Originally Posted by
flyersky1
Is flying AONEx worth the extra cost in terms of lounge access, comfort, etc? I tried to find a thread that directly addresses this issue but I could not. If there is such, please point me to it. If not, I would like to hear your opinion. For example, I have created AONE4 itinerary:
pdx-xdfw-bos-xlhr-del-bkk-nrt-xhkg-sin-syd-cns-ayq-syd-xlax-xdfw-pdx
which is around $13,500, ~36K miles, while if I do the following DONE5:
pdx-xdfw-bos-xord-del-bkk-nrt-sin-syd-cns-ayq-syd-scl-ipc-scl-xdfw-pdx
I pay only $9600, get 10K more miles, and see more places. Obviously DONE4 will be even cheaper. Another disadvantage of AONE4 is that about half of the flights are downgraded to D.
On the plus side for AONE4, I can try the 3 famous F lounges - HKG (hkg-sin with CX F), SYD (syd-lax QA F), and LHR T5 (lhr-del BA F), and I can fly sin-syd in A380 F with QA. Is it worth the extra cost? Any tip is appreciated. Also, if you have ideas on how to optimize the mileage on both, I would like to hear them, although I want to visit most places on both itineraries. Thanks!
First, welcome to FT!
Next, a not-so-minor nit...
ORD-DEL is regarded as transatlantic, and AA's interpretation is that simply overflying Europe (even the Russian arctic) makes it "count" as a continent. Now, you
might be able to get the online booking tool to bless the itinerary as an xONE4, but if you tried to book it with AA humans you'd be charged for an xONE
5.
As to your main point, well, only you can decide if 3 or 4 true international F segments out of 16 is worth a 40% increase in price. In terms of mileage accrual (most, not all programs) it won't make much difference. You would get access to some pretty fine F lounges, e.g. QF's in SYD, but, again, it's a judgment call.
Presumably you're aware that XONEXs bought in other countries than the US can be cheaper - sometimes considerably - and often at a final price that still justifies the cash or mileage cost to access the starting countries. For example, an AONE5 ticket bought in Israel or Jordan is almost US$3000 cheaper than if bought in the USA; a DONE5 bought in Israel/Jordan is almost $2000 cheaper. The advantage of those tickets is that you're not limited to two stopovers in N. America, so if you have any domestic flying to do in N. America you have the full 6 segments and 6 stopovers at your discretion.
Do you have any preference for Oneworld mileage plans? It might make your decision on routing easier (or more complicated) - e.g. no AA miles on any BA segments from the US to the UK (and no BA miles on any AA transatlantic flights.) Is PDX home? If so, then you might consider using N. America segments for more productive mileage-earning routes, and just get to/from PDX using AS or tickets bought outside the RTW.