Lots of leg room, gourmet dining, luxury wining and a wide seat that goes flat into a comfy bed. Trying for it doesn’t always work, but it’s always worth a try. First of all, to get a free upgrade to first class on a flight, the timing must be just right. Always remember that airlines hate flights taking off with any empty seats.

Here are several situations when you could succeed:

1. When in the waiting area with a coach ticket, you observe that your flight will be full. As boarding time approaches, politely ask the desk clerk if there are any first class seats still available.

If so, ask if you can upgrade without paying full price. Sometimes the clerk will be authorized to bump you up for free, or charge $50, a cost considerably less than the sky-high listed first-class fare. 

2. This next situation applies if you’re not in a hurry to get to your destination. Once aboard in your coach seat on a full flight, listen for a flight attendant’s announcement asking if any volunteers will give up their seats.

If you go for it, you may be offered a first-class ticket for a later flight that day. An even better deal that could happen is you’ll not only get a first-class seat on the later flight, but also get a free full-fare ticket for a future round-trip flight.

If you do it right on a flight and are lucky, you could hit a jackpot savings of hundreds of dollars!