Hosted by Phil Keoghan, it featured eleven teams of two, each with a pre-existing relationship, competing in a race around the world in order to win US$1,000,000.

Starting in New York City, racers traveled through the U.S. Virgin Islands, England, Scotland, Denmark, Sweden, Morocco, Italy, Malta, Singapore, and the Philippines before returning to the United States and finishing in Greater Los Angeles.

New twists introduced in this season include a public start; the Save, which was awarded to the winners of the first leg and would save them from elimination once; an Express Pass hidden on the racecourse; the Blind Detour, where teams learned about the task that they chose after arriving at its location; and four teams racing in the final leg.

[3] According to host Phil Keoghan, the show's production crew had sought to keep filming secret but included a public start this season due to the ubiquity of social media and fans' excitement.

[4] The publicity of the Times Square start led CBS to announce the identities of the competing teams the same day.

[8] At various points throughout the filming of the season, teams encountered Phil Keoghan on the course where he explained a task to the home audience while the competition continued behind him.

The cast included married professional surfers Bethany Hamilton, a shark attack survivor whose story was told in her memoirs and the film Soul Surfer, and Adam Dirks; former Survivor: South Pacific contestants and engaged couple Whitney Duncan and Keith Tollefson; and TNA Wrestling stars Brooke Adams and Robbie Strauss.