I have an US air ticket expiring 1/18/10 which I plan to use for my first MR to kickoff the new year right.

Ticket value is ~$550 and there's a $250 change fee for the ticket. Ticket must be on US metal but credit to UA MP.

Using USAir site, farecompare, Kayak, etc., I've found the following:

SEA-PHL-MAD-PHL-SEA - departing 1/15, returning 1/17 for $647.

At a net additional expense of $350, this looks reasonable for ~13000 EQM but I'm not sure if it's the best option. Are there any other routings to maximize the EQM and miles? I can go a week earlier as well and could go Thu or Fri either week.

Also, any issues with doing an overnight turn at MAD?

Thanks!

samplat