beyond travelocity

contrarian travel
instant elite challenge
free stopovers
the all asia pass
alliances
premium travel
alternative routing
surviving Travel
in norTh america
(and Beyond)
By Chris Guillebeau
'' ' '= '

1
SURVIVING TRAVEL IN
NORTH AMERICA
I prefer to avoid U.S. travel in favor of International Travel
as much as possible. The major airlines have become so
poor that I would rather go on a ten hour fight to Asia or
the Middle East than fy from New York to California.
If youre planning a vacation, there are still plenty of places
around the world you can go where youll fnd great value.
(Well cover some of those later.) Its true, though, that if
you live in the U.S. or Canada, there will probably be some
trips during the year that youll need to make for work or
family visits.
Therefore, what should you do during those times? A few
ideas are below.
Budget Airlines vs. legAcy Airlines
Legacy airlines are the traditional big, U.S. airlines,
including United, American, Delta, and Continental, as
well as Air Canada up north. You probably already know
something about alternatives to these airlines, including
budget carriers such as Southwest Airlines and Jet Blue.
Together, those two budget airlines have been the leaders
of the low-cost airfare revolution, and theyre still worth
considering whenever you travel. You can fnd their sites
here:
Southwest Airlines
JetBlue
Most travelers are familiar with the Southwest model,
but there are a couple of other good points about budget
airlines that are not common knowledge.
1) Southwest and JetBlue are not the only
budget airlines.
There are currently more than 20 budget airlines operating
every day in the U.S. and Canada. Destinations and
schedule times vary, but the thing to remember is that these
airlines do not usually show up in travel agency searches
like Travelocity and Expedia.
The reason they do not appear when searching for fights
is usually because they do not pay commission to the
agencies. Therefore, youll need to do some sleuthing of
your own to fnd out which budget airlines operate from
your city.
Heres a few links to get you started:
Spirit
SunCountry
AirTran
Virgin America
Allegiant Air
USA3000
(Perhaps because its relatively new, Virgin America is
winning accolades for its service and overall experience.
Fares are often equal to or lower than other airlines. If you

'' ' '= '

.
can read more and see photos of that experience here.
Unfortunately, most airline lounges in the U.S. arent that
exciting. If you want to experience a truly amazing lounge,
youll need to head over to London. But even though the
U.S. lounges arent quite like Virgins, they can at least be a
peaceful place to have a drink and wait for your fight away
from all the crowds.
But how do you get in? Arent the lounges reserved for
First Class passengers only?
No, not entirely. There are a few alternatives you can use to
get your own spot in a quiet airline lounge in most major
airports. Any of the following strategies will work:
Become an elite member
(see the next section for more info) and the airline will
usually send you a couple of free day passes. Youll still
need to pay for full membership, but youll at least get to
check out the lounge to see if its worth it for you.
Get invited by another member
Most members are allowed to bring at least one guest
without charge, so if you ask someone nicely outside the
door, theyll probably let you in.
Get Priority Pass
This alternative to branded airline lounges ofers generic
lounges in more than 500 airports around the world. (Note:

have a choice among several carriers, Id recommend you

check them out frst.)
2) Even if you dont fy with a budget airline, having
them come to town brings down the fares for other
airlines.
This is called the Southwest efect. Whenever Southwest,
or sometimes another budget carrier, begins operating on a
route previously held by only the legacy airlines, prices tend
to suddenly drop as the larger airlines realize they can no
longer squeeze out as much proft.
Having a variety of choices is always in the best interest of
the consumer, and the airline industry is no exception. This
is why even though Southwest is not my favorite airline, Im
happy to see them expanding their network and leading the
fght against legacy carriers.
How to get Airline lounge Access
In the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse in Londons Heathrow
airport late last year, I deliberately arrived four hours early
before a fight to Tokyo. Thanks to a Frequent Flyer ticket
that cost only $212 including taxes, I had the chance to
enjoy the worlds ultimate airline lounge, which featured
two full restaurants, an enormous bar, an ofce, a library, a
spa, a whirlpool, video games, and a whole lot of other stuf,
all complimentary for those passengers who were fortunate
enough to get in the door.
I even got a free haircut by the same stylist who cuts
Richard Bransons hair whenever he passes through! You
'' ' '= '

be sure to carefully review the airport list before signing up

to see if it will really help you)

Priority Pass
Get a Platinum AmericanExpress
It costs $400 a year (discounts of $50-100 are sometimes
available in the form of statement credits), but this
AmEx will get you in the lounge with Delta, American,
Continental, and Northwest whenever youre fying one of
those airlines. The card also ofers 2-for-1 premium tickets
to most major worldwide destinations.

AmEx Platinum
Buy a yearly membership or a day pass
If all else fails, you can usually pay to get in. The price
ranges from $15 to $50 for a day pass, and since not all
lounges are created equal, be sure to take a look around
before swiping your credit card.
AA cHAllenge to get
instAnt elite stAtus
I recently qualifed for Platinum status on American
Airlines-- even though I wasnt even an AAdvantage
member until a few weeks before qualifying. In fact, I
earned the mid-tier elite status on just one long fight from
Hong Kong to Los Angeles.
The secret is to use AAs little known Gold or Platinum
challenge to quickly earn elite status with much, much less

fying than is normally required. Instead of needing 25,000

or 50,000 fight miles, you can do it with as little as 5,000.
Each of these opportunitiesthe Gold or Platinum
challenge, and the elite gift bonuses that often accompany
the challenges--are free to sign up for, and if you can do any
fying at all on American or OneWorld partners (British
Airways, Cathay Pacifc, LAN Chile, etc.), its certainly worth
your while.
How To Do It:
1) First, get an AAadvantage number if you dont have one.
You can sign up here for free:
https://www.aa.com/aa/AAdvantage/enrollmentAccess.do
2) Next, call AA at 800-882-8880 the month before you
travel with AA or any OneWorld member airline. Tell them
you want to sign up for the elite challenge. Youll have to
specify whether you want the Gold or Platinum challenge.
For the Gold, youll need to fy 5,000 miles in the next three
months; for the Platinum, youll need to fy 10,000 miles.
A Gold challenge costs $100, and a Platinum challenge
costs $200. After you sign up for a Gold or Platinum
challenge, you should receive this email from AA that
contains some important information:
Gold and Platinum Challenge Details
As discussed, we have put you on a Challenge
'' ' '= '

for AAdvantage Platinum membership.

Congratulations and Good Luck!
Here are some helpful tips:
Remember that Challenges are based on
points, not miles, and your goal is 10,000 points
in the three-month period we discussed. If youre
not sure how you earn points, read on. (Thats
why you wanted this email, right?)
Be sure to fy AA (we know you want
to anyway!) since only points earned on
American Airlines, American Eagle and
AmericanConnection fights (including AA
codeshare fights operated by other carriers)
count toward Challenges.
Select fares with high point values. If, for
example, you use Deep Discount Fares, get ready
to fy 20,000 miles because those fares earn
points at half the rate of miles. But if you buy
Discount Fares, the rate is one point per mile and
you can meet your Challenge by fying 10,000
elite-qualifying miles. And if you select premium
fares, you earn 1.5 points per mile and can meet
the Challenge by fying just OK, you do the
math!
Know the point values youll earn for the
booking codes you select. Yes it may look like
alphabet soup, but theres a point to these
codes. In fact, theres anywhere from .5 1.5
points!
Earn 1.5 points per mile when the purchased
fare on your American Airlines ticket is booked in
one of these booking codes: A F P D I J B Y
Earn 1.0 point per mile for these AA booking
codes: H K L M V W
Earn .5 points per mile for these AA booking
codes: G N O* Q** S (sorry, you knew there had
to be an asterisk somewhere)
How can you determine what booking code
is used for the fare youre purchasing? Simply
ask the booking agent, whether thats your
travel agent, corporate travel planner or AA
Reservations representative. Or, even better,
when you book your fights on AA.com, the
Flight Summary screen displays the booking
code in the same column as the cabin booked.
A Challenge is intended for members who are
in a hurry to get to the elite level they desire.
Think of it as a shortcut to the status you would
probably earn on your own during the normal
12-month qualifcation period. Indeed, members
cannot earn their elite status by fulflling a
Challenge two years in a row, so when it comes
time to requalify, please be prepared to meet the
normal criteria. We know you can do it.
'' ' '= '

Now here are those pesky but important

footnotes:
*O -- only eligible domestic fares booked in O
will count
**Q -- excludes transatlantic fares booked in Q
A Couple of Other Things You Should Know:
Only sign up for the challenge when youre going
to be traveling. The challenges start twice a month, so you
dont want to begin too early or too late.
Pay attention to the fne print at the bottom of that
AA email. If you are traveling on a deeply-discounted
Economy fare, it may not be eligible for the challenge. Be
sure to closely check the booking code of any ticket you buy
while youre trying to obtain elite status.
There is yet another bonus when using the AA
challenge: on your qualifying fight (the fight in which
you make Gold or Platinum status), youll get a nice 100%
bonus from AA. Try to make that fight a long one if you
can.
stAtus MAtcHing of otHer Airlines
After you get AA Elite status, you can use it to become
an elite member of other airlines as well. This is because
several airlines will quietly match your elite status once
you have acquired it with another airline like AA.

How It Works
After youre a Gold or Platinum AAdvantage member, youll
get a card in the mail along with a confrmation of your new
status. Youll need to send a photocopy of these items to
the airline(s) youre seeking a status match in.
Write a brief letter ( just one or two paragraphs) explaining
that you hope to begin fying the new airline more, but you
would like them to match the same elite status that you
currently enjoy with AA or another airline.
At the time of this writing, the following airlines were
accepting status match requests most of the time:
Continental, Delta, United, Alaska, Frontier, and
BMI (U.K.)
(American will also do a status match, but usually only for
United fyers. If youve used another program before, you
can just do a Gold or Platinum challenge to achieve status.)
By the way, the status match is an undocumented beneft,
meaning that the airlines can withdraw it any time or deny
the request without giving a reason. Therefore, its probably
smart to avoid saying that you received your AA status
through a challenge.
Think of it as a two or three-for-the-price-of-one deal,
and the one isnt even that difcult thanks to the non-
advertised AA challenge.
'' ' '= '

Also, if youre not able to become an AA elite member but

have elite status in a diferent program, that program will
also help you with a status match request. I focus on AA
here just because the program is so versatile and achieving
elite status is relatively easy.
No matter how you get your elite status match, be careful
you can usually only successfully request a match once
every few years (if not once in a lifetime), and after the frst
year, youll need to re-qualify to maintain the status.
If youll be doing much traveling in the upcoming year, its
great to start of on the right track as an elite member. I hope
to see you in the airline lounge or at the elite check-in desk!
specific issues for cAnAdiAn trAvel
Traveling in Canada is much like traveling in the U.S. Air
Canada is the primary legacy carrier, combined with the
U.S. airlines that ofer connecting service to Europe and
Asia through gateway cities.
The primary budget airline in Canada is WestJet. Like
Southwest, WestJet ofers good, reliable service, usually
at fares less than those from Air Canada. There are a few
other budget airlines that you can check out below:
Air North
Porter Airlines
Sunwing Airlines
Flyglobespan
Air Transat

2
BEYOND TRAVELOCITY:
WHAT I USE
The days of using a real-life travel agent to book most trips
are long over. Agents still fll an important role in more
complicated trips, but for the purposes of discount airfare,
youre almost always better of on your own.
The only question is, where to start? Most people are
familiar with sites such as Travelocity, Expedia, and
Orbitz. All three of these sites are decent places for price
comparisons, but you shouldnt usually end there.
Travelocity
Expedia
Orbitz
The most important thing to understand about these and
other online travel reservation systems is that they are
either owned by travel agents or owned by the airlines
themselves. In other words, they are hardly free of bias,
and you wont always get the best deal by using them
because they actively promote (and demote) particular
airlines based on how much commission they receive when
consumers book.

'' ' '= '

In other words, youll need to go further, and one search

engine to start with is Kayak.com. Kayak is not the last stop
either, but its a good stop.
Kayak
At Kayak.com you can compare airfare using a creative
flter system where you can select your own preferences
including airline, nearby airport, departure or arrival time,
and so on. I use Kayak virtually every day, and overall it is a
superior comparison shopping site than Travelocity et al.
Be aware, however, that almost all of these search engines,
whether agency-sponsored or independent, do a poor job
of listing results from the budget airlines. In those cases,
youll need to remember to go directly to a couple of budget
airline sites to check on your trip at the same time youre
checking from Kayak or the other travel search engine of
your choice.
fArecAst & fArecoMpAre
These three sites provide diferent information that is
sometimes helpful in deciding on your trip. FareCast
attempts to project whether the fares you see now will rise
or fall in the next few weeks (so you know whether you
should buy now or hold out for a price drop). FareCompare
looks at all fights between two cities over a 10-day period
and shows you which days will be cheapest to fy.
(You can use Kayak and other tools to look at a 4-5 day
period, but only FareCompare allows you to stretch it out a

full 10 days, and then shift the beginning and ending range
around to look at even more.)
FareCast.com
FareCompare.com
flyertAlk
If you get serious about fying, you may also want to check
out the FlyerTalk community. Flyertalk hosts a number of
extremely active bulletin boards devoted to each airline, as
well as postings explaining how to maximize your Frequent
Flyer earning. Its a free service that provides great value.
FlyerTalk.com
Some of the most popular forums include:
FT General Forum
FT Mileage Running Forum
FT OneWorld Forum
FT Star Alliance Forum
priceline coMBined witH otHer sites
I also use the services of Priceline.com, which you may be
familiar with, but I use it in a very diferent way than 98%
of their users do. Pricelines unique selling proposition is
Name Your Own Price. Priceline allows travelers to bid
their own price for the airfare or lodging that they want in
a particular destination. If the bid is successful (meaning
if its high enough), Priceline will accept it and book the
traveler on whichever airline and routing is available at the
time.

'' ' '= '

Theres just one problemby not letting consumers know

which hotels or airlines theyll end up traveling with, and
not letting them know much about other successful bids,
Priceline is holding all the cards. If you place a bid with
Priceline under their rules, you may get a good deal, or you
may not. Savvy travelers call it Priceline Roulette, and since
the odds are in Pricelines favor, it pays for you to reduce
them whenever possible.
Thats where sites like BookingBuddy and BiddingforLess
come in. These great sites serve as community forums
where hundreds of other travelers post their successful (and
unsuccessful bids), as well as exactly which airline or hotel
they received for the successful ones.
As you can imagine, this information is tremendously
important, because it efectively lowers the knowledge
barricade that allows Priceline to have such an upper hand.
By knowing the detailed experiences of other travelers, you
can usually get a much better deal.
Here are the links you need:
Priceline
BiddingforLess
BookingBuddy

3
ALTERNATIVE ROUTINGS,
FREE STOPOVERS, AND
UNUSUAL IDEAS
There are a few unusual routings available that most
travelers are not aware of when they search for fights. By
knowing about these options, you can sometimes have a
much more enjoyable experience, and you can also pick up
easy awards seats because these fights are lesser-known.
Here are the most important ones to know about:
New York (JFK) - Frankfurt via Singapore Airlines
When fying to or from Europe, one of the best fights
available, especially in Business or First Class, is on
Singapore Airlines. Singapore? Yes, thats right the Asian
airline has one daily route that fies between the U.S. and
Europe.
Star Alliance elite members are eligible for upgrades,
and everyone on the fight enjoys superb service no
matter where they are sitting. If you have an award fight
opportunity with United and you want to go to Europe, ask
the reservations agent to check availability on this fight.
They wont do it if you dont ask!
'' ' '= '

Los Angeles London via Air New Zealand

Air New Zealand (ANZ) is one of the worlds nicest airlines,
but unless you take the 14-hour fight to Auckland, you
might never know it. Last year, however, they became the
frst airline in history to ofer its own complete Round-the-
World service. They do this by fying non-stop from L.A. to
Londonmaking this a very nice fight to pick up if youre
going to the U.K. or anywhere else in Europe.
New York (JFK) Hamburg via Emirates
Another new alternative that is similar to the Singapore
fight, Emirates now ofers non-stop service between NYC
(JFK) and Hamburg, Germany. The same deal applies this
is a better choice than any U.S. carrier and most European
carriers. Quick transfers are available to fy on to Dubai,
or you can just use the route as your termination point in
Europe.
East Coast to Western Europe via Icelandair
I once few into Reykjavik Airport, Iceland and had to make
a mad dash to a local airport for a connection fight. I
ended up seeing about 45 minutes of Iceland along the way.
Dont do what I did, but do check into deals with Icelandair.
Icelandair fies from Halifax, Orlando, Minneapolis,
Boston, New York, and Baltimore all good cities that are
sometimes underserved with international fights. All
fights land in Reykjavik, but then you can fy on to nearly
15 cities in Europe. A stopover in Iceland is free! The best
part is the price, because fights on Icelandair are usually
less expensive than those on larger carriers.
You should especially look at their vacation packages even
if you dont usually book hotels with your fights. Because
hotels are so expensive in Iceland, it is much better to get
the hotel included for your free stopover in Reykjavik.
free stopovers
One of the favorite tools in my travel arsenal is free
stopovers. Whenever you are traveling on an award ticket,
and often even a paid ticket, you should fully research your
stopover options.
If you thought that a ticket was only valid from one city to
the next, youre often missing out on a very clever loophole.
The loophole will allow you to see more cities, rack up more
mileage, and possibly even save you money even though
you are fying more.
Yes, its paradoxical. But just like with Circle Pacifc fares,
which well get to later, airlines are not usually known for
making sense. You can sometimes arrange a stopover to a
city that is actually nowhere near your intended destination.
Read that sentence again, because it really doesnt make
sense. But on the majority of award tickets, and many
paid tickets, you can often stop over in a city that has no
relation to your eventual destination, and you may even be
able to take extra fights to get there. One of the important
terms to be familiar with is known as maximum permitted
'' ' '= '

mileage. This refers to the limit (yes, there usually is

one) on the number of miles you are allowed to fy on one
ticketbut this same limit often allows you to get a free
stopover in a completely diferent location.
I have personally used this strategy several times with Delta
award tickets from Europe. While fying to or from Brussels,
Paris, or Amsterdam, I have been able to visit friends
and family throughout the United States after beginning
my awards trip. Even though Delta fies to Europe via
Atlanta and New York, Ive also visited cities like Nashville,
Washington D.C., and Miami as part of the same award with
no additional fee.
Even better, because a lot of my overseas award travel is in
Business Class, Delta automatically upgrades me to First
Class for the extra domestic fights. Its like a truly free First
Class ticket.
You probably think it couldnt get any better than that, but
actually it does. The stopover (I use quotes because its
really like a separate trip) does not always need to be done
within a few days of either side of the trip. A couple of years
back, I wanted to fy to Seattle from the East Coast before
going back to Europe. Even though Seattle was all the
way on the West Coast, and pretty much as far away from
Atlanta as you could get, Delta approved the free fight. The
timing for the extra fight was more than a month after I had
landed in the U.S. (on the frst leg of the international ticket,
from Europe) and several weeks before I would return.
I few to Seattle in First Class, transiting through Atlanta
airport just as I would a few weeks later on the way back.
Does that sound like a stopover to you? Probably not, but
the airlines will often consider it that way.
The free stopover strategy works with more than just Delta.
I used similar routings with a United ticket earlier this year
and will be doing the same with a Continental ticket in
later on in the fall. The next time you plan a trip, be sure to
check into stopover opportunities it can literally help you
save hundreds of dollars.

Less-than-free HAWAII Stopover
This option is also exciting. It is possible to fy from the
East Coast to the West Coast (either Canada or the U.S.) in
First Class and get a less-than-free Hawaii stopover as part
of the same trip. In other words, it will be cheaper for you to
take the Hawaii stopover than to avoid it.
Im grateful to Matthew Bennett at First Class Flyer for frst
analyzing what he calls the Hula Loophole by using this
example:
On a fight from Boston to Los Angeles, the published First
Class fare on American is $1608. However, the Boston-
Honolulu fare is $1434 less than the fight to L.A., and the
fight to Honolulu allows a stopover anywhere in California.
This particular stopover requires a fee of about $50, but
even with the fee, the fare is still more than $100 cheaper
than the direct fight. You can think of it as American
Airlines paying you $100 to take an extra trip to Hawaii.
Not bad, huh?
'' ' '= '

4
CONTRARIAN TRAVEL
In short, contrarian travel refers to traveling against the
crowds or traditional wisdom. You can go to popular
destinations during unpopular times, or lesser-known
destinations anytime. The ironic thing about traveling
this way is that while youll almost defnitely save money
by going against the tourist fow, youll also likely enjoy
yourself much more too.
Instead of going to the Bahamas, try St. Kitts & Nevis or
Dominica for two great, lesser-known Caribbean spots.
Instead of Paris, London, or Rome in the summer, try
visiting any of them in the winter.
Instead of Singapore, take a 30 minute bus ride and head
up to Malaysia for a more authentic Asian experience. (You
could also head over to Indonesia by ferry.)
Instead of Las Vegas, keep your money. But if you really
want to gamble, at least head to an American Indian casino
where the profts go to education on the reservation.
You get the idea, so consider applying it to the next trip you
end up planning. I am a big fan of contrarian travel, and I
hope it helps you as well.
overlAnd trAvel
While this report focuses on discount airfare, I also
recommend traveling overland as much as possible.
Youll get a better experience most of the time (and when
overseas, overland travel always guarantees youll be a part
of the local culture), and usually save money.
The key phrase is usually, because the new budget airlines
in Europe and Asia (more on that soon) have lowered
prices in some cases to be a lot less than taking the train.
In Europe especially, trains are not the bargains that many
people assume.
Otherwise, though, overland travel is a great alternative to
fying. I like to fy into one country or region of a country,
then travel overland for a couple of days en route to another
city. I fy out of the second city using an open-jaw ticket,
which does not usually cost more than a simple round-trip
ticket, and Ive been able to see far more of the country and
meet local people much easier thanks to the overland travel.
These resources are helpful when planning overland trips:
EuroLines.net
Busstation.net
BusAbout.com
RailEurope.com
Europe for Visitors
India Rail Guide

'' ' '= '

.
Dont forget about ferries, eitherthere are some great
ferry trips throughout Scandinavia, Southern Europe, and
Southeast Asia. The best bet for fnding ferry schedules
is to use Google to search for the name of the city you are
interested in followed by ferry schedule.
free rentAl cArs?
One side note before we get back to discount airfare. If
youre up for driving across the U.S., or between any two
major cities, you may be able to get a free rental car. Auto
Driveaway, a service that helps move private vehicles
around the country, has cars in many cities that need to be
driven to faraway distances.
AutoDriveaway
There are a few restrictions to be aware of:
You must be at least 23 years of age with a valid
drivers license. Foreign travelers are allowed to use the
service with a passport and a valid exit visa.
A refundable security deposit of approximately
$350.00 is required (check with the specifc ofce that you
end up driving for to get the exact amount and acceptable
methods of payment.)
You will be allocated a certain number of days and
an appropriate amount of miles to complete your trip.
(On the bright side, youll also receive the first tank of
gas free of charge.)

A current MVR (motor vehicle drivers record) for

ALL drivers will be needed when you arrive at the ofce to
pick up the vehicle. If you do not have a MVR, one can be
generated in the ofce for a small fee.
Foreign travelers must bring a current Motor Vehicle
Record from their home country.
For more information about how this works, check with
Auto Driveaway.
5
SURVIVING EUROSHOCK
IN EUROPE
Euroshock is the phenomenon of losing a great deal of
money upon exchanging dollars for euros or pounds. No
one has died of it (yet), but a lot of travelers have gone
broke. To make sure it doesnt happen to you, you have a
few options:
Stay out of Western Europe
Stop eating
Sleep on the street, or perhaps in an airport

'' ' '= '

If those arent too appealing (oh, why not?), there are a

couple more serious things you can try:
Arrange alternative accommodation
As of summer 2008, the average London hotel price was
more than $300 a night. OuchI try to avoid that whenever
possible. A future report will look at accommodation
in more detail, but for now, I recommend you look at
guesthouses, hostels, universities (this is a great ideathe
London School of Economics usually ofers cheap summer
rooms, for example), shared housing, and even couchsurfng
if you can handle it.
Here are a few resources to help with that:
Homelink
HospitalityExchange
Couchsurfng.com

flying witHin europe
If there is any good news about Europe these days, its that
once you get there, you can still travel cheaply from place to
place just dont take the train.
Train voyages are the traditional approach to European
travel, but for better or worse, they dont really make as
much sense as they used to. It may be nostalgic to take the
train, but you can usually get around quicker and pay a lot
less money by choosing to fy on a discount airline.

Unlike the U.S. and Canada, where there are only three
major discount airlines and a few smaller ones, Europe
is teeming with discounters. At last count, more than 80
carriers ofered regular international fights throughout the
European Union and to outlying countries as well. For the
most part, youll experience good service, or at least service
that is no worse than what youre used to anywhere else.

In some cases, fying on discount airlines can be extremely
cheap. Promotional fights are frequently ofered for only
pennies (or a euro or two), plus the cost of taxes, which are
usually around $25-40. Most of the time, it doesnt work out
quite that well, but you can still fy for a lot less than taking
the train.
Some of my favorite European discount airlines are listed
below:
BMIBaby
EasyJet
AirBerlin
SkyEurope
AirBaltic
Condor (also has fights to North and Central
America)
Another classic carrier is RyanAir, which has a ton of fights
throughout the continent. To be honest, though, I dont have
a great opinion of RyanAir. Id take them if I had no other
choice, but frst Id spend a lot of time looking elsewhere.

'' ' '= '

Dont stop at the links aboveyou can see a full list at the
great web site AttitudeTravel.com. Attitude Travel lists
virtually every discount airline, and you can search for
specifc destinations or see route maps refecting your own
interests.
Attitude Travel - Europe
tHriving in eAstern AlternAtives
You can combine the European discount airline strategy
with the strategy of contrarian travel, or staying in less-
visited places. Be aware, however, that Eastern Europe isnt
as cheap as it used to be. If you want super-cheap, youll
need to skip most of the continent and head elsewhere.
But as prices have put Western Europe across the charts,
Eastern Europe is still a lot more afordable if you go to the
right places.
By way of general recommendations, Ive found that
Slovenia, Hungary, and Macedonia are a few incredible
places you can visit where tourist standards are high but
prices are a bit lower than most of Western Europe. If you
can handle a bit of adventure (nothing too serious), then I
recommend you also check out Bosnia and Albania.
Scandinavia is extremely expensive, along with the cities of
London, Dublin, Paris, and Rome. Slightly more afordable
are Amsterdam, Brussels, most German cities, and most
Spanish cities. In almost all European countries, if you can
get away from the capital and travel to a second or third city
somewhere in the interior, youll end up saving a lot as well.
6
ACROSS THE PACIFIC
TO THE WORLDS
BEST AIRLINES
If youre headed to Asia, the fun begins on the fight over.
Asia has most of the worlds best airlines, including Cathay
Pacifc, ANA, and Singapore Airlines. These three airlines
are renowned for the fantastic service they provide to
travelers in any class. Expect multiple choices for meals,
complimentary cocktails, 30+ movies you can watch on
demand, and moreeven when youre seated at the back of
the plane.
The U.S. carriers also fy to gateway cities in Asia, but do
yourself a favor the next time you head over that way: make
sure you reserve a seat on one of the Asian carriers. Even
the second-tier carriers usually beat U.S. standards hands-
down. (The only exception to the rule of outstanding
service, at least for now, is most Chinese carriers. I prefer to
fy on any other Asian airline before I travel with Air China
or China Airlines.)
discount Airlines
Once you arrive in one of those gateway cities (typically
Bangkok, Tokyo, Singapore, or Hong Kong), the good fying
doesnt have to stop. While its often cheaper to book your
fnal destination on the original airline you few in (as long
'' ' '= '

as the two tickets are connected to one itinerary), if your

plans are fexible or youre visiting more than one place,
you are in luck. Just as the classic Asian airlines beat the
traditional U.S. airlines in every category, Asian discounters
also set the standard for the rest of the world.
You can go virtually anywhere in Asia on the discounters,
even of-the-grid spots such as Burma (Myanmar), Brunei,
or anywhere in Indonesia.
I personally like these Asian carriers and frequently
recommend them to other travelers:
Tiger Airways (Singapore)
JetStar Asia (Singapore)
Bangkok Airlines (Thailand)
JAL Express (Japan)
In India, I had great experience from both Kingfsher and
Jet Airways recently:
Kingfsher Airways
Jet Airways
But just as with the European discounters, dont stop
at my listthere are many more options. Head over to
AttitudeTravel.com whenever you travel, and theyll have an
updated list waiting for you:
Attitude Travel - Asia

AsiAn AlternAtives And

tHe All AsiA pAss
As with most of the world, if you can head out of the
most-traveled spots in Asia and on to the lesser-visited,
youll have a better experience and also save money. I
recommend spending time in Malaysia, a great place
that is often bypassed for Thailand or Singapore, and the
Cambodia / Laos / Vietnam subregion, another place that
is relatively easy to travel in and also more afordable than
surrounding areas.
Speaking of Malaysia, if youre looking to head to Asia for
one fun and well-rounded trip, you may want to check out
the All Asia air pass produced by Cathay Pacifc. A while
back, Malaysia Airlines produced an AccessAsia air pass
that ofered North American travelers the chance to fy into
Asia (in this case, Kuala Lumpur) and then head out to fve
or more cities over the next few weeks as part of the same
ticket.
Malaysias pass has been suspended (hopefully
temporarilywell see), but Cathay Pacifc started its own
Asia pass called All Asia.
You can read more about it here:
http://www.cathayusa.com/ofers/allasiapass/subdefault.asp
For just $1199, you can now fy from Los Angeles, San
Francisco or New York to Hong Kong and up to 4 other
destinations within 21 days. Its not as good as the original
'' ' '= '

passes which did not restrict the number of fights you

could take, but its still a nice deal. As part of the basic pass
(the $1199 one), you can go to any of these great cities:
Bangkok
Busan
Cebu
Denpasar
Fukuoka
Ho Chi Minh City
Hong Kong
Kota Kinabalu Jakarta
Kaohsiung
Karachi
Kuala Lumpur
Manila
Nagoya
Osaka
Penang
Phuket
Phnom Penh
Sapporo
Seoul
Singapore
Surabaya
Taipei
Tokyo
You can also add-on many other cities by paying a bit
more, and the pass is fairly fexible if you need to make
changes along the way. The only thing I dont like about

passes like this is that they dont allow you to earn Frequent
Flyer miles while traveling on them. Thats too bad,
because heading to Asia and back always involves a lot of
fying hours, and I like to earn the miles. But for the price
and available options, you cant complain too much.
7
PREMIUM TRAVEL
Most people who are looking for discount airfare are
naturally looking for Economy (Coach) seating. After all,
if you can aford to pay $3,000 or more for a plane ticket,
youre probably not concerned about saving a couple of
hundred bucks.
However, there are a few things about Premium Airfare
you may want to be aware of. Premium Airfare does not
mean only First Class; its usually broken down into First,
Business, and Premium Economy classes. (Not all fights
will have all these sectionsin fact, more and more airlines
are moving to a two-class confguration of Economy and
Business only.)
I have the following general recommendations for premium
tickets:
'' ' '= '

Premium Economy can be really nice, for much

less than Business Class fares. Virgin Atlantic, Air New
Zealand, and British Airways all other excellent Premium
Economy cabins. Several other airlines, at least the major
international ones, are following suit and creating this new
class of service.
Book premium tickets far in advance to get
substantial discounts, because most business travelers book
on short notice when the fares are much more expensive
The benefts of premium travel extend beyond the
nice wines and comfy seats. Premium tickets are almost
always changeable without fees, and many are fully
refundable up until the day of travel
Booking travel in premium classes is often much
cheaper outside the U.S. and U.K. (But watch out for
India, which imposes a hefty luxury tax that negates the
discount)
Many of the passengers fying in Premium cabins
have not paid full-fare for the privilege. I have fown in
Business class many times on a lot of long-haul routes, but I
have never paid much more than Economy prices.
Airlines do discount Premium fares just as they do
Economy fares, but they tend to be quieter about the fare
sales. To snif them out, youll need to visit the airlines
web sites directly on a regular basis, or pay attention to the
respective airline boards in the FlyerTalk community.

upgrAde tips
The most commonly-asked question about travel is usually,
How can I get upgraded?
Well, I have good news and bad news on that subject. The
good news is that I do have the answer; the bad news is that
its not that easy. As airlines have tightened up on a lot of
things, upgrades have become extremely tight as well. If
you are not a premium or elite traveler, it is very hard to
receive a complementary upgrade without a good reason.
And no, dressing up and asking nicely is not usually a good
reason, although you can still try it (it does work from time
to time, but not that often).
However, as long as you keep your expectations low, there
are a few good things you should know:
Upgrades are sometimes assigned systematically,
sometimes arbitrarily, and sometimes not at all. The
systematic ones are based on a computer algorithm that
factors in your Frequent Flyer status with the airline along
with other variables
There are several links in the chain where upgrades
can be assigned. The most common is at the gate, and
agents try to steer would-be upgraders that way, but they
are sometimes pre-assigned in advance over the phone and
at check-in

'' ' '= '

If youve been bumped from a fight, experienced

weather delays, or anything unusual, this automatically puts
you in the Ir-Ops (for Irregular Operations) category with
the airline, which can dramatically help you in the upgrade
shufe
Many discounted tickets that Economy travelers
purchase, as well as virtually all Awards tickets, are
ineligible for upgrades. To get in the upgrade game at all,
you cant have one of those
Even if you are only fying a foreign airline once, you
should always be a member of its Frequent Flyer program.
For some reason I dont understand, many people never join
Frequent Flyer programs, so by simply flling out a form and
getting a card that you may end up throwing away, youre
ahead of the crowd.
If you have access to an airline lounge (see the
second section of the report), lounge agents are often more
senior and have more authority to improve your seats. Even
if you cant score an upgrade, you can usually get an exit
row or front-row Economy seat

8
FARAWAY PLACES
Most readers of this report will be planning short trips
within North America, or perhaps longer trips to Europe
and Asia. Therefore, I wont include much content about the
rest of the world, but in case youre planning to go further,
heres a few specifc tips.
AfricA
I lived in West Africa for four years, and have traveled
throughout many countries in East and Southern Africa as
well. I love Africa, but traveling there is usually expensive
and can sometimes be difcult as well. Your best bet
is usually fying from Europe directly to the capital of
whatever country you are headed to, although South African
Airways, Kenyan Airways, and Ethiopian Airlines do
provide good connecting service.
Fares are expensive, usually beginning at $1500 from
Europe or North America, and going up to as much as
$2500 for round-trip Economy travel. Whenever I travel
back to Africa, which is usually at least once a year, I avoid
this high cost by using an Awards Ticket (taxes are usually
less than $150) or by incorporating the continent into a
Round-the-World trip Im already taking.
If youre traveling in Africa, youll also likely need a yellow
fever card, or any proof of being immunized from yellow
'' ' '= '

fever. This is usually only checked at land crossings, not

in airports, but once in a while an official will ask for it
upon arrival.
lAtin AMericA
More than anywhere else in the world, almost every Latin
American airport requires departing passengers to pay an
airport tax of about $20 that is not included in your ticket
even if other taxes are.
Copa Airlines provides good service throughout Central
America. You can also take the bus from country to country,
which is super-cheap and safe. (Well, mostly safe.)
AustrAlAsiA And soutH pAcific
Its not as remote as Africa, but Australasia (especially
Australia and New Zealand) takes a long time to get to and
fares are usually high. You can reduce the fares by picking
up the great AussieAir pass from Qantas Airlines, which
allows you to visit Sydney or Melbourne plus three domestic
fights after you arrive.
The price changes from time to time, but you can often
get it for about $1099, which is a great deal since tickets to
Australia can sometimes climb up to $2,000 without any
free fights once you get there.
Read the details here:
Qantas Airpass
For travel in the South Pacifc, youre best of getting there
from Hawaii on one side or New Zealand on the other.
Fares are expensive, but can be reduced a bit by using a
South Pacifc travel pass in conjunction with an arriving
fight to the region.
9
ROUND-THE WORLD &
REGIONAL PASSES
A Round-the-World trip is the pinnacle of worldwide
travel. Since the time of Phileas Fogg, travelers have
spent countless hours planning their Round-the-World
adventure. Its now easier than it ever has been, and even
fairly afordable, if you know how to plan. The frst decision
youll need to make is whether you use an airline alliance
to book the trip, or if you strike out on your own and book
individual tickets to and from each destination. Weve got
both options covered, along with a few important tips.
The One World Explorer fare, available from any OneWorld
airline alliance member, was the frst great Round-the-World
option that allowed travelers to visit a ton of great cities
on every continent. Star Alliance followed it up with a nice
Round-the-World product of its own.
'' ' '= '
.
If youve curious about how Round-the-World trips work, I
recommend that you download the Star Alliance Mileage
Calculator for an addicting immersion to world travel.
You can get it for free by using Google to search for Star
Alliance Mileage Calculator or by following the resource
links on the Star Alliance web site:
Star Alliance Mileage Calculator
This amazing tool lets you plan out an imaginary (or real)
Round-the-World trip. I have probably spent at least 40
hours with this tool, creating dozens of itineraries. Most of
them I will never travel on, but it is fun to dream and I do
use portions of the itineraries for other trips and research.
Among other benefts, the Mileage Calculator allows you to
check on every Star Alliance fight in the world. This is very
helpful when you have multiple options with one airline
group like the Star Alliance. By using this tool, Ive been
able to pick fights that are more likely to ofer upgrades,
and it also saved me from fying overseas on United once
when another routing was available on Asiana (a much
better airline that is based in Korea).

If you dont want to use a Star Alliance or One World round-
the-world ticket, you can also strike out on your own. In
fact, if you Google round-the-world travel, this will likely
be the frst (and sometimes only) option youll see.
Numerous consolidators specialize in RTW travel,
stringing together tickets on numerous airlines to create
a customized itinerary for you. Some of the consolidators
with a good reputation are listed below:
Airtreks
Bigworldtrips
Airbrokers
When I was frst interested in Round-the-World travel many
years ago, I always assumed I would end up booking the
trip the old-fashioned way by using one of these brokers.
Over time, however, I have come to believe more and more
in using a Star Alliance or OneWorld ticket. They ofer
greater fexibility, better benefts, many more fight options,
and depending on where you depart from, can be cheaper
as well. Consider both options and make the choice that is
best for you.
circle pAcific &
single-Airline pAsses
In my frst year back in the U.S. after four years overseas
(2006), I was able to get a great deal on a fall trip to several
destinations. Booking a trip to Asia, I ended up paying less
than the average price of a ticket to my initial destination
(Hong Kong), and received three free stopovers throughout
the region as well.
Thanks to some creative ticketing, I went to Vietnam,
Singapore, and even New Zealand before fying back to
San Francisco to end my journey. The funny thing is that

'' ' '= '

.
you can actually fy to more places for less money, and the
airlines are happy for you to do it.
The secret? Using a little known booking called a Circle
Pacifc fare. For reasons that make sense only to the
airlines, you can often fnd great value in booking an
international trip as a Round-the-World (RTW) or regional
pass such as this one. Regardless of which class you fy in,
youll likely save a lot of money.
When I booked the ticket, I asked the agent at Star Alliance
if she did many Circle Pacifc bookings. Hardly any at
all, was her reply. Apparently most people dont realize
the huge savings (not to mention extra stopovers) they can
realize by booking a ticket this way.
It doesnt make sense, but since when did the airlines make
sense? The next time you fy overseas, you can visit two or
three times as many places for less than the price of visiting
one... and the airlines will thank you for it.
Visit each of the airline alliances to learn more about
various Circle Pacifc and Round-the-World options:
Star Alliance
OneWorld
SkyTeam
The next best thing to a Round-the-World or Circle Pacifc
trip on an airline alliance is a one-airline pass. Several of
these exist, but they often make it difcult to fnd. Here are
a few of the better ones that I recommend:

sAs visit scAndinAviA pAss

The pass from SAS is valid only when you fy across the
Atlantic with them but thats not bad news, because SAS is
a comfortable airline with relatively cheap fares. In addition
to major East Coast cities, they also fy non-stop from
Chicago and Seattle.
The great deal with the Visit Scandinavia pass is that
you can buy up to six fights valid anywhere in Denmark,
Norway, and Sweden for just $110 each (at press time).
Flying in Scandinavia or actually, doing anything
in Scandinavia is usually super expensive, so this is
defnitely the deal to go for if youre headed to the region.
Be sure to bring your credit card for the restaurants, though.
I once spent $24 on a medium-sized, takeout pizza in
Denmark! To get the pass, call SAS directly at 800-221-2350
from within the U.S. or Canada.
soutH AMericA Air pAss
witH lAncHile
This fare by OneWorld relies on its star airline in the
region, LanChile, and the hub of Santiago (airport code
SCL). Prices are charged on a zone system with a minimum
of three fights and no maximum.
You can buy the Visit South America pass through any
OneWorld airline, including LanChile, British Airways,
American, or others. Prices are standardized, so if youre
in the States or Canada, its probably easiest to book with
American. You can reach them by phone (after holding for
a while!) at 800-433-7300.
'' ' '= '
..
Air cAnAdA unliMited trAvel pAss
Air Canada sells an Unlimited Travel pass on a 3-month and
6-month basis. Before you get too excited, pay attention to
these details:
Prices vary depending on class of service and
whether you want full North American travel rights or only
Eastern or Western Canada (it starts at $2100 for three
months).
When fying the Latitude class, you'll get
complimentary upgrades confrmed 24 hours prior to
departure and free access to the nice Maple Leaf lounges.
If you don't mind restricting your fight days to 4 per
week, you'll get an additional discount.
When you enroll in the six-month subscription at
the Latitude fare level, you'll get immediate top-tier Elite
frequent fyer status and receive 15,000 frequent fyer miles
monthly. Travelers enrolled in the Tango Plus unlimited
pass receive 10,000 frequent miles per month.
Unfortunately, no other Frequent Flyer miles are
accrued when traveling on the pass, so you can't do a big
"mileage run" to load up your account.
To learn more about the pass and get your unlimited ticket
to ride, call Air Canada at 888-247-2262 and ask for the
North America Unlimited Pass.

Alternatively, check out the Air Canada site:

Air Canada
(From the home page, click on Discover our fight passes
on the left-hand side.)
Finally, there are many other Air Passes available that cover
destinations from Africa to New Zealand and everything
in between. For a comprehensive directory, visit the site
below and click the links on the left-hand side to view many
diferent options:
AirTimeTable
Im still dreaming of a worldwide pass that gives the same
privileges. As soon as it arrives, you can be sure Ill be the
frst to pick it up.