The first provisional results from Romania are that the DONE3 fare is € 4.099 + tax.
This is however from a TA that offers the fares ex-ZAG in Croatia. The ex-ZAG fare is € 4.149 for DONE3.

I fear the pricing in the spreadsheet is not correct...

Once I get an answer from the TA in Transilvania, Romania I will post the pricing. (I guess they only work at night) :D

Just got off the phone with the AA RTW desk and the fares ex Romania and Bulgaria in WBT's spreadsheet for A/D/4/5 are indeed correct. Whether BA will agree with the star file, well that's another matter.

Might it not be easier to get AA to issue the ticket instead then?

Sure, if one can find someone in Bulgaria/Romania who'll do it. One would need (a) BA to cooperate as the first carrier and BA's rates desk to agree that's the price; (b) a TA in Bucharest or Sofia who could do the paperwork; or (c) a GSA in one of those cities who would sell AA-stock (or CX- or AY- etc.) tickets. It ought to work through BA's travel shop in either city.

OK, my TA in Cluj Romania seems to be clueless. They priced the DONE3 at a bargain EUR 14.969 (!)....

I am now educating them on fare rules etc and they have contacted BA for help.

The saga continues !

Doncha love irony?

:D

Well, my frustration level with trying to shake tickets out of TA's who apparently have barely heard of British Airways let alone OneWorld Explorer fares has peaked. While Syria was cheap, I courted half a dozen TA's, most big-sounding agencies with web sites, plus one that was recommended by a resident in-country. None even sent a dot in reply to emails and faxes, and voice communication was essentially impossible. I managed a few words with the BA office who advised that I fax them. So they could more conveniently ignore me.

So now I dance a little with Romania, hoping that AA is right and BA is not, re pricing. Although any agent in Romania is sure to get through to the same rate desk that feeds BA London, I was pleased to receive a quick reply from a TA called Travis who agreed that they could indeed sell tickets on BA stock. When I emailed (and later faxed) a really simple 5-segment itinerary with an explanation and a suggestion that they submit it to BA for pricing and get back to me, I again received the stony silent response. I think they go into shock, or think it's some international crime ring they're dealing with, when someone asks them about tickets worth thousands of dollars. At any rate, it appears to be useless trying.

MRU is another choice, although it's at the periphery of my interest zone. The difference in price from CMB (terminus for my present ONE) is about USD1500 for AONE4 (well, compared to AONE3 out of CMB, but you don't get much for your fourth-continent when it's Africa) and EK will haul me down there for about $750 in biz, but it's not a great connection. Again, a fax to the British-American Travel Agency in Port Louis has not roused a reply, but it's a recent attempt. It may be worth while trying to contact BA there.

Just spoke to AA reservations in London and they confirmed USD 7099 for AONE4 ex Romania. If ticketed by AA at that price can BA refuse carriage Bucharest - London as first sector and any subsequent BA sectors if they say fare is incorrect and should be in EUR.

I have often had RTW tickets issued on AA stock even though they started in CAI or GIB on BA. Shouldn't be a problem.

Somebody (hopefully one of our European brothers/sisters) needs to ring up BA and find out what they're showing for ex-Romania et al fares on their files. If their numbers agree with AA's, then it's simply a matter of setting up an itinerary and getting it priced by Bremen and/or the issuing BA office.

If BA doesn't agree with AA (and WBT, the starfile, etc.) then the task becomes more difficult. One must find a TA in one of the countries that will be able to write a ticket (probably a very basic one that could be reissued someplace where they speak RTW) and/or find out if AA or another OW airline has a general sales agent in the issuing country, one that will actually write tickets, unlike AA's GSA in Turkey who wouldn't.

Plan A is preferable IMO.

Edited to add: Per the EXP desk, AA has no GSAs in Romania or Bulgaria.

I thought Plan A had already been performed and reported on in this forum - it was stated that BA/London believes the fares shown for Romania are in Euros. One would assume BA/London speaks uses the same pricing authority as any agent (internal or external) in Europe would reach, although as we all know, there is complete chaos among the ranks of all the rate desks when it comes to OWE, and one agent will say "blue" and the person at the next position will be saying "red" to the same question. But you'd think they'd eventually converge on as important a matter as the price.

And Plan B is indeed difficult. As I've noted, agents seem to go catatonic when one contacts them with details of even a simple 5-segment AONE3. I imagine agents all over Europe lying frozen on the floor near their fax machines, clutching my requests in their fists, staring speechless and glassy-eyed at the ceiling.

I think this happened to my agent in Romania too ! :D

I'm in communication with a US-headquartered, Bulgaria-founded travel agency who says they can fulfill ticketing tasks in Bulgaria as easily as in the US (have ticketing and booking agents in Sofia with Amadeus access, i.e. BA.) Their specialist in weird products (my term, not theirs) is out for the weekend at the moment, but will communicate early next week. I'll tell all when there's something to tell.

My TA in Romania has now received confirmation from British Airways that the DONE3 fare is not available but a DONEWC3 fare. This is priced at EUR 4.099 - unfortunaltey not USD 4.099.