Random travel question Options

[Aaron]

I figured this question probably wasn't related enough to airline fellatio to warrant posting in that other thread.

I'm planning a post-graduation around-the-world trip for May/June; I plan on stopping in Sydney, Bangkok and various stops in Western Europe. The best price that I can find for an eastbound trip - that is, USA -> Sydney -> Bangkok -> European stops -> USA - is about three grand including a rail pass, taxes and fees. Right now, I can price a westbound trip for about $2,500, but nearly a quarter of that (~$700) is going to the flight from Sydney to Los Angeles.

My question is this, do you guys know of any common or routine routes from Asia to the United States? I'm assuming that the cheapest will be heading to LAX, but I just can't find a cheap (~$500) flight from anywhere in Asia. I've tried pricing flights out of Singapore, Hong Kong, Tapei, Seoul and Bangkok through all of the major travel websites (Expedia, Orbitz, etc.).

Any ideas?

(Trying to get a flight that departs for the United States on June 12 or 13.)

[Splash Jackson]

An around the world trip is a pretty common thing to do and I know that some airlines actually sell around the world trips. This means you start somewhere and get to stop X number of times on X continents. In essence this should save you money.

This might have info: http://wikitravel.org/en/Round_the_world_flights

[Hartmann]

Do you have an airline preference?

If I were you since you're doing a RTW, I would pick an alliance (OneWorld, SkyTeam, or Star Alliance) and stick with it the entire trip, you will have some mad miles and will probably get some good upgrades halfway into the trip.

Personally, I'd go with the Star Alliance. United, Lufthansa, Air New Zealand, Singapore, and Thai are all members.

Routes from Asia to the U.S. -> Beijing-O'Hare, NRT-IAD, NRT-DFW, HK-SFO, etc.

The first trip you listed is westbound. You are going from U.S. to Sydney, then to Bangkok, then to Europe.

How I would schedule the trip is U.S. -> SYD -> BKK -> NRT -> FRA -> Europe. There are some direct flights from Tokyo to Frankfurt and from Bangkok to Frankfurt.

[woody]

USA -> Sydney -> Bangkok -> European stops -> USA

Are you going from Europe back to Asia then to the US?

[Mommy]

Hartmann has been a lot of abreviations lately

Aaron, I envy you with every inkling of my soul. I would sell my soul to the devil to go to China and Europe. Take lots of pics when you go and make sure you post them. Sorry I dont have any suggestions.

[Aaron]

Duh, I'm a retard. I always get my cardinal directions mixed up, sorry.

I checked out the StarAlliance's website and, if the fare information on it is accurate, it would be ~$1,000 cheaper for me to purchase the tickets on my own than to purchase one of their passes. Granted, I would be absolutely locked into a schedule, but I'm the type of person that would create and then follow a schedule regardless.

I'm about to call about the OneWorld pass right now.

Thanks for the tips RE: Frankfurt and Bangkok/Tokyo, I'll check that out.

I re-priced everything last night, going westbound, and this is how it broke down. The prices include fees and taxes. In the interest of saving time on this post, I rounded up to the nearest dollar.

Houston to Los Angeles: $108
Los Angeles to Sydney via Honolulu: $503
Sydney to Bangkok: $646
Bangkok to Budapest: $649

Once I hit Budapest, I'll be using a Eurail pass to get around. That costs a flat $488.

Paris to Newark: $548.03
Newark to Houston via Atlanta: $155.80

Unless I fucked up my math, that comes out to a total of $3,095.95. The quote that I received for a StarAlliance pass was $3,950.

For an eastbound trip, using the exact same stops, I can get to Sydney for $1,822.47... but the cheapest flight back to the United States that I can find is over $800.

[Aaron]

Take lots of pics when you go and make sure you post them. Sorry I dont have any suggestions.

I will. Trust me, Flickr will hate me when I get back.

I just got off the phone with the OneWorld desk and she quoted me a price of $4,100 plus tax! WOW.

[Testm0nkey]

going to asia we left the east coast, LAX, Hawaii, and then i dont think our next stop was till japan.

leaving from japan we stopped somewhere in india, england, newark, houston

[Hartmann]

I would not necessarily use one of the alliance's passes. I would sign-up with one of the airlines (a U.S. one preferably) and book your own travel.

You could do IAH-SYD via LAX on Virgin with SkyTeam (Continental, etc.) and then another from SYD-BKK. Then KLM from BKK to Amsterdam.

I think your best bet is Star or OneWorld though, with leanings to Star so you can use Singapore Air for the far east (otherwise it's EVA Air with SkyTeam).

You will probably rack up about 80k+ miles at least. The flight to SYD will net you about 15k+ all by itself. If you do OneWorld you can fly British Airways everywhere, with AA connections to certain spots. One note, you will be lucky to find anything that goes to SYD through any other airport besides LAX or SFO, though you could do a Tokyo from DFW or O'Hare then hop down to Sydney.

Sorry for the abbreviations... It just makes things easier when you are forced to talk about this stuff all the time.

[Hartmann]

Oh, and study this: http://seatguru.com/

Before you pick your seats... On those long haul flights you'll want a good seat.

[impala454]

i don't know much about international flights, but one piece of advice (that tons of people don't seem to take). get yourself and (if anyone) the others on your trip in your pictures.

[Aaron]

No worries about the abbreviations, I've been using them enough over the past few weeks to price airfare that I almost don't even notice them.

Thanks for the heads up on Seat Guru.

Probably just going to take the plunge and book one of these trips in the next week or so.

[Mommy]

Sorry for the abbreviations... It just makes things easier when you are forced to talk about this stuff all the time.

Its ok. I just think its funny cuz I have to read really slow to understand. Im kinda dumb with this stuff though

[Hartmann]

I would seriously plan out where you want to go in the far east and other places before you get to Europe. That will make it a lot easier to book the flights.

Also, in Europe, it's almost easier (and cheaper) to fly one of the low cost airlines rather than take the train. But, I gather you probably want to see the countryside.

[Aaron]

Yeah, I did the whole RyanAir/EasyJet thing a couple of years ago when I spent a semester in Spain. It was great for buying round-trip tickets for three or four-day weekend jaunts, but I just don't think I want to mess with the hassle that comes with buying a $25 plane ticket (as strange and un-college student-like as that sounds).

I'll still price it out though, just to make sure.

But, yeah, I would like to see as much of the countryside as possible.

[Hartmann]

When you have a list of places you want to go, post it and I'll try to help you as much as I can figuring out flight schedules and stuff.

[jonathan83]

i know some airlines who have mad deals sometimes in the far east.

koreanair and asiana are both korean. several chinese airlines also have some really good prices. when i went from ICN to BKK I flew Thai Air and you're treated like a king.

[Hartmann]

http://gc.kls2.com/cgi-bin/gc?PATH=DFW-NRT...&MAP-STYLE=

Check that out. A potential path... The Tokyo to Beijing may be a little tough but the rest shouldn't be a problem. You may not be able to go straight to Budapest, I'll have to look at Emirates more.

[jonathan83]

How I would schedule the trip is U.S. -> SYD -> BKK -> NRT -> FRA -> Europe. There are some direct flights from Tokyo to Frankfurt and from Bangkok to Frankfurt.

you wouldn't be able to go from BKK to NRT because that's east... probably just a brain fart but i thought i'd mention it so nobody gets confused.

[Hartmann]

you wouldn't be able to go from BKK to NRT because that's east... probably just a brain fart but i thought i'd mention it so nobody gets confused.

No you're right... Not a brain fart, just didn't think about that. He could go NRT-BKK but not the other way around.

[Aaron]

Wow, my own personal travel agency. Seriously, thanks for all of the help and tips guys.

The only two places that I'm absolutely locked into are Sydney and Bangkok. The only reason I've got Hungary penciled into my itinerary is because I'd get the most bang for my buck with the Eurail pass (Budapest, Vienna, Munich, Zurich, Interlocken, Paris). I'd be just as content with Istanbul, Athens, Prague and Barcelona.

But from all of the pricing out that I've done over the past three months, this is the most bang-for-the-buck that I've found.

[jonathan83]

are you going to travel around Thailand or just stay in Bangkok? Let me know if you have any questions about the beaches or stuff there. I was there for my Christmas vacation.

[Aaron]

Was planning on just staying around Bangkok but, because of ticket prices, I might be in Bangkok for four days so I'd definitely be interested in any recommendations you might have for day trips!

[Aaron]

Repriced some flights just now - same ones as before - and decided on buying a different rail pass... total with the rail pass, taxes and fees is $2,325.54... Would enter Europe through London, would leave for Bangkok from Munich.

[Mommy]

****JEALOUS****

[schwab]

i was in munich over christmas time, great place

[Hartmann]

i was in munich over christmas time, great place

One of my top three cities in the world. I have been there a lot and can't get enough of it... Salzburg is the same way.

[Aaron]

Okay, so the flight that I was eyeing from Sydney to Los Angeles just jumped up in price $200, making it around $900. Fuck that.

I've changed my itinerary around, swapping Sydney for Istanbul. It's just too much of a pain in the ass to find a reasonably priced flight out of Australia to the United States.

So: US -> London -> Paris, Bern, Interlaken, Zurich, Munich -> Istanbul -> Bangkok

Not only is this about $100 cheaper than my previous itinerary (even without the $200 price increase factored in), but it will also allow for stopovers in Bahrain, Seoul and Tokyo.

Thoughts on Istanbul?

[schwab]

One of my top three cities in the world. I have been there a lot and can't get enough of it... Salzburg is the same way.

yeah i tend to go there every other year or so...i have a brother living there so its nice to have a free place to stay in downtown area

[Hartmann]

Okay, so the flight that I was eyeing from Sydney to Los Angeles just jumped up in price $200, making it around $900. Fuck that.

I've changed my itinerary around, swapping Sydney for Istanbul. It's just too much of a pain in the ass to find a reasonably priced flight out of Australia to the United States.

So: US -> London -> Paris, Bern, Interlaken, Zurich, Munich -> Istanbul -> Bangkok

Not only is this about $100 cheaper than my previous itinerary (even without the $200 price increase factored in), but it will also allow for stopovers in Bahrain, Seoul and Tokyo.

Thoughts on Istanbul?

My only thought is, who are you flying from Istanbul to Bangkok? A credible airline I hope. I would say do Israel on your way to Bahrain but there are a lot of hoops to jump through once you get that Israeli stamp in your passport (you can ask them to stamp another piece of paper).

Istanbul is a very historic city and there are two worlds to see, the Constantine era and the Muslim influence.

Sounds like a pretty good trip you have planned. Since you're in the area, Singapore from what I've heard is amazing. Sydney can be done for cheaper.... hmm... how were you searching for tickets?

[schwab]

um bahrain? there is absolutely NOTHING in bahrain. I am guessing they stuck you on gulf air...which the airline is fine, they are trustworthy...but if you plan to stop off in bahrain there is nothing... but then again i havent been there in a couple of years, so they might have built something

[Hartmann]

um bahrain? there is absolutely NOTHING in bahrain. I am guessing they stuck you on gulf air...which the airline is fine, they are trustworthy...but if you plan to stop off in bahrain there is nothing... but then again i havent been there in a couple of years, so they might have built something

Hahaha It ain't Saudi... At least that's what the Saudis say.

We told a Saudi company that we would not bring our women trainers to Saudi Arabia and their reply was "ok, we go to Bahrain". The Muslim law is not enforced in Bahrain (as much) and you can drink there.

[Mommy]

Thoughts on Istanbul?

"not Instanbul but Constantinople"



thats my thoughts....that damn song. argh

[schwab]

Hahaha It ain't Saudi... At least that's what the Saudis say.

We told a Saudi company that we would not bring our women trainers to Saudi Arabia and their reply was "ok, we go to Bahrain". The Muslim law is not enforced in Bahrain (as much) and you can drink there.

its not dubai either....bahrain has no touristy places, its just a flat island of dirt

they dont really care what you wear there....my family lived there for a while, i was born in bahrain...but not a place i really want to go to

[Mommy]

its not dubai either....bahrain has no touristy places, its just a flat island of dirt

they dont really care what you wear there....my family lived there for a while, i was born in bahrain...but not a place i really want to go to

Mind me asking why you have traveled so much? Im curious

[schwab]

i grew up in the middle east, dad worked for an oil company

[Aaron]

I'd only be in Bahrain for a couple of hours, so at best I'll go outside of the airport and take some pictures.

I'll be flying Gulf Air from Istanbul to Bangkok.

I've been searching for tickets almost everywhere: Expedia, Orbitz, various airline's websites, etc. I just *cannot* find a way to get from Sydney to Houston on June 13 or 14 for less than a grand.

[Mommy]

i grew up in the middle east, dad worked for an oil company

neat!

[Hartmann]

I'd only be in Bahrain for a couple of hours, so at best I'll go outside of the airport and take some pictures.

I'll be flying Gulf Air from Istanbul to Bangkok.

I've been searching for tickets almost everywhere: Expedia, Orbitz, various airline's websites, etc. I just *cannot* find a way to get from Sydney to Houston on June 13 or 14 for less than a grand.

You will barely be able to leave the airport with only a couple of hours... Between customs, security, etc. it'll be tough. You will have to go through immigration when you get there, then you'll have to go back through when you're leaving.

[Aaron]

Good point.

Considering it's an off-the-beaten path place like Bahrain, and especially because - per Schwab - is so completely void of anything of remote interest, it'll just be neat to say that I've "been there," without having to stay there for any considerable amount of time.

Looks like my brother will probably be going with me, which is pretty neat.

[jonathan83]

I'd only be in Bahrain for a couple of hours, so at best I'll go outside of the airport and take some pictures.

I'll be flying Gulf Air from Istanbul to Bangkok.

I've been searching for tickets almost everywhere: Expedia, Orbitz, various airline's websites, etc. I just *cannot* find a way to get from Sydney to Houston on June 13 or 14 for less than a grand.

try going to the quantas website and maybe there's a deal there.

my australian friend is always saying how expensive flights are to/from australia. Quantas I think is the only major airline in that country?

[Hartmann]

try going to the quantas website and maybe there's a deal there.

my australian friend is always saying how expensive flights are to/from australia. Quantas I think is the only major airline in that country?

United services Sydney direct from LAX but they aren't cheap. Aaron, what about Bangkok to Sydney to Tokyo, then Tokyo to the U.S.?

[schwab]

if you have more than 3 hrs then try

security and customs can take a while (at least in dubai) but coming back into the airport i wouldnt see as a problem

and a random guess is that you will be flying in in the middle of the night (10 pm - 6am) is when most flights depart to and from the middle east

[Aaron]

Aaron, what about Bangkok to Sydney to Tokyo, then Tokyo to the U.S.?

Too expensive. Ironically enough, the cheapest way for me to get from Sydney to Houston would be to fly directly from Sydney to Los Angeles, and then take Continental or Southwest to Houston.

It's actually really bizarre and somewhat confusing, because the flight I'm eyeing from Bangkok to Los Angeles costs $850 and goes THROUGH Seoul and then Tokyo. When I check the price just from Tokyo to Los Angeles, that exact same flight costs $1675.

I just don't get that at all.

[impala454]

so $2300 for all those flights? what are the longest legs? and did you get a business or first class seat for any of them? we have some people in the phillipines and i've heard horror stories about flying to manila on anything but business class.

make sure and let us know how it goes.

[Hartmann]

Too expensive. Ironically enough, the cheapest way for me to get from Sydney to Houston would be to fly directly from Sydney to Los Angeles, and then take Continental or Southwest to Houston.

It's actually really bizarre and somewhat confusing, because the flight I'm eyeing from Bangkok to Los Angeles costs $850 and goes THROUGH Seoul and then Tokyo. When I check the price just from Tokyo to Los Angeles, that exact same flight costs $1675.

I just don't get that at all.

Tokyo-LAX is a heavily trafficked route and is usually booked. Try Tokyo-DFW or even O'Hare.

[Mommy]

Too expensive. Ironically enough, the cheapest way for me to get from Sydney to Houston would be to fly directly from Sydney to Los Angeles, and then take Continental or Southwest to Houston.

It's actually really bizarre and somewhat confusing, because the flight I'm eyeing from Bangkok to Los Angeles costs $850 and goes THROUGH Seoul and then Tokyo. When I check the price just from Tokyo to Los Angeles, that exact same flight costs $1675.

I just don't get that at all.

Sometimes, airlines will run specials for routes that are traveled less.

[Aaron]

Tokyo-LAX is a heavily trafficked route and is usually booked. Try Tokyo-DFW or even O'Hare.

Tried Tokyo to LAX, DFW, ORD, HNL, SFO, SAN, SEA and LAS and all of them were at least $300 more expensive. Grr... stupid cross-Pacific flights.

so $2300 for all those flights? what are the longest legs? and did you get a business or first class seat for any of them?

Actually, when I repriced everything last night, the total I have with the rail pass is $2,193; the airfare by itself is $1,900. But, the way everything has been going, I wouldn't be surprised if those prices are completely shot by this evening.

I've kind of changed my mind on where I'm going to be stopping in Europe. As it stands now, I'll be staying overnight in London, Brussels, Berlin, Vienna, Budapest and Munich.

Anyways, it looks like I'll be booking here within the next few days, so hopefully this will all be done with and I can start focusing on the fun things.

[Hartmann]

Tried Tokyo to LAX, DFW, ORD, HNL, SFO, SAN, SEA and LAS and all of them were at least $300 more expensive. Grr... stupid cross-Pacific flights.
Actually, when I repriced everything last night, the total I have with the rail pass is $2,193; the airfare by itself is $1,900. But, the way everything has been going, I wouldn't be surprised if those prices are completely shot by this evening.

I've kind of changed my mind on where I'm going to be stopping in Europe. As it stands now, I'll be staying overnight in London, Brussels, Berlin, Vienna, Budapest and Munich.

Anyways, it looks like I'll be booking here within the next few days, so hopefully this will all be done with and I can start focusing on the fun things.

Interesting.

What airline? Did you pick an alliance?

Also, have you thought about flying out of Hong Kong or going to Guam before coming back to the states?

[Aaron]

Ack, I forgot to answer Impala's other questions.

1) As it stands now, the longest leg of the trip - and, incidently, most expensive - is the trip from Bangkok to Houston. I would depart Bangkok at 10:45 p.m. on June 13 and wouldn't get into Houston until 5:32 p.m. on June 14; the total amount of "plane time" comes up to be about 22 hours. The longest individual flight of the trip takes place in this leg as well, the flight from Tokyo to Los Angeles would clock in at a shade under 10 hours long.

2) I will be flying economy class throughout the entire trip and riding second-class on all trains.

Hartmann's questions up next...

1) I'll fly Continental to New York, Air India(??) to London, Turkish Air to Istanbul, Gulf Air to Bangkok, Korean Air to Los Angeles and Delta to Houston.

2) I did not pick an alliance because it was way too expensive to justify. Actually, in just looking at airfare, the cost for going with StarAlliance and OneWorld is nearly twice of what I'll probably end up spending.

3) I thought about Hong Kong when I first began thinking of taking a trip like this, but I opted for Bangkok for a couple of reasons. First, my father spent time in both cities back in the day and he said that Hong Kong sucked compared to Bangkok. Secondly, it seems as if staying in Hong Kong (lodging, food, etc.) is a LOT more expensive than Bangkok. I've never thought about going to Guam, is it pretty cool?

[jonathan83]

Tokyo-LAX is a heavily trafficked route and is usually booked. Try Tokyo-DFW or even O'Hare.

NRT-DFW is the same way. I just flew it 3 weeks ago and it was booked solid.

[Aaron]

Booking today, within the next hour or so.

[Aaron]

Booked.

[griseyeux]

high five.

[Hartmann]

Congrats on getting it all booked, sounds like it will be a good trip.

When I said "pick an alliance" what I was trying to say was, pick airlines in the same alliance so that the miles can be used all together, instead of spread out. You'll still have tons of miles, so I suggest signing up for Frequent Flier accounts on U.S. airlines.

[Aaron]

Ah, okay, I got you.

Well, I honestly didn't even think about it because I figured it would be more expensive (and, therefore, not worth it) to find flights within my chosen "alliance" than it would be to just pick the cheapest flights.

Turns out, I didn't realize how broad some of these alliances are.

As it turns out, all but two of my flights are in the Skyteam Alliance, meaning I'll get credit for my flights to from IAH to JFK, JFK to LHR, BKK to LAX and LAX to IAH.

So, basically, I'm going to get credit for about 15,000 (out of about 21,000) miles.

Hartmann, I really appreciate that post because I definitely wouldn't have even bothered checking if you hadn't mentioned it.

[Hartmann]

Ah, okay, I got you.

Well, I honestly didn't even think about it because I figured it would be more expensive (and, therefore, not worth it) to find flights within my chosen "alliance" than it would be to just pick the cheapest flights.

Turns out, I didn't realize how broad some of these alliances are.

As it turns out, all but two of my flights are in the Skyteam Alliance, meaning I'll get credit for my flights to from IAH to JFK, JFK to LHR, BKK to LAX and LAX to IAH.

So, basically, I'm going to get credit for about 15,000 (out of about 21,000) miles.

Hartmann, I really appreciate that post because I definitely wouldn't have even bothered checking if you hadn't mentioned it.

No problem. My suggestion then is to get a Continental, Delta, or Northwest frequent flier account (probably CO since you're in Texas) and make sure that on every segment of your trip that is SkyTeam that your FF # is on your boarding pass. Also, make sure you keep all tickets and boarding passes just in case you do not get credit for a particular segment.

[Aaron]

I actually have a OnePass account from 1993, when I visited Alaska... Thankfully, OnePass miles don't expire, so I was able to confirm that my account is still valid. Of course, all of the information on it is woefully out of date (address, etc.) so I'll have to get that straightened out, but I have plenty of time.

Question, can I just show them my OnePass card when I check in, or should I get that straightened out with each airlines beforehand?

[Hartmann]

I actually have a OnePass account from 1993, when I visited Alaska... Thankfully, OnePass miles don't expire, so I was able to confirm that my account is still valid. Of course, all of the information on it is woefully out of date (address, etc.) so I'll have to get that straightened out, but I have plenty of time.

Question, can I just show them my OnePass card when I check in, or should I get that straightened out with each airlines beforehand?

If you have your reservations online you should be able to add the OnePass number there. I would make sure you have your OnePass card with you though as when you check-in that may be the best way to make sure the number is on there. If you check-in for the flights by going to the ticket counter, they should be able to add your OnePass number right there.

[schwab]

If you have your reservations online you should be able to add the OnePass number there. I would make sure you have your OnePass card with you though as when you check-in that may be the best way to make sure the number is on there. If you check-in for the flights by going to the ticket counter, they should be able to add your OnePass number right there.

main thing is have your account number when you check in.....even if you do it online before. Verify when you check in to every flight that they have your frequent flier membership.

also, if you forget, you have to have the ticket stubs (i believe) to be able to redeem them afterwards...but try not to deal with that by verifying at check in