Help Me Get From Singapore To Vienna For The SQTalk DO!

[Kyo]

Hi guys/gals!

I hope this is the best forum for this enquiry (since I wasn't able to find a SIN-VIE flight on SQ this was the best I could come up with)

I am seriously considering attending the Whipped Cream Waltz in Vienna DO with all the other cool cats here: http://www.sqtalk.com/forums/showthr...9755#post49755 and have been doing my research carefully, however will need some input to make a smart and informed decision.

Currently planning (SGD$1,981):

Outbound flight: Singapore - Vienna via Bangkok and Zurich Fri. 26.09.2008 20:50 SIN - 06:10 +1 ZRH LX 183 Economy Saver(V)
Sat. 27.09.2008 07:10 ZRH - 08:30 VIE LX 1574 Economy


Return flight: Vienna - Singapore via Zurich and Bangkok (STOPOVER) Tue. 30.09.2008 19:20 VIE - 20:40 ZRH LX 1583 Economy Saver(V)
Thu. 02.10.2008 22:45 ZRH - 18:55 +1 SIN LX 182


I must do the following:
-Stopover in Bangkok on the 1st of October (girlfriend's birthday), which is good since Swiss don't fly on Wednesday from Bangkok to Singapore.
-Stick with a Star Alliance carrier

I must try to do the following:
-Save as much $ as possible whilst attempting a 10k mileage run (to reach TG *S - which I intend to achieve by December this year, so that I can begin a run for 36,000miles in 2009 to hit TG *G)
-Possibility to upgrade to Business Class (not sure if possible with a V-Class booking) on the flight to Europe (since I don't expect Swiss will allow me to fly Business on the way back with two stopovers in Bangkok / Zurich, please correct me if I'm wrong. From checking with the Star Alliance One Way Upgrade Chart (May 08), this should cost me 50,000miles (this, I have)
-Possibility for a one-day stopover in Zurich on the way from Singapore (happy to leave one day earlier if this is so)
-Minimise unnecessary additional days for unnecessary holidaying (as I am planning a major break during December, possibly 3 weeks...)

All help / comments greatly appreciated!

[flo]

Yeah, SWISS would probably be the best option, price-wise. Checked with Austrian and Lufthansa ... probably you are best off flying SWISS. You should get like 13K miles for this run and get TG*S. About the upgrading, i have no clue. Sorry. About the stopover in ZRH: i don't think that would work. Perhaps one of the other ZRH/LX regulars might know this in detail.

Would be great to see you in Vienna

[jjpb3]

Unfortunately, Kyo, Star Alliance upgrades are possible only for Y, B, H fares.

Hope you'll be able to make it to Vienna.

[Kiwi]

The *A mileage upgrade system requires full (or other expensive) fares so is useless in most situations.

[jhm]

Kyo, it would be good to see you again!

As far as your aims are concerned, some of them are incompatible.

For example, "Minimise unnecessary additional days" means that you need to take the most direct route without going via certain places which might make your fare cheaper (and even then, it only becomes worthwhile if you're looking at a business class ticket).

And as we discussed when we all met in SIN, you have a choice between going for status, *G with your chosen programme (Thai ROP) or banking your miles with another FFP where the miles go a lot further (such as BD where the 50,000 miles for an upgrade you mention is enough for a return ticket in F from SIN to certain parts of Europe!).

[Kyo]

Thanks for all the responses. Have had the flu hit me pretty badly today, only just starting to feel better.

Since I can't upgrade the V or L fares to Business (and since the Sleeping position in C is not great anyway, as it's not a lie-flat) - I have been considering to come a day earlier so I don't look like a sleep-deprived donkey (and if I can squeeze a Zurich stopover in, I'd love that).

Currently planning (SGD$1,909) *somehow, it's cheaper!* :

Outbound flight: Singapore - Vienna via Bangkok and Zurich Thu. 25.09.2008 20:50 SIN - 06:10 +1 ZRH LX 183 Economy Saver(L)
Fri. 26.09.2008 07:10 ZRH - 08:30 VIE LX 1574

Return flight: Vienna - Singapore via Zurich and Bangkok (STOPOVER) Tue. 30.09.2008 19:20 VIE - 20:40 ZRH LX 1583 Economy Saver(V)
Tue. 30.09.2008 22:45 ZRH - 18:55 +1 SIN LX 182

florianwagner: Why don't you think the stopover is possible? Is it because it's an L or V fare?

Can anyone clarify if I can do a 1-day stopover in Bangkok (a must) and 1-day stopover in Zurich (not a must)? Is there anyone else flying into Vienna from Singapore?

[flo]

i don't know but does it give you the option if you book online? you might want to call up LX and ask them if it is the same price if you stopover in ZRH. i don't think it's do-able via the LX web mask...

[Kyo]

Yeah, planning to walk into the Swiss office when I get back from Taipei next week to see what can be done. =)

[Kyo]

So I went to the Swiss office yesterday during lunchtime and asked all the questions I could think of. The agent was helpful and immediately reserved the best flight combo she could think of (way below). Some quick answers to my original "I must / I must try to" intentions:

1) Stopovers in either Zurich or Bangkok are out of the question on an L / V ticket. Only possible on paid Business fares. Disembarking the plane before arrival in Singapore and running out Suvarnabhumi airport is also highly frowned upon apparently.
2) No upgrade redemptions possible except (as Kiwi and jjpb3 helpfully pointed out) on Fully Flexible Economy Y.

So anyway, didn't have any time to do any flight booking searches yesterday night due to a huge night out at Clark Quay with our clients, so I started to search 3 hours ago.


I find disheartening news. BIG upset. No more L + V tickets left, Swiss.com now only offers a combination of L + G as the cheapest combination ($2284, which is $375 more than what I last found! ):

Outbound flight: Singapore - Vienna via Bangkok and Zurich Thu. 25.09.2008 20:50 SIN - 06:10 +1 ZRH LX 183 Economy Saver(L)
Fri. 26.09.2008 07:10 ZRH - 08:30 VIE LX 1574

Return flight: Vienna - Singapore via Zurich and Bangkok Tue. 29.09.2008 19:20 VIE - 20:40 ZRH LX 1583 Economy (G)
Tue. 30.09.2008 22:45 ZRH - 18:55 +1 SIN LX 182

To make things even peachier, Swiss.com doesn't allow me to hold my booking request - there is no option for:

"Ticket option: Booking is provisional for the time being " (!!!)


As I mentioned above, the Swiss travel officer was very helpful and did her best to get me a stopover in Bangkok. This was achievable on a combination, iirc, of U and Q fares (5 legs in total now, SIN > ZRH, then ZRH > VIE, then VIE > ZRH, then ZRH > BKK, then BKK > SIN, total price: $2,802):

Outbound flight: Singapore - Vienna via Bangkok and Zurich Thu. 25.09.2008 20:50 SIN - 06:10 +1 ZRH LX 183 Economy Saver(L)
Fri. 26.09.2008 07:10 ZRH - 08:30 VIE LX 1574

Return flight Vienna to Bangkok: Vienna - Bangkok via Zurich Tue. 30.09.2008 20:20 VIE - 21:45 ZRH LX 3559 (Codeshare: OS567 Austrian Airlines) Economy (U/Q, can't recall)
Tue. 30.09.2008 22:45 ZRH - 14:35 +1 BKK LX 182 (U/Q, can't recall)

Return flight Bangkok to Singapore: Bangkok - Singapore Thu. 02.10.2008 15:35 BKK - 18:55 SIN LX 182 (U/Q, can't recall)

In summary: $2802 - 2284 = $518 for the 'stopover'.


"But wait, surely that's not complicated enough, Kyo?" Absolutely right.

Let's assume I'm a mileage whore and don't care about abusing my body clock (I am after all, typing this post out at 2:24AM Singapore Time) and go the full monty by going two entirely separate trips (i.e. SIN > BKK > ZRH > VIE > ZRH (leaving on 29th) > BKK > SIN (arriving on 30th PM) then waiting from 18:55PM to 21:00PM for the start of SIN > BKK (arriving on 30th late PM) > SIN).

In Economy (K) + Economy (Q): Cost = $325. I save $193 and additionally net an additional 1,794 miles. I will most certainly use a lounge visit on Priority Pass while in SIN, maybe at the Ambassador (T3) or Rainforest (T1) lounge.
In Business (Z) + Economy (Q): Cost = $493. I save $25 and addtionally net an additional 2,691 miles. Also, I presumably have a safer way to carry a Viennese Sacher chocolate cake all the way to Bangkok in less than 24 hours for the gf's birthday which means I get brownie points. I also get to lounge in Sats Premier (whoop-de-doo) for 2 hours. Which most probably will be rather underwhelming. Two carry-on pieces means I don't have to go through the rigamarole of collecting luggage whilst looking like Godzilla at 11PM in Suvarnabhumi (VERY tempting, as those baggage handlers sure take their time sometimes on this flight to offload!). I will also ensure complete and utter inebriation with wanton disregard for any alcoholic beverages in the lounge + onboard! It will not be pretty.
In Economy (K) + Business (Z): Cost = $478. I save $40 and still get the same mileage of 2,691 miles. The Sacher cake will have to endure more Economy treatment on the way to Bangkok but I can look forward to carrying all the shopping I've accumulated along the way (if any, since I don't feel like spending $ in Euros dammit) and loading both carry-ons back to Singapore with no hassle.
In Business (Z) + Business (Z): Cost = $645. I don't save a cent and it costs me $127 more, ballooning the cost of my trip to $2929. I will, however accumulate 3,588 miles at the expense of destroying the fundamental goal of trying to save $ on this trip. Utter inebriation (as described above) will also ensue both landside in the TG lounge / onboard the aircraft. Swiss may well ban me from ever flying them again for demolishing all their stocks from SIN / back from ZRH. But that's okay... I will pretend Lufthansa loves me instead.

Of course, I could tell Swiss to check my luggage all the way through to Bangkok, which may well be a possibility...

So, in conclusion, doing things this way, I will end up with 13,673 miles for the first run + minimum 1,794 or 2,691 or 3,588 = 15,467 or 16,364 or 17, 261 miles overall credited in full to a brand new Thai Royal Orchid Account, earning *S immediately, and hopefully not forfeiting any miles in the process (i.e. having anywhere from 5,457 to 7,261 miles towards the begining of reaching *G on TG ROP).

More than likely, because I'm a mileage whore, I do the two runs.

Anyone care to share some in-flight time on any of these legs, please feel free to jump in! (And if anyone is having SKL C or F access at any of these times before, even maybe after, and will save my weary soul, I will throw self-dignity out the window and beg, grovel for access. I may even utilise all my remaining resources to bribe said helper with a Viennese cupcake and/or creampuff. Be afraid.)

Bloody hell, now it's 3AM. I go to bed.

All comments, helpful or otherwise + other suggestions very welcome.

[jhm]

Utter inebriation may also result in denied boarding.

[Kyo]

Utter inebriation may also result in denied boarding.

That's just a chance I'll have to take. Big sunnies may help.

Hey, while I'm at it... - jhm, do you think crediting all this to BD would be better? Or is there any cash+miles / Zone 2 quirk I could exploit anywhere to make this trip more bearable?

[pogonation]

I am rather bored at the moment so had a look at a few options for you....

1) BKK-IST-VIE 26/09/08 depart: 23:25 arrive: 17:30 (10hr stopover in IST)
VIE-IST-BKK 30/09/08 depart: 18:30 arrive: 13:05 (1hr50 stopover in IST)
Economy restricted: S$1574
Then you can add some cheap BKK-SIN flights with tiger (S$206)
Total for trip = S$1780

Not 100% sure if you would earn miles although worth a check.

2) Same itinery except Economy semi flexible: S$2041
Total = S$2247

I think miles earnt for this itinery

3) BKK-IST-VIE 26/09/08 depart: 23:25 arrive: 08:55 (1hr35 stopover in IST)
VIE-IST-BKK 30/09/08 depart: 18:30 arrive: 13:05 (1hr50 stopover in IST)
Full economy flexible fare: S$2419
Total for trip = S$2625

Full miles and I think you would be allowed to upgrade to business using your miles.

4) BKK-IST-VIE 26/09/08 depart: 23:25 arrive: 08:55 (1hr35 stopover in IST)
VIE-IST-BKK 30/09/08 depart: 18:30 arrive: 13:05 (1hr50 stopover in IST)
Full Business flexible fare: S$4184
Total for trip = S$4390

Extra miles earnt for travelling in business and also you can hang onto your miles as there is no need for an upgrade!


EDIT: Whoops just realised you've already booked. Silly me

[Kyo]

pogonation: I'm only booked for the 5-legger - it's not paid for yet, so my options are still wide open (I just thought it'd be smarter to have something solid and not just depend on hopefully getting lucky online).

Via Istanbul - didn't cross my mind to try Turkish Airways? (checking... I only checked with the usual *A suspects, which to me were Swiss, Lufthansa, Austrian and Thai)

I have not been able to find those flights you talked about - which carrier is that?

HOWEVER.. If I adjust my travel patterns slightly and leave two days earlier, I can instead take Turkish Airways (cheaper, and possible stopover in Istanbul, with complimentary tour! Only problem is they don't tell you what class it's on - only that it's one of the 'Saver' options). Cost: 900.41 Euro = $SGD 1,925.37

Outbound flight: Singapore - Vienna via Istanbul Thu. 23.09.2008 23:10 SIN - 06:00 +1 IST TK67 Economy Semi Flexible (Class Unknown)
Wed. 24.09.2008 16:05 ZRH - 17:30 VIE TK1887

Return flight: Vienna - Singapore via Istanbul Mon. 29.09.2008 10:00 VIE - 13:15 IST TK66 Economy Semi Flexible (Class Unknown)
Mon. 29.09.2008 23:25 ZRH - 15:30 +1 SIN TK1884

Mileage Accrued: 5,386 + 779 = 6,165 each way = 12330 in total (assuming 100% mileage

Still good and currently my cheapest option, whilst still allowing me to hit *S on TG ROP.

Even SIN > BKK > SIN in Z (Business) on Swiss after this would still mean $2,570.37 all up.

So, thanks pogonation for suggesting to fly via Istanbul! I will be visiting the Turkish Airways office soon, it seems. Who are also located on Orchard Rd.

Only problem is, this has got me worried (From Thai's ROP website)

For Star Alliance airline booking class codes that earn less than 100% miles flown or are not eligible for mileage accrual click here:

Turkish Airlines (TK)


S/ E/ Q/ T/ L/ U = 50%
G/ V/ W/ O = 25%
P = 0%

[9V-JKL]

Welcome to the world of Mileage Running! Enjoy your trip!

[KeithMEL]

Utter inebriation may also result in denied boarding.

I beg to differ.