Advice on DONE4 route
 

Scenerio

We are planning to travel next Feb/March (2008) to Australia via SE Asia and onwards to NA and home.

This ticket may not be needed if I can get 2 J seats on AA award for the whole trip but I am think that is unlikely and so my back-up plan is to book (hopefully) one award and then book a DONE4 ticket for myself. I might do this anyway.

So a bit more detail on the iternary.

ARN-LHR-DXB-LHR (Stopover) LHR-SIN-BNE-MEL-SYD-LAX-(MIA-LHR-MIA- Award ticket) MIA-LAS-BOS-LHR-ARN

Planning to do the first part to DXB and back to LHR before the trip to Oz (Jan 08). The last part of the trip from MIA-LHR will be on a reward ticket and then return later in the year (2008) to US to get other 5 segments in.

Questions:-

1) Is this a valid routing?
2) Apart from the lack of segments in SE Asia region, how can I improve it?
3) I was going to contact AA RTW desk to book this, can I call the Dublin office and if so what is the number?
4) Am i right in saying that the ticket is valid for 1 year from the 1st flight?
4a) If the anser is yes then if I take the 1st flight in Jan 08 then I have until the end of the year to do all remaining flights?
5) Can I keep segments open as I am not sure when and where I want to go on my 6 NA segemnts?

I will stop with the questions, any advice is most welcome.

1. Yes; note you will need to connect someplace for LAS-BOS (DWF, ORD etc.) as there's no nonstop and that would constitute a second N. America transcon anyway, which is forbidden.

2. Define "improve." More miles? Nicer flights? For example, most folks would say that the nicest transcon in N. America is CX's YVR-JFK or v.v. Not a lot more miles, but definitely an "improvement" as far as I'm concerned. YMMV.

3. No, call the RTW desk and they will queue it to Dublin for pricing. Or you can use AA's GSA in Sweden, TAL Aviation (search or google for contact info.)

4. Yes.

4a. Yes.

5. Yes, all but the first.

You have 3 north america trans-continental flights (only allowed 1).

LAX-MIA, MIA-LAS and LAS-BOS.

These things are always down to each individuals preference, having done both the QF LAX-JFK and CX's YVR-JFK i'd definitely opt for the QF leg - the OP shouldn't have issues being eligable for it given he's flying SYD-LAX anyway.

More comfortable seat, better catering and IMO better service. In fact LAX-JFK with QF was one of the best flights I had last year.

Why not try and nab award seats from LAX-LHR-LAX, or will this be more miles? I'm sorry, only familiar with redeeming on BA and both LAX/MIA - LHR are the same mileage for award purposes.

Then you could do LAX-JFK with QF, BOS-MIA-LHR or something similar.. LAX is perfect for Vegas. Ending MIA would also give you the opportunity to island hop for a bit in the Carribean, plenty of BA flights to/from the area.

Thanks
 

Thanks for the helpful advice and pointing out the obvious about the breach of rules over flying too many times west to east and back again in NA.

So my next step is to book an award ticket if possible and organise my DONE4ticket from ARN.

I will post when I have confirmed route if anyone is interested.

Thanks again.

Exactly what I was looking for...
 

Having just decided to book our first DONE4, I looged on tonight to check out this forum, hoping to find someone else travelling a very similar itineray - and I have!!!

I have two more questions though....

1. Is there any issue with nested tickets? I know this was a hot topic a while ago, although not sure about that within a trw. We would plan to go on a similar route, stopping at LAX, with a paid return on BA to LHR, and then pick up the rest of the rtw later in the year of the US/Carribbean bit. Any experience of this or any reported problems?

2. Why are you getting AA to issue the ticket? Any aadvantage? (sorry...)

(actually, a third question comes to mind)

3. We'd probably do exGIB (as we have a place to stay there) connecting straight on to BKK, then SYD, etc.and have the DXB weekend as our final trip of the year. Presumably its ok to do it this way round? Must we do the final LHR-GIB?

1. No issue. Done all the time.

2. AA seems to charge a smaller amount for taxes and (especially) fuel surcharges - in general. Routing also has a lot to do with it too, especially with trips involving Gordon Broon International. If you're originating in GIB I'm not sure Blands will issue on AA ticket stock; certainly BA won't.

3. No one has reported that Oneworld Vopos come a-knocking if you fail to complete the required itinerary in a year; however it is technically a big boo-boo, and dead men tell no tales...

Another couple of questions
 

When you say

"3. No, call the RTW desk and they will queue it to Dublin for pricing. Or you can use AA's GSA in Sweden, TAL Aviation (search or google for contact info.)"

Is the RTW desk number on the AA site or do I call Dublin and get transferred?

I am right in saying that the price from ARN for a DONE ticket is 3245 GBP + taxes?



To answer the question of how I will be "paying" for my award ticket it will be with AA miles. No difference from the East or West coast.

Yes it is. You can call the ATW desk direct (1-800-247-3247) or you can call your local AA office and ask them to transfer the call.

AA's rates desk for foreign-originating RTWs is located in Dublin. The (US) RTW desk, or the AA office or GSA (such as Tal) is the customer interface point, not somebody in the Dublin back office. Dublin just puts the price on the PNR.

The price ex-ARN is 45,000 SEK plus tax, which is what you'll be billed. How it converts to USD or GBP is between you, your credit card company, and the elves.

As Gardyloo says, it appears to be rarely enforced. The rule is that you must complete the RTW, as per the rules (generally back to the country of origin, but some exceptions). If you fail to complete the RTW, the legal exposure is simple: the airline is allowed to reprice the segments that you have traveled, using point to point fares, and this would come to some multiple of your original fare. The airlne can charge it back to the travel agent, though I have never heard of this occuring (but have heard of it happening for other rule violations). I have had airlines charge addcol to my credit card when ticket was purchased from them and a mistake was made in computing the taxes, and this was done a week later as an unrelated charge without contacting me first; most credit card companies will not automatically reverse such charges, you would have to prove that it is fraudulent.

What is Blands?

OK, so I am risking hijacking SMart Monkey's OP, but this is the route we're thinking:

GIB-LHR-BKK-HKG-SYD-MEL-CNS-SYD-LAX (separate ticket: LAX-LHR (break) LHR-LAX)-SJU-BGI-JFK-DFW-SFO-LHR (Break) LHR-DXB-LHR(-GIB)

Makes for three nice trips in the year and all on the back of our nuptials.

Any thoughts/comment/mistakes? I think we could get more TPs by swapping SFO for SEA, but we have friends in SFO and want to go and may not need the TPs anyway.

Travel agent in GIB that is very familiar with OWE ticketing (although the agent that did most of the work historically moved on last year - but they still know their stuff.) http://www.blands.gi/

Itinerary looks fine. You might think about SFO (QF) YVR - LHR if the timing is okay. Remember too that all the Caribbean routes (LAX-SJU-BGI-JFK) are operated with J but no F (Y only on SJU-BGI) so count tier points accordingly.

I'm planning to do a DONE4, so, other than the short SJU-BGI, its not a problem.

Thanks everyone for your help.