For sabbaticals and career breaks
Sabbatical and Career Break Travel
Extended trips built for months, not weeks. Open-jaw routing, flexible return dates, and multi-stop tickets that cost less than booking each flight separately.
Plan My Trip
Sample routes
Routes our specialists tag for sabbatical / career break travelers
Hong Kong to Fiji & New Zealand Multi-Stop
Economy multi-stop routing from Hong Kong to Nadi, with an overland gap to Christchurch, then onward to Auckland and back to Hong Kong across a 15-week trip.
Estimated
$1,354–$2,066
New York City to Medellin & Buenos Aires Multi-Stop
An 8-week economy multi-stop routing from New York City with 28 nights in Medellin and 30 nights in Buenos Aires before returning to New York City.
Estimated
$1,362–$2,078
Old World RTW: NYC → London → Rome → Cairo → Dubai → Bangkok → NYC
Five-region history-focused RTW. NYC → London → Rome → Cairo → Dubai → Bangkok → home. Each stop is a layered-history anchor (Roman, Egyptian, Islamic, Buddhist) with short hops between Europe + North Africa + Middle East before the long way home from Asia.
Estimated
$1,367–$2,086
Vancouver to Chennai, Colombo & Bali Multi-Stop
An 11-week economy multi-stop routing from Vancouver through South Asia and Southeast Asia, with 8 nights in Chennai, 30 in Colombo, and 21 in Denpasar Bali before returning to Vancouver.
Estimated
$1,415–$2,158
Seattle to Tel Aviv & London Multi-Stop
Economy multi-stop routing from Seattle to Tel Aviv and London, returning to Seattle. Built around two longer stays with a November departure and total trip length of 61 weeks.
Estimated
$1,468–$2,239
Westbound Across Asia: NYC → Tokyo → Bangkok → Delhi → London → NYC
Westbound RTW with three Asian stops on a single ticket. NYC transpacific to Tokyo, south to Bangkok, west to Delhi, north to London, home. Star Alliance routing keeps one PNR throughout. Plan 5–10 weeks; October–December avoids the South Asia monsoon.
Estimated
$1,500–$2,289
New York City to Ponta Delgada, Lisbon, Florence, Copenhagen & 2 more Multi-Stop
An 8-week economy multi-stop route from New York City to Los Angeles via the Azores and four European city stops, paced with longer stays in Portugal and shorter finishers in Northern Europe.
Estimated
$1,514–$2,309
Classic Eastbound RTW: Los Angeles → London → Bangkok → Sydney → LA
Four-region eastbound RTW with single-ticket oneworld routing throughout. LA → London → Bangkok → Sydney → home, anchored by BA T5 and Qantas SYD-LAX direct. October–December is the lowest-friction season: shoulder pricing in Europe, dry season in Bangkok, spring in Sydney.
Estimated
$1,517–$2,314
Chicago to Tokyo, Hong Kong, Bangkok, New Delhi & London Multi-Stop
Economy multi-stop routing from Chicago through East and Southeast Asia, onward to South Asia and Europe, then back to Chicago. This itinerary is built around several long stays with a few short connection-style city stops.
Estimated
$1,632–$2,490
Silk Road Crossing: NYC → Istanbul → Dubai → Delhi → Bangkok → Tokyo → NYC
Six-region eastbound RTW tracing the historical Silk Road by air. NYC → Istanbul → Dubai → Delhi → Bangkok → Tokyo → home. Turkish + Emirates handle the western half cleanly; Star Alliance picks up the eastern half through Bangkok to Tokyo and home via direct ANA NH8 to JFK. Best for travelers who want maximum cultural diversity per ticket.
Estimated
$1,650–$2,517
Asia-Pacific Grand Tour: LA → Tokyo → Hong Kong → Bangkok → Singapore → Bali → Sydney → Auckland → LA
Eight-stop Asia-Pacific maximalist RTW. No Europe, no Americas south. Instead, deep coverage of East Asia, Southeast Asia, and Australasia. Mixed alliance routing (Star + oneworld + some independents) means at least one self-transfer leg, but the price-per-stop ratio is unusually strong.
Estimated
$1,682–$2,566
Bangkok to Mumbai via Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore & the Maldives
A 13-week economy multi-stop route starting in Bangkok and finishing in Mumbai, linking 12 cities across Southeast Asia and South Asia with longer stays concentrated in Vietnam, Singapore, and Male.
Estimated
$1,692–$2,580
Planning reading
Flagship guides every traveler should read
How Much Does an RTW Trip Cost?
What round-the-world flights actually cost: alliance RTW fares, custom multi-stop builds, business class options, and the pricing factors most travelers overlook.
Sean Keener · Customer Service and Managing Director
How to Plan a Round-the-World Trip
The logistics of planning an RTW trip: choosing destinations, picking ticket types, understanding hub routing, and booking in the right window. Not a destination guide; a how-to for the flight strategy.
Sean Keener · Customer Service and Managing Director
When to Buy RTW Tickets
The booking window that consistently produces the best RTW fares: when to lock in, when to wait, how to stage complex itineraries, and seasonal pricing patterns.
Sean Keener · Customer Service and Managing Director
Common questions
What sabbatical / career break travelers actually ask
Do I need travel insurance for a round-the-world trip?
Yes. A multi-month, multi-country trip has too many variables to go without coverage. Look for a policy that covers trip interruption, medical evacuation, and missed connections. World Nomads and SafetyWing both offer plans built for long-term multi-country travel.
How much does AirTreks charge?
AirTreks charges a service fee on top of the airfare, scaled to how complex the itinerary is, and you see the total price upfront before committing. On a 6-stop multi-continent trip the fare construction difference alone can save $1,000 to $3,000. On a simple 3-stop trip it probably will not.
Is jet lag worse flying east or west?
Eastward is harder. Sleep research puts adjustment at roughly one day per time zone crossed going east, versus about two-thirds of a day going west. Flying west asks your body to stay up later; flying east asks it to fall asleep earlier, which most people find much harder.
Who is AirTreks?
AirTreks is a travel company based in White Salmon, WA that has been building custom round-the-world and multi-stop itineraries since 1987. Our staff is global. Each trip is routed by a human consultant using fare construction techniques that online booking tools can't book.
Are there airlines that do not work on round-the-world tickets?
Yes. Some alliance members look fine on paper but have almost no inventory in the fare classes RTW tickets require. Air India is a Star Alliance member with essentially no RTW fare class availability, and South African Airways is much the same. We route around them automatically.
Can I mix business and economy class on a round-the-world trip?
Not on an alliance RTW ticket, which prices the whole itinerary in one cabin. A custom multi-stop build lets you choose cabin leg by leg, so you can buy business on the overnight ultra-long-hauls and economy on the short daytime hops. For many travelers that is what makes business class affordable.
How many flights can an alliance round-the-world ticket include?
Both Star Alliance and oneworld cap you at 16 segments, and connections count against that total, not just the cities you stop in. Both also require you to cross the Atlantic and the Pacific exactly once each, so you cannot cross the same ocean twice even where it would make geographic sense.
How much time do I need between flights on separate tickets?
Leave 4 to 6 hours between a flight on your main ticket and one on a separate ticket at the same airport. On a single ticket 2 to 3 hours is fine because the airline rebooks you if you misconnect. On separate tickets you have no protection, so the buffer is yours to build.
Real travelers
Stories from sabbatical / career break travelers
What sabbatical / career break travelers say
Real sabbatical / career break travelers, real itineraries.
AirTreks changed my life. At 48, I quit my job, sold my house, and turned a lifelong dream into a 92-day solo round-the-world trip. Daniel helped me plan the entire journey across multiple continents. I'm now pursuing travel advocacy full-time. This company made the impossible feel simple.
Julie Drake
2018
No one in Canada does what AirTreks does. Excellent air pricing and close monitoring of every flight - I'm informed of any changes the night before I fly.
Dane M.
2024
We have verbally recommended AirTreks to quite a few of our friends and family, since we have been truly thrilled with the service you have provided. After consulting with several travel agencies about our trip, AirTreks was the one that really seemed to mesh with our independent travel style.
Allegra and Harold
2013