Last edit by: ryanbryan
Note: I created this wikipost using info from the thread. Some of the info may be out of date, so please update the wiki if you have new information.
No airport, and no airport nearby:
Andorra
Pitcairn Islands (British Overseas Territory)
Saint Helena (airport under construction)
Tristan da Cunha (British Overseas Territory)
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (British Overseas Territory)
Tokelau (New Zealand)
No airport, but airport nearby:
San Marino
Vatican City
Liechtenstein
Monaco
Has airport, but unreachable on Miles:
Somalia (Kenya used to fly to Hargeisa but no longer)
Nauru
Tuvalu
Antarctica (some airports but no commercial flights)
Ascension Island (British Overseas Territory)
Greenland
No airport, and no airport nearby:
Andorra
Pitcairn Islands (British Overseas Territory)
Saint Helena (airport under construction)
Tristan da Cunha (British Overseas Territory)
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (British Overseas Territory)
Tokelau (New Zealand)
No airport, but airport nearby:
San Marino
Vatican City
Liechtenstein
Monaco
Has airport, but unreachable on Miles:
Somalia (Kenya used to fly to Hargeisa but no longer)
Nauru
Tuvalu
Antarctica (some airports but no commercial flights)
Ascension Island (British Overseas Territory)
Greenland
Countries Unreachable on Miles
#121
Join Date: Jul 2011
Programs: BA Bronze
Posts: 1,026
You came to this thread without reading it (by your own admission, you didn't know whether Vatican City had mentioned or not), and now you're ready to tell everyone what should and shouldn't be in this thread?
Post 1 by the OP already mentioned "microcountries" as a category, and with examples. There was no need for you to add one more silly example (that had already been mentioned before). The only purpose that serves is to start a discussion of what "reachable by miles" really means.
And "microcountries" was basically a footnote. If you read post 1, which is the post where the title of thread originated, you can see that the main focus of this thread was that there are plenty of countries with air service but with no way to redeem miles (because the airlines don't belong or partner with miles programs, because of flying restrictions, etc).
And Vatican City was already discussed to death in the first posts after that (on page 1 of this thread). You obviously couldn't be bothered to read that, yet you claim to know what belongs in this thread and doesn't?
Post 1 by the OP already mentioned "microcountries" as a category, and with examples. There was no need for you to add one more silly example (that had already been mentioned before). The only purpose that serves is to start a discussion of what "reachable by miles" really means.
And "microcountries" was basically a footnote. If you read post 1, which is the post where the title of thread originated, you can see that the main focus of this thread was that there are plenty of countries with air service but with no way to redeem miles (because the airlines don't belong or partner with miles programs, because of flying restrictions, etc).
And Vatican City was already discussed to death in the first posts after that (on page 1 of this thread). You obviously couldn't be bothered to read that, yet you claim to know what belongs in this thread and doesn't?
#122
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: LHR
Programs: AA Platinum, UA Silver, Hilton Gold
Posts: 18
With only KQ being the only carrier to fly there within the big three alliances. the Comoros is a close contender. There must be quite a few countries that can only be reached by having miles with one particular alliance.
#123
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: home = LAX
Posts: 25,932
In other words, there are some countries where only one city in one corner is reachable by multiple alliances, but only one alliance can take you to the opposite corner of that big country. For example, in Norway, any alliance can get you to Oslo, and nowadays to Bergen (though that's just a recent addition for OW), but further afield most cities are only reachable on *A (due to SAS's dominance there), and some of those cities are so far by surface transport that it's not practical to get to them (from Oslo or even Bergen) without flying.
And since it's not possible (is it?) to combine award flights from multple alliances into one ticket (so that you're "protected"), if you want to fly directly to the other corner of that country (not stopping over in the corner which all the alliances serve), you probably have to do the entire trip on the alliance that gets you to that corner of that country.
... And then there are countries which are reachable with some airline's miles, but no airline in any of the three alliances flies there, and so it may be miles from only a small number of airlines (the non-alliance airline that serves that country and perhaps it's limited non-alliance partners) that can be used to fly there.
Last edited by sdsearch; Jul 27, 2015 at 6:40 pm
#125
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: MCI
Programs: AA Gold 1MM, AS MVP, UA Silver, WN A-List, Marriott LT Titanium, HH Diamond
Posts: 52,550
Kind of in the same vein as the Greenland discussion: can you reach the Galapagos using miles? Or is mainland Ecuador the closest you can get?
This is one of our bucket list trips, but I recall as of a few years ago the Quito-Galapagos segment had to be bought with cash and was a VERY expensive ticket.
This is one of our bucket list trips, but I recall as of a few years ago the Quito-Galapagos segment had to be bought with cash and was a VERY expensive ticket.
#126
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 4,187
Kind of in the same vein as the Greenland discussion: can you reach the Galapagos using miles? Or is mainland Ecuador the closest you can get?
This is one of our bucket list trips, but I recall as of a few years ago the Quito-Galapagos segment had to be bought with cash and was a VERY expensive ticket.
This is one of our bucket list trips, but I recall as of a few years ago the Quito-Galapagos segment had to be bought with cash and was a VERY expensive ticket.
#127
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: home = LAX
Posts: 25,932
Kind of in the same vein as the Greenland discussion: can you reach the Galapagos using miles? Or is mainland Ecuador the closest you can get?
This is one of our bucket list trips, but I recall as of a few years ago the Quito-Galapagos segment had to be bought with cash and was a VERY expensive ticket.
This is one of our bucket list trips, but I recall as of a few years ago the Quito-Galapagos segment had to be bought with cash and was a VERY expensive ticket.
Meanwhile, be aware that you can't redeem LAN kms for one-way nonstop trips, only round trips (and perhaps open jaw trips with at least two legs).
EDITED TO ADD:
This short thread:
confirms exactly what I theorized above: Galapagos flights on LAN are bookable with LAN kms but typically not bookable with other OW FFP currencies.
Last edited by sdsearch; Aug 26, 2015 at 8:19 pm
#128
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: MCI
Programs: AA Gold 1MM, AS MVP, UA Silver, WN A-List, Marriott LT Titanium, HH Diamond
Posts: 52,550
That's better than what used to exist then. ^ UIO often has reasonable paid fares (plus is obviously accessible via all sorts of miles), and a new LAN account followed by an SPG conversion could, in theory, get one to the Galapagos at a decent total cost.
#129
Join Date: May 2013
Programs: Hyatt Platinum, IHG Platinum, Aadvantage Platinum
Posts: 180
Please do share your Cuba con miles method
#130
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: home = LAX
Posts: 25,932
AA has announced that it will start commercial flights from LAX (and presumably other cities) to Havana as soon as the US government allows it. (That was a side note in an announcement the other week of LAX-Havana charters that AA is starting in partnership with a Cuba travel package arranger.) So at the very least, AA miles should at some point be usable for travel from the US to Cuba, but it's not known when.
#131
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Texas
Programs: AA Gold, Starwood Gold
Posts: 125
A somewhat larger place than most on the list. None of the alliance Asian carriers flies to POM.
According to Wikipedia, QantasLink operated by Sunstate Airlines serves it; is that bookable with QF miles or with oneworld miles? It also says that Virgin Australia serves it; not sure if any partner in one of the three alliances is available for redemptions.
(The page also says that TN serves it, but I think that that's out-of-date.)
According to Wikipedia, QantasLink operated by Sunstate Airlines serves it; is that bookable with QF miles or with oneworld miles? It also says that Virgin Australia serves it; not sure if any partner in one of the three alliances is available for redemptions.
(The page also says that TN serves it, but I think that that's out-of-date.)
#132
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Minneapolis: DL DM charter 2.3MM
Programs: A3*Gold, SPG Plat, HyattDiamond, MarriottPP, LHW exAccess, ICI, Raffles Amb, NW PE MM, TWA Gold MM
Posts: 100,368
You can use DL miles for VA flights. AFAIK this includes all flights operated by VA but might exclude codeshares, commuter flights operated by affiliated regional carriers, etc.
#133
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: CBR
Programs: QF, Velocity, AA
Posts: 284
POM should be easily reachable with both QF and VA miles. QF is also a partner of Air Niugini, so you can reach POM on an award booking on the QF service from CNS or any Air Niugini services from BNE/SYD.
#135
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 23
Cuba is reachable by miles if you're not based in the USA. It's not (legally) reachable by miles if you are based in the USA. Currently, most US citizens are not yet allowed to travel to Cuba unless they fall into some special categories.
AA has announced that it will start commercial flights from LAX (and presumably other cities) to Havana as soon as the US government allows it. (That was a side note in an announcement the other week of LAX-Havana charters that AA is starting in partnership with a Cuba travel package arranger.) So at the very least, AA miles should at some point be usable for travel from the US to Cuba, but it's not known when.
AA has announced that it will start commercial flights from LAX (and presumably other cities) to Havana as soon as the US government allows it. (That was a side note in an announcement the other week of LAX-Havana charters that AA is starting in partnership with a Cuba travel package arranger.) So at the very least, AA miles should at some point be usable for travel from the US to Cuba, but it's not known when.