China's Hainan Airlines launches fastest-ever round-the-world flight: 34 hours (and only 2,000 euros ticket)

The days of 'around the world in 80 days' are really long gone. Today around the world can be done in just over 30 hours (and from just over a thousand euros in tickets). All without going crazy with 3-4 different reservations, engineering to find who knows what itinerary and combination of flights.

But, simply by booking a trivial round trip on flights operated by two companies: Hainan Airlines and Air India.

The Chinese company, which prides itself on being One of 10 carriers in the world to be awarded its prestigious 5-Star rating by the British rating agency Skytrax, From November 3 next year launches a Beijing-Boston-Beijing Always proceeding eastward.

Flying, of course, in an easterly direction is HU729 Beijing-Boston (non-stop with a flight time listed as 14 hours and 40 minutes), taking off from Capital Airport at 1:20 p.m. and arriving at Logan Airport at 3 p.m. the same day (because you cross the International Date Line). But Is eastward also the HU730 Boston-Beijing leaving Logan Airport at 6:40 p.m. and with a 90-minute technical stopover in Brussels, returns to Capital at 7:30 a.m. the next day, taking 19 hours and 30 minutes.

This is because, after having operated the Beijing-Boston-Beijing for years with the return flight proceeding westward with a technical stopover in Seattle, Hainan realized that By also flying that route eastward and taking advantage of favorable tailwinds, the Boston-Beijing flight time was reduced by 50 minutes.

Thus, from November 3 and certainly until March 30, the flight itinerary will proceed eastward with a technical stopover in the Belgian capital, where the plane will refuel without passengers being able to get on or off the plane (no fifth freedom, then...). The total travel time to make the round-the-world trip will be just over 34 hours: the fastest 'round-the-world trip' ever, by a commercial airline and with scheduled flights.

The aircraft used Is a two-class Boeing 787-9 with 30 seats in Business in 1-2-1 configuration and 262 seats in Economy In the classic 3-3-3 of the Dreamliner.

By booking a 'round-the-world tour' (starting and ending in Beijing-Capital) in early November, On the Hainan website you can find a fare in 'Economy Choice' (which allows one carry-on baggage weighing up to 10kg and one 23kg checked-in baggage to be carried in the cabin in addition to the free choice of a standard seat) starting at 16,118 yuan, which corresponds to about 2,070 euros.

The frequency of the connection is tri-weekly, departing from Beijing on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. The stopover in Boston lasts three and a half hours and thus allows you to disembark, do (inbound) and redo (outbound) U.S. immigration, and re-embark on the same plane to continue around the world.

While 'around the world' with Hainan is the fastest, the one with Air India, which has existed for years, is definitely the cheapest: it is the Delhi-San Francisco-Delhi, operated by Boeing 777-200-LR (the absolute longest-range version of the 'Triple Seven'), which has 28 business class seats In 1-2-1 configuration, 48 seats in Premium Economy (2-4-2) e 212 in Economy (3-3-3).

Flight AI173 from Delhi is daily, taking off from the Indian capital at 4 a.m. and arriving in California at 6 a.m. the same day. From SFO we depart on AI174 at 9:15 a.m. (again, therefore, having time for disembarkation and re-embarkation) to land in DEL at 4 p.m. the next day.

The total travel time to circumnavigate the globe in this case is just above that with Hainan: 36 hours. But the round-trip ticket in Economy 'Comfort' (the lowest of the Echo fares offered on the route by Air India, which allows you to take one carry-on bag on board, send as much as two pieces of luggage weighing 23kg each in the hold, and choose a standard seat for free) It sails between 1,100 and 1,200 euros, Considering a departure date in the first half of November.

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