RTW ticket or not? Very lost..

[job]

Hi, I am trying to plan a trip to Europe and am very lost as to what tickets to buy. The final destination is Poland.

Originally it was planned on going SYDNEY -> LONDON then getting one of those discount european airlines to Poland.

Now, people travelling with me wish to make other stops and it has been suggested a Round The World ticket might be the most cost effective?

This is what would be ideal:

Sydney -> Tokyo -> other destination(s) in Europe -> Poland.

Does anyone have any advice at all, we really need the most cost effective way of doing this. Travel will be very roughly late AUG/early SEP returning late SEP.

I found this on FlightCentre:
Flight Centre - Holidays - Fly Round the World

But it seems the offer ends tomorrow and it has no information at all. For under $2,000 including taxes it seems VERY cheap, but no info on how it works I was planning on dropping by a travel agent to enquire tomorrow, is this a good idea?

Any help appreciated!

[QF009]

Sounds good.

Bestflights has similarly priced RTW fares with more info here: Australian Travel Agent : Best Flights - discount travel - Travel Agent Australia

But otherwise, the QF/BA fare allows a stopover in TYO on the way to LON and includes 2 segments from LON to/from most European cities. You can even have an additional stopover in another Asian city on the way home for a modest charge.

Australian Travel Agent : Best Flights - discount travel - Travel Agent Australia

[JohnK]

I guess the most important thing for you is cost rather than FF points or being loyal to an alliance.

I am very sceptical when I see deals like these advertised with little or no detail information. You will find that it probably only includes the very basic itinerary and by the time you add all your destinations the airfare is a lot more than you thought. Give them a call.

Have you tried looking at Bestflights? They sometimes have some good deals where you buy a point to point return airfare and are allowed certain stopovers along the way. Something like SYD-NRT-HEL-WAW-LHR-HKG-SYD, with upto 4 stopovers plus your final destination could cost around $2500. You may need to purchase some cheap side trips to cover any additional stopovers.

[Dave Noble]

"With seven continents"

I must see about making a booking to Antartica with them

If they have an option that will work for you at a good price, then go with it. Give them a call in the morning and see whether it would be applicable. an ATW ticket is likely to be more expensive than a straight round/trip ticket and in that case only worth buying if you really want to go round the world. If you want a r/t to Europe, then an ATW is prob not the best

Dave

[job]

wow, best flights seems like it has some great deals. A lot of info to take in will have to read to see what destinations they offer. I guess it might be hard to have Tokyo as the first stop but I'll have to enquire. Thanks and keep them coming!

[JohnK]

I guess it might be hard to have Tokyo as the first stop but I'll have to enquire. Thanks and keep them coming!

Did you look at the Finnair deals with Qantas and Cathay? Try Fare Number 3!

You can choose to fly from Australia to Bangkok - Hong Kong - Tokyo - Osaka - Nagoya - Beijing - Shanghai - Guangzhou - Delhi or Mumbai* with Qantas or Cathay Pacific.

From Asia you can then take your pick by either flying with Finnair over to Helsinki and onwards to any of the featured cities, or you can fly with Qantas to London.

The main stipulation on this deal is that at least one of the long haul flights from Asia to Europe or vice versa MUST be on Finnair but the other can be on Qantas.

Maximum stay away is 1 year.

You are allowed a total of four stopovers on the journey in addition to your point of turnaround.

Please be aware that flight restrictions apply.

#Please note that for travel to cities in Zone 2 travel is via London only and you will need to purchase extra coupons due to airline routings. These are available from $150.00 each.

Please note that WAW is in zone 1 so last restriction does not apply.

[garyjohn951]

A good link flight is to HK via QF or CX and then finnair HKG to HEL, then a quick flight to Poland. Much better option than LONDON or Japan.

[job]

Did you look at the Finnair deals with Qantas and Cathay? Try Fare Number 3!


Please note that WAW is in zone 1 so last restriction does not apply.

No, I had a quick look at the RTW specials only last night. But what you found seems perfect!

Could you explain exactly what this means

You are allowed a total of four stopovers on the journey in addition to your point of turnaround.

Sydney -> Tokyo -> Oslo -> Warsaw -> Tokyo -> Sydney

Is that trip possible with this (substituting Tokyo on return perhaps) Or does Oslo have to be cut out?

Thanks again.

edit: Oops, just read

From Asia you can then take your pick by either flying with Finnair over to Helsinki and onwards to any of the featured cities, or you can fly with Qantas to London.

That still seems pretty good.

Syd -> Tok -> Hel -> War then what? On the way back do I fly back to Helsinki and through Asia may I choose another city?

[garyjohn951]

From Warsaw you can fly to LON-SIN-SYD if you want, no need to trace your steps.

[job]

From Warsaw you can fly to LON-SIN-SYD if you want, no need to trace your steps.

Fantastic, thanks! Also apologies about the airport abbreviations, I do not exactly fly a lot.