Choosing the best round the world ticket for your needs

Article updated every 6 months. Last update: 18th April 2008
Author: Bob Atkinson (Travel Expert) Ask me a question.

There are a variety of round the world airfares and the companies that we deal with all have a wealth of experience to help you choose the right ticket for you.

They will help you choose fares taken from airline groupings such as:

One World - British Airways, Qantas, American Airlines, Cathay Pacific and more
Star Alliance - Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines, Air New Zealand, United and more
Sky Team - Air France, KLM, Delta, Northwest, Continental and more

... Or choose from special offers put together by a couple of carriers.

An experienced consultant will take your planned route and fit your ideas to the fare options available. They can suggest ways to amend your itinerary to get the most out of your trip, and also advise on things such as weather, the cost of living and visas.

Main round the world fare types

The main round the world fare types are as follows:

One World - Global Explorer, One World Explorer and Discovery tickets. These are based on either stops or a combination of mileage and stops.
Star Alliance - Round the World ticket based on mileage. There are four levels based on 26,000, 29,000, 34,000 and 39,000 miles travelled on partner airlines of the alliance. These allow a minimum of three and a maximum of 15 stops.
Sky Team - This is similar to Star Alliance and is based on mileage and minimum and maximum stops.

guide continues below

All the fares are available to travel in Economy, Economy Plus (where available), Business and First Class. Whichever class of travel you choose the same rules tend to apply, it's just the fare that changes.

You don't have to fly your entire journey, many tickets will allow you to have 'surface sectors' where you travel overland and then continue flying on. For example, you could fly into Bangkok and then fly out of Singapore, travelling overland between the two.

Round the world tickets are usually valid for up to a period of one year after the original date of travel from the UK. The minimum period is anything from one to two weeks. For most tickets you only have to book your first flight from the UK, the others can be left open so you can book at a later date, however you do need to state your intended route. Most people will book their itinerary with the dates they plan and then if they need to change, this is usually accommodated subject to availability and the payment of a small administration fee. Flexibility on these types of tickets is very good and you can even change the route once booked with many of them!

There are combinations of tickets with airlines and even the world's only Round the World product with one airline - Air New Zealand!

Who do we recommend?

With so many companies to choose from, we have researched the market to find those with a wide range of choice as well as some that are more specialist. Browse our list below to find the right company for you, then click through to their web site for more information and how to book. It couldn't be easier!