The world of frequent flyer programs isn’t always easy to navigate. But often it’s the more complex aspects that can offer the most value in practice. Fortunately, sites like Travel-Dealz, Flyertalk, and others help make sense of it all.
That’s certainly the case with United MileagePlus’s Excursionist Perk. Most members have probably never even heard of it. But for those who know how to use it (and have a suitable trip planned), it allows not only booking award flights with a free stopover but much more. At least, until now. As United announced yesterday, this benefit will be eliminated as of August 21, 2025. That also means our guide, filled with example routings and usage tips, will become obsolete.
There are also further changes for the worse. Instant upgrades on short-haul flights in high booking classes will also be discontinued in August, and in November, the fixed Upgrade Award Chart will be gone too. In other words, mileage upgrades will become dynamically priced and, in most cases, more expensive.
Elimination of the Excursionist Perk
In an email sent yesterday to frequent flyer program members, United announced a change to the Excursionist Perk.
The link in the email leads to the “Updates on upgrades” page. At the very bottom of the announcement—under a rather misleading subheading—is the following note:
Additionally, we are no longer offering the Excursionist Perk on award tickets starting on August 21, 2025. This only impacts new bookings and any changes made to existing bookings.
What’s New with MileagePlus | United.com
The Excursionist Perk will be eliminated. To take advantage of it, tickets must be booked by August 20, 2025, and no changes can be made after the deadline.
Still sitting on a stash of United miles and want to take advantage of the Excursionist Perk one last time? You can find more explanation and example routings for inspiration in the following article:
Further Changes
Let’s now look at the announced changes regarding upgrades. Two main areas are affected, with the second one being more relevant for us Europeans:
- Elimination of Instant Upgrades:
- United offers different types of upgrades. One was the Instant Upgrade, which was available to status holders booking short- and medium-haul tickets in booking classes Y, B (and M for Premier 1K).
- If the necessary upgrade class (PN) was available, an instant upgrade to United Business/First was granted. In practice, you needed a very expensive economy ticket to qualify. From August 21, 2025, this type of upgrade will be eliminated entirely. From then on, only Complimentary Premier Upgrades (CPU) will be available, typically offered a few days before departure. However, in reality, these are now rarely granted.
- Elimination of the Mileage Upgrade Chart:
- Award flights with United MileagePlus have already been priced dynamically for some time. So far, mileage upgrades remained fixed and were based on the route and fare class. The mileage chart is still available online, but will be removed on November 24, 2025.
- Upgrade pricing will then become dynamic, with no clear upper or lower limits. It’s expected that most upgrades will become more expensive in practice, just as has happened with award flight pricing.
Conclusion
After the significant devaluations of miles in recent years, the Excursionist Perk was one of the few remaining ways to get excellent value per mile. Now that sweet spot is disappearing too, and aside from short-haul flights with Lufthansa, ANA, and others, few worthwhile redemption options remain. Meanwhile, most upgrades are also expected to become more expensive. Until now, they were primarily worthwhile for expensive economy tickets.
Translated by Ditmar
Cover Picture: A United Boeing 787 Dreamliner | Ditmar Lange