Who said flying around the world has to be expensive? One man is in the midst of an eight-day journey around the globe – with stops in 10 major cities in eight different countries – and he’s doing it for less than $2,400 in airfare.
That’s roughly half of what you’d pay if you circumnavigated the globe using traditional airlines, but Richard Quest, the recently appointed editor-at-large at CNN Money and longtime aviation correspondent for CNN, has pocketed significant savings by booking the cheapest economy tickets he could find with 10 low-cost airlines — including Ireland-based Ryanair and Air Arabia — and opting to pass on pricey airline food.
“These airlines have democratized flying, and are now the backbone of short-haul travel in Europe, Asia and America,” Quest said.
Quest’s airline tickets totaled $2,345 for his eight-day trip, starting in London and including stops in Brussels, Belgium; Prague, Czech Republic; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Colombo, Sri Lanka; Singapore; Sydney; Honolulu; Los Angeles; and New York City.
Quest would have paid $4,227 to fly across the globe with Star Alliance carriers (which includes Lufthansa and United Airlines) and $4,606 by flying with Sky Team (which includes Delta, Air France and KLM), CNN said.
Quest’s most costly flight on the trip is the leg from Los Angeles to New York, which cost $482 with JetBlue. The cheapest leg of the trip is flying from London to Brussels for a mere $24 with Easy Jet.
“We want to show just how far you can go in low cost, and see which airlines are offering the best service for those on business and on a budget,” Quest explained.
You can follow Quest’s globe-trotting adventure here.
Do you have any money-saving travel tips? Share your comments below or on our Facebook page.
Add a Comment
Our Policy: We welcome relevant and respectful comments in order to foster healthy and informative discussions. All other comments may be removed. Comments with links are automatically held for moderation.