Planning a RTW via Qantas One World

[Cynicor]

Pretty sure, but not certain, that you can't open date xONEx fares. You need to set the itinerary but date and time changes are free and unlimited (to 1 year from first flight). I just plan the flights, put in dates for everything I can book, then group the last flights 48 hours apart at 1 year out from booking date and adjust as needed later.

Also, I'd start outside of AU and book through AA.

 

[Mattg]

What about Star Alliance, do they have an around the world fare available on points?

There are a few Star Alliance programs that offer RTW awards. I believe Singapore Airlines, Air Canada, Lufthansa and Asiana have them. Of most use to Australians would probably be the SQ award which costs 180,000 KrisFlyer miles in Economy or 240,000 in Business. Business class is definitely the sweet spot there.

I think it's also worth pointing out that Asia Miles and Enrich are both other oneworld options for oneworld/RTW awards. Cathay Pacific charges 190,000 Asia Miles for a "oneworld multi-carrier award" in Business class, which is much less than QF's 280K J award.

 

[irv]

I am gaining a lot from viewing the trip reports, first leg confirmed in my mind to HKG, a few more to go

 

[Mattg]

Have you looked into the Lufthansa, Swiss or Finnair RTW tickets? These are often cheaper than a oneworld explorer (or the equivalents through the other alliances). You won't get as much flexibility but you'll save money if you just want to travel from Australia-Hong Kong-Europe-USA-Australia without tons of stopovers etc.

If you're flying Economy, you can also book a routing like this as a multi-city booking on the Qantas website for around $3,000. That's what I did on my first RTW trip. Not so useful if you want to visit South America or Africa, but worth looking into nonetheless IMHO.

 

[footy99]

Pretty sure, but not certain, that you can't open date xONEx fares. You need to set the itinerary but date and time changes are free and unlimited (to 1 year from first flight). I just plan the flights, put in dates for everything I can book, then group the last flights 48 hours apart at 1 year out from booking date and adjust as needed later.

Also, I'd start outside of AU and book through AA.

You can open date all but the first flight. This is how I did my last DONE6. Then ring up and book the others later when you know plans better. Unless you are an exceptional planner, I'd recommend doing it this way, although you are obviously then vulnerable to not being able to get the dates you want later, it's a much more flexible way to do it.

It's also usually slightly cheaper than what is quoted online when you actually book direct with the airline flown first. You still pay up front and the fare doesn't change based on price fluctuations in ticket prices later. But if you want to avoid for example the LHR departure tax by transiting, you can't leave it open dated. Also be sure to book all flights within 365 days otherwise you'll lose them!

 

[JohnM]

You can open date all but the first flight. This is how I did my last DONE6. Then ring up and book the others later when you know plans better. Unless you are an exceptional planner, I'd recommend doing it this way, although you are obviously then vulnerable to not being able to get the dates you want later, it's a much more flexible way to do it.

It's also usually slightly cheaper than what is quoted online when you actually book direct with the airline flown first. You still pay up front and the fare doesn't change based on price fluctuations in ticket prices later. But if you want to avoid for example the LHR departure tax by transiting, you can't leave it open dated. Also be sure to book all flights within 365 days otherwise you'll lose them!

That's interesting. I fit your 'exceptional planner' category but the open-dated method could prove useful.

Can you leave it open-dated for flights after a LHR transit?

 

[footy99]

That's interesting. I fit your 'exceptional planner' category but the open-dated method could prove useful.

Can you leave it open-dated for flights after a LHR transit?

Yep. You can book as many (up to the 16 max) or as little (but including the first flight) as you like and leave the rest open. Alternatively you can book them all and change for free later. The actual cities can't change but the dates are flexible.

 

[coco50]

I did a RTW last year from May to mid July. I started planning in early 2014 and firstly established our itinerary. It was BNK - SYD - DXB - LHR - Eurostar to Paris - train to Lyon - train to Geneva - train to Milan - train to Rome - tours to Pompeii and Amalfi and Florence, Siena, Venice, Bologna, Montepulciano, thence back to Rome. Then Como, Milan and Cinque Terre. MXP - MAD - LHR. LHR - DFW - SAF - LAX - SAN - LAX - HNL - LAX - SYD - BNK.

I used all my FF points and started to book as soon as sectors opened. This allowed us to travel first class SYD - DXB and DXB - LHR. We flew Business MXP - MAD - LHR. Premium Economy from LHR to DFW. all flights from DFW until we were in LAX for the last time were economy. The business class sector from LAX - SYD was extremely comfortable. This meant that for about $6000, I had bout about $60 000 of airfares.

Early planning and close consultation with TA and QFF helped greatly in booking this trip and ensuring smooth connections and hotel check-ins. I cannot stress this enough

 

[fiscal]

Maybe I am missing something here, but when I looked at the OW Explorer and priced a PER-TXL-LHR-YYZ-LAX-PER the prices for economy come to about $6000 each. You can book 3 itineraries, a return PER-TXL but back via LHR, a one way TXL-LHR, and a return LHR-YYZ for half that price.

Am I missing something, or is it not really good value for money?

Thanks

 

[Hermes]

All useful info, but I am confused by the suggestion that we can save money on a OW RTW trip by starting elsewhere -- Thailand, Japan, HK, whatever. Surely the fare to get to such "starting" points adds to the total, thereby negating any savings on the OW fare.

 

[footy99]

Maybe I am missing something here, but when I looked at the OW Explorer and priced a PER-TXL-LHR-YYZ-LAX-PER the prices for economy come to about $6000 each. You can book 3 itineraries, a return PER-TXL but back via LHR, a one way TXL-LHR, and a return LHR-YYZ for half that price.

Am I missing something, or is it not really good value for money?

Thanks

It really depends on your itinerary. If you've got 12-16 places you want to fly to and stay for a while, it's usually the best value. For 5-6 city itineraries you'll probably find it cheaper to book flights separately. Also business class is usually only a little over double the price of economy, and sometimes less than double from select ports, so can provide substantial discounts over long, flexible itineraries. Also if you are based out of South Africa, or can get there cheaply, these tickets can be an exceptional bargain.

 

[footy99]

All useful info, but I am confused by the suggestion that we can save money on a OW RTW trip by starting elsewhere -- Thailand, Japan, HK, whatever. Surely the fare to get to such "starting" points adds to the total, thereby negating any savings on the OW fare.

Again it depends where you're starting from and the cost savings of the itinerary. In 2011, I flew to and from Hungary separately because that starting point saved me around $7.5K on my DONE6 itinerary compared with an Aus departure. But there were enormous currency advantages then that aren't so extreme today, however there are still significant savings to be made from certain ports that outweigh the cost of getting there.

 

[get me outta here]

On a LCC you can get to those places very cheaply when there's a sale on especially. Eg Tiger, Jetstar, Scoot. Best to allow a long connection time to allow for any hiccups that LCCs are prone to.

All useful info, but I am confused by the suggestion that we can save money on a OW RTW trip by starting elsewhere -- Thailand, Japan, HK, whatever. Surely the fare to get to such "starting" points adds to the total, thereby negating any savings on the OW fare.

 

[fiscal]

It really depends on your itinerary. If you've got 12-16 places you want to fly to and stay for a while, it's usually the best value. For 5-6 city itineraries you'll probably find it cheaper to book flights separately. Also business class is usually only a little over double the price of economy, and sometimes less than double from select ports, so can provide substantial discounts over long, flexible itineraries. Also if you are based out of South Africa, or can get there cheaply, these tickets can be an exceptional bargain.

That makes sense...thanks

 

[Hermes]

On a LCC you can get to those places very cheaply when there's a sale on especially. Eg Tiger, Jetstar, Scoot. Best to allow a long connection time to allow for any hiccups that LCCs are prone to.

Understood, but when you are addicted to J for long-haul the difference must be minimal.

 

[Mattg]

Maybe I am missing something here, but when I looked at the OW Explorer and priced a PER-TXL-LHR-YYZ-LAX-PER the prices for economy come to about $6000 each. You can book 3 itineraries, a return PER-TXL but back via LHR, a one way TXL-LHR, and a return LHR-YYZ for half that price.

Am I missing something, or is it not really good value for money?

Thanks

For a relatively simple economy booking such as this one, it would probably work out at about half the price if you booked a multi-city booking on the Qantas website. The RTW fares are much more valuable, however, if you wanted to make full use of the 15 stopovers and visit more than two continents other than Australia. The RTW fares may also work out cheaper if you were to compare the prices of that routing in Business class.

 

[fiscal]

For a relatively simple economy booking such as this one, it would probably work out at about half the price if you booked a multi-city booking on the Qantas website. The RTW fares are much more valuable, however, if you wanted to make full use of the 15 stopovers and visit more than two continents other than Australia. The RTW fares may also work out cheaper if you were to compare the prices of that routing in Business class.

Thanks. You and footy99 have now made it clear

 

[Cynicor]

Understood, but when you are addicted to J for long-haul the difference must be minimal.

Ah, but once you are positioned, subsequent flights are where the saving is.

Or going in first class. Eg the last Aone5 I booked from JNB cost around 9.5AUD all up. A similar Done5 ex AU was quoted at 11k. Fly to JNB on points, or even paid, and save 1.5k plus get first class all the way. How can you beat that? Then the final sector is a PER-JNB dated 1 year out and you have your return flight to start the next trip!

 

[RTWtraveler]

We do one or two RTW adventures each year, we are retired, but we use a a travel company that specialises in RTW ticketing. Never had an issue, we went where and when we wanted. I found the SA and OW prices too high.

 

[Franky]

RTW - could you advise who your booking agency is please?

Thanks and regards