Originally Posted by rgm18
The CO section could highlight the great deal that is the intra-Asia award which allows you to go from Asia to AUSTRALIA (Cairns) for just 25k (also allows you to goto micronesia)...it could tell us if that allows a stopover in guam (im not sure).
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The NW section could describe getting the routing of US-S Africa through S America with a free stop in Buenos Aires...and could try to clarify how many stops are actually allowed on an award itinerary (though the NW forum seems to not have a sure answer on that one....)
The CO award is very flexible on stopovers. I once did MNL-GUM-MAJ (stop)-GUM-YAP (stop)-GUM-MNL, though it took a helpful agent to book. The computer is pretty permissive, but human agents tend to resist trying routings that involve backtracking or certain stops, sometimes insisting GUM is the only place you CAN stop. You have to keep calling.
The CO award also doesn't include NW metal; at the height of SARS I booked and flew BKK-NRT-GUM (stop)-CNS (stop) and v.v. and they reacted 3 months later with a separate award category specifically to double the miles for that.
On NW it's best to play with the multi-city award travel online booking & see what you come up with if that's possible (alas, not usually with partners). Have been able to get it to do a stopover AND an open jaw when agents say that's a no-no, and it'll also sometimes take backtracking stopovers that human agents will balk at.
Was also able to get the NW system to give me an Asia award (into MNL, out of SIN) with an "illegal" stop in a Micronesian spot other than GUM or SPN that the agent kept saying wasn't allowed. I like the results I've been getting out of computers lately better than those out of most humans.
