US Dividend Miles - Award Booking Questions and General Discussion

[Shanye2233]

You can't stopover in Zagreb. It's not a OneWorld hub neither it is a US Airways overseas destination - no stopover allowed

Yeah ok try getting me there as close as possible.

 

[Beta4Me]

When you say "stopover", these were both greater than 24 hours?

If you fly somewhere and the time between your arrival to next departure doesn't exceed 24 hours, that is not deemed a stopover, even if you leave the airport / enter the country, and/or arrival and next departure are on different calendar days.

If they were two bona fide stopovers, then yes you were one lucky cough, period.

Open jaw MEL departure and SYD arrival and stopovers: TPE 30hrs, SIN 7 days and GUM 2 days (dest). Do I get a prize?

 

[anat0l]

Open jaw MEL departure and SYD arrival and stopovers: TPE 30hrs, SIN 7 days and GUM 2 days (dest). Do I get a prize?

I suspect some funny domestic tricks with SYD and MEL (geographically challenged staff), and a 30 hr "transit" seemingly not a big blatant violation (now I remember someone here also getting "two" stopovers, one of them being 25 hours), throw in a GUM itinerary which has "turn this booking to custard" written all over it....

Yep, have a cigar.....

 

[Beta4Me]

I suspect some funny domestic tricks with SYD and MEL (geographically challenged staff), and a 30 hr "transit" seemingly not a big blatant violation (now I remember someone here also getting "two" stopovers, one of them being 25 hours), throw in a GUM itinerary which has "turn this booking to custard" written all over it....

Yep, have a cigar.....

I had to get a last hurrah in whilst it was still *A. I just wish I'd booked with USDM OW before BA surcharges started getting passed on...

 

[ferni]

I haven't heard of anyone - whether in the newer* Star Alliance era or new oneworld era - who has been able to get both a stopover and an open jaw. (Note that an "open jaw" resulting from using co-terminals does not count).

There have probably been at least one or two who have slipped through the cracks (and likely in the *A era), but of all the "rules" which can be "broken", having both a stopover and an open jaw has been the most unlikely to be broken.

* In one of the older incarnations of US DM, just when all of this 100% bonus miles purchase madness started, the rules did allow for a stopover and an open jaw.

I did an Open Jaw & Stop over back in the *A days...
MEL-BKK-BRU-LIS-FAO // Dest
CDG-BKK // Stop (~4 days i think)
BKK-MEL

Also my wife got one as well, she came over a week after me and met me in BRU, hers was
MEL-BKK-BRU // Dest
CDG-BKK // Stop
BKK-MEL

The trick was (and i wasn't relying on it, just tried my luck) to book it with a BRU-CDG connection so it was just a stop over, then called up asked to add a couple more flights to my itin (BRU-LIS-FAO) and they said ok, then just said "also can I drop that BRU-CDG flight?" "No problems sir"... go a head and ticket that then

 

[get me outta here]

I'd appreciate any advice plse ... having just seen the excellent ABC program, '2 Men in China", I wondered if anyone has any experience or observations to get to Chengdu? I've got about 170K miles currently and next spring there seems like a good place to work in.

 

[smit0847]

I'd appreciate any advice plse ... having just seen the excellent ABC program, '2 Men in China", I wondered if anyone has any experience or observations to get to Chengdu? I've got about 170K miles currently and next spring there seems like a good place to work in.

SYD-HKG (QF or CX)
HKG-CTU (KA).

Easy.

 

[bcworld]

SYD-HKG (QF or CX)
HKG-CTU (KA).

Easy.

And I think that is probably the only option under MPM.

CTU could probably also be done as a stopover en route to some further zone...e.g. BA flies to London. Not many other OW carriers. QR to DOH but MPM a problem.

 

[wchiri]

Hello all, first post here.
I'm in perth and wanting to fly to Europe, Aug 31 to Sept 20 this year. Destinations include France, Germany, Turkey and Italy. Very flexible with where we land. Just hoping to use my 100,000 points (plus whatever I need to add). I have tried calling their reservations line but got cut out after 25mins of her looking for something.

Hoping for business class, even if its only one way.

Please help, I've read pages and pages of forums from all over and still can't get anywhere!

I've got points all over the place but in small quantities - QFF 15,000, Krisflyer - 22,000 and HHilton 19,000. Worthless I know!

 

[hummel]

Hello all, first post here.
I'm in perth and wanting to fly to Europe, Aug 31 to Sept 20 this year. Destinations include France, Germany, Turkey and Italy. Very flexible with where we land. Just hoping to use my 100,000 points (plus whatever I need to add). I have tried calling their reservations line but got cut out after 25mins of her looking for something.

Hoping for business class, even if its only one way.

Please help, I've read pages and pages of forums from all over and still can't get anywhere!

I've got points all over the place but in small quantities - QFF 15,000, Krisflyer - 22,000 and HHilton 19,000. Worthless I know!

A couple of things:

1) Only return trips bookable - Same price as one-way

2) Try PER-HKG-Europe on CX.

3) Buy more miles.

 

[wchiri]

A couple of things:

1) Only return trips bookable - Same price as one-way

2) Try PER-HKG-Europe on CX.

3) Buy more miles.

I can't login to CX in order to try Per-HKG-Europe and see their awards flight availabilities. Any other way?

 

[sergeyvzn]

I'd appreciate any advice plse ... having just seen the excellent ABC program, '2 Men in China", I wondered if anyone has any experience or observations to get to Chengdu? I've got about 170K miles currently and next spring there seems like a good place to work in.

Also, Air China is still a partner. Fly into Shanghai or Beijing then on to Chengdu
Air China has good availability out of Sydney, I have used them twice in the past year

 

[hummel]

I can't login to CX in order to try Per-HKG-Europe and see their awards flight availabilities. Any other way?

Should be able to use QF to search.

 

[sergeyvzn]

I can't login to CX in order to try Per-HKG-Europe and see their awards flight availabilities. Any other way?

Both QF and BA website award search engines will show availability on CX

 

[DTM1]

Hello all, first post here.
I'm in perth and wanting to fly to Europe, Aug 31 to Sept 20 this year. Destinations include France, Germany, Turkey and Italy. Very flexible with where we land. Just hoping to use my 100,000 points (plus whatever I need to add). I have tried calling their reservations line but got cut out after 25mins of her looking for something.

Hoping for business class, even if its only one way.

Please help, I've read pages and pages of forums from all over and still can't get anywhere!

I've got points all over the place but in small quantities - QFF 15,000, Krisflyer - 22,000 and HHilton 19,000. Worthless I know!

You might have trouble getting to Asia with your miles. Best bet is to fund your own way to Hong kong and then look for a miles flight from HKG. given you flexibility re destination, you should have better luck.

 

[travelislife]

I can't login to CX in order to try Per-HKG-Europe and see their awards flight availabilities. Any other way?

You need to piece your own itinerary together before you call. First you need to check all availability on carriers out of Australia for your dates. So this means either CX, MH or QR or QF connecting to another port in Australia to these airlines. So you will be searching for flights to their hubs, i.e PER-HKG, PER-DOH, PER-KUL. Once you can get yourself to one of these hubs you then want to search separately for a flight from there to Europe.

To search you can use QF, JL and BA are probably the best engines. Always remember that if searching on that airlines website they may show more availability to their own members for flights on their own metal.

Also you will need 120k for Australia to Europe return in business. You can mix business class and economy if you can't get business on all legs but it will be the same price. Avoid BA due to fuel surcharges.

 

[travelislife]

Just did a quick search for you and the below is all available in Business Class. There are better connections if you are willing to take a leg in economy. Also this is pretty late in to be looking to book flights at the tail end of the European summer.

[TABLE="class: flightListTable tblLyOut, width: 960"]
[TR]
[TD="class: flightDetail departure"]PER 01:2531 Aug[/TD]
[TD="class: flightDetail arrival"]KUL 07:0531 Aug[/TD]
[TD="class: flightDetail operator"]Malaysia AirlinesMH0126


[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
Day in KL to do whatever you like.

[TABLE="class: flightListTable tblLyOut, width: 959"]
[TR]
[TD="class: flightDetail departure"]KUL 23:5931 Aug[/TD]
[TD="class: flightDetail arrival"]FRA 06:401 Sep[/TD]
[TD="class: flightDetail operator"]Malaysia AirlinesMH0006


[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

Coming back (out of FRA available too on the 21st)

[TABLE="class: flightListTable tblLyOut, width: 959"]
[TR]
[TD="class: flightDetail departure"]AMS 12:0020 Sep[/TD]
[TD="class: flightDetail arrival"]KUL 06:1021 Sep[/TD]
[TD="class: flightDetail operator"]Malaysia AirlinesMH0017


[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

[TABLE="class: flightListTable tblLyOut, width: 960"]
[TR]
[TD="class: flightDetail departure"]KUL 09:3021 Sep[/TD]
[TD="class: flightDetail arrival"]PER 15:0021 Sep[/TD]
[TD="class: flightDetail operator"]Malaysia AirlinesMH0125


[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

 

[Flashback]

Both QF and BA website award search engines will show availability on CX

My recent experience showed a lot of phantom availability on BA / QF websites for CX. I logged into the CX site using my Asia Miles account which showed that there was indeed no availability.

 

[anat0l]

My recent experience showed a lot of phantom availability on BA / QF websites for CX. I logged into the CX site using my Asia Miles account which showed that there was indeed no availability.

JL tends to display CX availability most accurately for the purposes of redemption with US, AA and AS.

I'm not sure if CX also shows up "phantom space" (at least from the point of view of US, AA and AS), though how odd that CX cannot see a seat that BA or QF could viably book. I would have thought it more the other way around, i.e. CX members would be able to see seats on CX which other members of the alliance would not be able to book (especially if you were a higher tier Marco Polo Club member).

 

[Alanslegal]

Looking at flights SYD-ATH, return from either ATH/FCO/IST-SYD for 01SEP to 02OCT, dates are flexible. Finding difficulty securing any premium cabin seats at this last minute Anyone have any ideas/suggestions that I should be looking at?