Welcome to FT,
bjarmstr, you have come to the right place.
Originally Posted by
bjarmstr
We are a family of 4 looking at a 1 year world trip with a departure of Sept 2011. YYC-ord-jfk-LIM-IPC-PPT-akl-SYD-MNL-hkg-HAN-BKK-AMM-CAI-MAD-lhr-YYC (lower case are cities we don't really want to stop in).
This certainly looks like a trip of a lifetime. A few comments.
You are currently planning to fly in Economy class. On this fare, this often books into L class, a very low booking class. On some flights you can have days after days without any L class seat available at all. And you need 4 of them. So you need to book very early and be flexible with the dates. And changing later can be problematic. I know $4500 is a lot of money, but you should seriously consider to fly Business Class for this epic journey. This will also help with flexibility. And the extra points you get compensate a lot for the extra money.
[QUOTE=bjarmstr;15050402]I have been looking for a route that flies fairly directly but without any really long hauls. Easter Island to Papeete looks like the way across the Pacific but that forces us into the Global Explorer ticket (since buying a land segment Papeete-Auckland is cost prohibitive).
If you skip PPT you could backtrack to IPC and stay with a OW Explorer. PPT is nice but the really nice places are Bora Bora and the Marquesas which add hundreds of $ in domestic travel to the budget (each).
Originally Posted by
bjarmstr
A Global Explorer ticket takes into account how many miles you fly and there is a wider range of airline carriers to choose from. Are there any other differences between a oneworld explorer and a global explorer?
Yes there are some more but nothing out of the ordinary.
Originally Posted by
bjarmstr
Are there any fees in addition to the $5999 quoted fee that I should be aware of (what kind of passenger fees and charges)? I don't have a feel for how much the taxes are and if this should affect my choice.
Taxes and fees can be anything from $500 to more than $1000 per person. Just make sure you get the ticket issued by a good airline like AA.
Originally Posted by
bjarmstr
My assumption is that as long as I don't change the route, I can change the time/date for free.
Yes, but you need availability. Which can be a problem on some routes. And be aware that some airlines charge service fees for changes so it is not really free.
Originally Posted by
bjarmstr
I have no AA miles and don't see getting any before our trip starts. Should I be worrying about all this frequent flyer Gold status stuff? I am all for maximizing my rewards but am I flying enough to worry about this?
Thanks
You should always worry about that. L class often doesn't earn much miles, flying business would be much better. You would get status and lounge access on the way.
If you can't fly business, then it might make sense to buy a Qantas Club membership, which also gets you into the BA and AA lounges. However, you donät have many AA, BA, QF flights so it might not be worth it.