Need 32,251 qualifying points, for approx $3k

[knasty]

by the end of the calendar year. I am trying to keep Platinum status. I would like to book an itinerary from Syd in November which includes London, and preferably NYC & HKG. Is it possible? My research so far has led me to believe the best option is to book syd-lon via HKG, then a separate ticket Lon-NYC, but in this case I still hit fare classes which only give .5 EQPs. Any ideas? Thanks.

 

[wandering_fred]

You might consider a OneWorld Explorer RTW starting from New Zealand...

A premium economy / Y+ HKG-LHR-USA return is also in the general ballpark if you can get to/from HKG cheaply enough. Haven't priced exBKK recently. exSIN is usually a bit more expensive.


Happy wandering

Fred

 

[serfty]

How many EQM's have you?

A LONE4 ex AKL may be your best option, ensure your flight numbers are AA as much as possible. L class credits as 1EQP per Mile on AA flight numbers.

Of course that's still ~AUD2800 base. (Qualification Requirements)

 

[knasty]

Hi Serfty I have 13,712 EQP and 9,142 EQM. An upcoming J trip on LAN SYD-AKL will give me 4037 EQP/2690EQM so my total required will be 32,251EQP or 38,168EQM. Based on Fred's suggestion I've priced BA Y+ HKG-JFK with Lon stopover for around AUD3k, and with the trip to HKG around 1k I can do it for 4k in total, but hoping to get closer to 3k than 4k if possible. I'll look at LONE4 ex AKL as well thanks.

 

[serfty]

Here's a base LONE4: AKL-(AA[SUP]¶[/SUP])-xLAX-(AA)-NYC-(AA)-LHR-(BA)-HKG-(CX[SUP]§[/SUP])-SIN-(BA)-SYD-(BA[SUP]¶[/SUP])-AKL

This earns ~23,700 EQP. However, you have segments to play with!

Approx. 30,400 EQP: AKL-(AA[SUP]¶[/SUP])-SYD-(AA[SUP]¶[/SUP])-JFK-(AA)-xLAX-(AA)-LHR-(BA)-HKG-(CX[SUP]§[/SUP])-SIN-(BA)-SYD-(BA[SUP]¶[/SUP])-AKL
Approx. 33,250 EQP: AKL-(AA[SUP]¶[/SUP])-SYD-(AA[SUP]¶[/SUP])-JFK-(AA)-xLAX-(AA)-DFW-(AA)-MIA-(AA)-DFW-(AA)-LHR-(BA)-HKG-(CX[SUP]§[/SUP])-SIN-(BA)-SYD-(BA[SUP]¶[/SUP])-AKL

[SUP]¶[/SUP] codeshare on QF metal.
[SUP]§[/SUP] L class earns zip on CX flights if crediting to AA.

 

[knasty]

Thanks for the advice so far. My trip has been cut to 1 week so NY is out of the picture. Plan is Syd-xMel-HKG-xHEL-LHR-xHEL-xHKG-xMEL-SYD on QF Y+ to/from HKG and AY R class Economy HKG to/from LHR for a total of around $3.5k inc tax. AY R class seems to offer some of the best EQMs per dollar spent - the AY fare is ~$1,100 and at 1.5EQMs that's 18,000 towards the total for not too much cash. I've read positive feedback on crediting of AY R class @ 1.5x despite the fact it's discount economy - anyone have problems getting the EQMs?

 

[openseat]

There used to be an AY fare to Europe that booked into 'R' out of SYD through BKK only. Alas, it finished last year and the specials on AY seem to only come in R these days. I would be careful, however, about relying on the R based fares on AY as AA could easily wake up to the fact that R on AY is discount Y and not full-fare Y. After all it only earns 0.25 miles on QFFF.

It is possible on a OWE to book the AY codeshares as well as they will earn 1EQM and 1EQP per flown mile. It would be worthwhile finding out what the YQ on AY is as well. Probably less than BA, since now booking a OWE through AA now attracts the YQ on BA.

Finally you can get a B fare out of AKL on QF or BA that will take you around the world if you like, even via Africa. The earning is 1.5EQP. But it would price out closer to $4,000 after the YQ and taxes.

 

[openseat]

I just re-read your post and found a potential difficulty.

AY R class seems to offer some of the best EQMs per dollar spent - the AY fare is ~$1,100 and at 1.5EQMs that's 18,000 towards the total for not too much cash. I've read positive feedback on crediting of AY R class @ 1.5x despite the fact it's discount economy - anyone have problems getting the EQMs?

Travelling in AY on an R ticket will earn 1 EQM and 1.5 EQP per flown mile.
Please don't confuse the 1.5 EQP earning rate on AY R tickets with their 1.0 EQM earning rate. If you go to this page you will see this laid out in the earning table.

You first need to check your current EQM and EQP balances in your Aadvantage account to see if your plan can come off before booking any tickets. I'd hate for you to be disappointed as a result of this distinction between EQP and EQM - you wouldn't be the first.

You may find this page from the flyer guide wiki a help in understanding the distinction between miles and points.