First Post from me ! Great forum - have enjoyed reading the many posts

I'm at 247k destination miles and am hoping to get to 300k to redeem for 2 x business RTW ( cash + miles ). From advice on the forum, I've signed up for the credit card, (267k!) and am now going on a MR/holiday in early June. I'm thinking of MAN - BGI ( approx �550), using upgrade vouchers to get PE. I'm at 74k membership miles for the year - so with the gold bonus, the over 55k bonus ( membership years end at end of June ) and using the credit card to book ( for two ), I think I'll earn approx 20k dest miles.

I would really appreciate advice on
1. MR route - any recommendations other than BGI ( will be starting off in Belfast )
2. Voucher redemption - what are the chances on this route ?
( presume I need to use three to upgrade myself and companion)
3. Mileage calculation - am I around the right track at 20k ?
4. RTW route - I've been told its restricted to 5/6? stops , 10 sectors - I've read about alot of RTW routes on the forums, but the routes don't seem to have reflected these restrictions - would anyone have suggestions on route - starting BHD or DUB ( assuming I get to 300k ! )

Many thanks - appreciate I'm asking alot, but it would give me the confidence to go ahead with MR

Firstly, welcome to FT

The most important thing you need to look at right now is your choice of a miles & cash RTW. I don't know where you want to go on it, but think about one way awards to achieve it.

For example, if you did DUB-LHR-HKG(stopover)-AKL (1st ticket)

then did AKL-LAX(stopover)-LHR-DUB (2nd Ticket)

Total cost would be 75K miles + £510 + taxes (DUB to avoid UK APD) for each person. You've got an RTW for half the cost. You could choose many other destinations and achieve the same sort of savings.

That's just an example to get you thinking, but an RTW award is bad value.

For MR purposes, the quickest way to maximise point earnings are intra-US QUP/YUP fares on UA or US, which will earn 625% of mileage if you are over 55K. Just one return from SFO to MIA (UA) or to MCO (US) would probably get you just about what you need to get to 300K (around 40K miles - more if carefully routed) and would cost you somewhere in the region of $850. You'd have to add the cost of the tatl flight obviously. From BFS, CO would probably have some cheap fares to MIA or MCO. Not *A obviously, but might still be worth it if you amass plenty of miles intra US.

not just bad value but probably impossible to get reward availability on all the sector you want to do within your time limit.

I can't even imagine what it will be like to talk to the Indian call centre to try to book a RTW ticket !? "I'm sorry Sir, this flight is not available" in an infinite loop.

Here's another point to think about - book a RTW, and your ticket will be totally inflexible once you flown the first flight.

Book a series of one-way flights and you'll be able to change dates etc for any leg at any point, as long as availability is there.

Given that BMI is quite lenient in the definition of stop-overs as well, as you can see from reading the 'please post your redemptions' thread, and a RTW ticket seems bad value and inflexible.

By the way, why just one credit card?! You can easily get two and potentially more.

or quite likely to start with "I'm sorry, but Star Alliance doesn't serve that airport code, would you like me to try Moscow ?"

I had considered using a whole bunch of my BD miles for RTW awards but then realized how much more I could travel by using them for a bunch of one-way cash+miles awards with stopovers en-route. This gave me flexibility, more destinations and less miles used. (More cash used, but I value my BD miles quite highly still and got to many more places.)

10 sector maxium with a maximum of 6 stopovers on a RTW award wasn't as good as what I've pulled off with a series of cash+miles one-way awards.

Welcome to FT VantheMan, from another Belfast based traveller. It's a friendly spot, packed with well informed people, as you've already discovered.

Very jealous of your 300K miles ! I just don't have your dicipline, so whenever I get to 100K, I blow them all on a miles + cash First or Business Class trip to somewhere hot and exotic.

Enjoy your RTW trip

Grantosol

Except if we find out he's got an invite

Ouch!!

I'm thinking 'Van the Man' is trying to sort the travel for his upcoming World Tour on the cheap.

LHR (SK)-CPH Y 3000 + 20 Z1-Z2
CPH (SK)-xLHR (NZ)- oHKG (NH)-NRT 18750 + 127,50 Z2-Z8
NRT ( NH/TG)-oBKK (TG)-SYD or
NRT ( NH/SQ)- oSIN (SQ)-SYD/AKL/PER 18750 + 127,50 Z8-Z9
PER (SA)-oJNB-(SA)-xLHR-DUB 37500 + 255 Z9-Z1

possible stops CPH HKG NRT BKK/SIN SYD/AKL/PER JNB

Total miles used for C class trip 78.000 + 530 GBP

Not really a RTW but if you like SA more than USA it would be another way with some oneways

Sincere thanks to all for the comments on the RTW - the advice on one way redemptions has saved me a heap of points and ��� - I only really wanted to hit MNL , AKL and SFO - so it's all good

World Tour sorted for another year !

( No invite either - have been gold for three years now without any invites - as was mentioned, think I spent too much time on LH and other *A members to be worthy. )

New Album too ?

Folks,

What do you think of the following to allow time in MNL, AKL and SFO ?

DUB-LHR-SIN(stopover)-AKL C 37,500 + �255
SIN-MNL-SIN C 15,000 + �105
AKL-SFO(stopover)-LHR-DUB C 37,500 + �255

Total for 2 = 180k + �1230

Hoping to travel in Sept 08 - when should I start trying to book this ?

Thanks

Brian