Originally Posted by shadymg

Hey Gang, here's my situation. I'm looking to fly to Manila, Philippines this december (depart LAX on Dec 14) and then return on Dec 28th.

I have plenty of AA miles and the cost of the flight to book separately is around $1700, so I'm looking to book with miles wherever possible. Since Cathay Pacific & Japan Air is the only (right?) OneWorld partner for Asia, it severely limits my options. I called the ExecPlat help desk to see what availability she could find there, and there was absolutely nothing for the departure date--there's American, but not Cathay. As I'm thinking through my options, I figured the following would be a worthwhile alternative and the lowest overall cost:

• Book to/from LAX-HKG with Award miles (85k there, and 32.5k coming back)
• Then Book with Cebu Pacific (Philippine airline) round trip HKG-Manila (around $200)

My question is: Is it possible to get an award travel all around that maybe the helpdesk person somehow couldn't see on their end?

IF NOT, then is there anything wrong with my bullet plan above? How would that work when connecting through Hong Kong if i have to check bags? I'm guessing i would have to clear customs in Hong Kong and then go and check-in, customs again back again? How long would you buffer on flight times?

You guys are the best, so any/all help/advice would be wonderful!