a luxury seat costs 2,500 miles. One piece of luggage costs 5,000 miles. How much is this approximately in money? It’s very simple: for money, choosing a seat costs 350 rubles on the website and 500 rubles at the airport, Extra Space - 1000 rubles, and excess baggage, depending on the destination, 2000-3000 at the airport or 1600-2400 rubles on the website, respectively.
That is, one mile is equivalent to approximately 32-36 kopecks; to pay for baggage on long flights, its “nominal value” reaches 48 kopecks. This is close to the cost of S7 Airlines miles on the “black market”: officially the airline does not allow the sale of miles and, if such actions are detected, it will cancel membership in the bonus program, but it allows. However, the cost of transferring miles is 75 kopecks per mile, which makes transferring them to purchase additional services pointless. There is even less point in buying miles: in this case, one mile costs from 1.30 to 2 rubles.
But it makes sense to spend bank miles on additional services: they are not qualifying, that is, giving the opportunity to obtain status, and in some cases you can get them in fairly large quantities by “spinning” money on . However, with high turnover on a number of cards, S7 gives free silver status, and with it you can choose luxury seats and take one piece of luggage for free - including on baggage-free fares.
Interestingly, if the listed services are purchased for money, this brings additional miles - from 50 to 400 depending on the cost of the service (or from 1000 miles for a paid upgrade to business class). You can also earn 50 miles for free when you register online.
You can buy seat selection or S7 baggage with miles during check-in, both at the counter and on the website. In this case, you must have at least one S7 Airlines flight (at a fare that is included in the accrual of miles) in the current or previous year. Miles will be debited from your account at the time of registration of the service automatically. Miles from other oneworld airlines cannot be used.
Purchasing additional services with miles is intended for those who do not fly enough to save up for a mile ticket or do not need it, since they still fly at government expense on business trips. “New opportunities will allow passengers to quickly see the benefits of participating in the S7 Priority loyalty program. Even if you have not accumulated enough miles to purchase an award ticket, you can already use your miles and receive additional services, making your trip even more comfortable. Participation in the loyalty program is beneficial even for those participants who have only 1,000 miles on their account,” notes S7 Priority loyalty program development director Natalya Nikolaeva.
Under a similar sauce, Utair airline recently modernized its bonus program: in it, rather than saving up to the full. However, additional services can still be paid only with money.