These are the 3 award redemptions TPG staffers regret not booking

Are there any award redemptions you missed out on, and now you regret it? There are some amazing flights and hotels you can book using points and miles. Unfortunately, they don't all stick around forever.

We've compiled some "missed opportunities" of award redemptions that TPG staff members regret not booking while they had the chance.

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Etihad Apartments on the A380

I'll admit that I actually had reservations to fly the famous Etihad Apartments twice. Both were canceled, and now it looks like this ultra-luxurious product has gone away completely.

The Etihad Apartments were beyond simply first class. You had — as the name implies — an apartment in the sky. It included a bed, a recliner chair and tons of space. Your apartment included a door that you could close for privacy.

Etihad offered its Apartments (and the famous "The Residence," which was a three-bedroom offering) exclusively on Airbus 380 planes. Unfortunately, Etihad Airways stopped flying its A380 planes during the pandemic.

That makes Etihad Apartments inaccessible. While we saw rumors that the A380 might make a comeback, I'm not too optimistic. My chief reason for this is that Etihad has completely removed all mentions of the A380, Apartments and The Residence from its website in the "On board" section.

Related: My apartment in the sky: A review of Etihad’s first-class Apartment on the A380, Abu Dhabi to New York

Emirates first class using partners to save cash

Emirates has first-class products on both Boeing 777 and Airbus 380 aircraft. The latter is famous for those dreaming of taking a shower in the sky or hanging out at the lounge-meets-bar on the upper deck of the flight. The 777 product now includes its latest variant, referred to as a "game changer." Just look at the photo above!

Emirates' first class exudes luxury during the flight and on the ground. And you can still book Emirates' first class using points and miles.

The issue here is that the options available for these bookings are fewer than in the past. While you could previously book your premium ride in the sky with miles from Alaska Airlines and JAL, those options no longer exist. You now have three ways to book: with Qantas Frequent Flyer, Korean Air SkyPass or with Emirates itself.

Each of these has some issues: Korean's program doesn't allow one-way bookings and lacks quality transfer partners, Qantas' program has high fees for award bookings and high prices for Emirates awards and then Emirates has huge surcharges on award flights in premium cabins.

That's why the old partners were so beloved — especially Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan, which has its own credit cards, is a Marriott Bonvoy transfer partner and doesn't add heavy surcharges to award tickets. Imagine saving $800 or $1,000 in fees when booking an award flight in first class. And if you're flying with others, this could have equaled thousands of dollars in savings.

Sadly, booking Emirates' premium cabins with a reasonable number of miles and low out-of-pocket costs is basically gone, due to these changes.

Related: 14 thoughts after my first flight in Emirates’ game-changer first class

Garuda Indonesia first class

Garuda Indonesia — a SkyTeam member — is flirting with bankruptcy. In response, the airline has drastically slashed its routes, is flying older planes to avoid extra costs for leasing or buying newer models and has very few options available for first class at the moment.

Adding further complications are the fact that U.S. flyers still have difficulty accessing some of these destinations and the fact that you cannot book Garuda's first-class seats using a partner. That's why we previously ranked these seats among the hardest first-class products to book.

If you want to experience this luxurious product, you'll need to book directly with GarudaMiles. Its only U.S. transfer partner is Citi ThankYou, which further complicates things. You may need several sign-up bonuses from Citi to get the number of miles you need for an award booking.

On top of this, Garuda has a reputation for swapping aircraft or changing schedules on some of its flights. This can mean not experiencing first class the way you wanted, such as newer cabins, or dealing with the headaches of schedule changes when you need to line up a positioning flight. All of these put together have made us skittish about booking first-class awards with Garuda Indonesia in the past. With the current state of things, we may not get another chance.

Related: Flight review: Garuda Indonesia first class (777-300ER) from Amsterdam to Jakarta

Bottom line

Only time will tell if these products become easier to access in the future. Additionally, products available today may be gone next year, earning a place on this list.

For us, these three first-class products jump out as award redemptions we regret not making — either because they're gone or because the best ways to book them went away.

The moral of the story is that, if there's a great flight product you want to try out, remember that it might not stick around forever. Earning and burning could help you avoid missing out on these flights and regretting it later on.