Up in the Air? All Asia: 42 Cities, 21 Days, maybe George Clooney for $1599

If 2010 and a new decade indicate it's time for a big adventure, plan the trip of a lifetime with the whole family. Cathay Pacific is ringing in the 10's with their popular All Asia Pass and it's only $100 more than last year. (Pretty good in our opinion for this crummy economy.)

The Hong Kong-based airline, winner of every conceivable comfort and efficiency award, sells a pay-once airline ticket that gives you a chance to visit up to 42 of Asia's hottest destinations during three weeks of travel. The number 42 is a big leap forward over 2009's 21 cities, though we can't recommend anyone try to do them all -- 21 or 42 -- anyway. But it's all about more choice of where you want to go.

This year, the All Asia Pass rate has a low starting price of $1,599 for economy class travel. Your hard-earned dollars will stretch even farther now that the All-Asia Pass is eligible for Asia Miles, which means your one trip can get you on your way to free future flights, upgrades and other lifestyle rewards. With the newly added destinations, the All Asia Pass features everything you need in one single trip: low fares, exciting destinations, mileage earning opportunities, and the flexibility of customizing your flight itinerary. And yes, even in economy, Cathay serves full meals (quite good at that), has a seatback video and audio setup, adequate legroom, and a pretty comfortable seat.

Here's what you get:  For 2010, the $1599 All Asia Pass includes economy class round-trip travel from Los Angeles, New York or San Francisco to Hong Kong, plus 21 consecutive days of travel to another two destinations chosen from 42 Asian cities (some flights are operated by Dragonair).  Popular destinations include the major countries of Malaysia, the Philippines, China and Indonesia plus the tourist magnets of Bali, Bangkok, Tokyo, Seoul, Hanoi or Singapore.

The base pass is $1,599 for long haul midweek travel, and you can pay $300 more per city to add on more stops, including the new options of Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai in India; Dhaka in Bangaldesh; Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; Karachi, Pakistan or Kathmandu, Nepal. For a $1,899 base price you get Hong Kong plus 3 cities and for $2,199 you get Hong Kong plus 4 cities. Additional taxes, etc. apply to all tickets, and surcharges for departing from other gateway cities start at $150. Open-jaw travel (in and out of different cities for those who love overland travel like we do) is permitted for all passes.

How to decide between Busan, Cebu, Denpasar, Fukuoka, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Kaohshiung, Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Nagoya, Osaka, Penang, Phuket, Phnom Penh, Sapporo, Surabaya and Taipei? Check out Family Travel Forum's coverage of Asia destinations, or take a look at Cathay Pacific's interesting online cityguides.

If you're of the "If it's Tuesday, It Must be Belgium" school of travel, then you may be tempted to spring for a more expensive base pass or those 300 buck add-ons. Mistake. Let's say that, in our experience, when traveling long haul with kids, less is more.

With only 21 days to enjoy a taste of Asia, we suggest spending at least 3-4 nights in Hong Kong to become acclimated to the time changes, cuisine, smells and sounds of this new continent, before heading out. Then, plan on spending 2 or 3 nights in another major Asian capital plus 2-3 nights in a rural setting, to appreciate a taste of each of those cultures. Since you have to fly back through Hong Kong to connect with US-bound flights, you may find that 2 or 3 other destinations is plenty. Again we say, the All Asia Pass starts at $1,599 for travel to Hong Kong plus two cities -- basta!

Standard departure dates are available from August 17 - December 1, 2010 with returns dates through December 7 (meaning you have to begin your journey by mid-November o take advantage of their policy).

Peak season summer travel (defined as May 18 - August 16, 2010), extension options up to 90 days and departures from other U.S. gateway cities are available for an additional fee. In fact, for 2010, Cathay is hiking up the summer pass rate by $500 by insisting that one additional stop is mandatory during that period.

More information about the All Asia Pass is available at the Cathay Pacific All Asia Pass website. Note that the All Asia Passes must be booked through a travel agent. Some restrictions apply and regardless of your departure date, travel must be completed by Dec 7, 2010. This offer is only valid for U.S. residents and travel must originate in the U.S. All prices are exclusive of applicable taxes. 

A final thought:  If the U.S. economy keeps up (or down) at this rate, look for discounting on this pass for summer.