Originally Posted by Gardyloo
Well you could be counter-intuitive and start by flying to Europe in January as cheaply as you feel comfortable doing, start your RTW there (CAI, WAW, IST, etc.) then go to Thailand eastbound, then back to the US, do your NA segments, then end the RTW back in Europe when you go in the summer. If you want to use FF miles to get to the jumping-off point, you might need less for a Europe hop (or wait for cheap winter fares or the ilk) than you would to go to Thailand directly.
That could be an interesting idea. The two things that might interfere with that is that some of my more expensive domestic trips (for example, LAX-GCM) are going to be in the fall of 2006. If I have already returned to Europe in the summer, they could not be part of my RTW itinerary. Also, I figure that if I start and end my trip in late January, I might be able to use some of the legs in 1/06 to re-qualify for Platinum in 2007.
Edit: I just realized that, if I take my ticket to Europe in the summer via the RTW ticket, I can't return to the U.S. on it afterward, anyway, nor can I use it for my fall domestic trips. So, I guess it means that I would have to use it only for one or the other, in any event.