Getting There

So you're ready to ride. What's your chariot of choice? Trains, boats and buses are a great way to experience the country and its people as you travel around - and are a relatively kind-to-the-planet alternative to air travel - but if you have your heart set on winging further afield, you'll be negotiating a bewildering range of flight options. Here are a few of the ticket scenarios available.

Round-the-world Tickets

A Round-the-world ticket is a series of coupons (in one or more tickets) that will take you around the globe on two or more airlines (you can't go around the world on a single airline). The most common RTW tickets are put together by members of the airline alliances. Their RTW ticket options are all different. Which RTW ticket is right for you will depend on your budget, how many kilometres you plan to cover, how many stops you require and where you're going (some RTW tickets are better for certain areas of the world).

Plan your Round the World Flights with our flight planner ›

Discount Return Tickets

The good news is that a standard return can be jazzed up to allow one or more stopovers. In addition, if you want to fly domestically within your destination then it will probably be cheaper for you to purchase a return ticket to one city with a stopover in the other.

Find out more with our recommended flight partners ›

Open-Jaw Tickets

With these snappy little numbers you fly to one destination and out of another.

Find out how to get these tickets with Kayak.com ›

One-Way Tickets

If you're travel is open-ended, or you're not sure just where that wind will take you, you might want to consider buying a one-way ticket to ride. Proportionally a one-way, long-haul ticket is very expensive, almost always costing a lot more than half the price of a return. In fact, they are sometimes even more expensive that a return. If you only want a single ticket, check in case a return is cheaper; if it is then buy the return and don't use the homeward part.

One drawback with one-way tickets is that often you have to show how you're going to get out of a country before you can get in (immigration officials may want to see an onward ticket). However, if you can prove that you've got sufficient funds for your stay and enough to purchase an exit ticket (whether by air, land or sea) you should - theoretically - be fine.

Student & Youth Fares

If you're a student or a young 'un, an International Student Identity Card (ISIC) and/or International Youth Travel Card (IYTC) could get you a significant discount on many airlines (both big and small). You normally get a discount on the economy-class year-round fares, and specially negotiated conditions mean you can often avoid the restrictions that come with the cheapest fares open to anyone. Your specialist travel agency will have all the details.

Get student fares through STA Travel ›

E-Tickets

These days most airlines issue e-tickets instead of paper ones. You are given a computer reference number and are issued with (or invited to print out) a paper receipt/itinerary in order to show immigration officials that you have onward travel booked.