Oneworld Classic Flight Reward Discussion - The Definitive Thread

[blu]

Guessing you can't lose a Qantas flight because of ticketing delay, possibly a charges miscalculation, Will followup (other OW partner flights still show old ticket number. )

 

[Wolf creek]

Hi everyone,
Nob question trying to reassure myself.
Fly into Doha with Qatar have a 1hr 40 mins change of flights to Royal Jordanian.Will they transfer bags from Qatar to RJ,and am I cutting it fine changing flights.

 

[Mr H]

Hi everyone,
Nob question trying to reassure myself.
Fly into Doha with Qatar have a 1hr 40 mins change of flights to Royal Jordanian.Will they transfer bags from Qatar to RJ,and am I cutting it fine changing flights.

They should check your bags through and although most flights at &DOH seem to involve buses, you should have plenty of time.

 

[blu]

Had a Doha transit close to minimum connection time, seems to be common. They seem prepared for it.

 

[sunny_aus]

Hi all,

Total noob, I'm hoping for some assistance in booking a OW classic flight reward for our honeymoon with a stack of Qantas points I have accrued over the years.
I have been looking on British Airways website to find flights, and have found some I think would suit us, however I am unable to see the same flights when searching on Qantas to book.

Eg. SIN-DOH-LHR with Qatar, leaving 30th May. The British Airways website shows there are two seats left in business class (and I have ticked the option to pay with Avios points). However when searching on the Qantas multi-city section, it doesn't show these flights as an option at all.

Does this mean that I am unable to book the flights at all? If I call up the Qantas Service Centre, will they be able to see those Qatar flights and book for us?
Or do I have to relook for flights on the Qantas website?

Thanks

 

[levelnine]

SIN-DOH-LHR with Qatar, leaving 30th May. The British Airways website shows there are two seats left in business class (and I have ticked the option to pay with Avios points). However when searching on the Qantas multi-city section, it doesn't show these flights as an option at all.

Qatar business class reward seats are basically no longer bookable with Qantas points.

You'll need to find an alternative.

(To the more experienced readers who will say they are still bookable 119 days from departure: I mentioned in the QR withholding seats thread that not even business class flights within 119 are now appearing on Qantas' website.)

 

[Montyrulz15]

, very new to the whole one world concept. Just a quick question, I note the Qantas multi city tool only allows 6 flights. How would you book the remaining 10 if you wished to utilise the full 16 flights? Also how does this work in terms of points? For example if I had 320k pts for a business class rtw trip, how would I book all flight legs with only that many? I’ve read that you get refunded points? But how would that work if you didn’t have enough points for the original pricing? Hope that makes sense

 

[Mr H]

, very new to the whole one world concept. Just a quick question, I note the Qantas multi city tool only allows 6 flights. How would you book the remaining 10 if you wished to utilise the full 16 flights? Also how does this work in terms of points? For example if I had 320k pts for a business class rtw trip, how would I book all flight legs with only that many? I’ve read that you get refunded points? But how would that work if you didn’t have enough points for the original pricing? Hope that makes sense

One World Award, not RTW. You get extra legs added by phoning up. The price in points caps out at 318,000 as long as the rules for a OWA are met. No need to pay more and get points back.

 

[Montyrulz15]

One World Award, not RTW. You get extra legs added by phoning up. The price in points caps out at 318,000 as long as the rules for a OWA are met. No need to pay more and get points back.

Thank you. I’ve read that you need to pay a fee for phoning up as well?

 

[levelnine]

Thank you. I’ve read that you need to pay a fee for phoning up as well?

5,000 points per person per change.

 

[Mr H]

5,000 points per person per change.

Yes, but each chargeable change can incorporate multiple amendments.

I think if you don’t book the first six sectors online but do your first booking by phone then there’s no charge for that initial booking - but I’m willing to be corrected.

 

[levelnine]

Yes, but each chargeable change can incorporate multiple amendments.

I think if you don’t book the first six sectors online but do your first booking by phone then there’s no charge for that initial booking - but I’m willing to be corrected.

There is a reward assistance fee of 7,700 points per passenger for bookings made by phone, but it can generally be waived by stating you cannot book the flight online.

 

[Mr H]

There is a reward assistance fee of 7,700 points per passenger for bookings made by phone, but it can generally be waived by stating you cannot book the flight online.

Ah yes, that’s right. I got in an argument with a Fijian over that who agreed reluctantly to waive the fee, charged it anyway and I had to get the FF people to undo it.

 

[Montyrulz15]

There is a reward assistance fee of 7,700 points per passenger for bookings made by phone, but it can generally be waived by stating you cannot book the flight online.

Thanks so much. So does that mean for each of the additional 10 or so flights I would like to add that I’d need to call? Wonder why they all can’t just be booked online…

 

[levelnine]

Thanks so much. So does that mean for each of the additional 10 or so flights I would like to add that I’d need to call? Wonder why they all can’t just be booked online…

The best method is to book as many of the flights as you can online and then add the extra flights via phone in batches, so you are reducing your change fees.

The challenge is that the longer you wait to add flights, the greater the likelihood that someone else will take them.

So you need to balance the desire to reduce change fees (and ticketing complications) against the desire to attain the flights you want.

Why don't Qantas allow you to book everything online? Because multi-sector, multi-airline award tickets are enormously complex with all sorts of routing and tax calculations, so it would require considerable IT expenditure to make that accessible for the customer. And they make minimal profit from those types of award tickets. High cost, low profit = no investment.

 

[Montyrulz15]

The best method is to book as many of the flights as you can online and then add the extra flights via phone in batches, so you are reducing your change fees.

The challenge is that the longer you wait to add flights, the greater the likelihood that someone else will take them.

So you need to balance the desire to reduce change fees (and ticketing complications) against the desire to attain the flights you want.

Why don't Qantas allow you to book everything online? Because multi-sector, multi-airline award tickets are enormously complex with all sorts of routing and tax calculations, so it would require considerable IT expenditure to make that accessible for the customer. And they make minimal profit from those types of award tickets. High cost, low profit = no investment.

Fantastic. That makes sense. So can you book flights online (additional to the original 6)? If so, would you just find flights that meet the criteria? Or is there another way?

 

[levelnine]

So can you book flights online (additional to the original 6)? If so, would you just find flights that meet the criteria? Or is there another way?

No, you can only book the original set of flights online. All subsequent changes (additions, modifications, removals) must be done via phone.

You can use the online tool to help find flights, but you'll need to assess whether they meet the criteria by yourself (eg you need to ensure you're not adding any non-oneworld carriers to the ticket).

 

[Montyrulz15]

No, you can only book the original set of flights online. All subsequent changes (additions, modifications, removals) must be done via phone.

You can use the online tool to help find flights, but you'll need to assess whether they meet the criteria by yourself (eg you need to ensure you're not adding any non-oneworld carriers to the ticket).

Great. That makes sense.

As long as I meet the requirements then it should only be a max 318k points (assuming booking over phone points are waived)? I’m just concerned as I will likely just have a little over that amount and won’t have enough to cover additional points. Will the person over the phone confirm if I’ve met requirements? Or are they not much help at all? Really appreciate your assistance

 

[levelnine]

As long as I meet the requirements then it should only be a max 318k points (assuming booking over phone points are waived)? I’m just concerned as I will likely just have a little over that amount and won’t have enough to cover additional points. Will the person over the phone confirm if I’ve met requirements? Or are they not much help at all? Really appreciate your assistance

Yes, if you meet the criteria, the ticket will max out at 318K points per person.

The phone operator will be able to confirm the points cost before it is booked, but if it is more than 318K points, they may not give you an accurate answer as to which rule has been broken. Some phone operators are good, some are hopeless.

 

[Montyrulz15]

Yes, if you meet the criteria, the ticket will max out at 318K points per person.

The phone operator will be able to confirm the points cost before it is booked, but if it is more than 318K points, they may not give you an accurate answer as to which rule has been broken. Some phone operators are good, some are hopeless.

Amazing. Thank you so much for your help.

Just one last question, would you recommend booking as many flights as possible at once over the phone? Or doing them one or two at a time as you travel?