Round The World or Thereabouts Run for AA Miles
 

BZBDAVID and I were talking about taking a MR early in 08, for a couple of reasons: 1. to get some extra miles banked towards EXP for next year and 2. (most importantly) to correct for his company's rather odd policy of having a meeting in Pais in January and not allowing any vacation in conjunction with it.

So, we were thinking about hitting the road and going around the world in a week or so (so much for 80 days, we don't have that kind of vacation time!).

I know that great circle routes mean that it might actually be difficult to go literally around the world, but we would like to see how much we could do anyway. (Example: EWR to HKG on Cathay Pacific goes almost literally over the north pole, so is that really going around the world?) Additionally, since we are doing this for the miles, we would like to stay within the AA family of codeshares (so BA across the pond is out).

So, the question is, what are your suggestions? The more continents, the better. Cost is a factor, but not a huge one - and this is more about the feasibility of the challenge, not the reality of the costs.

so, am I correct in thinking that you want somebody else to do all the work?

I try to do the itn myself and only then seek assistance from FTers if the itn is doable....

but that's me,

YMMV

Good luck!

I dont know if a NYC-HKG flight is really the most effective way to gain miles. You be better on it if you do something like JFK-LAX-SYD-NRT-HKG-FRA-DFW-JFK but thats just my impression and I dont know the actual distances without checking. It might be worth a look...

I suggest a DONE4 to be on the safe side since many of your segements are on OW carriers. You could exchange LAX-SYD against DFW-NRT on AA and then NRT-SYD on JL & SYD-HKG on CX, on the return its AA again so 2 eVIPs would come handy.

If you plan to do this MR until the end of FEB and dont have own eVIPs you might be able to trade some on CC.

Good luck !

I suppose I would "zig-zag" as much as possible as skywalker suggested. Maybe LAX-SYD-HKG-LHR-EZE-MIA-LAX?

Tell me, from a points/dollar standpoint, is this really worth it? Or is it somewhat irrelevant?

remember you can do a DXB-LHR backtrack which is worth about 7000 extra miles; also you can do a PHX-JFK-Asia routing to get some extra transcon miles or if you are going the other way Asia-JFK-PHX - these two should yield about 9000 miles...

There is a reason CX goes over/near northpole i.e it is the SHORTEST route contrary to your MR goals. So go to Australia MEL or SYD ( stop in Hawaii or Fiji) then SIN or BKK then LON or Paris then GIG or EZE ( beautiful girls for a 24 hours Samba / Tango lesson ) then back to EWR. If you have to go from Europe to US and AA's schedule does not fit you, take BA thru Torotno or Montreal ( trans Atlantic to/from Canada mileage eligible - only US-UK direct excluded)

Ofcourse from a Miles per Dollar spent MR viewpoint your idea does not make much sense. From a "Fun" point of view it is great

A great deal depends on what the company is willing to pay for the Paris meeting trip.

If the company is willing to pay full business D ($7600 plus taxes from PHX-CDG return) or even J (much higher) .. then a RTW fare in J will cost almost exactly the same (and F maybe only $2k more) for a three continent hopper (more for more continents).

I am in the process of confirming a MSP-ORD-PVG trip that is over $13k in J if I just come back. Compared to $7600 (or $9600) if I do MSP-ORD-PVG-LHR-ORD-MSP as a DONE3.

Many times when the traveler has a few extra days, RTW tickets are much cheaper than return premium tickets. I personally think the OPs idea makes a great deal of sense.

Now doing a RTW in economy would be sheer crazy IMHO.

How can doing a complete RTW trip in a 'week or so' possibly meet the definition of the word 'fun' (in anybody's lexicon)?

I fully understand the concept of mileage runs though I never, ever do them personally. Sure, we go places that we'd like to go (and have been to before) and getting the miles is an incentive to do the trips but we always get off the plane and spend time at the destination. If you don't, what's the point? I've never understood the mindset of anyone who says "I'm flying to X" (usually LHR/LGW/FRA/NRT or somewhere similar) "will I be able to go straight to the gate for my return flight or will I have to clear customs?" What on earth is the point of flying for hours, just to turn around and fly back again? Sure, you want the miles to re-qualify but at least get off the plane and see where you just spent X hours flying to. Flying is intended to get you somewhere; flying just for the sake of flying is pointless (particularly in this day of reduced service, less room, crowded planes etc. etc). Why anybody would even contemplate trying to get a RTW trip done in a week is beyond me. All I can say is I hope they're planning to do it in D or A, and not in L.

OK, rant off ..... :)

On a more serious note, it would seem to me that the way to do this is to break the trip, i.e., do part of the RTW trip and then find a (reasonably) cheap ticket back home and then go back later in the year to finish the trip. Very few people (we don't) have the time to be able to do a complete RTW trip in one go. Depending on where you're going and when, a coach ticket (hopefully upgradable in some fashion) from/to LHR or NRT or somewhere similar to back home shouldn't be too expensive and let's you break up the trip.

The problem is that a MR is a pure Mileage Machine for the lowest possible price. It´s not that nobody would love to see London or Rome but try to spend a night there under 250-300$ plus the transfers and sightseeing. If you make it in 1 Day after your jetlag you are good.

However the "sightseeing extra" cost you more than you paid for the whole ticket !

Most of the time a MR is for status qualification, so once you have your status use the miles to get back to this place on a C-Class award ticket and travel in style and with time instead of pressing valuable things in a tight MR itinerary.

If you want miles towards EXP, you don't have to stay on AA code-shares. You just have to stay within oneWorld*. In a few cases deep-discount partner fares don't earn full (or any) AA EQMs/EQPs, but your choice within oneWorld is still broader than just AA and its code-shares.

You'll find lots of useful posts on oneWorld RTWs in the oneWorld forum. Much of that forum is devoted to one sort of RTW fare or another, with ideas on how to maximize miles within a fare's rules.

A problem with some RTW fares is a minimum duration of ten days. This is to keep people from doing exactly what you want to do: saving money on a short business trip. The above post by tt7 is one way around that rule.

_____________________
*And AS, but AFAIK you can't use their flights on OW RTWs.

In that case this thread should be fun reading for you....;)


http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=433975


If you don't think RTW MR without stops are insane, I want to get your comment after you read the above.

By the way, the RTWs based on the discounted RTW fares require you to be out of your country of departure for 10 days, so that would be the minimum stay...