Around the World by Private Jet 2026–27: Every Operator Compared
Eight companies will fly you around the world on a private aircraft in 2026 and 2027. Three of them use the same aeroplane. Here is who flies what, when, for how much, and which one is worth the money for which traveller.
In this guide
Eight operators, side by side
Fares are per person, double occupancy, in the currency the operator quotes, and were checked against operator pages and named trade sources on 14 September 2026. Where an operator publishes nothing we could verify, the table says so rather than guessing. Each name links to the programme page.
| Operator | Aircraft | Guests | Length | Next departures | Fare per person, double |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Four Seasons Private Jet Experiencefourseasons.com/privatejet | Airbus A321neo-LR, 48 lie-flat seats, operated by Titan Airways | 48 | 13 to 24 days | 2026 sold out. 2027: nine journeys, 20 January to 19 October | US$167,000 (Asia Unveiled, 16 days) to $239,000 (World of Adventures, 24 days); single supplement 10% |
| TCS World Traveltcsworldtravel.com | Airbus A321neo, 52 lie-flat seats, Titan Airways, with 18 staff including chef and physician | 52 | 10 to 29 days | Around the World 28 November to 22 December 2026; eleven 2027 departures | US$95,000 (Chasing the Aurora, 10 days) to $220,000 (Seven Continents, 29 days); Around the World $175,000 to $179,000 |
| Abercrombie & Kentabercrombiekent.com | Boeing 757, about 50 lie-flat seats, with chef, tour director and physician | 48 to 50 | 22 to 26 days | 2027: February (Africa), May and September (around the world), October (with Geoffrey Kent) | About US$300,000 for Hidden Horizons with Geoffrey Kent (26 days); other 2027 fares on request |
| National Geographic Expeditionsnationalgeographic.com/expeditions | Operated by TCS World Travel; historically an Icelandair Boeing 757 with 75 seats, now on the TCS A321 | up to 75 (757) | 25 days | Around the World, A Northern Odyssey, Across the Continents; dates on the operator's site | Listed from US$109,995; current fares not published in a form we could verify |
| Smithsonian Journeyssmithsonianjourneys.org | Operated by TCS on the same Titan Airbus A321neo, up to 52 guests | 52 | 24 to 26 days | 10 October, 28 October and 28 November 2026; 12 February, 9 October and 25 October 2027 | From US$165,000 |
| Aman Jet Expeditionsaman.com/journeys · operated by Remote Lands | Airbus ACJ319 or similar, 19 VIP seats | 16 to 18 | 13 to 22 days | Around the World in Three Continents 17 October to 7 November 2026 and 2027; Southeast Asia, China and Grandest Tour in 2027 | US$103,888 (China, 13 days) to $218,888 (Three Continents, 22 days) |
| Captain's Choicecaptains-choice.com (Australia) | Chartered Qantas Airbus A330-200, economy and business cabins, half the economy seats left empty | Not published | 18 days | Wonders of the World 16 February to 4 March 2028; regional jet journeys in 2027 | AUD 70,000 to 75,000 economy twin; AUD 90,000 to 95,000 business twin; singles from AUD 80,000 |
| Orbridgeorbridge.com (alumni-association travel) | Aircraft not published | Not published | 21 days | 13 September to 3 October 2026: London, Cairo, Petra, Delhi and Agra, Angkor, Ha Long Bay, Muscat | From US$89,995 |
No operator on this page has paid to appear. Placement on this publication's comparison pages is labelled where it applies.
The market has consolidated more than the brand names suggest. Three of the eight programmes, TCS, National Geographic and Smithsonian, fly on the same Titan Airways A321neo, run by the same Seattle operator; you are choosing a lecturer and a price, not an aircraft. Four Seasons flies a sister ship from the same airline. Abercrombie & Kent's Boeing 757 and Aman's small ACJ319 are the only genuinely different aeroplanes in the table.
What you pay, and what the number hides
Per day, the spread is narrower than the totals. Orbridge is about US$4,300 a day; TCS and Smithsonian $6,500 to $7,000; Four Seasons $10,000; Aman $10,000; Abercrombie & Kent's Geoffrey Kent journey $11,500. The gap is hotels: Four Seasons and Aman put you in their own properties every night; TCS and A&K mix five-star hotels by region. If you have compared what an ultra-long-range jet costs by the hour in our cost-per-hour index, the arithmetic is instructive: 48 people sharing one A321 for 24 days is cheaper per seat than any charter you could arrange yourself, before a single hotel is counted.
Two things the fare does not include. The flight to the start city, which is Seattle or Los Angeles for most Four Seasons and TCS departures and London for A&K's autumn journey; and the single supplement, roughly 10 per cent where published. The private-jet-versus-first-class comparison covers how to price that positioning flight.
Operator by operator
Four Seasons Private Jet Experience
The most recognised programme and, with Aman, the only one where every night is in the brand's own hotel. The aircraft is a Titan Airways A321neo-LR, registration G-XATW, with 48 lie-flat seats in a 2-2 layout, a chef, a physician and a concierge on board; One Mile at a Time's cabin review is the best independent look. Both 2026 journeys are waitlisted. The 2027 programme runs nine journeys from Uncharted Discovery (20 January, 21 days, Antarctica, US$234,000) to Grand Horizons (26 September, 24 days). Ancient Explorer, 3 to 25 September, takes in Mexico City, Easter Island, Bora Bora, the Great Barrier Reef, Bangkok, Petra and Taormina for $235,000.
TCS World Travel
The Seattle operator that runs most of this category. Its own brand flies a 52-seat Titan A321neo with 18 staff. The 2027 release lists eleven expeditions from a ten-day aurora chase at US$95,000 to a 29-day Seven Continents at $220,000, with three Around the World departures in October, November and December at $175,000 to $179,000. Note that the live departures page differs from the release in places; treat the site as authoritative. TCS also operates the National Geographic and Smithsonian journeys, which is why their dates coincide.
Abercrombie & Kent
The only major programme still on a Boeing 757, refitted with about 50 lie-flat seats. The 2027 line-up has four journeys: Africa in February, two around-the-world routes in May and September, and Hidden Horizons with Geoffrey Kent from London in October, the one departure with a published price, about US$300,000. The other fares are on request; A&K's site does not publish them. Our review of A&K and the tour-operator power rankings cover the company's wider record.
National Geographic and Smithsonian
Both sell TCS-operated journeys under their own names. Smithsonian's Around the World is explicit about it: the Titan A321neo, up to 52 guests, from US$165,000, with departures in October and November 2026 and February and October 2027 that match TCS's own calendar. National Geographic's page is less transparent on price; the programme has historically flown a 75-seat Icelandair 757 at around $110,000, and AeroXplorer's account of that aircraft explains the difference: 45-degree recline rather than lie-flat, and 75 people at every stop.
Aman Jet Expeditions
The outlier: an Airbus ACJ319 with 19 VIP seats and 16 to 18 guests, operated with Remote Lands, every night in an Aman. Around the World in Three Continents, 17 October to 7 November, runs in 2026 and again in 2027 at US$218,888 through Kyoto, Amanpulo, Borobudur, Sri Lanka, Dubai, Venice and Marrakech. The 2027 programme adds a 21-day Grandest Tour through Japan, Vietnam, China, Bhutan, India, Uzbekistan and Greece at $198,888.
Captain's Choice and Orbridge
Two programmes that change the price conversation. Captain's Choice, from Australia, charters a Qantas A330-200, sells half the economy cabin and all of business, and prices its next Wonders of the World, 16 February to 4 March 2028, at AUD 70,000 to 75,000 economy and AUD 90,000 to 95,000 business per person. Orbridge, sold through university alumni associations, has a 21-day world journey from 13 September 2026 at US$89,995: London, Cairo, Petra, the Golden Triangle, Angkor, Ha Long Bay and Muscat. Neither publishes its aircraft or seat count in a form we could verify; ask before booking.
Which one, for whom
- Brand-consistent luxury every night: Four Seasons in 2027 or Aman. You will pay about US$10,000 a day for the certainty.
- The widest choice of routes and dates: TCS, or Smithsonian for the same flights with a lecturer attached.
- Africa-led, with a founder on board: Abercrombie & Kent, if the roughly US$300,000 fare for the Geoffrey Kent journey is not the deciding factor.
- The lowest price on a real world circuit: Orbridge in 2026, or Captain's Choice in economy for 2028 if you are starting from Australia.
- Fewest fellow travellers: Aman, at 16 to 18. Every other programme puts 48 to 75 people through the same doorway at the same time.
The honest caveat: a private jet world tour is a group tour with an excellent aeroplane. Fifty people arrive at the Taj Mahal together. If that is the deal-breaker, our small-group-versus-private comparison explains what a private itinerary on scheduled first class costs instead, and the jet-lag protocols matter more on a 24-day, nine-time-zone circuit than anywhere else in travel.
Questions readers ask
How much does an around-the-world private jet trip cost?
Between about US$90,000 and $300,000 per person, double occupancy, for 21 to 26 days. Orbridge's 2026 departure is $89,995; Smithsonian and TCS run $165,000 to $179,000; Four Seasons' 2027 world journeys are $219,000 to $239,000; Abercrombie & Kent's 2027 journey with Geoffrey Kent is about $300,000. Single supplements, where published, are around 10 per cent.
What aircraft do private jet world tours use?
Airliners fitted with far fewer seats. Four Seasons and TCS fly Titan Airways Airbus A321neos with 48 and 52 lie-flat seats; Abercrombie & Kent a Boeing 757 with about 50; Captain's Choice charters a Qantas A330 and leaves half the economy cabin empty. Aman is the exception, flying an Airbus ACJ319 corporate jet for 16 to 18 guests.
Are National Geographic and Smithsonian jet trips the same as TCS?
Operationally, yes. Both are operated by TCS World Travel on the same Titan Airways A321neo, and Smithsonian's 2026 and 2027 departure dates mirror TCS's own. What differs is the lecturer, the branding and, sometimes, the price.
Is Four Seasons Private Jet sold out for 2026?
Both 2026 journeys, African Wonders and Grand Horizons, are waitlisted. The bookable year is 2027, with nine departures between 20 January and 19 October priced from US$167,000 to $239,000; 2028 dates are already listed at slightly higher fares.
Which is the cheapest around-the-world private jet tour?
Orbridge, sold through university alumni associations, at US$89,995 for 21 days departing 13 September 2026. National Geographic has historically listed from around $110,000 on a 75-seat Boeing 757. Captain's Choice in Australia is cheaper still in economy, AUD 70,000 to 75,000, but its next world journey is February 2028.
What is included in a private jet world tour?
All flights on the private aircraft, all hotels, all meals and most drinks, transfers, excursions, guides, an on-board chef and physician and, on Four Seasons, gratuities. Not included, as a rule: the flight to the departure city, travel insurance, and single occupancy.
How many guests are on a private jet expedition?
From 16 on Aman's ACJ319 to about 75 on National Geographic's 757 configuration. The mainstream range is 48 to 52. The number matters more than the aircraft: it sets how long every museum, transfer and dinner takes.
Fares, dates and aircraft were taken from operator pages and named trade releases on 14 September 2026 and will change; links go to the source. Booking.com, GetTransfer and Airalo links are affiliate links and are marked as such; no tour operator on this page has paid for inclusion. See the disclosure page.