American Airlines In MiA

The worst first class thus far experienced and I worked for them. Let's go step by step.

Curbside check-in they outright ask you for a tip or you bring your luggage in yourself. We tipped the guys to make it easier which we would do anyway.

Next they give you coupons for the Admirals Club and the free food is horrible you pay for anything extra. The lounge is dirty we are at gate 30 and I would not let my dog walk on this carpet. We are paying full fare 20k plus for this trip to Santiago and back from BA to MIA at the end of this cruise. This airline at one time was great but boy have they gone down hill. You cannot compare this to lounges and services provided by airlines such as Singapore, Emirates, Qatar, Etihad , Qantas, Cathay Pacific. We try to avoid domestic carriers and AA has such an uncaring staff. Miami airport is horrible but we could not avoid it. Many tourists here this time of year and the staff at AA curbside hardly spoke English. I speak Spanish so that was our saving grace.

If you have never experienced a true first class airline AA may be alright for you. For those of you who know the aforementioned airlines you will know the difference.

AA treats their first class passengers like cattle. The lounge is certainly one of the worst...Even Eastern Airlines was better than this.

The bathrooms in the lounge are disgusting and the urinals overflowing.

Oh well, I am not expecting much from the catering and inflight crew onboard on the way to Santiago.

Perhaps we are so spoiled by the way we have been treated outside of the US carriers. AA can't hold a candle to these other airlines. I feel like I'm in a bus stop lounge.

I agree, Miles... None of our airlines measure up to any world class airlines in terms of service or amenities, and it's been a long time since they have.

Credit to AA on one thing though, they are at least part-way through improving the lounges in MIA.

A new Flagship Lounge is being built in MIA and eventually that will serve both business and first class passengers with upgraded hot food items for business and full table service (like BA) for 3-cabin F passengers. Still won't be international standard, I'm sure, but at least it won't be the Admirals Club.

They're renovating the Admirals Clubs in MIA too (one is done and the other is started), but our membership lounges in the US are never intended to be business class lounges and certainly don't work filling that function as they do now in many places. :(

Have a safe and wonderful trip, guys!

Vince

Please look out for my friends Peter and Norma, from Malaysia, on your cruise. I have known them since high school. There are in a CP and sailing for three weeks to Buenos Aires. They are not Cruise Critic people.

Tell them Ken (& John) say hi.

By the way, I totally rate LAN for flights to South America.

The admirals club near gate D 30 at MIA has not been renovated yet, but will be shortly. It is too bad you did not use the facility near near D15. It was recently renovated, is constantly being cleaned, and has quite decent food and (free) drinks for a club like this.

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You seem a little confused as to whether it's the airport you hate or the Admiral's Club? If it's the airport, perhaps you should fly through JFK and LAX instead, then you could justify your upset.

And if you feel as a first class passenger the lounge facilities should be better, why didn't you try the Premium Lounge in Terminal E? On an international flight you would have been eligible.

http://www.miami-airport.com/vip_premium_lounge.asp

Or the other Admiral's Club at gate 15?

As for the Admiral's Club you chose to visit, I think you are grossly overstating the case. AA makes it very clear that the lounge by gate 30 is under renovation and has limited facilities. I frequently have to spend time in the Admiral's Club in MIA, and was there as recently as three days ago, so I know what it's like.

The free food may not be to your taste but is not 'horrible' - I find it adequate, it is only intended for snacking.

The staff are always friendly and helpful to me, I find a smile and a cheerful greeting always smooths the way.

And OK, I can't talk about the men's bathrooms, but the ladies are always clean.

Yes, we were at the Miami Airport in January and as was the case at the JFK airport when we were there last September we received e-mails in advance about the work to makeover each respective lounge as part of an upgrade of selected lounges. The e-mail advised us of alternative lounges.

I might be wrong but I believe when you check in luggage outside the airport that the employees are not employees of American Airlines. Either way when we have used this service at many airports we have not ever had anyone ask for more but we always hand them a tip right after the bags are collected and checked in.

There is no question that USA based airlines do not provide the level of service that some airlines do.

With that said, I have seen a lot of improvement at both the American Airline lounges and on many flights in the last year.

At the lounges they are now using a new food service company and one that I am most familiar with. I think that was a good move.

With two exceptions we have flown on newer airplanes and found amenities to be better from in-flight movies to the food and even with those two exceptions the attitude and helpfulness of the flight attendants has been quite a bit better.

Hopefully that will continue and that we will get to a time and place when USA based airlines quality is quite a bit better then it's been the past ten to fifteen years.

As to Miami I prefer Miami over other airports in Florida such as Fort Lauderdale. However, I don't live in Florida.

There is certainly a lot of room for continued improvement. Hopefully the airlines can continue to make money unlike during the period when they were collapsing due to the economy (fuel and demand down), their inefficiencies and other issues.

Keith

:rolleyes:

I love these threads made by folks who claim to fly a lot and know about airlines, then, come on here and post a rant about how the service didn't live up to their expectations. No, AA (or UA,DL for that matter) is not in the same league as Cathay, Thai, singapore etc etc. but they (US based airlines) hardly treat their paying first/biz class pax like "cattle".

Oh my!! I will be spoiled with my first First Class experience in a few weeks, when we cruise out of Miami. Reading this first post, I was a bit worried that perhaps it was not worth the extra money.

However, some good points have been made. Also, we are on a domestic fight, I don't believe we will have access to the Admiral Club. It would be nice if we did, but it's not that big of a deal for me, as I've never seen the inside of one before, lol.

I just hope the level of service on board is up to par. We have lunch for our flight down, dinner for our flight home. Is the food decent or would I be better off eating prior and sticking to wine and snacks in flight??

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Miles

We share your disdain for MIA.

I hope the remainder of your trip goes well.

We are here finally in Santiago. Having worked for a true first class airline I think I am able to speak about amenities and service.

Inflight service almost nonexistent. The crew were foreign nationals as we refer to as FN's based in Santiago and I trained flight attendants, they simply don't care. The 777-200 is old and the FC seats are old hat for an eight hour flight. Pillows are no longer linens they are woven scratchy fabric disposable. We reserved our meal which was totally inedible. Dan had the turkey meatballs on pasta very dry. I had ordered fish equally dry and smelly. We just had a salad which was wilted lettuce and not dressed you got a little plastic cup of dressing and no other choice.

The only desert offered was their signature sundae which we don't eat. No other selection available.

I guess we have been spoiled on Emirates, Etihad, Singapore, Cathay....even on their short haul flights. Unfortunately we don't have much of a choice to SA.

The Ritz hotel is undergoing renovations and we are on the club floor very noisy.

Yes we are picky when it comes to spending top dollars. Sorry if some of you think that we are too picky.

Oh my!! I will be spoiled with my first First Class experience in a few weeks, when we cruise out of Miami. Reading this first post, I was a bit worried that perhaps it was not worth the extra money.

However, some good points have been made. Also, we are on a domestic fight, I don't believe we will have access to the Admiral Club. It would be nice if we did, but it's not that big of a deal for me, as I've never seen the inside of one before, lol.

I just hope the level of service on board is up to par. We have lunch for our flight down, dinner for our flight home. Is the food decent or would I be better off eating prior and sticking to wine and snacks in flight??

 

 

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I would eat before the flight. First Class meals today are worse then the coach meals served when flying was a pleasure.

Oh my!! I will be spoiled with my first First Class experience in a few weeks, when we cruise out of Miami. Reading this first post, I was a bit worried that perhaps it was not worth the extra money.

However, some good points have been made. Also, we are on a domestic fight, I don't believe we will have access to the Admiral Club. It would be nice if we did, but it's not that big of a deal for me, as I've never seen the inside of one before, lol.

I just hope the level of service on board is up to par. We have lunch for our flight down, dinner for our flight home. Is the food decent or would I be better off eating prior and sticking to wine and snacks in flight??

 

 

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You'll be fine. It is not nearly as bad as the OP is making it out to be. Is MIA the best airport in the world...NO. But it is hardly the worst. It is a large and busy international airport. I have transited through it many times over the years and never had an issue. The Admirals club is really nothing special (I have a membership through my CC as well as United club membership). They can be crowded, but the free wifi (for the airports that still don't have it) is nice and free drinks are fine. They really shine when you have flight issues and need to talk to an agent. Much easier to hit the club and talk to an agent than to sit on hold or in the long line at he ticket counter after you flight has been canceled or delayed. ( A few years ago my flight to SDQ was canceled due to mechanical issues, stepped into the club and was rebooked on the next mornings flight, hotel (Sofitel) and food vouchers in hand before most of the folks in line had even made it to the counter at the gate.)

You paid $20k plus for two F tickets? Average for this routing is around $5300. Why so high?

ST - take a look into the Centurion lounges by Amex. Complimentary with a Platinum or Centurion charge (not credit) card. Much better than the AA lounges - when going through DFW or MIA, I just head to them. Premium bar and cocktails (had a great Port Charlotte scotch in DFW lately) and real food in the buffet. Plus they have some international locations as well, including EZE if I remember.

Paying that much, I'm surprised you picked a clapped out AA 772 in F rather than Latam's shiny new 787 in J. You would have saved a ton of money, had Latam's excellent business class product, and would have used their great lounge at MIA rather than AA's mixed bag of lounge options (new v. old, but both always packed). How come? :confused:

Paying that much, I'm surprised you picked a clapped out AA 772 in F rather than Latam's shiny new 787 in J. You would have saved a ton of money, had Latam's excellent business class weproduct, and would have used their great lounge at MIA rather than AA's mixed bag of lounge options (new v. old, but both always packed). How come? :confused:

We should have gone with LAN Chile. I can go stby on AA as we both have lifetime passes but that can be too risky when you are going on a cruise and have hotel reservations.

Sorry but AA is going down the road of Eastern Airlines. Qantas is not happy with the codeshare with AA and the pax's have many complaints...read the reviews.

I flew for a major airline and worked in management so nobody needs to tell me about the industry. Doug Parker has cheapened AA. The polish is gone when it was the best.

FWIW - LAN merged with TAM, forming LATAM.

We should have gone with LAN Chile. I can go stby on AA as we both have lifetime passes but that can be too risky when you are going on a cruise and have hotel reservations.

 

Sorry but AA is going down the road of Eastern Airlines. Qantas is not happy with the codeshare with AA and the pax's have many complaints...read the reviews.

 

I flew for a major airline and worked in management so nobody needs to tell me about the industry. Doug Parker has cheapened AA. The polish is gone when it was the best.

I think perhaps there could be resentment because you paid huge money for these flights when you could have gone for free. There is no way- I would have ever made that choice- if I am reading it right? $20,000 vs FREE? Why didn't you just allow extra traveling days? I flew there twice last year- yep nonrev in business and first class with lots of open seats. I had 4 flights to chose from on the way home from Buenos Aries, no problem getting business class- free, Christmas eve. Yes the thinking would be expectations of perfect, individual service with the circumstance of non rev options.

I am not picky and grateful for my benefits, and find the service excellent.

Budget Queen v Suite Travels

Oh the irony - never a better choice of forum names for a debate...

Thank goodness I get to fly Qantas - and yes Suite Travels is correct on Qantas and t's passengers not being impressed by AA's service and offering

The One World executive meetings must be interesting...

Flyer Talker - you have a PM over on that other forums we frequent - you know the ones I mean...

What some of you are not understanding we paid 20k for two people. So it was 10k with our routing MIA-SCL. EZE-MIA so two times ten is 20...right?

What some of you are not understanding we paid 20k for two people. So it was 10k with our routing MIA-SCL. EZE-MIA so two times ten is 20...right?

10K still seems like a ridiculous amount of money for a flight that's what? 8 hours? 9 hours? To each his own I guess, but I can't imagine dropping that kind of cash on such a relatively short flight.

Bizarre....if you'd worked for AA (unless it was in the 1970s!) surely you'd have some idea of what the airline are like to fly yet still whinge when they don't stack up to CX,SQ, EY etc.

:confused:

10K still seems like a ridiculous amount of money for a flight that's what? 8 hours? 9 hours? To each his own I guess, but I can't imagine dropping that kind of cash on such a relatively short flight.

You mightn't but the threads not about you and what you'd do - it's about the service AA provided to paying First class guests on this occasion

If he choose to splash the cash for two first class tickets for the flights it's not our business why he choose to do so - but it should be a matter for discussion as to whether the airline offers an acceptable level of service - shouldn't it?

As one who has to endure 13-14 hour trans Pacific flights I'd say an overnight 9 hour flight would definitely justify J or better if I could afford it - and if I did that I'd want to receive an acceptable level of service

You mightn't but the threads not about you and what you'd do - it's about the service AA provided to paying First class guests on this occasion

 

If he choose to splash the cash for two first class tickets for the flights it's not our business why he choose to do so - but it should be a matter for discussion as to whether the airline offers an acceptable level of service - shouldn't it?

 

As one who has to endure 13-14 hour trans Pacific flights I'd say an overnight 9 hour flight would definitely justify J or better if I could afford it - and if I did that I'd want to receive an acceptable level of service

There are differences in expectations. Maybe some seem to think they are on private jets. :) It could be that the "service" was acceptable to others? It would be unusual if the experience was so bad?

As I mentioned, I flew this same route in December. I did not see anyone ringing their bell complaining or grumbling getting on or off the plane. Service was excellent in my opinion. Multiple "checks" of passengers and numerous offers of service.

There are differences in expectations. Maybe some seem to think they are on private jets. :) It could be that the "service" was acceptable to others? It would be unusual if the experience was so bad?

 

As I mentioned, I flew this same route in December. I did not see anyone ringing their bell complaining or grumbling getting on or off the plane. Service was excellent in my opinion. Multiple "checks" of passengers and numerous offers of service.

I worked for TWA for many years and AA bought us and the service levels at AA were not par to our standards at all. Pan Am and TWA were really a first class outfit with superior service on international flights.

Even if you were flying on FF miles or rewards ... you earned it and should receive the same level of service and quality. Sorry, US carriers are not anything like foreign carriers. Even on BA ffrom LHR- -AMS you get a full breakfast with champagne on a 45 minute flight and treated well.

US carriers are nothing but flying busses in all classes of service and our airports pale in comparison to Asia and Europe. Two of the best lounges in the world are Emirates and Qantas they are amazing lounges and the airports don't feel like airports.

Some of you think we overpaid but my days of flying economy are over with. Biz class and first are fine. Now you TA's go fare our ticket for two on our routing on AA.Com and the price is higher. We use a ticket consolidator which reduces the prices 1/3.