Planning a world trip

[nivicome]

This is my first thread as I have only just found this site but it looks as if it is just what I am after. I am trying to organise a world trip next year using my frequent flyer points. I wanted to leave at the beginning of July, fly to Europe for 3 weeks on to New York for 4 days then Canada for 2 weeks and then finally 2 weeks in Hawaii before returning to Sydney. My problem has been arranging the flight as you can only book 355 days from when you wish to travel. So if I book The Syd to Rome leg now I can't book the Switzerland to Canada leg of the journey until those seats are released and so on. Which,to me, means that by the time the Hawaii to Sydney seats are released the Syd to Rome seats will be gone as it is peak travel time. Have I got it wrong? Does anybody know how to book the world trips or do you just accept you can't go around the world in July, which unfortunately is the only time available to us. Any advice would be really appreciated. Thank you Vicki

 

[NM]

Welcome nivicome. You have hit upon one of the problems with the QF OneWorld Award. This is less of a problem for the standard point to point awards as they can be booked as multiple one-way trips.

What is your QF FF status level? If Gold or Platinum, and wanting to travel in economy class, availability is much less of a problem as you have access to an expanded range of seats on QF flights (T class as well as the standard X awards class).

But if wanting to travel in business or first class, then finding multiple seats on the same flights can be a problem.

If you have Qantas Platinum status, then you may be able to have them start the OneWorld Award booking process for you and hold the reservation for you until the onward flights have been loaded into the reservation system. But there is no guarantee they will do that as they are supposed to issue the tickets almost immediately they are booked. AA will hold seats up to two weeks for their FF members, even for QF flights.

The other option to book any onward flights that are available now, and call later and have the dates changes when the dates you want are available. Of course you run the risk of there not being any seats available you need them, and there is going to be a fee penalty for making the changes (revalidation fee, but that is often waived for Platinum and possibly Gold FF members).

 

[nivicome]

Thank you for your response. I wish I was gold or plantinum (sigh) however, I am only a lowly bronze. When you say book flights that are available now and then change when the dates are available, does that mean book USA, Canada and Hawaii now? Is the fee penalty that you are talking about the 5000 one?

 

[serfty]

... Is the fee penalty that you are talking about the 5000 one?

No, it's the 2,500 point per PAX revalidation fee. (As long as you don't change segment routing, class, name or carrier)

 

[NM]

The revalidation fee is 2500 point. You will aslo be up for the 2500 point assisted booking fee.

A change of date does not require a ticket to be re-issued (which would cost 5000 points if required), but they charge the re-validation fee as they have to check that you still meet the stopover rules etc.

 

[nat000]

Hi
Do you have anyone that is a silver member that could book the flights for you so that you can make as many time and date changes as you want. I did that and it worked well. We made 7 date changes (when the later seats were released) that would have cost 35000 points in penalties.