Little used fare strategy yields significant savings on business and leisure travel.

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. When flying trans-Pacific, however, the cheapest way to get from A to B and back may be to fly in a circle, specifically with the “Circle Pacific” fare.

Because these fares require at least one stop in the North Pacific and one in the south (Australia and/or New Zealand), they’re tailor-made for the executive who has to hopscotch around the Pacific Rim or who wants to cap a business trip with a few days of leisure travel. They’re flexible — only the first flight leg has to be booked before departure — and they’re usually far cheaper (20% to 60%) than many pointto-point itineraries. One thing to remember, though, is the definition of “stop-over.” With Circle Pacific fares it means spending 24 hours in a place after deplaning, not just making a connection.

How it works

Let’s assume you’re flying from San Francisco to Hong Kong on United. Right now an unrestricted Business Class fare costs $6,781. With a Circle Pacific fare you’d pay $4,979, a savings of more than $1,800, but you would have to stop in Tokyo on the way out and visit a South Pacific destination, like Sydney, on the way home. (But hey, it’s a free trip to Australia!)

Alternatively, you could stop in other South Pacific destinations like Auckland, Brisbane, Christchurch, Melbourne, Papeete, or Perth at no extra charge. Alternatives to stopping in Tokyo include Bali, Bangkok, Beijing and many other North Pacific destinations.

Leisure travelers save Down Under

Where Circle Pacific fares also really work is when Sydney (or any other high-priced South Pacific city) is your primary destination. Qantas’ round-trip Business Class fare from San Francisco or Los Angeles to Sydney is $9,696 — while a Business Class Circle Pacific fare is $4,979. Is it worth $4,700 to make two stops in cities like Bali, Bangkok, Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghi, or Tokyo on the return?

Your call.

From the above examples you can also see that this fare is great for the leisure traveler who already wants to take in a number of Asian and South Pacific cities, especially since Business and First Class airfares from the US to Australia are among the highest in the world. A round-trip in Business Class from New York to Sydney on Qantas/ American (Oneworld) costs $11,458. The Circle Pacific fare is $5,062. (Honolulu qualifies as a stop-over on this itinerary.)

Savings in First Class can also be enormous: Where round-trip New York-Sydney is $15,532, the Circle Pacific fares are about $8,000, which is, incidentally, less than the normal Business Class fare.

Three “fare levels” — based on mileage

There are three Circle Pacific fares for both Business and First Class, depending on the number of miles flown. The lower fares offer a Maximum Permitted Mileage of 22,000 miles.

Oneworld is better than Star Alliance

The two major players in Circle Pacific airfares are, as you might expect, the two big airline consortiums: Star Alliance (United and company) and Oneworld (American and partners).

Oneworld comes out on top for many because it allows departures from any place in the US for the same fare, provided that the Maximum Permitted Mileage of either 22,000, 26,000 or 29,000 isn’t exceeded. Star Alliance only offers Circle Pacific fares from West Coast cities (Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle). Oneworld also allows travelers to add on South America from the South Pacific. Believe it or not, there is actually service from Sydney to Santiago (via Auckland), a flight that goes over the South Pole. Oneworld fares also require fewer stops: only two, where Star Alliance requires three stops.

Finer Points:

Here are a few of the restrictions that come with Circle Pacific fares. (Get full list from your reservationist.)

— The routing must be firmed up before departure, but only the first outbound flight must be booked, at least seven days prior to departure. It cannot be changed.

— The balance of the itinerary may be left open. (However, it’s not recommended you leave flights open, as you can unexpectedly run into “availability” issues.) Onward confirmed flights may be changed at will without penalty, as long as the routing is not changed.

— Routing changes are permitted, but incur a penalty of $75 per segment.

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