Hi all,
I bit the bullet and went to a travel agent today seeking help and they were extremely unhelpful so thought I would do the smarter thing and ask here - should have done that to begin with really!
I am planning (well, hoping) to spend the second half of the year travelling and doing all the things I have always wanted to, but in the past never had the time or money. At this stage, the route looks something like this:
PER-SFO-LON//BRU (or FRA or AMS)-PEK-(pyongyang)-PEK-SIN-NRT//ICN-DEL-CAI//AMM-AUH-GRU-LIM//UIO (Quito)- HEL- ?somewhere in Europe or US - PER
Yes, I know its a rather convoluted journey and mixing continents in an inconvenient order - sadly the only negotiable part is the bit after HEL, the rest is set thanks to the whims of Formula One schedules and my mum deciding she'd like a white christmas in Europe that we should all attend.
The inital PER-SFO-LON part I was thinking of using the Swiss or Lufthansa RTW tickets as I will be joined by a friend for this part. I believe these allow you an Asia stopover on the return from Europe and I was planning to get to either HKG/Japan/PEK and then booking either a LONE3 or Circle Asia from Asia. Obviously the LONE has a limit of stopovers in Asia which would be a problem - maybe LCCs or return flights to SIN and one way to NRT/from ICN using HKG or PEK as a base? Sadly I don't think I have the $$$ for a DONE3.
If using DONE, would have to get a return flight South America-HEL (pricing at about $2000), or if starting on a circle Asia maybe then using a circle atlantic fare to get back to europe....
Alternatively I could just price it out point-to-point.
Any thoughts or advice?
For what its worth, the travel agent lost all my faith when she failed to understand the basic request for a quote for the Swiss/Lufthansa RTW fare for my friend... Kept trying to tell me about *A milage fares, which I am rather well aquainted with having gotten within 16 miles of the 39000 limit last time I used one!
Once that was clearly too complicated I didn't bother asking the rest. Essentially got told that the OneWorld products were all on the internet. Thanks, TA, I am aware of that!
If anyone also has recommendations for a good TA in Perth that would also be appreciated. I am currently in Bunbury but won't be here long. Finally, if anyone can recommend agents for booking LONEx abroad it would be appreciated. I imagine I would have to book over phone/email so that flights are available and then collect in person? I speak Japanese so DONE ex-Japan is ok in that regard.
I bit the bullet and went to a travel agent today seeking help and they were extremely unhelpful so thought I would do the smarter thing and ask here - should have done that to begin with really!
I am planning (well, hoping) to spend the second half of the year travelling and doing all the things I have always wanted to, but in the past never had the time or money. At this stage, the route looks something like this:
PER-SFO-LON//BRU (or FRA or AMS)-PEK-(pyongyang)-PEK-SIN-NRT//ICN-DEL-CAI//AMM-AUH-GRU-LIM//UIO (Quito)- HEL- ?somewhere in Europe or US - PER
Yes, I know its a rather convoluted journey and mixing continents in an inconvenient order - sadly the only negotiable part is the bit after HEL, the rest is set thanks to the whims of Formula One schedules and my mum deciding she'd like a white christmas in Europe that we should all attend.
The inital PER-SFO-LON part I was thinking of using the Swiss or Lufthansa RTW tickets as I will be joined by a friend for this part. I believe these allow you an Asia stopover on the return from Europe and I was planning to get to either HKG/Japan/PEK and then booking either a LONE3 or Circle Asia from Asia. Obviously the LONE has a limit of stopovers in Asia which would be a problem - maybe LCCs or return flights to SIN and one way to NRT/from ICN using HKG or PEK as a base? Sadly I don't think I have the $$$ for a DONE3.
If using DONE, would have to get a return flight South America-HEL (pricing at about $2000), or if starting on a circle Asia maybe then using a circle atlantic fare to get back to europe....
Alternatively I could just price it out point-to-point.
Any thoughts or advice?
For what its worth, the travel agent lost all my faith when she failed to understand the basic request for a quote for the Swiss/Lufthansa RTW fare for my friend... Kept trying to tell me about *A milage fares, which I am rather well aquainted with having gotten within 16 miles of the 39000 limit last time I used one!
Once that was clearly too complicated I didn't bother asking the rest. Essentially got told that the OneWorld products were all on the internet. Thanks, TA, I am aware of that!
If anyone also has recommendations for a good TA in Perth that would also be appreciated. I am currently in Bunbury but won't be here long. Finally, if anyone can recommend agents for booking LONEx abroad it would be appreciated. I imagine I would have to book over phone/email so that flights are available and then collect in person? I speak Japanese so DONE ex-Japan is ok in that regard.
