rjs11

I'm new to the forums and have a UA award ticket routing question...

While doing some research I came across some posts that hinted at "capitalizing" on UA award ticket routing by "looking very closely" at UA's routing policies. The specifics weren't mentioned, but seem to imply that rookies need to brush up on UA's award routing rules to maximize award tickets. Can someone here provide a little context as to what these posts refer to?

I'm about to book a trip from Detroit to Bogota, Bogota to Panama City, and then Panama City back to Detroit for 40,000 UA miles in economy. Is there a way I can add more destinations on the same award itinerary? 2 open-jaws are permitted, correct? So that means I could fly Detroit-Quito, travel by land from Quito-Bogota, fly Bogota-Cartagena, travel by land from Cartagena-Medellin, fly Medellin-Panama City, then fly Panama City-Detroit to complete the itinerary. Quality of destinations aside, if I book that itinerary would I be maximizing my miles?

Thanks for the help!