Are round the world airfares worth it?
Round the world airline (RTW) tickets can be useful and economical solutions to complicated or extensive travel, but it’s worthwhile doing your homework to ensure you get the best deal to suit your requirements.
Each of the big three airline alliances (Star Alliance, Oneworld and Skyteam) offer various RTW or related ticket products. In addition, a few airlines have partnerships outside their own alliances (or in some cases with non-alliance airlines), which offer RTWs. And a number of specialty travel agencies have also put together RTW booking vehicles.
The basics – An RTW ticket requires you to travel eastbound or westbound around the world, crossing both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans in the same direction. The alliances also sell more limited “circle” tickets in certain regions.
RTWs offer multiple stopovers en route that are usually classified from a minimum of 24 hours up to several months and most RTWs are valid for up to a year. Generally you need to begin and end the trip in the same country, but not necessarily in the same city. Subject to the limitations of the tickets (and there are many rules) you generally can zigzag and backtrack within continents or regions, but not return to a particular region once you’ve left it.
RTW and Circle tickets generally limit you to a maximum of 16 flights included in the ticket, which is primarily sold on tiers based on maximum kilometres that can be flown without moving up to the next price tier. Obviously the greater distance you fly, the higher the price.
Costs - An important consideration with RTW tickets is that the pricing is extremely variable, depending on where you begin (and therefore end) the trip as well as differences in classes and variations from one alliance to the next.
Changes and flexibility - RTW tickets must have all segments booked prior to issue; however all make provision for changes or alterations during the life of the ticket. Generally, date changes are free, provided the same airline is being used for the same city pair. Itinerary changes – adding or deleting stops, changing the route, etc. – require that the ticket be re-issued for a fee, and any taxes or fees that change because of the new route be added or subtracted.
Frequent flyers - RTW tickets earn frequent flyer miles/points according to the ground rules established by the frequent flyer scheme used.
Limitations - Some RTW trip segments can be undertaken more cheaply by using point-to-point tickets, which obviously offer greater flexibility than any other approach. However this needs to be considered within the overall context of the trip cost. Another issue is inflexibility and limited choice. You have to fly on airlines the ticket allows you to use, and fly where they fly. And because there are many city pairs where no non-stop flights exist, usually a high percentage of the 16 flights are spent in indirect routes between your preferred cities.
For most travelers, however, RTW tickets can provide good to very good value, and a great way to explore the world.