this is probabley in the wrong place, if so please guide me to the right place.
I need to go from NY to xiamen china I need to be there for 2 days (tues wed, or wed thursday) I do not want to miss a weekend with my family so I need to fly from ny on saturday night or sunday morning and return to be home by friday night. Being such a crazy trip i want to fly 1st class (or a business class with fully flat, not slanted seats) I only need the long stretch to be in 1st, Here is the catch I need to do this for $5000 what would be my options? or advice? I can fly in to hong kong or shanghai or any other place where i can connect to xiamen
i see on ita i can get one way from nyc to xmn on china eastern which is aa for 2900 but way back is 3300, i will look at tpe and others
please advise

What are your dates?

I found a reasonable option from ITA leaving May 28 returning June 2 for $5425.

Price: $5425.40 (US Dollars)

Itinerary:

--- New York, NY to Xiamen, China
(25 hrs 20 min, 8480 miles)

Korean Air Flight KE86 on a Boeing 747 (jet) in business class (breakfast, dinner)
Departs: New York, NY Sun, May 28, 12:50a (14 hrs 30 min)
(JFK: New York J F Kennedy Int'l)
Arrives: Seoul, South Korea Mon, May 29, 4:20a
(ICN: Seoul Incheon Int'l)

--- Layover in Seoul: 4 hrs 25 min ---

Korean Air Flight KE603 on a Boeing 747 (jet) in business class (breakfast)
Departs: Seoul, South Korea Mon, May 29, 8:45a (3 hrs 35 min)
(ICN: Seoul Incheon Int'l)
Arrives: Hong Kong, Hong Kong Mon, May 29, 11:20a
(HKG: Hong Kong Int'l)

--- Layover in Hong Kong: 1 hr 25 min ---

Hong Kong Dragon Airlines Limited Flight KA602 on an Airbus A320 (jet) in business class (refreshments for purchase)
Departs: Hong Kong, Hong Kong Mon, May 29, 12:45p (1 hr 25 min)
(HKG: Hong Kong Int'l)
Arrives: Xiamen, China Mon, May 29, 2:10p
(XMN: Xiamen Int'l)

Note: The flight from New York (JFK) to Seoul (ICN) arrives early in the morning. Note: There is an overnight stop in Seoul (ICN).

--- Xiamen, China to New York, NY
(22 hrs 5 min, 8458 miles)

China Southern Airlines Flight CZ3550 on an Airbus A320 (jet) in first class
Departs: Xiamen, China Fri, June 2, 10:45a (1 hr 0 min)
(XMN: Xiamen Int'l)
Arrives: Shenzhen, China Fri, June 2, 11:45a
(SZX: Shenzhen)

--- Layover in Shenzhen: 2 hrs 30 min ---

Korean Air Flight KE6898 on a Boeing 737 (jet) in business class (lunch)
Departs: Shenzhen, China Fri, June 2, 2:15p (3 hrs 30 min)
(SZX: Shenzhen)
Arrives: Seoul, South Korea Fri, June 2, 6:45p
(ICN: Seoul Incheon Int'l)

--- Layover in Seoul: 1 hr 15 min ---

Asiana Airlines Flight OZ222 on a Boeing 747 (jet) in business class (dinner, snack)
Departs: Seoul, South Korea Fri, June 2, 8:00p (13 hrs 50 min)
(ICN: Seoul Incheon Int'l)
Arrives: New York, NY Fri, June 2, 8:50p
(JFK: New York J F Kennedy Int'l)

Note: The flight from Seoul (ICN) to New York (JFK) is overnight. Note: The layover in Seoul (ICN) has relatively little room for delays, and for this route a missed connection would likely be very inconvenient.

my dates are flexible over the next 8 weeks
but i am trying to go in first
unless if korean has flat seat s non sloping, in biz,
i just cant fall asleep on those

All of the real first class options I see are at least $9000.

If you want a truly flat, non-angled bed, you're either going to need to go with true international first or you're going to need to go with BA or VS via LHR to Asia and then connect onward to XMN.

Heck, I can't find anything in true international first to any Asian gateway (NRT;KIX;PVG;PEK;HKG;ICN) from NYC for less than $7500. The cheapest I see is UA First to ICN for about $7700 (with a stop each way). You should then be able to get a coach seat from ICN to XMN on KE for not too much. Not sure how the timing works, though.

All the BA and VS options I see are also over $7k.

Heck, most business class options to Asia are over $5000.

I think you're going to have to compromise either on the seat or on your budget. Unless you can wrangle a nice corporate rate or find a way to upgrade a cheaper ticket.

One other thought: you might want to talk to some travel agents in Chinatown or in Flushing. They may have access to some sort of consolidator deals for F on Air China.

Wow... this isn't easy!

JFK-FRA-SIN on SQ
SIN-XMN on Silk Air

US3'580 one-way in Business - but it is slanted (but still very comfortable)

On the return you have to find some way to get to TPE or BKK, as there are fares for around $2'000 in First on a mix of JAL and UAL back to New York.

What are your dates?

I found a reasonable option from ITA leaving May 28 returning June 2 for $5425.

Hong Kong Dragon Airlines Limited Flight KA602 on an Airbus A320 (jet) in business class (refreshments for purchase)

Dragon Airlines charges for refreshments in biz? That's crazy talk.

I'm no expert at this but I'd talk to a consolidator.

Wow... this isn't easy!



On the return you have to find some way to get to TPE or BKK, as there are fares for around $2'000 in First on a mix of JAL and UAL back to New York.

i can not seem to find that fare from bkk. what dates do you see that on.

toe would require to many stops

My research suggests that there is no published fare which can get you what you want. The absolute lowest true IFC fare I have found from the New York area to *anywhere* in China is this:

$5540.23 in US Dollars
1 adult @ $5540.23
Hide booking details



Changes to this ticket will incur a penalty fee.


Airport legend:
EWR: New York Newark Liberty Int'l
ORD: Chicago O'Hare
PVG: Shanghai Pu Dong
Newark, NJ to Shanghai, China: 7755 miles 20 hrs 11 min

American Airlines Flight AA525 on a MD-80 (jet) in first class
(breakfast)
Departs Newark, NJ (EWR) Sat, June 3 6:04a 2 hrs 16 min
Arrives Chicago, IL (ORD) 7:20a
1 adult in booking code A, covered by fare (A1) below

Layover in Chicago 3 hrs 45 min
China Eastern Airlines Flight MU8820 on a Boeing 777 (jet) in first class
(operated by American Airlines as Flight AA289)
(lunch)
Departs Chicago, IL (ORD) Sat, June 3 11:05a 14 hrs 10 min
Arrives Shanghai, China (PVG) Sun, June 4 2:15p
1 adult in booking code F, covered by fare (B1) below


Shanghai, China to Newark, NJ: 7755 miles 18 hrs 41 min

China Eastern Airlines Flight MU8821 on a Boeing 777 (jet) in first class
(operated by American Airlines as Flight AA288)
(breakfast)
Departs Shanghai, China (PVG) Thur, June 8 4:25p 13 hrs 35 min
Arrives Chicago, IL (ORD) 5:00p
1 adult in booking code F, covered by fare (B2) below

Layover in Chicago 3 hrs 0 min
American Airlines Flight AA1914 on a MD-80 (jet) in first class
Departs Chicago, IL (ORD) Thur, June 8 8:00p 2 hrs 6 min
Arrives Newark, NJ (EWR) 11:06p
1 adult in booking code A, covered by fare (C1) below

Note: The flight from Shanghai (PVG) to Chicago (ORD) is overnight.
Note: You must change terminals in Chicago (ORD).



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Booking details
If you want to buy this ticket, it's probably best to use a travel agent (this ticket involves multiple airlines, which can get complicated). If you use a travel agent to buy this ticket:
If your travel agent is online and has an e-mail address, e-mail this itinerary to them
If your travel agent is not online, print out this page and fax/give it to them
It is very important to use exactly the same booking codes and fare codes that we've used on this page in order to match the price we've found.


Fare (A1): AA EWRCHI YUPMZ fare (rules) $561.86
Fare (B1): MU CHISHA F fare (rules) $2125.00
Fare (B2): MU SHACHI F fare (rules) $2125.00
Fare (C1): AA CHIEWR YUPMZ fare (rules) $561.86
Tax: US International Departure Tax $14.50
Tax: US International Arrival Tax $14.50
Tax: People's Republic of China Airport Fee CNY 90
Tax: US Customs Fee $5.00
Tax: US Immigration Fee $7.00
Tax: USDA APHIS Fee $5.00
Tax: MU YQ surcharge $88.00
Tax: US September 11th Security Fee $7.50
Tax: US Passenger Facility Charge $13.50

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Total for 1 adult passenger: $5540.23
(as of Thursday, May 4, 2006 8:47pm; fares loaded Thursday, May 4, 2006 3:05pm)




But then you have to get from SHA to XMN which looks like it could be done for about $367 more using this:

$367.90 in US Dollars
1 adult @ $367.90
Hide booking details




Airport legend:
SHA: Shanghai Hong Qiao
XMN: Xiamen Int'l
Shanghai, China to Xiamen, China: 500 miles 1 hr 20 min

Air China Flight CA4556 on an Airbus A319 (jet) in first class
(dinner)
Departs Shanghai, China (SHA) Mon, June 5 7:00p 1 hr 20 min
Arrives Xiamen, China (XMN) 8:20p
1 adult in booking code F, covered by fare (A1) below


Xiamen, China to Shanghai, China: 500 miles 1 hr 30 min

China Eastern Airlines Flight MU5672 on an Airbus A320 (jet) in first class
(snack)
Departs Xiamen, China (XMN) Thur, June 8 8:00a 1 hr 30 min
Arrives Shanghai, China (SHA) 9:30a
1 adult in booking code F, covered by fare (A2) below



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Booking details
If you want to buy this ticket, it's probably best to use a travel agent (this ticket involves multiple airlines, which can get complicated). If you use a travel agent to buy this ticket:
If your travel agent is online and has an e-mail address, e-mail this itinerary to them
If your travel agent is not online, print out this page and fax/give it to them
It is very important to use exactly the same booking codes and fare codes that we've used on this page in order to match the price we've found.


Fare (A1): CA SHAXMN F fare (rules) CNY 1440
Fare (A2): MU XMNSHA F fare (rules) CNY 1350
Tax: CA YR surcharge CNY 60
Tax: People's Republic of China Airport Fee CNY 100

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Total for 1 adult passenger: $367.90
(as of Thursday, May 4, 2006 8:48pm; fares loaded Thursday, May 4, 2006 3:05pm




That's the absolute cheapest way I can find to do it all in first, on published fares. And let me add that this was way, way cheaper than all the other options I could find - even from the west coast to SHA/PEK was over $6500 R/T in first for your cheapest option.

If you wanted something lower you would have to check with a consolidator and see if they had first class fares.

Good luck in your search.

Oh, and one more thing. If you wanted to get it in under budget, you could always bookend the China Eastern $4402 first class R/T from ORD-SHA with two coach trips for the short-hops NYC-ORD and SHA-XMN. I mean, those flights are under 90 minutes in length each; it's not like you're going to sleep on them much anyway.

NYC-ORD on those dates, in coach, is about $228 and SHA-XMN is $251

So that would be

$228 (NYC-ORD) + $4402 (ORD-SHA, in FC) + $251 (SHA-XMN) = $4,881 roundtrip, with the long leg in first and the short legs in coach. You could even spring for the SHA-XMN leg in first, since that's only an additional $117, and your total would be $4,998 - under your $5000 budget and your only coach flights are NYC-ORD and return.

wow that is great!!!
i am impressed.
would i save any more by booking this as a one way ord-pvg and then one way back?

wow that is great!!!
i am impressed.
would i save any more by booking this as a one way ord-pvg and then one way back?

You're welcome, I'm happy I could help.

No, you would not save more by booking it as a one-way. The one-way fare ORD-PVG is exactly half of the round trip. So it's the same price.

In most cases, one-ways are more expensive than round trip tickets, not less.

BTW, to give you some idea of how much of a steal this is, the exact same flights ORD-PVG in first class, if booked as an AA ticket are $14,009. So it's a savings of over $9600.

Hope this works out for you.

that is really an unbelievable fare. thank you so much.

i see i will have to go from one airport pvg to another sha. are they far? what is the best way to do that?
also how much time should i allow from my arrival at pvg to my departure at sha?

i see i will have to go from one airport pvg to another sha. are they far? what is the best way to do that?
also how much time should i allow from my arrival at pvg to my departure at sha?

PVG and SHA are pretty far apart. The 5-hour connection suggested above would probably work, though. I haven't been to Shanghai since they opened the maglev, so I'm not sure if the best bet is to take that and then a taxi or just to take a taxi the whole way.