Originally Posted by Vaze
themicah Thank you so much for your response, hadn't really considered the train but sounds like it may be a very viable option. Sounds like my best bet is Cathay to HK, train for all/most of the mainland China part then on to Japan and returning on JL to LAX.
Can you upgrade CX or JL flights? I'm not super-familiar with the details of AAdvantage, but was under the impression that upgrades were only really available on AA metal, and you mentioned in your OP that you were wanting to buy coach and upgrade.