Jan 19, 2015, 1:50 am
Last edit by: Kacee
Presented as Q&A format (Originally posted by Alex_B)
Q: What is a stopover?
A: A stopover on an international itinerary is any break in your air travel for more than 24 hours except at the destination.
Q: What is an open-jaw (OJ)?
A: An open-jaw is where you travel by your own means (either land, sea or a separate air ticket) between two points in a journey.
Q: How many stopovers am I allowed on a roundtrip award?
A: One stopover is permitted.
Q: How many open-jaws are allowed on a roundtrip award?
A: Two open-jaws are permitted.
Q: Can I have a stopover or open-jaw on a one-way award?
A: No
Q: Can I have a open-jaw at both the stopover and destination?
A: It has become extremely difficult to book an open-jaw at the stopover. Best not to count on getting one.
Q: When I try to book my OJ itinerary online, the website errors out. Does that mean there is something wrong with my itinerary?
A: Not necessarily. The website typically can't handle complex itineraries. These must generally be called in.
Q: Can I transit my destination multiple times (e.g. fly to JNB, fly to CPT and then return home via JNB)?
A: Yes, plenty of posters have reported success in booking this. You can only stop in your destination for > 24 hours once though.
Q: Can I cross both oceans?
A: No.
Q: Is EWR-PVG transatlantic or transpacific?
A: US-East Asia/South East Asia is always transpacific no matter what geography might suggest.
Q: Do I pay more for a stopover or open-jaw?
A: Typically no additional mileage is required but additional taxes or fees are often payable (especially in UK with high Air Passenger Duty). Extra mileage will often be required if an open-jaw or stopover adds a higher cost region into the itinerary. Also awards wholly within CONUS, Canada and Alaska (formerly known as Series 0 awards) require additional mileage (10K miles) for a stopover of >4 hrs.
Q: What's this about a "free one-way" I can get on a UA award?
A: The term "free one-way" is a misnomer and often confuses people (and may annoy the regulars here!). The technical definition of this concept is "stopover at origin." There have been mixed reports recently about UA's willingness to ticket a stopover at origin.
Important Notes - PLEASE READ:
1. Stopovers and open-jaws are NOT additive. You do not get extra stops included in your itinerary simply by making an open-jaw out of it. This is probably the number one error made in attempting to construct a complex itinerary. If you have more than two stops >24 hours on a roundtrip award, it is not legal and will not ticket.
2. An open jaw always creates a stopover, even if you're stopping for less than 24 hours.
3. Many awards are subject to segment or "transfer" limitations. For example, the North America to South Asia award is currently restricted to four transfers in each direction.
Seeing your fare construction on an already booked award ticket:
In order to see your award fare construction to see where your stopovers and destination are, follow these steps.
Go to http://www.saudiairlines.com/
Then hit "Manage My Bookings" and select "E-Ticket"
Enter your UA ticket number (hint: 016 will go in the first box, and then everything else in the second box). Then your last name and hit "Retrieve My Booking". On the next page you'll see a line like this under "Fare Calculation":
CHI LH X/FRA LH ROM0.00CSM/YB52 /- FLR LH X/FRA LH X/DUS LH CHI UA SEA
This example is:
ORD-FRA-FCO
Open Jaw at Destination
FLR-FRA-DUS-ORD
Stopover at origin
ORD-SEA
Previous thread on this topic:
Rules for Open Jaw & Stopover Award Flights (Consolidated)
Consolidated: Rules for Open Jaw & Stopover Award Flights [2014]
Q: What is a stopover?
A: A stopover on an international itinerary is any break in your air travel for more than 24 hours except at the destination.
Q: What is an open-jaw (OJ)?
A: An open-jaw is where you travel by your own means (either land, sea or a separate air ticket) between two points in a journey.
Q: How many stopovers am I allowed on a roundtrip award?
A: One stopover is permitted.
Q: How many open-jaws are allowed on a roundtrip award?
A: Two open-jaws are permitted.
Q: Can I have a stopover or open-jaw on a one-way award?
A: No
Q: Can I have a open-jaw at both the stopover and destination?
A: It has become extremely difficult to book an open-jaw at the stopover. Best not to count on getting one.
Q: When I try to book my OJ itinerary online, the website errors out. Does that mean there is something wrong with my itinerary?
A: Not necessarily. The website typically can't handle complex itineraries. These must generally be called in.
Q: Can I transit my destination multiple times (e.g. fly to JNB, fly to CPT and then return home via JNB)?
A: Yes, plenty of posters have reported success in booking this. You can only stop in your destination for > 24 hours once though.
Q: Can I cross both oceans?
A: No.
Q: Is EWR-PVG transatlantic or transpacific?
A: US-East Asia/South East Asia is always transpacific no matter what geography might suggest.
Q: Do I pay more for a stopover or open-jaw?
A: Typically no additional mileage is required but additional taxes or fees are often payable (especially in UK with high Air Passenger Duty). Extra mileage will often be required if an open-jaw or stopover adds a higher cost region into the itinerary. Also awards wholly within CONUS, Canada and Alaska (formerly known as Series 0 awards) require additional mileage (10K miles) for a stopover of >4 hrs.
Q: What's this about a "free one-way" I can get on a UA award?
A: The term "free one-way" is a misnomer and often confuses people (and may annoy the regulars here!). The technical definition of this concept is "stopover at origin." There have been mixed reports recently about UA's willingness to ticket a stopover at origin.
Important Notes - PLEASE READ:
1. Stopovers and open-jaws are NOT additive. You do not get extra stops included in your itinerary simply by making an open-jaw out of it. This is probably the number one error made in attempting to construct a complex itinerary. If you have more than two stops >24 hours on a roundtrip award, it is not legal and will not ticket.
2. An open jaw always creates a stopover, even if you're stopping for less than 24 hours.
3. Many awards are subject to segment or "transfer" limitations. For example, the North America to South Asia award is currently restricted to four transfers in each direction.
Seeing your fare construction on an already booked award ticket:
In order to see your award fare construction to see where your stopovers and destination are, follow these steps.
Go to http://www.saudiairlines.com/
Then hit "Manage My Bookings" and select "E-Ticket"
Enter your UA ticket number (hint: 016 will go in the first box, and then everything else in the second box). Then your last name and hit "Retrieve My Booking". On the next page you'll see a line like this under "Fare Calculation":
CHI LH X/FRA LH ROM0.00CSM/YB52 /- FLR LH X/FRA LH X/DUS LH CHI UA SEA
This example is:
ORD-FRA-FCO
Open Jaw at Destination
FLR-FRA-DUS-ORD
Stopover at origin
ORD-SEA
Previous thread on this topic:
Rules for Open Jaw & Stopover Award Flights (Consolidated)
Consolidated: Rules for Open Jaw & Stopover Award Flights [2014]
Questions on Open Jaw/Stopover and Award Routings for United UA/*A Partners [2015]
Jan 28, 2015, 8:49 am
#76
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Jersey
Programs: UA 1K, Marriott Lifetime PLT
Posts: 1,154
Ok thanks. I will call back. it took me 5 calls to get that itinerary booked(due to a phamton award being available online and not in their system) but i finally found an agent who helped me and forced me into a saver ticket even without availability. So persistence does pay off!!
Jan 28, 2015, 9:41 am
#77
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Jersey
Programs: UA 1K, Marriott Lifetime PLT
Posts: 1,154
you probably need to call in. the website sucks at booking complex itineraries. Also if you note how long you will be at each destination folks can tell you whether its valid or not.
Jan 28, 2015, 11:54 am
#78
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: DCA, ex-IAH
Programs: nada
Posts: 1,368
I would like to take advantage of the Open Jaw/Stopover Award Bookings. I am planning a trip to South America and would like the following itineraries but am having no luck booking them.
CAE to IGU or ASU
IGU or ASU to GIG
GIG to CAE
UA or a *Alliance partner should fly to IGU but if not I'm open to ASU. My other assumption is that the number of connecting flights from CAE is causing the errors.
Is this route allowable and am I maximizing the use of miles?
I don't have an open jaw and wondering if I can book one using a nearby airport like CLT or CHS for another trip.
TIA!
CAE to IGU or ASU
IGU or ASU to GIG
GIG to CAE
UA or a *Alliance partner should fly to IGU but if not I'm open to ASU. My other assumption is that the number of connecting flights from CAE is causing the errors.
Is this route allowable and am I maximizing the use of miles?
I don't have an open jaw and wondering if I can book one using a nearby airport like CLT or CHS for another trip.
TIA!
You're likely running into capacity issues--it is hard to tell if CAE, IGU, or ASU are causing the lack of availability. ASU-GIG might be near impossible, and IGU-GIG is a very limited set of routing options.
Travel dates might also be limiting you. It is hard to tell but I have a solid hunch that you are looking for spring break or summer travel.
This itin may be simple enough to book online but might require calling in. But it won't fall into your lap and you will have to at least assemble your itin by isolating segments (and I mean segments themselves: CAE-IAD/IAH/ORD, not simply CAE-IGU). Somewhere around this time you'll also see that your number of segments is going through the roof--I count 4, 2, and 2 as the minimum for any of the routings you want...and it may be against rules to go over 8 segments on the RT. (ok I lied--it looks like CLT-[NA*A hub]-PTY/LIM-ASU is your "easy" solution).
PS--don't forget that you'll need visas for both sides of the falls as of current rules, and I think those both need to be done in advance.
Jan 28, 2015, 6:12 pm
#79
Join Date: Nov 2009
Programs: QF WP, QR GOLD, TK GOLD, EY GOLD, AF/KLM GOLD
Posts: 392
Jan 28, 2015, 10:53 pm
#80
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 10
I was able to find 4 award tickets for following. ~280k + $676 tax. Seems like a reasonable option.
6/1 JFK-FRA
6/12 FRA-MUC-PEK-PUS
6/29 ICN-JFK
Now being greedy, I want to see if I can turn 6/29 ICN-JFK to business seats. I did the same search with 6/29 ICN-JFK as business seats and it comes out to be ~460k + $676 tax. I can only pull together ~300k now.
Question. Let's say I book using econ for everything now. If I find business seats later but on a different date for ICN-JFK (for example on 6/28, 6/30, 7/3, etc.), will UA move us to new date and upgrade to business seats?
Thanks!
6/1 JFK-FRA
6/12 FRA-MUC-PEK-PUS
6/29 ICN-JFK
Now being greedy, I want to see if I can turn 6/29 ICN-JFK to business seats. I did the same search with 6/29 ICN-JFK as business seats and it comes out to be ~460k + $676 tax. I can only pull together ~300k now.
Question. Let's say I book using econ for everything now. If I find business seats later but on a different date for ICN-JFK (for example on 6/28, 6/30, 7/3, etc.), will UA move us to new date and upgrade to business seats?
Thanks!
Jan 29, 2015, 12:30 am
#81
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 56,478
Yes, you can change the award later by paying the additional miles plus the applicable change fee, which depends on UA status.
Jan 29, 2015, 9:57 am
#83
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Jersey
Programs: UA 1K, Marriott Lifetime PLT
Posts: 1,154
Currently i have:
ewr-hnl - on ua - saver economy
hnl-nrt - on ua - saver economy
nrt-bkk - on tg - saver economy
bkk-hkg - on tg - booked in saver First
hkg-ewr - on ua - currently waitlisted for saver BF
They are telling me they cant waitlist me for saver BF on the other UA segments(same flights) unless i am booked on another flight in saver BF. Is this incorrect? Is there something i can point them to if so?
Thanks.
Jan 29, 2015, 1:16 pm
#84
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SFO
Programs: UA Plat 1.997MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 66,859
So im on the phone with UA.
Currently i have:
ewr-hnl - on ua - saver economy
hnl-nrt - on ua - saver economy
nrt-bkk - on tg - saver economy
bkk-hkg - on tg - booked in saver First
hkg-ewr - on ua - currently waitlisted for saver BF
They are telling me they cant waitlist me for saver BF on the other UA segments(same flights) unless i am booked on another flight in saver BF. Is this incorrect? Is there something i can point them to if so?
Thanks.
Currently i have:
ewr-hnl - on ua - saver economy
hnl-nrt - on ua - saver economy
nrt-bkk - on tg - saver economy
bkk-hkg - on tg - booked in saver First
hkg-ewr - on ua - currently waitlisted for saver BF
They are telling me they cant waitlist me for saver BF on the other UA segments(same flights) unless i am booked on another flight in saver BF. Is this incorrect? Is there something i can point them to if so?
Thanks.
There is an approach called "Plan B" on FT (not a UA term, don't use it with the agent because they will likely not understand). It is for your case and take an agent willing to go outside the rules -- so don't set your expectations too high, see http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unite...ns-issues.html or a blogger's post
Last edited by WineCountryUA; Jan 29, 2015 at 1:21 pm
Jan 29, 2015, 3:17 pm
#85
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 56,478
So im on the phone with UA.
Currently i have:
ewr-hnl - on ua - saver economy
hnl-nrt - on ua - saver economy
nrt-bkk - on tg - saver economy
bkk-hkg - on tg - booked in saver First
hkg-ewr - on ua - currently waitlisted for saver BF
They are telling me they cant waitlist me for saver BF on the other UA segments(same flights) unless i am booked on another flight in saver BF. Is this incorrect? Is there something i can point them to if so?
Thanks.
Currently i have:
ewr-hnl - on ua - saver economy
hnl-nrt - on ua - saver economy
nrt-bkk - on tg - saver economy
bkk-hkg - on tg - booked in saver First
hkg-ewr - on ua - currently waitlisted for saver BF
They are telling me they cant waitlist me for saver BF on the other UA segments(same flights) unless i am booked on another flight in saver BF. Is this incorrect? Is there something i can point them to if so?
Thanks.
You may redeem miles for travel in United Global First, United First, United Business or United BusinessFirst, even if the space is not available. In these cases, United Economy in the same award type must be confirmed, and the front cabin will be waitlisted. If the courtesy waitlist does not clear, it will expire 24 hours before itinerary departure, and you will automatically be added to the airport upgrade standby list upon check-in. In these cases, you will be confirmed on a space-available basis by a United airport representative at the gate once the flight has closed for check-in. For United BusinessFirst and United Business travel awards, the difference in miles will be refunded when the United BusinessFirst or United Business class segment of the trip could not be confirmed. Waitlist requests may only be made over the phone with your local United Customer Contact Center.
United Air Travel Award RulesTechnically, they are supposed to take the miles for the business saver award at the time you waitlist, although there are quite a few reports of agents waitlisting without taking the additional miles.
Jan 29, 2015, 3:54 pm
#86
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 10
I was able to find 4 award tickets for following. ~280k + $676 tax. Seems like a reasonable option.
6/1 JFK-FRA
6/12 FRA-MUC-PEK-PUS
6/29 ICN-JFK
Now being greedy, I want to see if I can turn 6/29 ICN-JFK to business seats. I did the same search with 6/29 ICN-JFK as business seats and it comes out to be ~460k + $676 tax. I can only pull together ~300k now.
Question. Let's say I book using econ for everything now. If I find business seats later but on a different date for ICN-JFK (for example on 6/28, 6/30, 7/3, etc.), will UA move us to new date and upgrade to business seats?
Thanks!
6/1 JFK-FRA
6/12 FRA-MUC-PEK-PUS
6/29 ICN-JFK
Now being greedy, I want to see if I can turn 6/29 ICN-JFK to business seats. I did the same search with 6/29 ICN-JFK as business seats and it comes out to be ~460k + $676 tax. I can only pull together ~300k now.
Question. Let's say I book using econ for everything now. If I find business seats later but on a different date for ICN-JFK (for example on 6/28, 6/30, 7/3, etc.), will UA move us to new date and upgrade to business seats?
Thanks!
Should I just bite the bullet and use my 40k SPG?
Should I buy 20k UA miles from UA @ ~$700?
Perhaps wait for pending miles to show up and hope for the best?
Jan 29, 2015, 4:11 pm
#87
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 56,478
Wish I could tell you whether the inventory will stay open, but that's always a great unknown. How bummed would you be if it disappeared before your miles post?
Jan 29, 2015, 5:00 pm
#88
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 10
Yeah, I do not want to test my luck. So the accelerator rate becomes available once I place a hold on the route?
Jan 29, 2015, 6:24 pm
#90
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 56,478
