How to book a round-the-world ticket using points and miles: 9 loyalty programs you can use

19 hours ago 1

If you're reading this article, booking a round-the-world ticket with points and miles likely sounds alluring. A round-the-world award ticket often lets you fly many segments for about the same points or miles as a few long-haul award flights. However, in most cases, you'll need to fly around the world and return to the region, country or city you departed from at the end of your trip.

You may also experience frustrations as you book and travel on a complex round-the-world award ticket. You'll usually have to call in to book your award; any changes may be difficult or impossible. And if you want to fly in premium cabins, booking a round-the-world ticket with points and miles usually requires skill and luck in finding award availability.

This being said, the value and experience of a round-the-world ticket can be worth the effort. So here's a look at some of the best programs for booking a round-the-world ticket with points and miles that you can earn via transferable rewards.

Air Canada Aeroplan

Air Canada Aeroplan doesn't offer a true round-the-world award, but you can effectively travel around the world and visit three destinations on a round-trip Aeroplan itinerary with two stopovers. Best of all, you can search and book these awards on Air Canada's website.

For example, I searched for a multicity itinerary from New York to Singapore with a seven-day stopover in Frankfurt on the outbound and a seven-day stopover in Seoul, South Korea, on the return.

The total cost of this four-segment economy round-the-world itinerary is 130,000 Aeroplan points and 408 Canadian dollars (about $300). You can earn Aeroplan points by spending on the Aeroplan® Credit Card. But suppose you need to acquire points quickly. In that case, you can also transfer American Express Membership Rewards points, Bilt Rewards Points, Capital One miles, Chase Ultimate Rewards points and Marriott Bonvoy points to Aeroplan.

ANA Mileage Club

ANA Mileage Club offers a Star Alliance Round-the-World award ticket to its members. With this ticket, you can fly on Star Alliance airlines around the world as long as your itinerary meets the following requirements:

Fly across the Atlantic and Pacific oceans one time each
Fly west to east or east to west without backtracking
No more than eight stopovers (not including your origin and destination; up to three stopovers within Europe and up to four stopovers within Japan)
No more than 12 flights and four ground segments (including airport changes in the same city)

Daily Newsletter

Reward your inbox with the TPG Daily newsletter

Join over 700,000 readers for breaking news, in-depth guides and exclusive deals from TPG’s experts

By signing up, you will receive newsletters and promotional content and agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.

You must call ANA Mileage Club to book, but you can expect to pay the following award rates based on the total distance of your flight segments:

Itinerary mileageEconomyBusinessFirst

4,001 to 7,000	38,000	63,000	90,000
7,001 to 9,000	43,000	68,000	100,000
9,001 to 11,000	55,000	85,000	120,000
11,001 to 14,000	60,000	90,000	140,000
14,001 to 18,000	65,000	105,000	160,000
18,001 to 20,000	75,000	115,000	180,000
20,001 to 22,000	85,000	125,000	200,000
22,001 to 25,000	100,000	145,000	220,000
25,001 to 29,000	120,000	170,000	260,000
29,001 to 34,000	140,000	200,000	300,000
34,001 to 39,000	160,000	220,000	340,000
39,001 to 44,000	180,000	270,000	390,000
44,001 to 50,000	200,000	300,000	450,000

Many travelers believe the award rates for ANA's Star Alliance Round-the-World tickets are the best you'll find. If you need more miles to book your round-the-world ANA award, you can transfer American Express Membership Rewards points and Marriott Bonvoy points to ANA Mileage Club.

British Airways Executive Club

British Airways Executive Club doesn't officially offer a round-the-world award ticket. But you can book an award ticket for travel on two or more Oneworld carriers — including on a round-the-world itinerary — using the following multicarrier reward flights award chart:

Total distance of your journeyEconomyPremium EconomyBusinessFirst ClassTaxes, fees and carrier charges for an economy award

Up to 1,500 miles	30,000 Avios	45,000 Avios	60,000 Avios	90,000 Avios	Up to $109.79
1,501 to 4,000 miles	35,000 Avios	52,500 Avios	70,000 Avios	105,000 Avios	Up to $356.44
4,001 to 9,000 miles	60,000 Avios	90,000 Avios	120,000 Avios	180,000 Avios	Up to $1,534.64
9,001 to 10,000 miles	70,000 Avios	105,000 Avios	140,000 Avios	210,000 Avios	Up to $3,605.40
10,001 to 14,000 miles	90,000 Avios	135,000 Avios	180,000 Avios	270,000 Avios	Up to $1,910.25
14,001 to 20,000 miles	100,000 Avios	150,000 Avios	200,000 Avios	300,000 Avios	Up to $1,963.43
20,001 to 25,000 miles	120,000 Avios	180,000 Avios	240,000 Avios	360,000 Avios	Up to $940.83

The Avios cost is based on the total distance of your journey, although the taxes, fees and carrier charges will vary depending on your travel dates and the route you fly. Taxes, fees and carrier charges will be higher for premium cabin awards than for economy awards shown above.

You'll need to call Executive Club to book multicarrier reward flights. Although Executive Club doesn't publish any rules for these awards, you must typically return to or near your origin; make sure you avoid backtracking; and plan a logical route. You don't need to have the Avios in your account when you initially call to price out your award, as the agent will need to send your itinerary off to another department to calculate the taxes and fees (you'll get an email to call back and book once the other department finishes calculating your taxes and fees).

You have lots of options for earning Avios, including Avios-earning credit cards. However, if you need some Avios in a hurry, you can transfer American Express Membership Rewards points, Bilt Rewards points, Capital One miles, Chase Ultimate Rewards points, Marriott Bonvoy points and Wells Fargo Rewards points to British Airways Executive Club.

Cathay Asia Miles

Similar to British Airways Executive Club, Cathay Asia Miles doesn't offer a round-the-world award ticket but does offer a Oneworld multicarrier award chart. You can book a Oneworld multicarrier award at the following rates if your itinerary includes flights operated by at least two Oneworld airlines that aren't Cathay Pacific or at least three Oneworld airlines including Cathay Pacific.

Total itinerary distanceEconomyBusinessFirst

0 to 1,000 miles	30,000 Asia Miles	60,000 Asia Miles	75,000 Asia Miles
1,001 to 1,500 miles	35,000 Asia Miles	65,000 Asia Miles	85,000 Asia Miles
1,501 to 2,000 miles	40,000 Asia Miles	70,000 Asia Miles	95,000 Asia Miles
2,001 to 4,000 miles	45,000 Asia Miles	80,000 Asia Miles	110,000 Asia Miles
4,001 to 7,500 miles	63,000 Asia Miles	100,000 Asia Miles	150,000 Asia Miles
7,501 to 9,000 miles	68,000 Asia Miles	120,000 Asia Miles	165,000 Asia Miles
9,001 to 10,000 miles	77,000 Asia Miles	135,000 Asia Miles	175,000 Asia Miles
10,001 to 14,000 miles	95,000 Asia Miles	170,000 Asia Miles	250,000 Asia Miles
14,001 to 18,000 miles	105,000 Asia Miles	210,000 Asia Miles	310,000 Asia Miles
18,001 to 20,000 miles	115,000 Asia Miles	230,000 Asia Miles	330,000 Asia Miles
20,001 to 25,000 miles	126,000 Asia Miles	250,000 Asia Miles	350,000 Asia Miles
25,001 to 35,000 miles	140,000 Asia Miles	265,000 Asia Miles	365,000 Asia Miles
35,001 to 50,000 miles	160,000 Asia Miles	280,000 Asia Miles	380,000 Asia Miles

When booking a round-trip Oneworld multicarrier award with Cathay, you can have up to five stopovers, two transfers and two open jaws. However, you must fly round-trip and can't have an open jaw at your origin or destination. You must call Cathay customer service to book a Oneworld multicarrier award.

To earn Asia Miles quickly, you can transfer American Express Membership Rewards points, Bilt Rewards points, Capital One miles, Citi ThankYou points or Marriott Bonvoy points to Cathay.

Qantas Frequent Flyer

Qantas Frequent Flyer doesn't offer a round-the-world award ticket, but you can use a Oneworld Classic Flight Reward to book a round-the-world trip on at least two Oneworld member airlines other than Qantas. All your flights must be on Oneworld airlines, which means you can't fly on Qantas flights operated by Jetstar Airlines.

Here's a look at the Oneworld Classic Flight Reward award chart:

Round-trip itinerary distanceEconomyPremium economyBusinessFirst

Up to 1,200 miles	20,000 points	31,600 points	40,000 points	58,000 points
1,201 to 2,400 miles	28,000 points	47,500 points	60,000 points	87,000 points
2,401 to 4,800 miles	40,000 points	69,000 points	87,600 points	129,000 points
4,801 to 7,200 miles	49,000 points	97,000 points	122,400 points	179,600 points
7,201 to 9,600 miles	60,400 points	118,000 points	150,000 points	215,500 points
9,601 to 11,600 miles	75,600 points	141,600 points	180,000 points	258,600 points
11,601 to 14,000 miles	90,000 points	163,600 points	209,000 points	299,600 points
14,001 to 16,800 miles	100,600 points	187,000 points	238,400 points	341,600 points
16,801 to 19,200 miles	123,000 points	218,000 points	278,400 points	398,600 points
19,201 to 35,000 miles	132,400 points	249,600 points	318,000 points	455,000 points

All the award rates in the Oneworld Classic Flight Reward table are based on round-trip distances. If you don't return to your origin at the end of your trip, the distance to return directly to your airport of origin will be added to the distance of your itinerary. Likewise, surface segments you don't fly during an open jaw will be included when calculating the distance of your itinerary. The total distance of your itinerary must be 35,000 miles or less.

A Oneworld Classic Flight Reward can have up to 16 segments (including surface segments) and five stopovers, although you can only have one stopover in any particular city. You can also only transfer twice in any one particular city and may not return to your origin city or country until the end of your itinerary.

To earn Qantas points, you can transfer American Express Membership Rewards points, Capital One miles, Citi ThankYou points or Marriott Bonvoy points to Qantas Frequent Flyer.

TAP Air Portugal Miles&Go

TAP Air Portugal Miles&Go offers a true round-the-world award redemption for travel on scheduled flights operated by Star Alliance airlines. You can redeem 300,000 miles for an economy round-the-world redemption or 400,000 miles if any of your flights are in business class. However, your round-the-world Miles&Go award itinerary must follow these rules:

Start and end in the same country
Cross both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans
Have no more than 10 flights and 6 stopovers more than 24 hours
Always travel east or west without changing direction
Open jaws are allowed

Once you purchase your round-the-world award, you can only change your flight dates or cancel. However, you can't cancel your ticket after the start of the journey.

You can earn more TAP miles with the TAP Miles&Go American Express® Credit Card or by transferring Capital One miles or Marriott Bonvoy points.

The information for the TAP Miles&Go American Express credit card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Other programs to consider

The six programs discussed so far will be the best options for most U.S.-based travelers looking to book a round-the-world plane ticket with points and miles. However, the following three programs may be worth considering if you are able to earn enough of their rewards:

Asiana Club Star Alliance Round-the-World Ticket: You can redeem 140,000 miles in economy or 230,000 miles in business for a round-the-world itinerary with up to seven stopovers of 24 hours or more. Asiana Club allows backtracking within the same region, but you must return to your origin country at the end of your itinerary and fly over the Pacific and Atlantic oceans once. You can transfer Marriott points to Asiana Club.
Japan Airlines Mileage Bank Oneworld Award Tickets: You could use the JAL Mileage Bank Oneworld award chart to make your own round-the-world award ticket. These Mileage Bank Oneworld award tickets allow up to eight flight segments and seven stopovers of more than 24 hours (one of which can be a ground segment open jaw). You can transfer Marriott Bonvoy points to JAL Mileage Bank.
Lufthansa Miles & More Round-the-World Flight Award: Unlike many of the other Star Alliance programs that offer round-the-world award tickets, Miles & More lets its members fly on all its partners instead of only Star Alliance partners. You can have up to 10 flight segments, seven stopovers and must cross the Atlantic and Pacific oceans once. Miles & More charges 180,00 miles in economy, 335,000 miles in business and 500,000 miles in first for its round-the-world flight award. Unfortunately, you can't transfer any major U.S. transferable points to Miles & More.

Finally, if you're wondering why I haven't discussed the Singapore KrisFlyer Star Alliance Round-the-World Awards, the carrier stopped issuing these awards in May 2024. Likewise, Aeromexico Rewards seemingly no longer offers its SkyTeam Go Round-the-World Pass award ticket.

Bottom line

If you have the time to go on a multistop round-the-world trip and the points and miles to make it a reality, one of the above loyalty programs might have the perfect award redemption for you. Especially if you maximize your stopovers and open jaws, you could book an epic trip around the world on points and miles.

Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.

Read Entire Article