Hi folks,
I am about to book a OneWorld Reward itinerary, and have a few questions I'm hoping to get your expertise on:
INVOLUNTARY CHANGES
I am aware changes cost 5000 points each if I make them, and that point 14.6.1 of the
T&Cs states Reward itineraries are subject to the
Qantas Conditions of Carriage and the
Australian Consumer Law, so we "may be entitled to a refund or other remedy under the Australian Consumer Law depending on the circumstances."
1. Am I right to assume this means that, if I'm partway through my itinerary and a flight is delayed, cancelled, or rescheduled, replacement flight/s will be at no cost to me?
2. What happens if I'm partway through an itinerary and a change that is the airline's fault – i.e., a delayed, cancelled, or rescheduled flight – causes me to miss the next flight (or two)? Do those also get covered?
3. Finally, what happens if replacement flight(s) take a longer route than my original booking and therefore push the itinerary over the 35000 mile cap?
BOOKING BY PHONE VS. BOOKING ONLINE + ADDING BY PHONE
I have read the many horror stories in this forum about the call centers, and someone recently mentioned they prefer booking as much of the itinerary as possible online, then calling to add remaining flights. This would also reduce the fee from 7700 points (new booking via call center) to 5000 points (change).
4. Is it generally easier to make changes (i.e., add flights) to an existing booking via the phone than it is to book the whole itinerary from scratch, or does it simply depend on the employee? I would like to take the route of least resistance.
ELIGIBLE ONEWORLD AIRPORTS/AIRLINES THAT DON'T SHOW ON QANTAS SITE
5. If an airport is served by an eligible OneWorld airline but does not appear on the Qantas multi-city booking tool, can the call center see eligible flights at their end?
For example, Banjul airport in The Gambia has a
OneWorld flight with eligible airline Royal Air Maroc to Casablanca, Morocco (AT578) that shows as available via the OneWorld booking network on
Seats.aero. However, it is not possible to search this airport via the Qantas multi-city booking tool. Does that mean this flight would not be available at all on a OneWorld Reward itinerary, or would the call center agents be able to see and book it?
Thanks so much for your help! I've learnt an extraordinary amount lurking on this forum and it has made the planning much easier thus far. I appreciate your insights on these few questions.