RTW planning & airfare

I'm hoping to take an Around The World trip, and I'm not sure how to
do the airfare, and this newsgroup seems to be the place for experts!

Trip basics:
4/2008 - 8/2008
budgeted $8,000 for the trip (I'd rather not spend it all, but I can)
places I very much want to visit: West Africa - Egypt - China - South-
east Asia
places I'd also like to visit: East Africa - Israel - India - Mongolia
- Indonesia - New Zealand - Easter Island

I'm happy to have the destinations all mapped out in advance, but I'd
like to be able to move dates around; if I'm having a blast in Egypt,
I'd like to be able to stay an extra week or two before moving on to
my next thumbtack.

Maybe I should also note that I'm 24 and happy to sleep in hostels, on
trains, etc.

From what I've read, my two main options are doing an alliance RTW
(Star Alliance or Flying Dutchman) or going through an agent (STA
Travel or AirTrek). Since I'd really like flexibility in my trip, I'm
leaning towards alliance, but boy, do I feel ignorant.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

all the best,
Jake

" wrote:

I'm hoping to take an Around The World trip, and I'm not sure how to
do the airfare, and this newsgroup seems to be the place for experts!

From what I've read, my two main options are doing an alliance RTW
(Star Alliance or Flying Dutchman) or going through an agent (STA
Travel or AirTrek). Since I'd really like flexibility in my trip, I'm
leaning towards alliance, but boy, do I feel ignorant.

I've flown the Star Alliance RTW fare several times. For my money, it can't be
beat. There are three levels, depending on how many stops you want to make and
the total miles flown. They also have some regional addons that may work for
you.

One of the nice things about the RTW fares is that they are completely flexible
& changeable, subject to the basic scheme. In fact, you only have to define the
first leg and can leave the rest open.

You can try planning your trip at www.staralliance.com but for some reason they
don't tell you what the fares are. To get that, just search of Star Alliance RTW
fare and you'll find web sites that publish the fares.

On Dec 22, 5:40 pm, Rick Blaine wrote:
" wrote:
I'm hoping to take an Around The World trip, and I'm not sure how to
do the airfare, and this newsgroup seems to be the place for experts!

From what I've read, my two main options are doing an alliance RTW
(Star Alliance or Flying Dutchman) or going through an agent (STA
Travel or AirTrek). Since I'd really like flexibility in my trip, I'm
leaning towards alliance, but boy, do I feel ignorant.

I've flown the Star Alliance RTW fare several times. For my money, it can't be
beat. There are three levels, depending on how many stops you want to make and
the total miles flown. They also have some regional addons that may work for
you.

One of the nice things about the RTW fares is that they are completely flexible
& changeable, subject to the basic scheme. In fact, you only have to define the
first leg and can leave the rest open.

You can try planning your trip atwww.staralliance.combut for some reason they
don't tell you what the fares are. To get that, just search of Star Alliance RTW
fare and you'll find web sites that publish the fares.

Thanks for the response. I should be more specific with my questions
about the alliance RTWs:

If I go for the Star Alliance RTW fare...
- do I have to determine my mileage in advance?
- what happens if I want to go over my mileage (ei, I buy the 29,000
mile fare, but want to go 34,000 instead)?
- is the ticket the same price no matter your start/return city
(Chicago, for me)?
- if not, is the price difference maybe worth "starting" from another
country (and taking a normal flight to get back home)?
- if I purchase the SA RTW, what do I actually _get_, and how does it
work? I'm imagining some crazy holograph ticket that you can show at
any alliance airline kiosk and get on the flight I mean, I know
that's not true, but... see, I don't know very much, do I!
- if I land in Beijing, but end up in Shanghai later, do I have to
get back to Beijing to continue my trek?
- suppose I'm gung-ho about the SA RTW; how do I actually purchase
the ticket?

All these questions apply to any alliance RTW ticket, if anyone
reading knows about other alliance-based options. And if anyone has
used a travel agent for an RTW, I'd love to hear your advice as well.

Thanks again,
Jake

wrote in message
...
I'm hoping to take an Around The World trip, and I'm not sure how to
do the airfare, and this newsgroup seems to be the place for experts!

Trip basics:
4/2008 - 8/2008
budgeted $8,000 for the trip (I'd rather not spend it all, but I can)
places I very much want to visit: West Africa - Egypt - China - South-
east Asia
places I'd also like to visit: East Africa - Israel - India - Mongolia
- Indonesia - New Zealand - Easter Island

I'm happy to have the destinations all mapped out in advance, but I'd
like to be able to move dates around; if I'm having a blast in Egypt,
I'd like to be able to stay an extra week or two before moving on to
my next thumbtack.

Maybe I should also note that I'm 24 and happy to sleep in hostels, on
trains, etc.

From what I've read, my two main options are doing an alliance RTW
(Star Alliance or Flying Dutchman) or going through an agent (STA
Travel or AirTrek). Since I'd really like flexibility in my trip, I'm
leaning towards alliance, but boy, do I feel ignorant.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

all the best,
Jake
\\\

Both oneWorld and Star Alliance have calculator programs on their web sites
that will help you plan a trip and then fare it. Then use hotels.com or a
similar discount site to find your accommodation.

wrote in message
...
I'm hoping to take an Around The World trip, and I'm not sure how to
do the airfare, and this newsgroup seems to be the place for experts!

Trip basics:
4/2008 - 8/2008
budgeted $8,000 for the trip (I'd rather not spend it all, but I can)
places I very much want to visit: West Africa - Egypt - China - South-
east Asia
places I'd also like to visit: East Africa - Israel - India - Mongolia
- Indonesia - New Zealand - Easter Island

I'm happy to have the destinations all mapped out in advance, but I'd
like to be able to move dates around; if I'm having a blast in Egypt,
I'd like to be able to stay an extra week or two before moving on to
my next thumbtack.

Maybe I should also note that I'm 24 and happy to sleep in hostels, on
trains, etc.

From what I've read, my two main options are doing an alliance RTW
(Star Alliance or Flying Dutchman) or going through an agent (STA
Travel or AirTrek). Since I'd really like flexibility in my trip, I'm
leaning towards alliance, but boy, do I feel ignorant.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

all the best,
Jake

The only airline that flies to Easter Island is LAN Chile and they are a
member of oneWorld. Africa is a bit of an aviation black hole at the best
of times but I suspect Star will serve you better there.

First of all, thanks to all! Really appreciate the help.

Still don't know the difference between using an alliance (Star
Alliance RTW) or a travel agent (STA Travel). Unless somebody advises
otherwise, I think I'll go Star Alliance.

I started trying to nail down itineraries to get an idea of mileage,
and I've come across difficulty. Here's an example of an itinerary I
made up:

Chicago - Tel Aviv - Cairo - Ethiopia - Delhi - Beijing - Bangkok -
Jakarta - Melbourne - Auckland - Papeete - Chicago
(ORD - TLV - CAI - ADD - DEL - PEK - BKK - CGK - MEL - AKL - PPT -
ORD)

The trouble is, on Star Alliance RTW Mileage Calculator, most of these
flights don't exist. For example, no flights are found for Cairo to
Ethiopia (CAI - ADD), yet EgyptAir seems to by hubbed in Cairo, flies
to ADD, and is in the Star Alliance. If there really is no flight
from CAI to ADD, do I just have to keep trying airports 'til I find
one that works?

Thanks again,
Jake

wrote in message
...
First of all, thanks to all! Really appreciate the help.

Still don't know the difference between using an alliance (Star
Alliance RTW) or a travel agent (STA Travel). Unless somebody advises
otherwise, I think I'll go Star Alliance.

I started trying to nail down itineraries to get an idea of mileage,
and I've come across difficulty. Here's an example of an itinerary I
made up:

Chicago - Tel Aviv - Cairo - Ethiopia - Delhi - Beijing - Bangkok -
Jakarta - Melbourne - Auckland - Papeete - Chicago
(ORD - TLV - CAI - ADD - DEL - PEK - BKK - CGK - MEL - AKL - PPT -
ORD)

The trouble is, on Star Alliance RTW Mileage Calculator, most of these
flights don't exist. For example, no flights are found for Cairo to
Ethiopia (CAI - ADD), yet EgyptAir seems to by hubbed in Cairo, flies
to ADD, and is in the Star Alliance. If there really is no flight
from CAI to ADD, do I just have to keep trying airports 'til I find
one that works?

Thanks again,
Jake

Egyptair and Star have signed to *allow* Egyptair to become a member. This
process can take up to 18 months. It would seem that the process is not
yet complete so Egyptair is not yet available on their RTW fares.

At the moment, fare rules for Star RTW fares list the following carriers as
being useable (with limitations)

AC/BD/CA/FM/JK/JP/KF/LH/LO/LX/NH/NZ/OS/OU/OZ/SA/SK/BU/SQ/TG/TP/UA/US

I say "with limitations" because generally only flights actually operated by
the carrier can be booked - there are restrictions about booking code share
particularly where the code share is operated by a non star member.

The integration process covers all sorts of things. To give one example -
booking class codes. Some airlines use C as their primary code or business
class while others use J. Lets assume MS use J but the Star rule is C.
MS will have to load their flighst into their reservations system using the
new class codes (there will be more than one change). That data then has
to percolate out to other reservations systems (only a couple of days) but
that has knock on effects on existing flights - anyone with an existing J
booking will have to have it changed to C which may mean that MS will choose
to start the new system for a new booking season which could mean 363 days
in advance = hence the 18 month period.

The advantage of talking to a travel agency is they should know about all
this and will be able to advise you. People like STA sell star tickets but
they also know enough about the world travel system to know that local fares
for travel on a given route sometimes add up to less than a through RTW
icket (although such cominations usually come with restrictions you will
find irksome and aslso assume you will travel overland some of the time).

One last thing, there is nothing to stop you buying local tickets to fill
gaps in a star routing.

You folks are really a wealth of information. Thank you.

If I have this right:

1 - EgyptAir is not yet a member of Star Alliance, and (most likely)
won't be by April 2008. So toss that out.
2 - I could, however, fly with EgyptAir on my own dime, and then
resume my Star Alliance RTW. The EgyptAir miles would somehow count
for my total RTW mileage as "overland" miles.
3 - This is ridiculous in retrospect, but just because an airline
"serves" airport A and airport B, that doesn't mean there's a flight
from A to B. At all.
4 - Travel agencies can get RTW tickets for you; they're not mutually
exclusive. Of course, they'll tack on their fee.
5 - Three-letter codes are airports; two-letter codes are airlines;
one-letter stuff refers to classes.
6 - Airfare for the kind of travel I'm planning will likely be in the
$4000-$5000 range (economy class).
7 - If I get an RTW, it may be cheaper to pop up to Canada (I'm in
Chicago) and start the trip from there.
8 - When comparing ticket prices, don't forget taxes. Apparently they
can be hefty.
9 - Given my itinerary (no Americas, no Europe), Star Alliance is my
best bet for an alliance RTW.

Thanks again.
-Jake

wrote:

First of all, thanks to all! Really appreciate the help.

Still don't know the difference between using an alliance (Star
Alliance RTW) or a travel agent (STA Travel). Unless somebody advises
otherwise, I think I'll go Star Alliance.

What about other alliances?

See the Grahams below.
wrote in message
...
You folks are really a wealth of information. Thank you.

If I have this right:

1 - EgyptAir is not yet a member of Star Alliance, and (most likely)
won't be by April 2008. So toss that out.
Graham That is my reading of the press releases on the Star web site. An
agency should be able to help but it might be worth contact Egypt Air direct
to check this out
2 - I could, however, fly with EgyptAir on my own dime, and then
resume my Star Alliance RTW.
Graham Yes
The EgyptAir miles would somehow count
for my total RTW mileage as "overland" miles.
Graham No. It is a separate ticket. The Star ticket has its' own
mileage. Any ticket you buy on any other airline is a completely separate
deal.
3 - This is ridiculous in retrospect, but just because an airline
"serves" airport A and airport B, that doesn't mean there's a flight
from A to B. At all.
Graham Yes, but not ridiculous. Why would United fly from Buenos Aires
to Tokyo? You can use United to get between those two cites by coming via
the US but you'll be changing planes at least once. And, although Buenos
Aires and Tokyo are (in their ways) both major cities the traffic between
them does not justify any airline running a direct or non stop flight.
And, before you ask direct means the you use the same plane thoughout but it
may stop en route while non-stop is what it says. Oh and direct flights
can have a change of gague. This means that although the flight number
doesn't change you fly on one plane from A to B then a different plane B-C
and the size of each plane is probably different (e.g. a 777 London to
Washington then a 757 on to Denver)
4 - Travel agencies can get RTW tickets for you; they're not mutually
exclusive. Of course, they'll tack on their fee.
Graham Definitely.
5 - Three-letter codes are airports; two-letter codes are airlines;
one-letter stuff refers to classes.
Graham Yes. Some airline codes are two character (e.g 2F or F2)
6 - Airfare for the kind of travel I'm planning will likely be in the
$4000-$5000 range (economy class).
Graham I haven't looked it up but that sounds about right.
7 - If I get an RTW, it may be cheaper to pop up to Canada (I'm in
Chicago) and start the trip from there.
Graham Again haven't looked it but anomalies like that do occur.
8 - When comparing ticket prices, don't forget taxes. Apparently they
can be hefty.
Graham Absolutely.
9 - Given my itinerary (no Americas, no Europe), Star Alliance is my
best bet for an alliance RTW.
Graham There are three alliances, Star, oneWorld and Sky Team. I doubt
if Sky Team really meets your needs so the choice is probably Star or maybe
oneWorld. This is where the agency comes in.

Thanks again.
-Jake

Graham oh and don't foget to check for health requirements and visas and
make sure your passport has spare pages and at least 6 months validity from
the day you arrive back home. Some countries have some funny ideas about
allowing people in on about to expire passports and insist on having a clean
page to stamp.

Before the days of the alliances there were "casual" alliances where
airlines got together to offer RTW tickets. A few of those still exist;
again I doubt if any suit you but an agency should be able to help.