Ever dream of jetting to one far off place after another? An Around-the-World (ATW) ticket may be the answer. In conjunction with the World Traveler segment I've been asked to comment on this type of ticketing arrangement.
There are three airline alliances which market the ATW ticket: Sky Team, OneWorld and Star Alliance. Each have remarkably similar restrictions and prices (covered below) so the most important factors in selecting an alliance is where you want to go and which alliance flies there. With so many airlines and so many destinations its impossible to discuss the best option in abstract terms. You'll need to think about the places you want to go and do some research. Star Alliance has the largest network with the most member airlines, but doesn't cover all the continents equally. Star was lacking in South American presence until the recent addition of TAM-Brazil but if South America is one of your primary destinations (and you'd like to visit a lot of it) you might be better off on a ticket with OneWorld whose members include American Airlines (good connectivity to and from the States) and LAN which includes subsidiaries in Chile, Peru and Argentina and can get you almost anywhere in South America.
Prices are usually significantly better than the sum of the cost of a slew of one-way tickets. The largest economy tickets allow up to 39,000 flight miles on 16 separate flights and run between $6,000 and $7,000. It seems like a lot up front but consider how much you'd spend on just 3 or 4 one way, intercontinental tickets. All good things come with restrictions, however, and in this case paying attention to them can make or break a trip.
All three alliances have nearly the same restrictions but some define differently where travel zones begin and end so be sure to read up on whichever you're using. In general travel must begin and end in the same country but not in the same city (i.e. depart from New York and end your trip in LA). Also you must cross the Atlantic and Pacific oceans exactly once and in the same direction (i.e. if you fly from New York to Paris, you must cross the Pacific from Asia/Australia to the US or Canada). Additionally you can only cross into each 'zone' once and must continually move in the same eastward or westward direction. The most generous and loosely defined zoning marks the world into three sections: The Americas (including North and South), EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) and Asia Pacific (everything else including Australia). Many tickets divide the world into five or six parts separating Africa, South America and the South Pacific into their own regions, but you get the idea. One you have crossed into a zone you are free to move about as you like as long as you don't exceed maximum number of flights on your ticket. Backtracking is permitted here, only within the current zone. When you move to a new zone it must be in the established direction of travel.
All of these tickets, if booked online, require you to choose your dates and flights for the entire trip up front. On the other hand if you book the trip through a reservation agent at one of the member airlines you're usually allowed to reserve just your first flight and leave the remainder open to use as you please over the course of a year. Keep in mind though that as you use up flights and mileage the ticket will become more restrictive because you'll need to have enough of both left to get to your home country. You cannot simply use all the miles and see where you end up (presumably buying your own way from there). You must end your trip in the country of origin. For this reason its probably a good idea to have some notion of (at the very least) where you'll be starting and ending, and how many miles and flights you'll need to get between those places and home.
Finally note that ATW tickets usually book into a specific fare class which has the potential to sell out. Airlines can also restrict specific flights from being used by ATW travelers. This means that even though an alliance carrier flies from point A to point B, you might not be able to get a ticket on that particular flight. Using the online booking tool will help identify which flights are available to ATW travelers. Most flights will be bookable but its worth keeping this in mind, especially if you're going to reserve your flights in the midst of your trip, as you go along.
ATW tickets can be a flexible and cost effective option. But like all things, you give up complete flexibility for a better price. If you can stand a bit of planning this might be the option for you. If you need to roam the globe free of encumbrances, look elsewhere.
Showing posts with label World Traveler. Show all posts
Showing posts with label World Traveler. Show all posts
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
World Traveler: Part 1 - USA to South Africa
World Traveler is intended to be a reoccurring segment following the travels of a friend. Lyssa will be starting her journey in October by flying to Cape Town, South Africa -- we'll begin there as well. She has no set schedule and plans to spend the better part of a year glob trotting wherever her whims and interests take her (or maybe wherever she can secure visas on short notice!). Each time she's looking to fly from place to place she'll be in touch and with some details so we can follow.
On her first leg Lyssa wants to fly from New York to Cape Town sometime in October. The trip will be one way which poses a problem as one way flights are traditionally more expensive. Fortunately, October being a low month for travel in the U.S., there are still deals to be had.
If your first motivation is economics then all dates in the calendar need to be open to find the best price. KLM-Royal Dutch is running a deal on flights to via Amsterdam on two Tuesdays, the 12th and 26th. Leaving JFK on an evening flight at either 4:20pm or 6:30pm and arriving in Amsterdam the following morning, this combination requires one connection to a direct Amsterdam-Cape Town daylight flight landing in South Africa shortly before 10pm. The earlier of the flights to depart JFK is a code share operated by Delta Airlines and leaves a connection time of around four and a half hours in Amsterdam. The later flight is operated by KLM and leaves a connection time of about two and half hours. This amount of time is probably sufficient for an international transfer but Lyssa should familiarize herself with the procedure prior to departing if she chooses this option. This combination of flights (with either JFK departure) currently runs $731 and can be booked on KLM's website.
Another option which eliminates the need to transfer in a third country is to take the non-stop South African Airways flight from JFK to Johannesburg and transfer to a domestic flight to Cape Town. The flight from JFK departs around 11am, flies for a little over 15 hours, and lands at 8:40am the following day -- take a moment to let the magnitude of a 15 hour flight to sink in. The benefits here are the aforementioned elimination of a third country stop and timing -- it would be nicer to arrive in the morning than late at night. This combination for flights has wider availability (October 6, 18-19, 24-28 and 31) and currently runs a few dollars over $800
A final option which is on sale for only one day in October (the 29th) is on Etihad Airlines. You may not have heard of this airline (or maybe you have) but its among the gamut of classy, middle eastern airlines that have come to prominence in the past decade. Etihad is based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates and competes with Emirates Airlines, based in Dubai. The airline is safe and reliable, flying a brand new fleet of Airbus aircraft. This option would have Lyssa flying from JFK to Abu Dhabi on a late evening flight which lands in the evening the following day. She would then board a connecting flight 3 hours later (again departing in the late evening) and arrive in the morning one day later. In total she would depart on the 29th at night and arrive on the 31st in the morning. Obviously timing is less preferential than the other options, which is hampered by the fact that the flight from Abu Dhabi makes a stop in Johannesburg before continuing to Cape Town. This option is currently going for $760.
What should Lyssa choose? If her schedule is completely flexible (or just happens to work out) the KLM flights are probably the best. Most obviously the price is lowest but that's just a bonus. First, Amsterdam doesn't require a visa for U.S. citizens, just a passport which she'll need anyway so connecting here doesn't present a problem. Second she has her choice of flights leaving JFK to give her more time to connect if she needs it, or less if she's confident she can make it on the shorter time. Also it gives her a stop loosely in the middle of the trip (first a 7-8 hour flight, then 10-11). While the South African Airways itinerary is flight is slightly shorter in terms of air time, 60-90 minutes isn't terribly significant on a trip of this length. Plus who wants to spend 15 hours in the same, coach class seat?! Nevertheless this would be a good alternative if the dates of the KLM flights won't work. As for the final option, while I have complete confidence in Etihad Airways, their itinerary simply takes too long. The extra stop is unnecessary when single stop trips can be booked for similar prices.
On her first leg Lyssa wants to fly from New York to Cape Town sometime in October. The trip will be one way which poses a problem as one way flights are traditionally more expensive. Fortunately, October being a low month for travel in the U.S., there are still deals to be had.
If your first motivation is economics then all dates in the calendar need to be open to find the best price. KLM-Royal Dutch is running a deal on flights to via Amsterdam on two Tuesdays, the 12th and 26th. Leaving JFK on an evening flight at either 4:20pm or 6:30pm and arriving in Amsterdam the following morning, this combination requires one connection to a direct Amsterdam-Cape Town daylight flight landing in South Africa shortly before 10pm. The earlier of the flights to depart JFK is a code share operated by Delta Airlines and leaves a connection time of around four and a half hours in Amsterdam. The later flight is operated by KLM and leaves a connection time of about two and half hours. This amount of time is probably sufficient for an international transfer but Lyssa should familiarize herself with the procedure prior to departing if she chooses this option. This combination of flights (with either JFK departure) currently runs $731 and can be booked on KLM's website.
Another option which eliminates the need to transfer in a third country is to take the non-stop South African Airways flight from JFK to Johannesburg and transfer to a domestic flight to Cape Town. The flight from JFK departs around 11am, flies for a little over 15 hours, and lands at 8:40am the following day -- take a moment to let the magnitude of a 15 hour flight to sink in. The benefits here are the aforementioned elimination of a third country stop and timing -- it would be nicer to arrive in the morning than late at night. This combination for flights has wider availability (October 6, 18-19, 24-28 and 31) and currently runs a few dollars over $800
A final option which is on sale for only one day in October (the 29th) is on Etihad Airlines. You may not have heard of this airline (or maybe you have) but its among the gamut of classy, middle eastern airlines that have come to prominence in the past decade. Etihad is based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates and competes with Emirates Airlines, based in Dubai. The airline is safe and reliable, flying a brand new fleet of Airbus aircraft. This option would have Lyssa flying from JFK to Abu Dhabi on a late evening flight which lands in the evening the following day. She would then board a connecting flight 3 hours later (again departing in the late evening) and arrive in the morning one day later. In total she would depart on the 29th at night and arrive on the 31st in the morning. Obviously timing is less preferential than the other options, which is hampered by the fact that the flight from Abu Dhabi makes a stop in Johannesburg before continuing to Cape Town. This option is currently going for $760.
What should Lyssa choose? If her schedule is completely flexible (or just happens to work out) the KLM flights are probably the best. Most obviously the price is lowest but that's just a bonus. First, Amsterdam doesn't require a visa for U.S. citizens, just a passport which she'll need anyway so connecting here doesn't present a problem. Second she has her choice of flights leaving JFK to give her more time to connect if she needs it, or less if she's confident she can make it on the shorter time. Also it gives her a stop loosely in the middle of the trip (first a 7-8 hour flight, then 10-11). While the South African Airways itinerary is flight is slightly shorter in terms of air time, 60-90 minutes isn't terribly significant on a trip of this length. Plus who wants to spend 15 hours in the same, coach class seat?! Nevertheless this would be a good alternative if the dates of the KLM flights won't work. As for the final option, while I have complete confidence in Etihad Airways, their itinerary simply takes too long. The extra stop is unnecessary when single stop trips can be booked for similar prices.
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