MileagePlus is one of the world's largest frequent flyer programs and with over 100 million members, is key to United's operations. The program has seen key changes over the years but remains popular thanks to its redemptions and Star Alliance membership. There are several 'hidden' perks to the program, we'll take a look at some of them today.

The Excursionist

One of the best benefits of redeeming United Airlines miles is undoubtedly the Excursionist Perk, which improves on the concept of a free stopover and extends it to a whole extra flight. Even as the prices of award tickets rise sharply (and they do frequently), this perk allows you to bring down the net cost substantially with a free segment in another region.

Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

The Excursionist Perk allows you to add one free segment (within the same region) on any roundtrip redemption outside that region. Put simply, you can add a one-way free flight as long it's outside the region you're flying the roundtrip from. As you can imagine, this is a very lucrative benefit.

For example, you can fly from Newark Liberty International (EWR) to Washington Dulles (IAD), a roundtrip that costs 18,400 miles. Since the trip starts in North America, you can add a free segment in any other region. In this example, I added a flight from Delhi to Mumbai (Central Asia), which was priced at 0 miles + $6 (the required taxes).

Of course, you can try any combination, as long as it maintains the region rule.

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The upgrades

United has several methods of upgrading, from Complimentary Upgrades (CPUs) for elite members on regional routes to PlusPoints for confirmed long-haul upgrades. All of these are exclusively available to MileagePlus members, while other Star Alliance members can only use MileagePlus upgrade awards (MUA).

Global Services, the unpublished highest tier of MileagePlus, ranks above all upgrade categories, followed closely by PlusPoints, MUAs, and so on. It's a complicated list but paying for the upgrade, in whichever form, puts you relatively high up. Within upgrades, status dictates who will clear first.

Photo: United Airlines

Finding award space

While this might sound like an underrated benefit, United's exceptional IT infrastructure means it is the best place to find award space for partners. Be it first class on Lufthansa or domestic trips on Virgin Australia, United has a good success rate and importantly collates most available airlines. However, note that phantom award space is an issue with MileagePlus, so double-check on multiple sources before transferring over points.

From personal experience, United is adept at piecing together a muti-airline itinerary, especially for last-minute awards. While it can be far more expensive compared to other airlines, the dynamic pricing does ensure enough availability.

This has just been a short guide to some of the differences and the best value options with the United MileagePlus program. Feel free to discuss these further or share some other areas you know about in the comments.