Why is One World So Terrible?
 

I've accumulated 90K miles on my RJ account and have simply let them expire down to now 70K.

Every time I look into a flight, the taxes and fees end up costing me almost as much as buying a flight through Expedia without points. And without blackout dates.

I simply don't understand this flyer program.

Taxes and fees depend a lot on the airline and the specific program. AA for example charges only minimal fees on their program, also miles don't expire if you have some activity.
Usually the 'value' is in premium class tickets, not just in economy tickets.

Your complaint seems to be more valid for RJ and not for oneworld in general.

You have not tried skypeso yet. Or Star Alliance Gold to travel on Singapore Airlines...

Take a look at the Air France-KLM Flying Blue YQ (fuel surcharge) charged ... :eek:

Exactly. Find me a deal on any other alliance with a comparable F product which beats 135K miles for roundtrip F North America to SEAsia on CX, never mind the reasonably good availability.

Or Miles & Less (LH) .... the nick name reveals a lot ...

Where are you located, and why is it RJ that you decided to accumulate your oneworld miles in?

AA's and BA's miles don't expire (as long as you have periodic "activity", which is very easy even without flying). But some other oneworld carriers, like perhaps RJ, have "hard" expiration, meaning if you don't use your miles in time, there is nothing at all you can do to extend their expiration.

Also, depending on where you're located, it may be easier or harder to do travel that doesn't involve those high "YQ" fees. If you're in the America's, it's relatively easy, because AA doesn't charge them. If you're in the Middle East, I'm not sure which carrier you need to redeem on to get from where you are to somewhere who wouldn't have those high "YQ" fees. (Hint: Do not redeem on BA, at the very least!)

And there it is.


OW is by far the most effective use of miles of any I have found because of these opportunities.

BECAUSE..As every forum will tell you Airline Miles are not Good Value for Economy Class Travel. I love it when a Banker Complains about Poor Value.

Avoid BA on Award Travel
 

Be aware that if you use BA and/or pass thru LHR, you'll be slammed with fuel surcharges, taxes, fees, etc.

For example, AMM-JFK/ORD-MIA is much cheaper than AMM-LHR-MIA.

Note the UK Air Passenger Duty (APD) is only charged if you stop over (24h+) or originate in the UK; sub-24h transits are exempt if the flights are on the same ticket. BA fuel fines are another story...

34.5% cheaper, to be exact.

AMM -> LHR (RJ) -> MIA (AA)
Jordan Embarkation Tax (HQ) $42.30
Jordan Passenger Terminal Use Fee (NH) $8.50
USDA APHIS Fee (XA) $5.00
US Immigration Fee (XY) $7.00
US Customs Fee (YC) $5.50
United Kingdom Passenger Service Charge (UB) $39.80
TOTAL: $108.10

AMM -> JFK (RJ) -> MIA (AA)
Jordan Embarkation Tax (HQ) $42.30
Jordan Passenger Terminal Use Fee (NH) $8.50
USDA APHIS Fee (XA) $5.00
US Immigration Fee (XY) $7.00
US Customs Fee (YC) $5.50
US September 11th Security Fee (AY) $2.50
TOTAL: $70.80