I'm brand new here and not sure if im even posting correctly. I'm
trying to book my son on a round trip ticket to Valencia Spain from Miami. He will be going there to study for one year. His departure dates and return dates are so far apart I can't book a round trip ticket, there are no scheduled flights for the return yet.
if I wait he won't be on the flight with his friend, and I would really feel better if he flew with someone else (who are only staying a semester, so they have no issues with the tickets purchase).
example: Depart: May 27, 2014
Return: July 30, 2015

If I book a ticket with an arbitrary return date and then try to change the return to July 30, 2015, they are telling me I will not be able to because the ticket it will no longer be valid because the return is more than a year after the purchase date. Is that correct? is there any way around that without buying a one way ticket, which they advise against because of immigration problems. Do I just buy a round trip ticket and just not use the return leg? then I have to buy another RT to get home. Any solutions? the refundable tickets are more than twice the cost of the regular round trip ticket so that's no solution.

You can simply buy two one-ways.

Will your son be coming home for a visit during the Christmas break or at some other time during the winter? Under some circumstances, two roundtrips can be cheaper than two one-ways.

In any case, your son should register for the appropriate FF program (AA?) to receive mileage credit for his transatlantic flights.

Why isn't your son's college doing the air? My son studied abroad in AKL and his university took care of everything, including the airfare. In his case, I could not get a credit so we just went with what they came back with, It was a bulk fare so he didn't get credit for the NZ flights but did get miles for the UA flights.

Check with the program and the college. be sure to go visit when he is away. My DH and I were the only patents that actually visited while our son and his group were in AKL. we had a blast with all the kids and ending up buying dinner every nights for at least 6 kids. It was great.

Do you have any rewards programs you can use that offer one way at half the cost of a round trip?

I don't think immigration would be a huge issue for a U.S. citizen travelling to Spain who also can show all the paperwork for an educational stay. I am surprised though that this isn't taken care of by the organization/college as usually is the case with this sort of trip.

I was studying abroad myself last semester and no one I know of had their universities/whatever organize travel etc. for them, so I think this is more common than some organization taking care of anything.

Reading from this:

http://www.exteriores.gob.es/Consula...dent-Visa.aspx

it says a permit to return to America is needed, not that a return ticket is needed. Might want to contact an embassy for confirmation, a print of an email could be helpfull in immigration if they really wanted to make it a problem.

But as the rule you mention is 1 year from the day you buy the ticket, even waiting isn't going to help as the return date is more than 1 year after the depature.
I'd personally consider the option of buying 2 return tickets instead (1 now and 1 later), if the prices are similar with one ways and return tickets, you can have the option for an almost free trip home for Christmas. In any case buying a flexible ticket, won't that cost almost as much as 2 return flights anyway?

When you say "they" are telling you, have you talked to different airlines? They can have different rules. I see a number of them having routing for your situation - Lufthansa, BritishAirways,Iberia,Delta,AirFrance,Alitalia, US Airways, etc. You might get a workable answer from one of them.

Have you talked to an actual travel agent? They might know some "work-around" for your situation.

You might consider bidding on www.priceline.com for a one-way ticket. It won't get your son flying with the companion, but if he isn't ready to make the flight on his own, I have to wonder if he is ready to live in Spain for a year? Bidding is free, and you might turn up something reasonable.

Romelle

oh wait - never mind - I read it wrong!

Since he will be gone more than a year, I am sure he would want to come home for Christmas or another event. Having been an exchange student twice myself, I think a 14 month period away from home is really long. Try breaking up the year: book a return trip with a date he (might) want to come home - and another one later. Good luck!

It depends on the kid and the situation. For many, not coming home in the middle of a foreign exchange experience is a good thing. Some programs organize travel opportunities during vacation periods, or the kid can explore Europe alone or with friends. It can be very interesting to experience holidays in a somewhat different culture and enjoy all of the local traditions.

If you're not sure, don't buy the second ticket as not taking the first USA to Europe flight will mean that the entire ticket is forfeited on most cheap fares. You can throw away the return portion of a RT ticket pretty easily, even though officially the airline would have the right to reprice it as a one way ticket.

- try studentuniverse.com
For May 27 2014 one-way Miami-Valencia is $874.

Do you anticipate your student coming home for any reason? A December break or some such thing?

Buy the ticket around a planned trip home.

Please don't assume that the kid should/will come home for vacation periods during the study abroad year. Keep those helicopters in North America.