Help With Flying to Australia

[Zach1213]

56 minutes ago, jsglow said:

So we are newly interested in this thread as we'll be traveling to Sydney, and then two plus weeks later onto Singapore in September/October 2024.  Just beginning to do my research.  Here's what I think I've learned so far.

 

 

Just some thoughts:
 

2. Do be aware that mock bookings mean little, as even in the same month of year, the difference between 2023 and 2024 could be huge (up or down in price), and schedules could be very different. 

 

3. The HNL layovers have definite pros and cons. I have done the nonstops many, many times and have also stopped in HNL twice. LAS-HNL-SYD and LAS-LAX-SYD are almost the exact same distance, so your flight time won't be much different overall. Adding a layover may be nice if you have the time and money, but there's a lot to be said for just "getting it done with".  

 

4. Yes, the vast majority of North America to Australia departures are evening because they take advantage of the time changes to fly exclusively through night to arrive in the morning. That won't change between now and 2024, so in all likelihood this is what you'll be looking at if you go the nonstop route. 

 

6. Look in to Premium Economy too; price should fall in between Economy and Business, though don't be surprised if it's closer to the Business class price than you might think. And note that "Premium Economy" is a class of service, not just a gimmick with a few extra inches of legroom (i.e. "Economy Plus" or "Comfort Plus"). 

 

 

Anywho, if you truly have six days in between Australia and Singapore, consider adding another place in Australia to hang out for a few days. For example, it seems a lot of cruises ignore Melbourne which is, in my opinion, the best city in Australia and only an hour flight from Sydney. There are then plenty of flights from Melbourne to Singapore. Also some great destinations relatively close to Singapore, such as Jakarta, Yogyakarta, and Kuala Lumpur. 

[jsglow]

Appreciate your thoughts @Zach1213.

We'll give Melbourne some thought.  I suppose that might depend on how many days early we arrive in Sydney and have a chance to explore some there beforehand.  I'm assuming the airfare between the two is insignificant. And I'd clarify that it's not a 'full' 6 days.  We disembark on a Sunday and embark the following Saturday. Certainly enough time to see some things but not limitless.

[LuckyStar]

On 1/2/2023 at 1:52 PM, jajsmom said:

Experienced flier who has never been to Australia and looking for some advice.  The thought of being on planes for 24 hours makes me feel uncomfortable just thinking about it.  While I'd love to fly first class, it's just not in the budget. For those that have done this, is economy totally unbearable?  Is it worth the upgrade to premium economy?  Any airlines that are more comfortable for the long flight?  We'd be flying from MCO to SYD round trip.

Also, I've seen some better priced airfares on Delta.  Unfortunately, the only flight leaving Sydney is at 10:25 AM.  Is there any possible way to make this?  I know we could stay another day, but we are doing a week in Sydney before our cruises.  Thanks for all advice!

Well, I played the credit card points game a few years ago when I wanted to fly to Hawaii from Denver first class.  I got a Delta credit card with tons of points to open the card.  I was able to stockpile a ton of points to get those first class tickets.  I'm sure you need many more miles to fly first class to Australia but I just thought I would share how my diabolical mind works. 🙂

[NMTraveller]

I would recommend premium economy or an exit row seat.  Also look at Qantas.

[Globaliser]

4 hours ago, LuckyStar said:

I'm sure you need many more miles to fly first class to Australia ...

 

However many airline miles/points you have, and however much the theoretical cost of an award ticket to Australia in first class, it's all useless if there's no availability for award tickets - which is a perennial problem for flights to Australia. You have to expect to fork out cold hard cash.

[taxatty]

16 hours ago, Globaliser said:

 

However many airline miles/points you have, and however much the theoretical cost of an award ticket to Australia in first class, it's all useless if there's no availability for award tickets - which is a perennial problem for flights to Australia. You have to expect to fork out cold hard cash.

There are still some deals out there if you look hard enough and are patient. Qantas released more than a few premium US flight awards a couple of months ago, and AA sometimes has reasonable F and J award tickets to and from SYD--we're going there soon in AA First for 90K PP and returning QF Business for 80K PP.