Not in the slightest bit OT, this is the place to ask such questions. Suggest you start with the latest fares spreadsheet, which can be found here (helpfully right at the top of the OW forum):

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showp...&postcount=108

Together with the FAQs section, to help you plan / get the most out of your RTW:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=338667

Depending on routing (especially LHR stopovers) you should also mentally add around 12% - 14% to the base price to cover taxes and fuel surcharges. This has to do partly with BA's pricing practices of xONExs these days.

(By comparison my ex-NRT DONE4 priced by AA came in at around 7.9% for taxes/fees.)

I am trying to overlap an MRU AONE4 westbound after 10 segments into an NRT. My NRT DONE4 will have first few legs NRT-BNE-SYD-JFK mostly on Qantas planes first AA is LAX-JFK. Will AA happily set up the fare from the AA RTW desk in the USA for this trip even when its starts QF.

Secondly I gave BA RTW the MRU identifier once they had created the PNR to make life easier. How does one instruct AA RTW desk to handoff to NRT airport for ticketing and collection they seem from posts here to be very helpful

I'd imagine AA will be okay with it if they're in for at least one longhaul segment, but the phone call to find out is free.

As far as setting it up with Japan is concerned, all I did was put the itinerary together with the AA RTW people, got the locater, and when it was priced (takes a day or two) just phoned the AA ticket office in Japan (number on http://www.americanairlines.jp/en/) and they took it from there.

Perhaps the sages could advise?
 

I'm wrestling with an ex MRU itin which, preferably, would involve stops in Asia, Oz, South America and Europe. NB I'd also like to break my trip in Europe by about six months.

Is there any way I could do MRU-JNB-HKG-etc-SYD-etc-xHKG-LHR then stopover in London as described, LHR-GRU-SCL-etc. Where I get stuck is trying to get back from South America to MRU without touching N America.

Is there a way to do it, or does this sound like two separate xONEs? Would a Circle Trip of some description be more suitable for either?

And the Pacific crossing would be.... ?

Is what I'm asking... If the only viable way to do this is in one trip (ie SYD-SCL) then would a circle type ticket be more appropriate given what I've described above? (Ie do Oz / South America on separate circle trips)?

The CircleTrip Explorer (fare basis *ONEWC4 and see the rules ex HKG on christep's site) would do the first part of your trip i.e. everything except South America. But you would have to do Oz before Asia in order to get back to Europe for the long break. I.e. Africa/SWP/Asia/Europe/Africa.

If you do it in A the price ex MRU is a steal. In J there's not much in it compared to South Africa, unless you particularly want to visit MRU. And it obviates problems caused by the paucity of flights from MRU to JNB.

Thanks Cheetah. Would any of the OW products work for the South American leg (travelled in isolation of Oz) or am I down to a simple point-to-point?

Also, is the price for the *ONEWC4 identical to xONE4? If not, I can't seem to find any prices for this product, even via Expert Flyer.

Can't answer your 1st question.

As to pricing - I found *ONEWC* prices on EF. IIRC they came up with all the RTW fares. And the only 2 I've looked at (ex MRU and ex JNB) were the same for both fare types. (My problem is finding *ONEWC3 prices since *ONE3 fares aren't possible from Africa.)

Again, thanks. Once I get to Europe, any limit to the number of times I can transit through London? Eg Would xxx-LHR-TLV-xLHR-HEL-xLHR-MRU be possible?

Firstly a disclaimer: I'm not a fundi on these - just the only person I know on FT who uses them. :o

AFAIK you can transit London as often as you like (within your 4 sectors and not flying the same sector in the same direction twice). I've not seen anything to the contrary and hope shortly to be re-issuing my current AONEWC3 to add 2 more London stopovers (in addition to the one I am currently "enjoying"). BTW I certainly transited and had 2 stopovers in SYD on my last one.

There are "Circle Indian Ocean" fares and "Circle Pacific Ocean" fares and "Circle Asia" fares, but, alas, no "Circle Atlantic Ocean" fares. And to make matters more complicated, that functionality in EF seems to have vanished for the time being.

In general the fares (and rules) of the various circle products are not as attractive as the xONEs.

So you would need to fly on your own dime to/from S. America (if using a Circle fare from HKG or SYD back to London), or else fly SYD or AKL to SCL on an RTW, then break the trip in S America, return to Europe, then back to resume. On the RTW you can't go Africa - Asia - SWP - Europe because that's reversing directions between Areas 2 and 3.

So would the following be permissible on a AONEWC4?
 

MRU-JNB-SYD-MEL-HBA-MEL-HKG-PEK-HKG-PVG*-HKG-LHR-TLV-LHR-IST-LHR-MRU.

* assumes KA part of OW by time travel takes place, as CX flight timings not great

Looks good to me. Plus you would have 1 sector spare in Oz and 3 in Africa.

As I understand it KA would need to be part of OW at time of ticketing, not time of travel. I would love to be wrong, because then I could use Royal Jordanian and/or Malev in Europe in June on my existing ticket.

Aside: It always surprises me that Turkey escapes the "far reaches of Europe" rule but Greece, for example, doesn't.