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A Warning on the Latest Qantas “Deal”

The Qantas Red e-Mail just arrived in my box this morning, touting another 2-for-1 special from U.S. airports to Australian airports (no mention of New Zealand).
I have to say, this is possibly the worst deal I’ve seen from Qantas in a long time – check it:
For one week only! Book these amazing deals for 2 on selected Qantas International airfares. Deals are available in Premium Economy to Sydney & Melbourne (where service is available) and International Business to Sydney, Melbourne & Brisbane**.
This great 2-for-1 offer applies to selected International airfares for departures in International Business between 19 April and 31 August 2009 and in Premium Economy between 1 May and 8 June 2009 or between 24 July and 31 August 2009. Each passenger must pay applicable taxes and fees and tickets must be purchased at least 72 hours prior to departure. Child discounts apply to this offer. More Australian destinations available at additional cost.
Here’s what Qantas isn’t saying: If you plunk down for one of these “Specials,” there’s a sneaky surprise waiting for you. You’ll only get 50 percent of your mileage from American Airlines – but from the formerly wonderful folks at Continental Airlines -which boldy lists Qantas as an airline partner, you’ll get zip. Zilch. Nada. Not a single, solitary air mile.
If you look around the Qantas site enough, you can get a decent deal without coughing up your valuable air miles. Don’t fall for this deal. If the airmiles aren’t that big a deal, at least put [...]

A Little Travel-Planning Advice

This is a brief interruption from my usual recap of the Australia trip … but I think it’ll be really valuable for some of you out there planning a trip.
Sarah and I have been working on a trip to New Zealand. We read the book Kiwis Might Fly (which is a tremendously fun read), we saw a Kiwi politician quoted as saying “Whenever a New Zealander leaves for Australia, it improves the IQ of both countries,” and we saw the awesome scenery in Lord of the Rings. With all that going on, how can you not want to see New Zealand?
My first job was to sniff around for flights from Los Angeles. I searched all the airlines, and the prices were pretty grim. I was really hoping for a good Qantas deal since they fly there and we both have nice chunks of mileage there from our Australia trip. And Qantas is a oneworld Alliance member, so that can help with a lot of destinations. But I wasn’t seeing any good deals from any of the carriers headed for Auckland.
Since I was getting deal-desperate, I signed up for the Qantas Red Newsletter. A few days later, boom! A two-for-one special. We’ve booked the tickets.
You really should do the same for any airlines serving destinations that interest you. Wanna go to Germany? Check the Lufthansa Web site and see what’s up (and don’t forget to pack a Speedo). Tahiti? Hit Tahiti Nui and see if they have a newsletter. Interested in [...]

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