Star Alliance has expanded its Round-the-World (RTW) fare to include travel in Premium Economy Class. In line with the overall RTW product, the Premium Economy Class fare is offered in three mileage bands: 29,000, 34,000 or 39,000 miles. Putting the mileage levels into perspective, the circumference of the Earth measured at the Equator is approximately 24,900 miles.
The new fare can now be booked for travel in the Premium Economy cabins on the following airlines:
Air Canada, Air China, Air New Zealand, ANA, EVA Air, Lufthansa, LOT Polish Airlines, SAS, Singapore Airlines, THAI and Turkish Airlines. To provide customers with full flexibility, itineraries may include any other Star Alliance member airlines as well. On flights where Premium Economy Class is not offered, travelers will be accommodated in Economy Class.
With the new fares, customers can choose from 17 different Star Alliance RTW fare options: Three for travel in First Class, four for travel in Business Class, three for travel in Premium Economy and seven for travel in Economy Class. This wide range of fare levels allows customers to select the mileage requirement and class of travel which best suits their personal travel needs. Actual fares vary by market and, in general, offer better value for money than purchasing individual one-way tickets on separate airlines to cover the same itinerary. Children between the age of two and 11 pay 75% of the applicable adult fare, while infants under two who do not occupy a seat can be taken along for 10% of the applicable adult fare.
Customers can easily build their own routings within the mileage limits of the different fare levels. Travel needs to commence and end in the same country and in general be in one direction, either going East or West, although some zigzagging is permitted within a continent. Both the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean must be crossed once. Stops lasting a minimum of 24 hours must be made in at least three cities, with the overall itinerary including a maximum of five to 15 stops (total number of stops are dependent on the actual fare level). Further information can be found at: www.staralliance.com/en/fares/. This page also leads to the Star Alliance Book and Fly tool (www.staralliance.com/en/booking/book-and-fly/#), which allows online booking and ticketing for the RTW fare. As an alternative, customers can also contact any of the 28 Star Alliance member airlines or a travel agent of their choice. In addition to the RTW fares, the Star Alliance network also offers the Circle Pacific Fare and five Regional Airpasses.
Customers travelling on Star Alliance RTW fares may in principle accrue miles in any of the 21 Frequent Flyer Programmes (FFP) offered by the member airlines. The collected miles can count towards earning Star Alliance Gold or Silver status and be redeemed, for example, for free flights, upgrades or non-flight awards such as hotel stays.
