I booked an RTW award for later this year using Randy's awardplanner service (they were/are great, by the way!). It was an excellent investment.

You can get 6 stops in coach for 140k, 6 stops in business for 220k. No backtracking is allowed, but I did get Australia in.

I start & finish in Lexington, KY (don't ask), and go Sydney-Tokyo/Osaka-Cairo-Johannesburg-Tallin/Warsaw-Sao Paulo. It is 21 flights in all. I go through both Seoul & Paris three times each.

FWIW, I'm trying to do the whole thing (6+ weeks) without paying for a night of lodging. Awardplannner has gotten my Starwood & Hilton rooms booked, I'm bumming off of friends, and I'm working on points with Best Western for the two nights in Riga--no Hilton or Starwood in town.

If you're interested, I've set up a website that I'll update when I begin my travel in August. It is www.geocities.com/j379pa .

JP