Does anyone have experience taking nested round-trip flights? That is, a flight from A to B with a 3 week stay, and then inside it a flight from B to A with a 2 week stay, in order to have 2 3-day trips to B in a short period. What would this be called in airline lingo? Is it against NWA rules? And if it is, how likely are they to enforce the rule?

This is not nesting. This is back-to-back and in violation of numerous rules. Proceed at your own risk.

If you decide to do it, don't purchase both tickets from the same airline or you could get busted. Instead, purchase reservations from two different airlines so you don't wind up violating any rules.

And obviously, even if they're on different airlines, don't try posting them to the same frequent flyer #...

Another strategy works if you'll be visiting the same city every week for a period of time:

Say you live in City A, but work in City B Mon - Fri.

Suck up a one-way A-B to get you out there.
Buy your tix home as B-A-B weekend round trips each weekend
Get another one-way B-A to get you home when the project is complete.

This is within the rules.

A->B

then B->C->B on a separate ticket

then B->A (original ticket)

Is this a violation of any sort?

I don't think this should matter - should it? Different airlines - what can they do? In theory, if available, you could probably purchase a CO ticketed, NW operated flight & still credit to NW, right?

People here have varying opinions on this. Some say you can't, some even go so far as to say you can't even book a partner-operated flight that takes you back to your destination if you credit the same mileage program.

Personally, I believe you would be able to do this, as you have two contracts -- one with NW and one with CO. Regardless of the fact that NW is operating the flights on the CO-coded ticket, the scope of the NW contract of carriage is limited to NW-issued ticket. You're not doing a back-to-back on the NW ticket, nor are you doing a back-to-back on the CO ticket.

Of course that's my opinion, coming from a very pro-consumer, California standpoint. Perhaps in Texas or somewhere you could get executed for this.

And if they saw all this activity on a mileage statement, it would probably be the consumer's burden to prove they didn't violate anything, so it may not be worth the risk in the first place without an advance ruling. And of course your ordinary CSR won't understand the nuance here, so they'll just tell you it's not allowed out of ignorance.

That would be a nested ticket and as long as it was not booked to violate a fare rule on A-C than there is nothing wrong with it. As long as you actually have a stopover in city B not much can be said. However, if your stop is less than 4 hours and the airline views it as a connecting flight than it could cause problems if A-C cost more than A-B & B-C.

does this equally apply when A-B is on Airline X and B-C is on Airline Y but I am crediting miles from both flights to Airline Y's FF program?

That's a very interesting point and one I hadn't considered previously. While perhaps technically accurate I think if one were to make a practice out of this NW could and probably would come up with some valid reason to close one's WP account. Regardless, I think you're asking for some serious headaches with this approach. And for me anyway, it wouldn't be worth the risk.

Agreed, which is why I said no matter what they threw at you, it would be your burden to defend yourself to their satisfaction. And that would be through whatever process, if any, they had to allow you to have your say...

I'll bet most of the airlines' crankiness about back-to-back goes to the days when Sat. night stays meant huge differences in fares. It was a no-brainer for M-to-F commuters to use them, with great revenue implications. The solution, of course, was two different airlines/programs, to the ultimate revenue detriment of the preferred carrier. But that was a dilemma they had to resolve they way they did/do.

My son, who somehow has become a miles junky, independently derived the b-2-b concept, using two weekend fares, as a ploy to circumvent his Mother's denial of MRunning overnight. After posing the "strategy" to the MR forum, and having him read the responses, for once both his Mother and I got what we wanted: an uncontested No.

I've been doing this for 10 years. Usually drive to city A, then commute A -> B -> A over the weekend, to take care of the Saturday night stay requirement. Always with the same airline, same FF#. Drive home when the contract is over.

Another advantage is that I always have my car with me, to avoid rental expenses.

They've been executed for less .....

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