Slightly based on the game "guess the cheapest flight", however still different. I'll explain.

This time it's not about the cheapest flight, it's about how you would fly. Imagine it's you that needs to get from X to Y on a given date, what choices would you make and how much do they cost? And as a bonus (not obligued), what choices do you guess the person posting above you (the one that specified X and Y) would make? Other differences is that it doesn't have to be on one ticket, self-transfers are allowed if you would do that in real life too. Also you're allowed to pick alternative airports (within reason). For example X is given Amsterdam and Y is given Y is given Venice you're allowed to say you'd fly Ryanair Eindhoven to Treviso. After all, there is a bus connection between Amsterdam and Eindhoven airport and there is a bus connection Venice to Treviso airport so you're fine. Alternatively you're also allowed to just say KLM Amsterdam to Venice if that's how you would get from X to Y. Also, dates are allowed to be either return (two dates given) or one way (one date given). X and Y are allowed to be airports or off-airport locations. In case of off-airport locations, all airports within the catchment area of that location are valid options. Again, it's about how you would get from X to Y.

Example:
X = Nijmegen, Netherlands
Y = Scranton, Pennsylvania, USA
Date = May 12, 2018 one way

My answer:
Ryanair Eindhoven - Dublin € 28,55
Norwegian Dublin - Newburgh € 140,13
Total € 168,68

First one:
X = London, UK
Y = Warsaw, Poland
Date = April 22, 2018 outbound, April 29, 2018 return

I'm afraid I'm going to give you a sarcastic answer, in keeping with your flying to reasonably attractive city 100 miles away from the dump you listed as the destination and providing no way or reason to go to the place you originally listed:

PatrickZ80 wrote:

Slightly based on the game "guess the cheapest flight", however still different. I'll explain.

First one:
X = London, UK
Y = Warsaw, Poland
Date = April 22, 2018 outbound, April 29, 2018 return

I'd fly LO LHR-WAW-ARN, which LOT's website prices at $197.69, then ARN-WAW-LHR ($159.44). Both flights include long layovers at WAW (more than 6 hours one direction and 10 the other) so I could technically visit Warsaw on both days and comply with the spirit of your game more than your own example did, and then I could spend a week someplace I'd actually want to go, whether or not I actually stayed in Stockholm proper.

Given your previous answer, you'd probably fly from Paris to Berlin. No, I'm not posting another.

I nearly fell out of my chair when I saw the prices on this one...

Wizz Air Luton - Warsaw (Chopin) $26
Ryanair Nowy Dwór Mazowiecki (WMI) – Stansted $18
Total: $44 = €35

Next one:
X = San Francisco, CA, USA
Y = Bhavnagar, Gujarat, India
Date: April 27th, 2018 one-way

IADCA wrote:

I'm afraid I'm going to give you a sarcastic answer, in keeping with your flying to reasonably attractive city 100 miles away from the dump you listed as the destination and providing no way or reason to go to the place you originally listed:

PatrickZ80 wrote:

Slightly based on the game "guess the cheapest flight", however still different. I'll explain.

First one:
X = London, UK
Y = Warsaw, Poland
Date = April 22, 2018 outbound, April 29, 2018 return

I'd fly LO LHR-WAW-ARN, which LOT's website prices at $197.69, then ARN-WAW-LHR ($159.44). Both flights include long layovers at WAW (more than 6 hours one direction and 10 the other) so I could technically visit Warsaw on both days and comply with the spirit of your game more than your own example did, and then I could spend a week someplace I'd actually want to go, whether or not I actually stayed in Stockholm proper.

Given your previous answer, you'd probably fly from Paris to Berlin. No, I'm not posting another.

Let's say you have someone at either end to take you to the airport and pick you up, however that someone is not going to drive insane distances for you so keep it reasonable.

Given your answer, I'm not sure why you're connecting in Warsaw to get to Stockholm given that Warsaw is supposed to be you destination. Stockholm isn't mentioned anywhere. Question is how you'd get from London to Warsaw and back on those dates. If during that week you also want to visit Stockholm, fine, but that's not part of the game.

First one still stands.

PatrickZ80 wrote:

IADCA wrote:

I'm afraid I'm going to give you a sarcastic answer, in keeping with your flying to reasonably attractive city 100 miles away from the dump you listed as the destination and providing no way or reason to go to the place you originally listed:

PatrickZ80 wrote:

Slightly based on the game "guess the cheapest flight", however still different. I'll explain.

First one:
X = London, UK
Y = Warsaw, Poland
Date = April 22, 2018 outbound, April 29, 2018 return

I'd fly LO LHR-WAW-ARN, which LOT's website prices at $197.69, then ARN-WAW-LHR ($159.44). Both flights include long layovers at WAW (more than 6 hours one direction and 10 the other) so I could technically visit Warsaw on both days and comply with the spirit of your game more than your own example did, and then I could spend a week someplace I'd actually want to go, whether or not I actually stayed in Stockholm proper.

Given your previous answer, you'd probably fly from Paris to Berlin. No, I'm not posting another.

Let's say you have someone at either end to take you to the airport and pick you up, however that someone is not going to drive insane distances for you so keep it reasonable.

Given your answer, I'm not sure why you're connecting in Warsaw to get to Stockholm given that Warsaw is supposed to be you destination. Stockholm isn't mentioned anywhere. Question is how you'd get from London to Warsaw and back on those dates. If during that week you also want to visit Stockholm, fine, but that's not part of the game.

First one still stands.

I went from London to Warsaw on those dates and back along my choice of routing and price. I stipulated that the itineraries had long enough layovers to actually go into Warsaw on each day, and in a manner that doesn't require some mysterious friend driving almost 200 miles roundtrip to pick me up, as your example does. TWO HUNDRED MILES! To pick someone up from an airport when you have an airport less than 10 miles away!

As for Stockholm, why do you care what I do with the intervening week? I went from London to Warsaw and Warsaw to London on the dates you specified. I just happened to do so on an itinerary that also includes someplace else.

IADCA wrote:

I went from London to Warsaw on those dates and back along my choice of routing and price. I stipulated that the itineraries had long enough layovers to actually go into Warsaw on each day, and in a manner that doesn't require some mysterious friend driving almost 200 miles roundtrip to pick me up, as your example does. TWO HUNDRED MILES! To pick someone up from an airport when you have an airport less than 10 miles away!

As for Stockholm, why do you care what I do with the intervening week? I went from London to Warsaw and Warsaw to London on the dates you specified. I just happened to do so on an itinerary that also includes someplace else.

But let's imagine you live and work in London and your boss asks you to do a job in Warsaw that week. You need to get there for work, only you need to pick your own flight. That makes visiting Stockholm impossible, you don't have the time for that. You need to be in Warsaw the whole week, every day of the week.

About the fact that I've picked an airport that's a bit out of the way, yes, I did. That's the freedom you got to pick your own airports. Indeed, there is an airport closer but to get there is a whole lot more expensive. Then I better use that money to give the person that picks me up a big tip, I'd still be cheaper. But that's my personal choice, it's fine if you would have done things different. And eventhough it's a 200 miles roundtrip this area is so parsely populated I'd say it's still within the catchment area. It's one road, hardly any traffic, should be rather fast.

PatrickZ80 wrote:

Imagine it's you that needs to get from X to Y on a given date

PatrickZ80 wrote:

Again, it's about how you would get from X to Y.

PatrickZ80 wrote:

X = London, UK
Y = Warsaw, Poland
Date = April 22, 2018 outbound, April 29, 2018 return

PatrickZ80 wrote:

Question is how you'd get from London to Warsaw and back on those dates. If during that week you also want to visit Stockholm, fine, but that's not part of the game.

He's flying LO from LHR to WAW and back. Question answered. You are now literally trying to change the rules retrospectively because somebody not taking your little project seriously has hurt your feelings.

PatrickZ80 wrote:

IADCA wrote:

But let's imagine you live and work in London and your boss asks you to do a job in Warsaw that week. You need to get there for work, only you need to pick your own flight. That makes visiting Stockholm impossible, you don't have the time for that. You need to be in Warsaw the whole week, every day of the week.

Then I fly nonstop from LHR-WAW roundtrip on LOT. It's only $100 more expensive than dealing with Luton and if he's sending me there, he's paying and I get UA miles. See, if you actually provide full parameters up front, you get answers.

PatrickZ80 wrote:

IADCA wrote:

It's one road, hardly any traffic, should be rather fast.

You ever driven west on I-84 100 miles straight into the setting sun, as you'd be doing picking up someone from that flight in May (by the time they clear immigration and get bags)? Do it (with accompanying truck traffic) and then consider how pleasant it is, regardless of it being a 3-hour roundtrip minus waiting times. Personally, I don't ask people I consider my friends to do stuff like that just so I can save a few dollars.

XAM2175 wrote:

He's flying LO from LHR to WAW and back. Question answered. You are now literally trying to change the rules retrospectively because somebody not taking your little project seriously has hurt your feelings.

Perhaps I should have specified some things a bit more careful, but who expects a nuthead who's not taking the game seriously to come up with such rediculous answers?

jporterfi wrote:

I nearly fell out of my chair when I saw the prices on this one...

Wizz Air Luton - Warsaw (Chopin) $26
Ryanair Nowy Dwór Mazowiecki (WMI) – Stansted $18
Total: $44 = €35

Next one:
X = San Francisco, CA, USA
Y = Bhavnagar, Gujarat, India
Date: April 27th, 2018 one-way

Perfect! This is someone who gets it. Sorry I had missed it before, but I got lost in trying to get someone to understand the meaning of the game.

Norwegian Oakland - London Gatwick € 163,72
EasyJet London Gatwick - Prague € 68,77
SmartWings Prague - Dubai € 161,12
SpiceJet Dubai - Ahmedabad € 134,09
Total € 527,70

Next:
X = Athens, Greece
Y = Jakarta, Indonesia
Date = May 15 2018, one way

PatrickZ80 wrote:

XAM2175 wrote:

He's flying LO from LHR to WAW and back. Question answered. You are now literally trying to change the rules retrospectively because somebody not taking your little project seriously has hurt your feelings.

Perhaps I should have specified some things a bit more careful, but who expects a nuthead who's not taking the game seriously to come up with such rediculous answers?

Don't imply I didn't understand what you were trying to get at, or that I'm a "nuthead." I'm not, and that answer wasn't ridiculous in any sense except the literal: it ridiculed the obvious absurdity of your original post. You attempted to create a game that allowed players to play it with few parameters and in any manner they wanted. Your own initial example was, in my opinion, ridiculous because it stretched even your liberal rules beyond all reasonable credulity. So don't do that and then complain that people give answers that take advantage of the flexibility that (a) you explicitly built into the game and (b) took advantage of yourself. In other words, you got a ridiculous answer because you posted something ridiculous to start with. I understood the meaning of the game from the very beginning. I also thought it was absurd ab initio, especially when combined with your initial example.

PatrickZ80 wrote:

Next:
X = Athens, Greece
Y = Jakarta, Indonesia
Date = May 15 2018, one way

I presume since this is one-way that it's not for my employer?

In which case I'd probably shoot for:
Air Baltic: Athens - Riga - Moscow (SVO) for GBP142 with 6-ish hours in Riga so I can poke about the city.
Couple of days in Moscow then
Aeroflot: Moscow (SVO) - Hong Kong for GBP431 in W
Couple of days in Hong Kong (maybe a week even, brilliant place)
Then take the China Airlines non-stop down to CGK for GBP156.

So I expect to come back to find this was actually to visit my dying mother in a hospice 306 km outside of Jakarta and I'm ineligible for a Russian visa.

IADCA wrote:

PatrickZ80 wrote:

XAM2175 wrote:

He's flying LO from LHR to WAW and back. Question answered. You are now literally trying to change the rules retrospectively because somebody not taking your little project seriously has hurt your feelings.

Perhaps I should have specified some things a bit more careful, but who expects a nuthead who's not taking the game seriously to come up with such rediculous answers?

Don't imply I didn't understand what you were trying to get at, or that I'm a "nuthead." I'm not, and that answer wasn't ridiculous in any sense except the literal: it ridiculed the obvious absurdity of your original post. You attempted to create a game that allowed players to play it with few parameters and in any manner they wanted. Your own initial example was, in my opinion, ridiculous because it stretched even your liberal rules beyond all reasonable credulity. So don't do that and then complain that people give answers that take advantage of the flexibility that (a) you explicitly built into the game and (b) took advantage of yourself. In other words, you got a ridiculous answer because you posted something ridiculous to start with. I understood the meaning of the game from the very beginning. I also thought it was absurd ab initio, especially when combined with your initial example.

I think your attitude here is way out of line. The original flight plan wasn't even that absurd to begin with. For one thing, Americans in small markets very, very frequently drive long distances to save on airfare, because often airfares are high out of smaller, underserved local airports. Asking a friend to drive over and pick you up from that distance is a bit much (unless you paid them), but you can always rent a car... either way, for a "game" thread you immediately jumped down OP's throat right from the start. Severe attitude problem.

IADCA wrote:

In other words, you got a ridiculous answer because you posted something ridiculous to start with.

I think the OP has gotten very reasonable answers all things considered. When I read the first post I was expecting the answer to every route to be "chartered Gulfstream V".

Anyway, it doesn't seem we have a current one on-deck, so I'll just give my ideas for everything offered so far.

London-Warsaw RT: $37 Ryanair STN-WMI-STN, access to STN via Stansted Express, access to WMI via coach bus service

San Francisco-Bhavnagar OW: $1215 United-Air India-Alliance Air, SFO-EWR-BOM-BHU

Athens-Jakarta OW: $224 Scoot, ATH-SIN-CGK

New one: Minneapolis-Amsterdam RT, June 1 (or anything arriving June 2)-June 12.

BAINY3 wrote:

IADCA wrote:

PatrickZ80 wrote:

Perhaps I should have specified some things a bit more careful, but who expects a nuthead who's not taking the game seriously to come up with such rediculous answers?

Don't imply I didn't understand what you were trying to get at, or that I'm a "nuthead." I'm not, and that answer wasn't ridiculous in any sense except the literal: it ridiculed the obvious absurdity of your original post. You attempted to create a game that allowed players to play it with few parameters and in any manner they wanted. Your own initial example was, in my opinion, ridiculous because it stretched even your liberal rules beyond all reasonable credulity. So don't do that and then complain that people give answers that take advantage of the flexibility that (a) you explicitly built into the game and (b) took advantage of yourself. In other words, you got a ridiculous answer because you posted something ridiculous to start with. I understood the meaning of the game from the very beginning. I also thought it was absurd ab initio, especially when combined with your initial example.

I think your attitude here is way out of line. The original flight plan wasn't even that absurd to begin with. For one thing, Americans in small markets very, very frequently drive long distances to save on airfare, because often airfares are high out of smaller, underserved local airports. Asking a friend to drive over and pick you up from that distance is a bit much (unless you paid them), but you can always rent a car... either way, for a "game" thread you immediately jumped down OP's throat right from the start. Severe attitude problem.

I think the thread is ridiculous, so I gave a ridiculous answer. I will concede that considering I grew up in the Scranton area, I found the example given in the original post to be particularly absurd. In other words, I called out a post (and indeed, an entire concept for a post) that struck me as utterly farcical for the merits of the post: he started a thread about getting from X to Y and then didn't explain how he got from X to Y! The OP's an adult, and he can handle some criticism, or I would assume so under normal circumstances. So can I - when I post something absurd, as I do on occasion, I'm fine with getting pulled up about it.

So, would it have been more polite for me to lay out the specific problems with his concept generally and the specific example he used rather than going about it the way I did? Sure. But sometimes the form of expression has a purpose, and in this case it did, whether you find purposeful brusqueness that was necessary to efficiently accomplish something to be reflective of a severe attitude problem or not. In any case, enough of this - the point is made.

BAINY3 wrote:

New one: Minneapolis-Amsterdam RT, June 1 (or anything arriving June 2)-June 12.

Outbound: 01JUN MSP AA677 X/PHL AA204 AMS
Inbound: 12JUN AMS AA203 X/PHL AA628 AMS

Fare Incl. Taxes: USD915.91


Next One: San Francisco, CA-US to Ouagadougou, BF RT 12JUL - 08AUG (+/- Day each direction).

Sorry, but I don’t understand what the point of this game is. Everything from chartering a plane and flying nonstop to take a week/month/year and fly around the globe before arriving into the given destination is a correct answer.

Really don’t see what it brings to just list some random routes/flights here.

B747forever wrote:

Sorry, but I don’t understand what the point of this game is. Everything from chartering a plane and flying nonstop to take a week/month/year and fly around the globe before arriving into the given destination is a correct answer.

Really don’t see what it brings to just list some random routes/flights here.

There isn't a "correct" answer. Maybe it's more of a discussion than a "game." I still think it's fun to research flights and make your own choice for a route you'd never otherwise need to travel on. If anything, this amounts to a polls/preferences thread so it is exactly where it belongs on this forum.
Either way, I don't get why people keep coming in this thread to chime their opinions if they aren't going to participate. Not your thing, just stay out.

SF to Ouagadougou RT: Does BF mean premium cabin? If so I'm gonna pretend I'm rich and want convenience and a good airline and can spend what I want. If I can afford to live in SF, I can afford this.

$24,391 Air France. SFO-CDG A380 La Première, CDG-OUA A332 Business, OUA-NIM-CDG A332 Business, CDG-SFO A380 La Première.

LON-MEL, economy, RT April 10-24.

BAINY3 wrote:

I still think it's fun to research flights and make your own choice for a route you'd never otherwise need to travel on.

That's exactly the point of it.

BAINY3 wrote:

Either way, I don't get why people keep coming in this thread to chime their opinions if they aren't going to participate. Not your thing, just stay out.

BAINY3 wrote:

SF to Ouagadougou RT: Does BF mean premium cabin?

Sorry I meant that as the country code for Burkina Faso but interesting idea adding cabin class to the mix.

BAINY3 wrote:

LON-MEL, economy, RT April 10-24.

10APR SQ321 LHR-SIN SQ227 SIN-MEL
24APR SQ228 MEL-SIN SQ306 SIN-LHR

Economy (V) GBP720.61


Next up: Ushuaia, Argentina to Svalbard/Longyearbyen, Norway. Economy RT. Out 11MAY back 01JUN

I would do SQ LHR-SIN-MEL-SIN-LHR for $1300 RT

This is going to be a business oriented one:
NYC-SGN, must arrive by the morning of May 21, but can’t leave before 5pm Friday night, and can’t leave SGN until 5pm 25 but must be back to work Monday morning. Employer will pay for business class.

vhqpa wrote:

BAINY3 wrote:

SF to Ouagadougou RT: Does BF mean premium cabin?

Sorry I meant that as the country code for Burkina Faso but interesting idea adding cabin class to the mix.

oops! Well I would have taken the same flights, just in economy. That's $2463.

vhqpa wrote:

Next up: Ushuaia, Argentina to Svalbard/Longyearbyen, Norway. Economy RT. Out 11MAY back 01JUN

I've played around with this one on my own time before!

$2653. Basically functions as two itineraries, one USH-AEP on AR, the other EZE-LYR on Star Alliance carriers (specifically LH EZE-FRA-OSL and SK OSL-USH, same reverse). Overnight at Buenos Aires heading north, no overnight layovers on the return but you still have a long layover at Buenos Aires to change airports. (I did look up separate airfares if these were actually booked separately, but it is cheaper to book it all as one.)

BENAir01 wrote:

This is going to be a business oriented one:
NYC-SGN, must arrive by the morning of May 21, but can’t leave before 5pm Friday night, and can’t leave SGN until 5pm 25 but must be back to work Monday morning. Employer will pay for business class.

$3130 CZ
Depart Saturday May 19 at 11:15 AM, arrive Sunday May 20 at 9:50 PM, JFK-CAN-SGN, B777/B737 Business Class (4h40m in CAN)
Depart Saturday May 26 at 11:55 AM, arrive Saturday May 26 at 11:00 PM, SGN-CAN-JFK, B737/B777 Business Class (3h50m in CAN)

LLA-ELP, economy, June 14-28

LLA-ELP

SK LLA-ARN-ORD UA ORD-ELP

One ticket same Itinerary in reverse for return for SEK9130 (USD1157.50).

I looked at LLA-ARN-LAX on DY then independent connection to LAX-PHX-ELP-LAX WN. But with the fare allowing checked bags on DY it worked out more expensive than SK/UA option.

Next: Hamilton, New Zealand - Cape Town, South Africa RT Economy 31JUL-13AUG

NZ5811 HLZ-WLG 0645 - 0755 AT7
NZ 412 WLG-AKL 0845 - 0950 320
QR921 AKL-DOH 1425 - 1115 77L *World's Longest Flight*
QR1369 DOH-CPT 0200+1 - 1120+1 788 Arriving 1AUG

13AUG
SA 364 CPT-JNB 1505 - 1700 320
QF64 JNB - SYD 1910 - 1555+1 744 14AUG
14AUG
QF163 SYD-WLG 1845 - 2355 73H
15AUG
NZ5810 WLG - HLZ 0630 - 0740 AT7

Total fare is $6731.80 US. I'm sure it would be cheaper if it were all on Star Aliliance, which would be easy to do here, but I thought including QR was more interesting!

Also, its probably doable to get home in two calendar days instead of three, but I have personally always wanted to fly that JNB-SYD flight over the Southern Ocean. I've never gotten the chance yet!

Next: Longyearbyen, Norway to Ushuaia, Argentina. Departing 03APR18 and returning 16APR18

mhkansan wrote:

Next: Longyearbyen, Norway to Ushuaia, Argentina. Departing 03APR18 and returning 16APR18

SK4497 LYR-OSL 0230-0525
LX1217 OSL-ZRH 1940-2200
LX92 ZRH-GRU 2240-0530
AR1241 GRU-AEP 1020-1325
AR1890 AEP-USH 1535-1910

LA7743 USH-AEP 0905-1305
AR1244 AEP-GRU 1520-1805
TP88 GRU-LIS 2140-1130
TP764 LIS-OSL 1325-1835
SK4490 OSL-LYR 0945-1240

NEXT: You are a British Diplomat visiting the British Overseas Territory of the Pitcairn Islands, LHR to Pitcairn Islands (TIP: use GMR) April 2nd to April 7th