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People don't like learning "new" airline programs, but ANA has one of some the most generous award chart prices, generous stopover rules, generous routing rules... and yet, it's hardly talked about. The miles are also easy to collect. So may I suggest that it's at least worth learning the basics?
Let me start by saying that you get 4 stopovers. Have I got your attention? Well, I've come to find out that they say "4 stopovers" and really mean 4 stops. It's really 1 destination and 3...
Read moreWhen using United miles, which stop is the stopover and which stop is the destination? And how do you know if the stopover is allowed?
This is combining two concepts from two advanced posts: The Secrets of Award Pricing, the most powerful zones; & United's Real Routing rules and how to get around them.
You see, the key to what makes a stopover or a destination is simply the price.
"Wait... shouldn't the destination determine the price, not the price determine the destination?"
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What is the Caribbean Hopper?
This is a route I came up with to go from the US to a Caribbean island, either for a layover or stopover and then head to a different Caribbean island for the final destination. When going from one island to the other you'll have to route through Panama City and will most likely be offered a 17 hour layover in Panama City.
For 17,500 United miles you can go from your home city to a Caribbean island for <24 hours and then to Panama for...
Read moreWell, I guess there are two things I like about AA's stopover rules but in terms of routing I only like one. The non-routing perk is that you can have stopovers on one way awards. This essentially gives you two stopover awards. However, they are strict in that they only allow stopovers in the North American gateway city. No international stopovers. With United you can book stopovers in seemingly any location on the way to any location. It's awesome. But AA has a stopover in the AA gateway city.
Despite their strict routing rules, the only thing that makes AA...
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