In mid-December, Keith and Lucia Gizzi were at an airport in Guangzhou, China, presenting their passports to a customs official. Because they didn’t have visas, the Plymouth father and daughter needed to show proof they would be departing for another country soon, so Keith proffered an itinerary detailing airline reservations for their entire trip.
For a few moments, the astonished agent studied the lengthy list of 23 international flights covering a mind- and body-numbing 32,000 miles in just 10 days. He gave Keith a quizzical look and asked, “Why you do this?”
At that instant, the Gizzis might have been pondering the very same question: why indeed? Their whirlwind journey had taken them to such locales as London, Paris, Athens, Dubai, Jakarta, Singapore and Beijing, although they had spent more time in the air traveling than they did on the ground exploring these fascinating destinations.
The reason for this titanic tour was the chance to earn a million airline points – worth at least $10,000, roughly the equivalent of 20 roundtrip flights to Europe – toward future air travel. By completing the task before the end of the year, Keith and Lucia – as well as a friend who traveled separately – are each eligible for the big bonus offered as part of the SAS EuroBonus Millionaire promotion.
“Total time in the air was about three days,” said Keith. “We also spent a lot of time in Priority Pass lounges at airports, which enabled us to get showers, eat decent food, and get away from the public parts of the terminal. In Jakarta, we walked out of the airport but then walked right back in. We didn’t really see anything.”
The Gizzis did get to stretch their legs in Athens. They walked around the Greek capital and toured ancient temples and sites, including the Acropolis and the Parthenon.
“It was really cool,” said Lucia, 18, who is in her first year at Northeastern University. “We got to see the sunrise there. We walked like 14 miles. We saw 62 cats in one day. Athens is full of cats.”
The idea for this global adventure came from Lucia’s former classmate at Plymouth South High School, Will Kenny, who was already racking up the miles on a separate journey. He had learned of the program offered by Scandinavian Airlines and suggested the Gizzis give it a try.
“Like me, I figured they were crazy enough to try it,” said Kenny, also 18, who attends the EU Business School in Barcelona, Spain. “I was telling them, ‘You have to do this! It’s a waste not to. If you have the time and can afford the flights upfront, it’s an investment.’”
Already a world traveler, Kenny finished his travels in five different installments apart from the Gizzis and was able to see some of his destinations. In Kenya, he went on a safari and visited a giraffe center and elephant orphanage. He also toured the Eiffel Tower and Louvre Museum in Paris and rode a dune buggy on the Hatta Red Sand Desert in Dubai. Kenny wrapped up his globetrotting experience on the beach in Cancun, Mexico, just before Christmas.
“When I heard of this challenge, I could not not do it,” he said. “I was like, ‘Well, if I’m going to be in this city for 12 hours, I’m going to go on safari or go to the desert and see that because it’s just so different. I was just grateful we were able to do it.”
After mulling it over with family, the Gizzis took to the skies on Dec. 11, flying out of Boston’s Logan International Airport for New York and then London. They also went to Paris, where they viewed the just-reopened Notre Dame Cathedral. Then it was on to dozens of destinations in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.
“We actually had a long time – by our standards, that is – in Bucharest, Romania,” said Keith, 62, a real estate developer. “We were there for a day. We left the airport, took a train into the city, walked around for a little bit, then went back to the airport to find out our flight to Istanbul had been cancelled.”
That mishap threw a monkey wrench into their plans, forcing the Gizzis to reroute their trip and extend it by two days. Originally, their excursion was going to take eight days, but they had to stay in the air longer to meet the program’s qualifications.
“It wasn’t about the miles,” Keith said. “There were a bunch of different airlines involved in the program, and you had to fly on 15 of them to get the million points. It took a tremendous amount of logistical planning to make it work. Things ran smoothly with most flights, but we did have that one hiccup, which was very stressful. It took a while to get us back on track so we could connect with our other flights.”
Though taxing, the tremendous trip was not that tiring. The Gizzis said that because they spent so much time in the air, they had little opportunity to experience jet lag.
“It wasn’t exhausting,” Keith said. “We slept a lot on flights and really never had to adjust to local time.”
After jetting around the world, the Gizzis made it back to Plymouth in time to celebrate Christmas at home with Keith’s wife Kara and Lucia’s mother. Another daughter, Stella, attends Plymouth South High School while son Hugo studies at Marist College in Florence, Italy. (Keith and Lucia did not make it there on this trip, though they did visit Hugo for Thanksgiving before their adventure began.)
All things considered, the cost of this soaring sojourn was reasonable. Kenny estimates he spent about $4,500 for his world travels while Keith puts expenses at under $10,000 for both of them. All three expect to more than recoup that money, with each getting a million points for future air travel which can be enjoyed later at a more leisurely pace.
“It’s an investment,” said ever the business major Will Kenny. “You’re flying all these flights and you’re getting a reward. It’s well worth it.”
To say the least, this marathon trip around the world was a dizzying experience. Perhaps not the optimal way to travel for most people, but all three said they would do it again. The chance to meet new people, experience different cultures, and see different sights – no matter how briefly – made it exciting.
“I had never been to Asia or the Middle East before,” Lucia said. “We could be in Jakarta in the morning and China in the evening. It was amazing to see so many people and cultures and how they live and what they look like in such a short amount of time. It was really a unique experience.”
Dave Kindy, a self-described history geek, is a longtime Plymouth resident who writes for the Washington Post, Boston Globe, National Geographic, Smithsonian and other publications. He can be reached at davidkindy1832@gmail.com.