Originally Posted by
Gardyloo
Personally I always try to have AA as the issuing airline because their RTW desk (above) is very efficient at ticket changes, problem resolution etc., once you're underway.
I agree; this has been my experience as well.
Originally Posted by
Gardyloo
3. If you're buying a DONEx availability isn't often an issue
Yes, although in my experience there are some routes that can be problematic, e.g., LHR-TLV on BA sometimes has no D space even many months out. Strange.
Originally Posted by
Gardyloo
4. Date changes are free; more substantial changes (e.g. change of route, change from transit to stopover) require the ticket to be re-issued ($125 plus any difference in taxes/fees.)
Are you sure about changing between connection and stop? My recollection is that I often do this without needing to pay the $125 fee. More to the point, the $125 fee is not for a ticket re-issue, but for a change in routing, meaning that the list of airports changes (adding, deleting, or reordering). AA does not charge to re-issue the ticket, but reports here are that some airlines do.
Originally Posted by
Gardyloo
originating in South Africa and heading to London as your first destination will stick you with BA as the issuing carrier, which will bring along BA's fees.
BA's fees are obnoxious. Note that you can fly to/from JNB on other airlines, such as CX and QF.
Originally Posted by
Gardyloo
two stopovers in the continent of origin is the rule. In the case of Asia, look at opportunities for cheap "add on" tickets outside the RTW, e.g. a stopover in Bangkok will put you in a good place for cheap tickets to other SE Asian cities using local carriers at not much cost. Or put another way, use the RTW ticket for expensive segments, use the train or another mode for short hops where one of your 16 RTW flights would be overkill.
Excellent advice. Also, keep in mind that you can use the time between your positioning flight and the first RTW flight as a stop.
Originally Posted by
onehitrenegade
Sounds like changing the ticket (dates) is not always easy. I think I will wait till early March to book this as then I will have access to picking the flights in next Jan/Feb.
I've never had a problem doing this on AA, aside from sometimes not seeing D space on BA flights to/from TLV. Also, keep in mind that the date of the first flight can't change without causing the whole ticket to get re-priced (no big deal if the price is the same, but nasty if there was a price increase).