Alliance Round-the-World Tickets

Principle

For several years now, the trend in the airline industry has been toward consolidation. This has led to the creation of three major global alliances (SkyTeam, One World, and Star Alliance), each comprising around fifteen to thirty major carriers flying to hundreds of destinations worldwide.

Commercially, each alliance now offers its own round-the-world packages. These can be found directly with the carriers (including online) or through certain travel agencies.

In practice, a round-the-world ticket purchased this way is bought in full before departure, with the itinerary and dates (modifiable) set at the time of purchase.

Advantages and Disadvantages

Compared to the offers from the three alliances mentioned.

Advantages

The first advantage of alliance passes is the ease and simplicity of simulating itineraries and prices on their websites. You can take the time to compare and budget according to your preferences, based on extensive networks. In short, it’s very useful for planning (even if you later explore other options), especially for beginners.

In terms of the packages themselves, they offer plenty of choices to suit a wide range of travelers looking to do a full round-the-world trip or limit themselves to certain regions (continental packages), all at "reasonable" prices.

Once on the road, you also benefit from some flexibility in terms of date changes and, to a lesser extent, destination changes.

Finally, the available carriers are of high quality.

In short, as long as you’re not an "air travel specialist" or looking for something too complex or specific—whether in terms of itinerary planning or travel style—you’ll find real value in these passes, particularly those from One World and, secondarily, Star Alliance.

Disadvantages

However, there are some constraints regarding the itinerary. For full packages, there’s an obligation to include a transatlantic and transpacific connection. Overland travel between chosen airports may sometimes be counted as flights or included in the mileage. There are also defined stop limits depending on the package and/or regions, and a requirement to start and end the journey in the same country. For those planning very long trips, there’s a maximum validity of one year.

Additionally, as with any pre-purchased ticket of this type, it can be difficult to make significant changes to your itinerary once you’re on the road.

Finally, those who don’t want to rely too much on flying will find plenty of drawbacks to using these packages.

Oneworld

Several packages covering either the entire network or specific geographic regions.

"Oneworld Explorer"

"Oneworld Explorer" details on their site

The world is divided into six zones with specific fares. The final price is calculated based on the number of sectors visited/crossed (including the departure sector).

You can choose to travel across a minimum of 3 zones (1,950 €), 4 (2,350 €), 5 (2,850 €), or a maximum of 6 zones (3,300 €). The price includes up to 4 flights per zone (6 in North America), with the option to purchase 2 additional flights per zone for 100 € each. Note that overland travel between two airports may sometimes be counted as a flight.

The starting and ending point of the trip must be in the same country as the purchase.

Valid for 10 days to 1 year maximum. Date changes are free or low-cost, and destination changes within a zone cost 75 €.

"Global Explorer"

"Global Explorer" details on their site

Another round-the-world package using the alliance’s carriers plus a few associated ones.

Here, the price depends on the distance traveled (1 mile = 1.6 km): 26,000 miles (1,950 €), 29,000 miles (2,350 €), 34,000 miles (2,850 €), or 39,000 miles (3,300 €).

The itinerary must include one (and only one) transatlantic and one (and only one) transpacific flight.

A minimum of 3 stops and a maximum of 5, 10, or 15 stops are allowed in total, depending on the distance range.

Same validity, modification rules, and overland travel conditions as the previous package.

Other Packages

Oneworld also offers 4 "Circle" packages and 9 continental or regional passes.

Summary

A well-designed set of offers in this category, suitable for those who want to travel around the world or limit themselves to certain continents, thanks to a well-distributed and appealing network. In fact, of the three alliances, Oneworld’s packages are the most widely used by long-haul travelers.

SkyTeam

One round-the-world package covering their network plus others by geographic zones.

"Go Round the World"

"Round the World" details on their site

The package and price are based on the distance traveled in miles (1 mile = 1.6 km): 26,000 miles (2,100 €), 29,000 miles (? €), 34,000 miles (3,050 €), or 39,000 miles (around 3,500 €).

You can benefit from 3 to 15 stops depending on the distance range.

The itinerary must include one (and only one) transatlantic and one (and only one) transpacific flight.

Overland travel between two airports may sometimes be included in the mileage.

The starting and ending point of the trip must be in the same country.

Valid for 10 days to 1 year maximum. Date changes are free or low-cost, and destination changes cost $100 USD.

Other Packages

In addition to a Europe package for non-residents, SkyTeam offers a North America package, an Africa package, and an Asia/Pacific package. There are also country passes for China, Russia, and Mexico.

Summary

A round-the-world package similar in principle to Oneworld’s "Global" but apparently at a higher price.

Star Alliance

Several packages covering either the entire network or specific geographic regions.

"Round the World"

"Round the World" details on their site

The package and price are calculated based on the distance traveled in miles (1 mile = 1.6 km): 26,000 miles (? €), 29,000 miles (2,250 €), 34,000 miles (2,600 €), or 39,000 miles (3,000 €).

You can benefit from 3 to 15 stops depending on the distance range.

The itinerary must include one (and only one) transatlantic and one (and only one) transpacific flight.

Overland travel between two airports may sometimes be included in the mileage.

The starting and ending point of the trip must be in the same country.

Valid for 10 days to 1 year maximum. Date and destination changes are free or low-cost.

Other Packages

Star Alliance also offers several other continental or regional passes.

Summary

A similar type of pass to the others, on an excellent network and the most capable of competing with Oneworld’s offers.