 oneworld has become the first in the travel industry to sell multiairline
round-the-world air tickets on-line with its new internet booking tool for its oneworld Explorer
fare. This also makes oneworld the first global airline alliance to offer any of its public fares for sale
through the worldwide web.
The new on-line booking tool is available now through oneworld.com The alliance’s member airlines
will add it to their own websites too or provide links from their internet sites to the oneworld.com
facility – at www.oneworld.com/ow/flight-info/plan-and-book-your-itinerary
oneworld Explorer is among the most popular multi-airline tickets worldwide, enabling passengers to
travel right around the globe using the flights of any of oneworld’s ten member airline and 20 or so
affiliates, who together serve some 700 destinations in approaching 150 countries.
With the launch this new oneworld internet tool, customers or their travel agents can for the first time
both plan their round-the-world itinerary and now book and pay for their tickets on-line.
The system has a number of special features to make it as simple as possible for customers to plan
oneworld Explorer round-the-world trips.
As they build their itinerary - simply by clicking on destinations displayed on the alliance’s interactive
map - the system automatically checks availability and displays only flights that have seats available
for each route and date selected. It also validates that the itinerary meets all the fare’s rules and
conditions - and then provides an instant price for the trip.
Once customers have finalised their itinerary - which can be of up to 16 sectors - they can pay online
using a credit card (see notes) and print out all the details. The e-tickets for the entire trip are
then sent to the customer by email.
oneworld Vice-President Commercial Nicolas Ferri said: “The tremendous value and flexibility our
oneworld Explorer fares offer now combined with the ease and simplicity of planning, booking and
paying on-line extends oneworld and our member airlines’ leading position for worldwide travel. We
are delighted to be the first and only alliance - and indeed the first in the travel industry - to offer this
level of convenience to our customers and travel agency partners, building further on our record of
innovation.”
The booking engine project has been led on behalf of all the alliance’s carriers by Qantas. Its
General Manager Sales and Distribution Rob Gurney said: “With so many possibilities of places to
visit and routes to take, planning and booking a round-the-world trip can be time-consuming - both for
our customers and sales representatives. Our new, easy-to-use on-line booking and payment facility
simplifies the entire operation, saving customers a huge amount of time and providing them with far
more flexibility in planning their trips. It will also reduce costs for our member airlines and free up
time of airline and travel agency reservations agents to handle other tasks.”
oneworld first to sell alliance fares on-line.
Unlike other round-the-world fares, oneworld Explorer’s price is based on the number of continents
visited (three to six), not the mileage flown, making planning and pricing journeys much more simple
and flexible. It covers flights worldwide by all oneworld member and affiliate airlines.
With oneworld the only airline alliance with members based in South America, Australia or Asia’s
Middle East, it is just the ticket for anyone who truly wants to circumnavigate the globe.
It offers great flexibility and value, generating the largest portion of the US$725 million revenues
earned by oneworld for its member airlines through its alliance fares and sales activities last year.
Around 50,000 people bought a oneworld Explorer round-the-world ticket last year.
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