around the world ticket?
Mar 16th, 2008, 09:51 AM
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around the world ticket?
what's the best way to purchase airfare for going around the world? is buying individually cheaper then getting an around the world ticket? does either have more flexibility in the chance of a change? any suggestions would be most helpful. we are leaving the US going to scotland, amsterdam, italy, china, japan and fiji. then back to the us.
Mar 16th, 2008, 10:07 AM
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Go to www.oneworld.com or http://www.staralliance.com/en/travellers/index.html and read up about their around the world products. Then go to www.flyertalk.com and read everything you can on the oneworld or star alliance forums about how to ticket, where to ticket it to get the cheapest fare. Ask questions there as there are many experts that are willing to help.
The Around the World tickets are definitely the way to go. Individual tickets won't come close.
If you don't want to do any of the work, find a reputable round the world travel agent. Ask questions before commiting.
These type of tickets are very sophisticated so you better know what you getting into.
Know that the ticket can be broken into sections as long as all the flights are done within a year. You do not need to do one continous trip, but that may require purchasing couple of individual tickets to get home from/to your last stop.
Good luck!
The Around the World tickets are definitely the way to go. Individual tickets won't come close.
If you don't want to do any of the work, find a reputable round the world travel agent. Ask questions before commiting.
These type of tickets are very sophisticated so you better know what you getting into.
Know that the ticket can be broken into sections as long as all the flights are done within a year. You do not need to do one continous trip, but that may require purchasing couple of individual tickets to get home from/to your last stop.
Good luck!
Mar 16th, 2008, 10:10 AM
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When we purchased our RTW ticket through American Airlines we were told the only 2 flights were were "locked into" were our intial departure flight and our final return flight. We could make changes on all other legs without change fees or penalties.
FYI - at the time of our trip (Autumn 2007) we were unable to get to Fiji on any of the partner airlines for any itinerary either going east to west or west to east.
FYI - at the time of our trip (Autumn 2007) we were unable to get to Fiji on any of the partner airlines for any itinerary either going east to west or west to east.
Mar 16th, 2008, 10:40 AM
#5
There are several RTW products that will work - the Star Alliance RTW, the Skyteam RTW, the Oneworld Global Explorer (which unlike the main Oneworld product, the Oneworld Explorer, allows flights to/from Fiji) and the little-known "World Journey" RTW sold by KLM and Northwest among others.
RTW products are priced according to the country of origin, and the price can vary considerably. With the current weak dollar, the US is no longer among the highest-priced origins, but still more expensive than some (of course you need to factor in the "access cost" if you begin and end overseas someplace.)
At present, economy RTW fares from the US for your destinations would run around $4000-$4500; business class around $8000. That compares, for example for around $1000 - $1500 each for three separate round trips, say USA > Fiji >USA, USA-Europe-USA, and Europe -
RTW products are priced according to the country of origin, and the price can vary considerably. With the current weak dollar, the US is no longer among the highest-priced origins, but still more expensive than some (of course you need to factor in the "access cost" if you begin and end overseas someplace.)
At present, economy RTW fares from the US for your destinations would run around $4000-$4500; business class around $8000. That compares, for example for around $1000 - $1500 each for three separate round trips, say USA > Fiji >USA, USA-Europe-USA, and Europe -
Mar 16th, 2008, 10:46 AM
#6
Arrgh! PLEASE GIVE US AN EDITING FUNCTION, FODORS!
As I was saying... That compares, for example to around $1000 - $1500 each for three separate round trips, say USA > Fiji > USA, USA > Europe > USA, and Europe > Asia > Europe, so not a great deal of difference. In business class, of course, a huge difference, probably on the order of $5000+. One thing to note is that RTWs can be great mileage-earners, so if you have current frequent flyer affiliations, I'd look there first to see if an RTW would be beneficial.
As others have mentioned, RTWs can actually be more flexible than conventional products - usually a $125 change fee for itinerary changes, free for date/flight changes for the same cities.
The rules are complicated, but these products can be very rewarding and excellent value, especially if you're planning to travel to out-of-the-way places.
As I was saying... That compares, for example to around $1000 - $1500 each for three separate round trips, say USA > Fiji > USA, USA > Europe > USA, and Europe > Asia > Europe, so not a great deal of difference. In business class, of course, a huge difference, probably on the order of $5000+. One thing to note is that RTWs can be great mileage-earners, so if you have current frequent flyer affiliations, I'd look there first to see if an RTW would be beneficial.
As others have mentioned, RTWs can actually be more flexible than conventional products - usually a $125 change fee for itinerary changes, free for date/flight changes for the same cities.
The rules are complicated, but these products can be very rewarding and excellent value, especially if you're planning to travel to out-of-the-way places.
Mar 17th, 2008, 12:55 AM
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This is one of the few situations where I would actually consult a travel agent. When I bought a business class around the world, I thought I 'knew it all' after studying the One World and Alliance websites plus fora etc etc. One visit to a travel agent revealed that there are secrets out there only known to the pros! She had a fare which was Finnair/Qantas which saved around $3000 per ticket. I later checked the internet, and could not find it anywhere. Also, she knew to avoid ticketing it through Qantas (who charge a fuel surcharge). Most airlines will refuse to collect a fuel surcharge for other airlines, so which airline the ticket is issued by can greatly effect the total price.
Mar 17th, 2008, 02:36 PM
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<<One visit to a travel agent revealed that there are secrets out there only known to the pros! She had a fare which was Finnair/Qantas which saved around $3000 per ticket.>>
I agree with Nicol, I enquired recently about a RTW ticket and the agent at flightcentre.com told me about the savings etc I could get using Finnair as opposed to the traditional One World RTW.
I've always used an agent for multiple flights and have never paid anywhere near what I've seen on the internet
Geordie
I agree with Nicol, I enquired recently about a RTW ticket and the agent at flightcentre.com told me about the savings etc I could get using Finnair as opposed to the traditional One World RTW.
I've always used an agent for multiple flights and have never paid anywhere near what I've seen on the internet
Geordie
Mar 17th, 2008, 05:58 PM
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<<is flightcentre a good place to go for tickets, not just RTW?>.
Depends on where you live, in Australia, where they started you don't have a lot of other choices if you want to book a scheduled flight.
Geordie
Depends on where you live, in Australia, where they started you don't have a lot of other choices if you want to book a scheduled flight.
Geordie
Mar 18th, 2008, 01:12 AM
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Just watch out on the class. My husband us on a Oneworld RTW fare for January next year. We tried to book him on our GVA-GTW-MCO on the day the fights came open - no luck - all L class were taken (or never available). We are spending 4 days longer in Argentina as he couldn't get an L class on LAN.
Last week, Qantas announced direct Buenos Aires -Sydney. Great, it'll save 6 hours flight time, plus we are QC. My TA looked to put him on the day of the announcement - no L class available.
The TA pointed out that OW's RTW fares are generally quite a bit more expensive than the competition yet treat the passengers as the lowest of the low.
Last week, Qantas announced direct Buenos Aires -Sydney. Great, it'll save 6 hours flight time, plus we are QC. My TA looked to put him on the day of the announcement - no L class available.
The TA pointed out that OW's RTW fares are generally quite a bit more expensive than the competition yet treat the passengers as the lowest of the low.
Mar 18th, 2008, 06:30 AM
#13
<i>The TA pointed out that OW's RTW fares are generally quite a bit more expensive than the competition yet treat the passengers as the lowest of the low.</i>
Your TA was misinformed.
However the point about insuring that there is availability in your chosen booking class is well taken. Lan's service across the south Pacific is famous for lack of "L" class availability, especially during the southern summer. For April, however (for example) there is space on most flights between SCL and AKL. Qantas has just announced the EZE-SYD service (starting in November - peak season) so it's also likely that discount fare buckets will be hard to access for a little while on that route.
But the South America - Australia route is an example of where RTWs come into their own. Only two airlines currently fly between those two continents (Lan and Aerolineas) and any other alliance-based RTW will force you into detouring via North America in order to get to Australia or NZ from South America. Since all other RTW products are mileage-based, you're paying for a huge dogleg worth of miles by going in that direction, while with Oneworld you can go on a more direct route.
Your TA could have informed you - if they knew - that on the Oneworld Explorer it's perfectly acceptable to go South America > transit North America > Australia/NZ to work around the lack of availability between South America and Oz/NZ using the direct flights. There's almost always "L" availability between LAX and Auckland/Sydney et al. Because the OW Explorer is not mileage-based, it comes with no penalty except the additional 10 hours or flying time or so (but also can earn many thousands more FF miles while you're at it.)
All of which illustrates why it's so important to spend a little time familiarizing oneself with the rules, in order to make the most out of a rather expensive purchase. Think of it as any other multi-thousand dollar acquisition. Caveat emptor.
Your TA was misinformed.
However the point about insuring that there is availability in your chosen booking class is well taken. Lan's service across the south Pacific is famous for lack of "L" class availability, especially during the southern summer. For April, however (for example) there is space on most flights between SCL and AKL. Qantas has just announced the EZE-SYD service (starting in November - peak season) so it's also likely that discount fare buckets will be hard to access for a little while on that route.
But the South America - Australia route is an example of where RTWs come into their own. Only two airlines currently fly between those two continents (Lan and Aerolineas) and any other alliance-based RTW will force you into detouring via North America in order to get to Australia or NZ from South America. Since all other RTW products are mileage-based, you're paying for a huge dogleg worth of miles by going in that direction, while with Oneworld you can go on a more direct route.
Your TA could have informed you - if they knew - that on the Oneworld Explorer it's perfectly acceptable to go South America > transit North America > Australia/NZ to work around the lack of availability between South America and Oz/NZ using the direct flights. There's almost always "L" availability between LAX and Auckland/Sydney et al. Because the OW Explorer is not mileage-based, it comes with no penalty except the additional 10 hours or flying time or so (but also can earn many thousands more FF miles while you're at it.)
All of which illustrates why it's so important to spend a little time familiarizing oneself with the rules, in order to make the most out of a rather expensive purchase. Think of it as any other multi-thousand dollar acquisition. Caveat emptor.
Mar 18th, 2008, 04:08 PM
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Thanks for the response Gardyloo
We did look at travelling via the US but with the layover, it appears that all the EZE-LAX flights of around 15 hours (none are direct) arrive early am. The LAX-SYD flights leave late at night. This amounted to over 40 hours in transit versus our current booking via Santiago which is around 24 hours.
Again, I advise people to be aware of the restricted availability in L class, but I don't dispute the cost effectiveness.
We did look at travelling via the US but with the layover, it appears that all the EZE-LAX flights of around 15 hours (none are direct) arrive early am. The LAX-SYD flights leave late at night. This amounted to over 40 hours in transit versus our current booking via Santiago which is around 24 hours.
Again, I advise people to be aware of the restricted availability in L class, but I don't dispute the cost effectiveness.
May 19th, 2009, 08:32 AM
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It is a great insight. we are a family of 4with a 12 and 5yr old. Want to travel in SFO,Europe(fly into one city and, inside use Urail) , Cairo, Istanbul, bombay, Bejing, SFO route. I sent this Itenarary to Star Alliance 3 weeks ago and hhaven't heard from them.
Any suggestions for reputable ATW travel agents?
Thank you
Any suggestions for reputable ATW travel agents?
Thank you
May 19th, 2009, 08:43 PM
#17
You can book RTWs online at www.oneworld.com. As noted previously, there are cheaper countries from which to begin and end RTWs, but of course you need to factor in the costs of getting to those places (and back when you're done.)
If you're in SFO, one of the largest agencies doing RTWs is right in the City, www.airtreks.com.
If you're in SFO, one of the largest agencies doing RTWs is right in the City, www.airtreks.com.
May 20th, 2009, 03:25 AM
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I too have found that sending an itinerary electronically via the Star online program is a hit-and-miss proposition. I'd suggest calling one of the airlines on your itinerary and purchasing the ticket directly through them. (Using a travel agent will take more time, and most TAs will add a hefty charge for writing a RTW ticket.)
