Airline alliances are what makes many Round The World trips possible. By combining airlines in different continents, alliances make sure you have a seamless trip. There are three major airline alliances, these being Star Alliance, oneworld and SkyTeam. Each are made up of different carriers which determines what routes and options are available for their respective Round The World airfares.
Star Alliance were the original global airline alliance, formed in 1997. The Star Alliance network includes 27 airlines which have more than 18,500 daily departures combined. These flights reach 1,330 airports in more than 192 countries, over 1,000 airport lounges and an annual number of 689.98 million passengers.
This broad array of airlines means that Star Alliance have some unbeatable routes. Particularly for travel to/within South East Asia, Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, North and South Africa, the US and Canada. Their major downfall is not having an airline to fly between Australia and South America, but this part of their network has improved over recent years with COPA and TACA joining the alliance.
oneworld is a worldwide airline alliance with fourteen of the world’s biggest and most awarded airlines. oneworld is the current holder of an unprecedented six of the eight leading international “best airline alliance” titles, mainly due to their high standard across the board.
oneworld offer flights to some 1,000 destinations across the globe, on more than 14,000 daily flights, with in excess of 500 airport departure lounges such as Qantas Club. Their frequent flyer programs are among the most common and popular programs, particularly through Qantas.
SkyTeam are a prodominantly Northern Hemisphere based airline alliance. They have 20 member airlines that fly to 1057 destinations, and have 636 lounges worldwide. Skyteam price their round the worlds at a price point that is not quite attractive enough to warrant the lower quality airlines involved, and thus we don’t tend to recommend or book their round the world tickets.
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