Star Alliance - StarAlliance - SFO to Russia

What combination would be good for a low mileage ticket to Russia from SFO on Star Alliance?

Typically the distance determines the amount of miles required, not the carriers being used.

Flights via SFO/ZRH are going to be your options for one-stop service.

And for an award the routing with seats available is always the best deal. ;)

I looked for ZRH-SVO/DME on ExpertFLyer, but not even one flight mentioned. Am I searching wrong?

How do you go about planning which way to go, is it just knowing the routes?


Flights via SFO/ZRH are going to be your options for one-stop service.

And for an award the routing with seats available is always the best deal. ;)

I looked for ZRH-SVO/DME on ExpertFLyer, but not even one flight mentioned. Am I searching wrong?

How do you go about planning which way to go, is it just knowing the routes?

I don't see any space on SFO-ZRH on LX on the days you mentioned on your other thread.

Knowing the routes helps a lot. If you don't know the routes that are being serviced by different carriers then I recommend searching the airports on Wiki since they list the airlines that serve that airport along with the destinations.

Russia is a large country. Indeed, it is the largest.

Where is Russia do you wish to go?

In order to find what *A airlines operate between certain points, use the flight search tool on www.staralliance.com

Trying to go SFO - DME, obviously multiple stops, but how to develop a good route on ExpertFlyer in X class, cheapest possible? Need for October or November.

How long are you planning to stay?

A (very) quick look on ITA threw up fares for various dates under $850 for a 10 day stay in November..

On LH/UA/AC...

How long are you planning to stay?

A (very) quick look on ITA threw up fares for various dates under $850 for a 10 day stay in November..

On LH/UA/AC...

X class implies award travel. EF is probably not the best resource for that search. Check gateway flights first and then add on connections in Europe and the USA to fill it out. So that's SFO-FRA/ZRH/LHR then other UA, LH, AC and LX TATLs from the west coast then TATLs from mountain/central then east coast IMO.

I'd try starting with united.com and also checking the SQ IAH-DME flight via Aeroplan or ANA or calling UA.

So is EF not the #1 source to go to? What is EF used best for then? I thought everyone was finding the best X awards on EF...

X class implies award travel. EF is probably not the best resource for that search. Check gateway flights first and then add on connections in Europe and the USA to fill it out. So that's SFO-FRA/ZRH/LHR then other UA, LH, AC and LX TATLs from the west coast then TATLs from mountain/central then east coast IMO.

I'd try starting with united.com and also checking the SQ IAH-DME flight via Aeroplan or ANA or calling UA.

Sorry to clarfiy, yes I'm ONLY looking for X fares using United Miles... Economy only.

I just plugged SFO-DME into the United.com site searching for award tickets anytime in November. Lots of Saver award choices came up all through the month. 30K miles each way.

So is EF not the #1 source to go to? What is EF used best for then? I thought everyone was finding the best X awards on EF...

ExpertFlyer is indeed a widely used source for awards. The Star Alliance airlines that are supported for award searching on their flights (regardless of who's miles you are using) are listed here: http://www.expertflyer.com/sessionlessClassList.do

You may also use the award search on UA.com or another airline website to search other alliance airlines.