I just got off the phone from Delta FF and was lucky enough to book 4 seats to London to begin our sabbatical this summer.

We didn't have enough miles for 4 tickets without transferring a few miles into one of our accounts from one of the kids who is not coming with us. That small cost was well worth it.

I hadn't even thought about using our miles for this trip. In fact I haven't been able to use our miles on any trip in the last few years. We just haven't been flexible enough. Well, this time we were flexible and we don't need a return ticket.



Anyway, I am psyched and wanted to share my excitement.

Brenda

Brenda, this really IS exciting news! Now you have your tickets, so that makes your trip so much more REAL.

And how wonderful to be able to get frequent flyer tickets-- and four of them, at that!

No return tickets? Does that mean you're not coming back??

(For our long trip I booked return FF tickets on Delta and then managed to extend it to use them 14 months later. PM me if you're interested in the details-- if it works, you'll save the potentially very high cost of a one-way ticket on the back end.)

Kathy

Brenda, that's wonderful news! Now the fun begins

A few days ago I transferred the miles around in the family. Last night I paced around and did stupid little chores for almost two hours before I picked up the phone.

Somehow I knew it would be REAL when I called Delta. Twice I went in to my husband and said,"should I buy them now?".

But, finally I did.

Maria, you are right-now I can really plan and get on the ball here with all the details.

Kathy, I will PM you about your flight maneuvering. I wasn't sure what we would do.

Brenda

Hope to see you when you are over! Some potentially good news for you: I was talking to a lettings agent recently and she said that all the jitters in the housing market are already getting through to the lettings market and prices are going down (I think the phrase she used was 'much, much more negotiable') Might be a nice suprise on the budget.

COngrats on the tickets Brenda! Makes it that much more real...I was wondering the same about buying round trip tickets, I just assumed we would and then just not use the return.

Fabulous news Panda on rental prices possibly coming down. Rentals are pretty pricey in Maidenhead/Cookham/Windsor area as well, which is where we will be renting. We are looking at about 800-1000 pounds per month,and that's without heat, light, council tax, etc., still, much cheaper than London....

It all becomes real once you buy the plane tickets, IMO. Congrats! Maybe we will see you this summer in England!

Thanks Panda - that is good news!

Just wanted to chime in to say, how exciting! Hope it's a wonderful sabbatical.

Cool! Time will go by faster than you imagine now that it feels more real. I wish we could have used FF miles. We just got the cheapest round trip fare we could find when we came.

We are going to be spending time in the UK and Ireland this coming summer. I hope it is a warm one this year without the rain of last year.

Do look into trips to Turkey and Morocco during your year there ( maybe school holidays?). They are easy to do from London and were two of our favorite countries... extraordinary educational experiences for kids ( and adults ) . Fez, the Sahara overnight in the desert, Cappadocia and the incredible ancient sites in Turkey were spectacular and easier and much safer than we had imagined.

You might look at a quick fly-in to Russia, Egypt and time in South Africa while you are here too as they are easier to do here than the States. We are adding these to our European tour, so just thought I would mention it in case you have not thought of these possibilities.

I can not vouch for these second ones as we have not done them, but Turkey and Morocco have been our favorite so far. They make history come alive.

Happy planning, happy travels!! You are off to a great start!

Great news Brenda! You're all going to have so much fun.

Thanks for all the encouragement. Things have been a bit crazy here in the last few weeks but I wanted to thank everyone for their support.

Panda, that is great news. Finances might dictate where we live and what school the kids go to. Country or city, half way to either school, so a bit out of the city but not too far-these are the questions now. We are looking at two schools, one in Surrey and one in the city. Rents play a huge part in the decision.

We are coming over again in March to see our son who is on sabbatical for the semester but also to try to figure this out.

Again, thanks for the cheers.
Brenda