If you've ever tried to book a multi-destination airfare online or a round-the-world ticket, you know that it's not as easy as a basic point to point flight. In fact, travelers often tend to book more complicated airfares through a bricks and mortar travel agency or if they do attempt to book online, they proceed by purchasing individual sectors separately, possibly paying a lot more for one-way fares and forgoing frequent flyer points.

To ease the burden and encourage travelers to stay loyal to their global frequent flyer program, Oneworld -- which includes American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia, Japan Airlines, LAN, Malev, Qantas and Royal Jordanian -- has introduced a special section on its website (www.oneworld.com) to make a multi-stop trip on its ten member airlines a seamless booking experience. The round-the-world booking tool allows you to plan and/or book either a round-the-world trip or a multi-city itinerary through six continents with multiple segments and relatively few restrictions.

Before you get started, you will need to have Flash version 9 or higher installed on your computer (or be willing to download it through the link provided) and allow pop-ups/cookies (I learned the hard way. because if you don't allow pop-ups, you will lose all your research when you try to make the booking). Also if you don't think you can complete your itinerary in one session (or are browsing for a later booking date), make sure to save your itinerary, either to your computer or to the Oneworld website, if you want to access your work again later.

You can also choose to save your itinerary and send it directly to your favorite airline or travel agency if you would prefer to book directly through them. To start, choose whether you would like a round-the-world search, round-the-world search plus booking, or a multi-city itinerary. Then, the first screen that comes up is a world map with hundreds of destination dots (unfortunately the screen isn't large enough to show the entire world so you need to know your geography a bit and scroll across, up and down). You begin by choosing your departure city and then click on subsequent cities that you want to include.

A great feature that I particularly like is that you can actually identify whether you wish to fly between sectors or will travel by surface, for example you may want to fly from Boston to London, then to Prague but want to drive to Paris before flying to Spain and then home. You then choose your flights based on airline (if multiple airlines service that route) departure time and flight time. Check seat availability and type of aircraft you'll be flying -- even your terminal departure and arrival locations appear so you can be fully informed.

You search for flights by dates but if you'd like to change the date, you don't need to scroll back or enter all the information again -- just a simple click on the calendar and you can change your dates for any sector. You can click on the "Fare Estimate" tab at any time to gauge the cost of each sector of a multi-city itinerary or the total. Prices are obviously the same as those offered on the individual airline's websites, in fact when you click on "make a booking" at the end of your search, you will be taken to your local country's Oneworld alliance member's website (in our case, American Airlines) to complete the booking.

The multi-airline, round-the-world ticket, or Explorer as it is known, is Oneworld's most popular product. The Explorer generated the largest portion of the $725 million earned by the alliance last year. There are certain restrictions with this ticket, but the website walks you through the process with ease. Cities on the map that are valid appear as green dots, whereas cities that are invalid (not part of the fare regulations) appear as red diamonds. You will notice that once you have chosen a "green" city, it will turn red as you cannot visit the same city twice. If a direct flight is not available between two cities chosen, the website will route you through a central hub automatically.

The Explorer allows you 16 stops traveling to at least three Oneworld continents, or four from the Southern Hemisphere and Africa. Your route from one continent to another must move forward in a continuous westward or eastward direction, however, there are no backtracking restrictions so you are free to roam locally at will within a continent as long as you don't go back to your point of origin. I chose this (dream) sample itinerary and the entire process took me approximately ten minutes to complete: Los Angeles to Honolulu, Honolulu to Auckland, Auckland to Sydney, Sydney to Hong Kong, Hong Kong to New Delhi, New Delhi to Amman, Amman to Frankfurt, Frankfurt to Rome, Rome to Madrid, Madrid to New York and then back to Los Angeles.

A four continent trip like this one in economy class is priced from $4, 400 plus taxes (this actual itinerary, traveling in April and May 2009 totaled $4,922 including taxes), a three continent itinerary is priced from $3,900 plus taxes, five will cost you $5,100 plus taxes and the big daddy of them all -- the six continent adventure will set you back around $6,000 plus taxes -- a bargain considering that it the ticket is valid for a year and you can fly in and out of 16 cities around the world. All up I found the research and booking process using the Onworld round-the-world- tool rather simple, once I played around with it for a while.

My only hiccup on the above itinerary is that I needed to forgo one of my desired destinations (Tahiti) as it was not covered on the route I was taking, and a few cities I chose within Europe required flying through London and I could only fly through London once so I had to remove them. Otherwise, the world was at my fingertips and within a reasonable budget. It seems that the "Oneworld" alliance is living up to its name, creating one website that gives you world access.

The bad news: The economy shows few signs of improvement. The good news: Our world is still as interesting and entertaining as ever. To strike a happy medium between saving and traveling, book one of the great deals below.

All prices are per person unless otherwise noted. See "The deal," "How much," and "When" for details about associated taxes, fees, and travel restrictions. Note that "How much" is our best estimate of what the trip will cost and that taxes and fees can vary based on point of departure and travel dates. Deals are subject to availability, so confirm before booking.

New York City

The deal: The boutique Buckingham Hotel's "SupercalifragilisticexpealaSavings Package" is perfect for the family: It includes a two-night stay for four people in a deluxe one-bedroom, four tickets to Broadway's Mary Poppins, and a CD of the show's music. Amenities include high-speed internet and a 24-hour fitness center.
How much: Starting at $798.
When: Whenever "Mary Poppins" plays (show dates are scheduled through July 5).
Typical cost for a similar trip: Around $1,160, depending on show seats.
Find it: www.buckinghamhotel.com/specials_and_packages/super_package.cfm or tel. 888/511-1900.

Las Vegas

The deal: JW Marriott Las Vegas Resort & Spa's "Kisssable Getaway Package" is the perfect way to show your love this Valentine's Day. The one-night stay includes accommodations for two in a deluxe guest room, a three-course dinner for two in Ceres restaurant, complimentary access to Aquae Sulis Spa, and an arrival amenity of champagne and chocolate kisses. Note that the resort is located in Summerlin, a 20-minute drive from the Strip.
How much: $199, not including tax.
When: Offered Feb. 12 to 15.
Typical cost for a similar trip: $349, not including tax.
Find it: www.jwlasvegasresort.com or tel. 877/869-8777.
Promotion code: PKGV

Paris

The deal: AMA Waterways' 14-day "Europe's Heartland Cruise" starts in Paris and ends in Prague with stops in Bernkastel, Wurzburg, and Bamberg. It includes three nights in Paris hotels including daily breakfast, seven cruise nights in an outside stateroom, all cruise meals, unlimited wine, transfers between boat and hotels, two nights in Prague hotels including daily breakfast, a daily sightseeing program, bicycles to use, and all local taxes.
How much: From $3,199 with no airfare; from $3,949 with airfare to France (based on double occupancy), not including a $98 port charge.
When: Departures from Apr. 22 through Oct. 29.
Typical cost for a similar trip: About $500 more.
Find it: www.tourvacationstogo.com/tour.cfm?npid=13556&nr=df3 or tel. 800/510-4002.

London

The deal: Experience Tours is offering a Wimbledon package that includes a reserved seat for one day at the championships, a luxury one-night stay with daily full English breakfast, return transfers from Southfields Underground Station to the Championship Club, an information pack containing a one-day London Travel Card, and admission to the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum.
How much: From $858 (based on double occupancy), including tax.
When: Book and pay by Feb. 15 for travel between Jun. 22 and Jul. 5.
Typical cost for a similar trip: About 30% more.
Find it: www.keithprowse.com or tel. 800/669-8687.

Los Angeles

The deal: The Ayres Hotel Manhattan Beach is offering discounted rooms on January weekends; a one-night stay includes breakfast, use of a fitness center and swimming pool, and internet access.
How much: $99, double occupancy.
When: Weekends through Jan. 31.
Typical cost for a similar trip: $149.
Find it: www.hotels.com/hotel_ayres-hotel-manhattan-beach-lax_216606.html

Miami

The deal: The new Epic Hotel's grand-opening package includes one night's accommodations for two in a deluxe room, daily breakfast for two, and a free dessert with the purchase of an entrée in Area 31 restaurant.
How much: From $209.
When: Book by Jan. 23 to stay through Mar. 31 (blackout dates: Feb. 13-15).
Typical cost for a similar trip: More than $500.
Find it: www.kimptonhotels.com/landing-pages/promo_epichotel_2008.aspx or tel. 800/546-7866
Promotion code: EPIC

Hong Kong

The deal: Cathay Pacific's All Asia Pass includes roundtrip airfare between Los Angeles, San Francisco or New York to Hong Kong and up to four other Asian cities within 21 days.
How much: $1,499, not including tax.
When: Mon. through Wed. departures through Dec. 1.
Typical cost for a similar trip: Up to $3,000 or more.
Find it: www.cathayusa.com/offers/AllAsiaPass

Rome

The deal: Sceptre Tours' six-night all-inclusive journey to Rome, Florence, Naples, and Pompeii includes round-trip airfare, upscale hotel accommodations, private airport transfers, most meals, and two days of guided sightseeing in Rome.
How much: $1,799 (based on double occupancy).
When: Through Feb. 13, 2009 (departure dates from Feb. 14 through Mar. 31 cost slightly more).
Typical cost for a similar trip: Upwards of $2,400.
Find it: www.sceptretours.com/vacations/rome-all-inclusive or tel. 800/221-0924

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

The deal: Riu's two Cabo resorts are all-inclusive, with buffet restaurants, nightclubs, a pool bar and sports bar, internet cafe, tennis courts, and fitness center - and they're offering an extraordinarily good deal.
How much: $102 per night.
When: Book through Jan. 30 to stay between Apr. 13 to 30.
Typical cost for a similar trip: Up to 30% more.
Find it: www.riu.com or tel. 888/RIU-4990.

When it comes to 2009's hottest travel destinations, think cheap--but there's no reason to think that will equal chintzy.

To keep visitors coming, top-shelf destinations no longer have top-shelf price tags. This year, four- and five-star hotels are offering unprecedented deals at in-demand spots like