Originally Posted by
lairdb
Planning a trip for fall, about 17 days all told, 2 pax:
san-lax-syd
syd-ayq, ayq-cns, cns-hti, hti-cns, cns-syd
syd-lax-san
The mixed carriers first: Are OW protections all gone anyway, so separate PNRs between the trans-pacific and the Aus don't matter? I also think that, with a stopover on the inbound SYD, there's no additional baggage allowance to be had for the domestic; is that right, or is it more complex than that?
Now, to the trans-pacific: I have over a million AA miles, so I could:
- paying aanytime business for both people, both ways
- pay full J for one, and aanytime business for the other
- pay premium economy for both and waitlist for an upgrade-with-miles
Other than the straight-up miles vs. cash value, any thoughts or advice?
Many questions; big thanks for clues on any or all.
One thing you may wish to consider for the (AU) domestic portion is Qantas' Explorer product (
https://www.qantas.com/us/en/book-a-...-explorer.html). This has fixed distance-based pricing, and requires the international flight into Australia to be on either QF or AA.
In many cases, this product is not attractive because the pricing is higher than you'd get by simply adding up one-way fares. However, it does have some advantages: it is quite flexible (date changes allowed with no/low fee), and from memory it means the international baggage allowance and protections are inherited (since it becomes an add-on to the international ticket). I'd say it is at least worth running the numbers and comparing.
I didn't see it mentioned in the other replies, so just to point out the obvious: if you can get redemption seats LAX-SYD/MEL/BNE on QF, that would be preferable to going via Asia. Not trivial to do, but depending on the time of year, quite possible. Also, TN will start 787 service in November with somewhat decent J, so LAX-PPT-AKL-SYD is an alternative to Asia (although maybe not a better one).
In terms of protection on separate tickets, it is my understanding that AA do still offer that. However, it is an *AA* benefit and not a *OW* benefit. Therefore, going QF->AA it is all right, but going AA->QF it is a bit trickier because you'd need to get AA to help you out with a QF ticket they didn't previously touch (although they may help, don't expect a lot from QF). This was my experience in the past, with the disclaimer that it may have changed without me picking it up.