Fly Round the World

At one point in history, 1924 to be precise, it took a team of aviators 175 days to circumnavigate the globe. Now it’s possible to get yourself around the world in just a weekend! These trips are the definition of once in a lifetime and are quite simply, one of, if not, the best things you can do when it comes to travel. 

The mass expansion of commercial flights across all regions of the world has essentially made reaching them so much easier. Which in turn means there is huge potential for unforgettable, life-changing round-the-world trip itineraries to be had. The best thing about flying around the world is that the trip is 100% completely bespoke and tailored to you. You can choose from visiting four or five key cities across each continent to doing a more in-depth trip in a continent or regions of your choice. You could travel to visit the seven wonders of the world (natural, man-made, brand new…) or you could focus your attention on your stomach and grab a flight that’ll take you to yet another exciting culinary hotspot.

24,901 miles circumference, 7 continents, 195 countries, 5 oceans... the world is one huge adventure playground waiting to be explored!

The options are never-ending, there are quite literally no limits to what you can do, the things you can see and the experiences you can have when flying on a round-the-world trip!

If you have an idea as to what you’d like your round the world itinerary to look like, then send us an enquiry today and our travel consultants will spend time with you listening to your ideas before designing your bespoke itinerary.

Where to start?

Think about planning a round-the-world trip can seem daunting at first, but don’t worry, that’s why we’re here. We’ll happily guide you through some of the decision-making processes with plenty of tips and advice to make the design process as easy as possible – spend more time counting down the days to departure.

A good place to begin is thinking about where you’d like to go and how long you’d like to be away for...

Choosing where to go is a big part of the decision-making process for a trip like this. There are just SO many incredible places to visit and things to experience. This is where we suggest making one of our favourite things…a list! Write down all the places you’d like to visit and if possible, the reasons why. Is it for culture, food, tourist spots, beaches, sport, landscapes, marine life, cities, unique experiences or simply because you like the name. This way, you’ll be able to see if there is a certain region of the world you ought to focus on most or a particular standout reason for heading abroad.

How long to go away for? Whilst, with 19-hour direct flights now available, it is possible to go around the world in a weekend, we wouldn’t recommend it and let’s face it, it won’t be much fun! As a minimum we would suggest four weeks to allow you at least some downtime in a select handful of destinations away from airports and aeroplanes – no point travelling all this way if you’re not going to see more than the view out of an aircraft window, right? Most people choose to go away for around a year, but this is personal and the length of the trip is entirely down to you.

Once you’ve made, even preliminary, decisions on these two factors you’ll be able to look at how much you’d like to spend. Trips like these can vary greatly in cost depending of course on where you spend your time, how long you’re away for, the types and styles of accommodation, the activities you’ll engage in and flight cabins of choice when travelling.

How to do it

There are now two main ways in which you choose to get yourself on a trip of a lifetime.

One option is to purchase a round-the-world ticket (RTW) with an airline alliance. These are groups of individual airlines that work together to make it simple for you to travel across multiple countries and destinations on a single ticket. Most of these tickets come with set rules such as how many countries or continents you can visit, the direction of travel or the distance covered so it’s best to work out where you’d like to go first and then see if an alliance suits your needs. These tickets often need you to commit to flight dates at the time of booking also with potential charges down the line should you wish to change them. The main alliances are Oneworld, Star Alliance and Skyteam. Between them, the majority of the world is accessible. This is often the cheapest way to travel around the world.

The other option, which is becoming increasingly popular, is to book each flying sector individually. This could be with scheduled airlines in an alliance or separate to one (such as Emirates), a low-cost carrier or a local airline. This method allows a greater deal of flexibility, more choice when it comes to carriers and the option to travel privately on jets throughout, should you wish. Not only this but you aren’t bound by as many rules and can purchase tickets for certain sectors that contain extra benefits such as free date changes should your plans alter. This method is, however, can often cost quite a lot more. 

Basic Hints and Tips

• Flexibility. Try to be flexible where possible by departing on a weekday or over a holiday such as Christmas. This can help to reduce costs.
• Use other forms of transport. Whilst this is a fly around-the-world trip, you don’t actually have to fly every sector. You could drive between Sydney and Brisbane, sail from Miami to St. Lucia or catch a train from Toronto to Vancouver for example.
• Internal flights. With the rise in low-cost airlines, internal flights are a great way to get around a country if you’re a little strapped on time.
• If choosing a RTW ticket, be mindful that any missed sector could lead to the rest of your itinerary being cancelled. Best to stick to the plan.
• Plan how much you want to spend for the whole trip, not just the flights. This way you’ll be able to stay on top of plans and now allow them to scale too far from what you’re wanting to spend.

Route Inspiration

See below for some sample routes you could take by flying around the world. Don’t forget, these trips are completely designed and tailored to suit you so make sure to speak to your travel consultant today about where it is you’d like to go.