What should I know about "Around The World" flights?
I have heard rumours of such things, and have had a difficult time find information on "around the world" flights. Are they worth it (do you have a limit between usage, do you save money.. etc.) and are there easy ways of getting more informed on them (specific sites, travel agencies)?
Edit With the goal of maximum continental coverage, no specific start or finish locations
Best Answer
RTW fares generally have date flexibility but not route flexibility. This means they are great for someone who wants to do something like tour the world for 6 months or a year on cash savings. You plan out all your places in advance and pay for the entire trip's airline tickets (so you don't need to include that in the trip budget). Then, while you are traveling, you have the flexibility to stay at any given place just as long as you want, without having to pay big premiums to change your flights or book at the last minute.
For people who are not actually travelling to a lot of places around the world, they don't seem to make much sense. I was booking a trip from NYC to Australia via Dubai, and it would have been around $2500 for a RTW trip, vs. $1300 for a normal trip.
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Can you get around the world ticket?
You can purchase a RTW ticket from airline alliances such as Star Alliance, One World, and SkyTeam, from some specific foreign airlines or from third-party sellers such as AirTreks. TCS World Travel also offers high-end luxury around-the-world tickets.What is an around the world plane ticket?
What it is. RTW tickets are offered by each of the three big airline networks, Star Alliance, OneWorld, and SkyTeam. A RTW ticket is essentially a loyalty pass with that network, a round-trip ticket valid for 12 months that allows you to craft a custom itinerary with flights on any carrier in the alliance.How many stops do you get on a round the world ticket?
You are allowed a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 15 stopovers. A stopover lasts for 24 hours or more between two flights while transfers are less than 24 hours. Your Round the World fare qualifies to earn miles and points in your Frequent Flyer Programme.How much does a around the world ticket cost?
The average AirTreks around the world or multi-stop plane ticket costs between $3000 and $5000 per person, but that all depends on your schedule and routing.TRAVEL TIPS: Round-the-World Flights VS One Way Flights
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Answer 2
Many round the world tickets look great based on advertised minimum prices, but if you want to get those prices, then you may have to book months ahead. I talked to two separate travel agents and they both agreed that trying to book an around the world trip a month away would cost much more (say an $3800 instead of $2900). Apparently, there are only a certain number of cheap flights available and once those fill up, you have to buy more expensive ones.
On a standard "round the world" flight, it is quite typical to spend a decent amount of time at each destination. This might make it easier as most flights would be further out. However, for the one we considered, we were trying to keep it tight. We were considering a round the world trip because it didn't cost that much more based on advertised prices and we were hoping it'd only be a few hundred more than the advertised prices.
Answer 3
I'm a bit late to this party, but if your purpose is tourism, then round the world tickets are not really a great deal at all, except for giving you a lot of convenience in not having to worry about flights and being able to buy the one ticket in one place.
Pretty much all parts of the world, conventionally covered by a round the world ticket are also served by a host of budget airlines. If you plan a few months in advance, you can go to many more places for much less, as compared to a regular round the world ticket.
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