Is JFK to SYD direct a better flight choice than connections through LAX or DFW?

[crzncrze]

Hello everyone,

 

We will be cruising Sydney to New Zealand next year and are researching flight choices from the US east coast. Is the direct Qantas flight from JFK a wise option? Most people seem to fly with connections through Los Angeles or Dallas. I was thinking one flight without long layovers might be a good option. Can anyone who has travelled this route share thoughts?

[Globaliser]

The reason that most people flying from NYC to Sydney connect through Los Angeles or Dallas is because until the last few months there haven't been any direct flights for some years.

 

However you do it, you're going to have a stop somewhere between NYC and Sydney, so don't get hung up on the single factor of whether it's a direct stopping flight or a connection.

 

As it happens, Qantas may suit your specific itinerary because (as I understand it) these new JFK flights stop in Auckland in both directions. So you may find it convenient to do JFK-Sydney direct and then Auckland-JFK non-stop, both on these new Qantas flights.

[Zach1213]

3 hours ago, crzncrze said:

Hello everyone,

 

We will be cruising Sydney to New Zealand next year and are researching flight choices from the US east coast. Is the direct Qantas flight from JFK a wise option? Most people seem to fly with connections through Los Angeles or Dallas. I was thinking one flight without long layovers might be a good option. Can anyone who has travelled this route share thoughts?

 

Whether you stop or not is a personal preference. I'm more of a "just get it done" kind of guy, so I would rather take a 16 hour flight than two eight-hour flights, for example. Other people would rather break it up, whether it be for a few hours or a whole day. Neither answer is wrong or right, it's just personal preference. Unfortunately, you may not know what your personal preference is until you do it. 

 

I do believe Globaliser is correct that the routing is JFK-AKL-SYD-AKL-SYD, so that may indeed be a very good option for you. Air New Zealand also does JFK-AKL, and many people take Air New Zealand via AKL to get to various points in Australia, so Air New Zealand JFK-AKL-SYD and AKL-JFK could also be a good routing. Both are very good airlines, even in economy, so check schedule + price + any preferred mileage partner (Qantas partners with American, and ANZ partners with United). 

 

[crzncrze]

Globaliser and Zach1213 thank you so much for your swift replies. I believe that I too would prefer to “get it done” without the long layovers. If I can score at least Premium Economy at a good price I will be a happy camper.

[FlyerTalker]

FYI - on the outbound, the stop in AKL is 1:35.  Flights will be on 787 aircraft.

 

 

[GeezerCouple]

As Zack1213 wrote:

 

On 10/16/2023 at 9:43 AM, Zach1213 said:

 

Whether you stop or not is a personal preference. I'm more of a "just get it done" kind of guy, so I would rather take a 16 hour flight than two eight-hour flights, for example. Other people would rather break it up, whether it be for a few hours or a whole day. Neither answer is wrong or right, it's just personal preference. Unfortunately, you may not know what your personal preference is until you do it. 

 

I do believe Globaliser is correct that the routing is JFK-AKL-SYD-AKL-SYD, so that may indeed be a very good option for you. Air New Zealand also does JFK-AKL, and many people take Air New Zealand via AKL to get to various points in Australia, so Air New Zealand JFK-AKL-SYD and AKL-JFK could also be a good routing. Both are very good airlines, even in economy, so check schedule + price + any preferred mileage partner (Qantas partners with American, and ANZ partners with United). 

[emphasis added]

 

When we were younger, it never would have occurred to us to do anything other than "least expensive economy" seats.  Of course, back then, there was no concept of something like a single flight in the mid or upper teens of hours! 😲

 

Then we got older.  No problem.  Then, we started having assorted physical ailments, a few of which included various "discomforts" (sometimes leading to actual pain).

That changed things, and fast.

 

We've been on that Singapore Airlines non-stop NYC to Singapore, at the time (and maybe still?) the longest true non-stop flight.  Yup, we even went out of our way to "experience that".  Heh!

However, we had awards, so we went Business class, with huge beds, and "Book the Cook" truly amazing meals.  It was wonderful, as was Cathay Pacific F for mid-teen hours!  (It was the comfortable flat-bed that made the difference; the wonderful food was just an "extra". but very nice.)

 

These days, if we were required to sit in a relatively cramped, barely reclining chair for a very extended time, it would involve some discussions with physicians about medications, seriously.

But that wouldn't even have crossed our minds a few decades ago.  We considered the "pointy end" of the plane as "for those other people!", and it never occurred to us that we'd *ever* "turn left" upon entering the plane, etc. 😉 

Chances are good that we'd break it up with overnights along the way, and some nice sightseeing, or... not go, due to aging bodies and pain issues.

So think about *you*, how your bodies (and mind/emotions) might react to that mini endurance test.  Have you flown, say, 8 hours straight?  No problems?  Probably okay, emphasis on "probably".  If you aren't aware of any physical limitations that might affect this, then you are probably fine.  Just remember, if it's a true non-stop, you are on that plane until the end of the flight, happy or not.

 

GC

[crzncrze]

GeezerCouple, thank you for your insights. Thus far our longest flight has probably been  about 6 hours. We have noticed the very long layovers between flights with other options and considered that biting the bullet on a single flight (if the price is palatable) might be the lesser evil. Our cruise isn’t until November 2024 so we still have time to ponder and plan. It all seems so adventurous, 

[Globaliser]

7 hours ago, crzncrze said:

Thus far our longest flight has probably been  about 6 hours. We have noticed the very long layovers between flights with other options and considered that biting the bullet on a single flight (if the price is palatable) might be the lesser evil.

 

I don't think that the connections necessarily have long connection times. I've had a look at the schedules for tomorrow (25 October), and Qantas has these options:

• Via Dallas-Fort Worth: 21:51 overall scheduled duration, including a 1:00 connection;
• Via Auckland: 23:10 overall, including a 2:00 stopover;
• Via Los Angeles: 23:26 overall, including a 2:15 connection.

So if overall journey time is important to you, then picking the direct flight doesn't necessarily get you there in the shortest time, or with the shortest en route stop.

 

If the duration of the longest sector is important to you, then you've probably seen that the JFK-AKL sector is scheduled at about 17:30. DFW-SYD is about 16:45, and LAX-SYD sector is about 15:00.

[CruisingAlong4Now]

I flew non-stop Narita to JFK.  13 hrs. Wonderful flight.  I'm glad I didn't break the journey.

 

My first trip to Australia, I flew JFK-LAX, LAX-SYD.  2-3 hr connection time. Arrived in SYD more tired and headache-y than on any other trip. 

Next trip to Australia, I flew JFK-SFO, SFO-SYD. I overnighted in SFO and felt a little better than my first trip, but still not great.

 

If I had my choice, I would push for a non-stop

 

Watch this video review fo the non-stop flight: 

 

 

[FlyerTalker]

28 minutes ago, CruisingAlong4Now said:

If I had my choice, I would push for a non-stop

 

Which does not exist.

 

Remember, there is a huge difference between "direct" and "non-stop".

 

28 minutes ago, CruisingAlong4Now said:

Watch this video review fo the non-stop flight:

 

Which was merely a test flight with selected "passengers".

 

At this point, it is still vaporware.

 

 

[Gardyloo]

If one could hear eyes rolling, it's likely that this post would result in that sound coming from the likes of Globaliser, Flyer Talker, and other frequent posters on this board, because it's a replay of numerous other posts I've made over the past few years.  So be it.

 

Now I/we have no idea about your budget, how often you cruise, how much time you might be able to spend traveling over the coming year, on and on.  Without knowing some of these things, it's likely that the following is a waste of bytes.  But just in case, here goes.

 

Member airlines of the two biggest airline alliances, Oneworld (American, Alaska, Qantas, British, Japan, many others) and Star Alliance (United, Air Canada, Lufthansa, Singapore, ANA, Air New Zealand, many others) all sell "round the world" tickets (RTWs) that allow multiple flights (up to 16) to be taken over the course of 12 months.  You have to cross both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, going in the same direction, and end up in the country from which the travel began.  

 

Along the way, however, you can zigzag and backtrack to a considerable degree, provided you don't exceed the maximum mileage allowed under the ticket (for Star Alliance tickets) or the number of continents touched (for the Oneworld RTWs.)  There are lots of rules and dos and don'ts, but the bottom line is that this CAN be a surprisingly economical way to see the world - in business class - depending on where you begin and end the trip.  

 

Take your Australia/NZ cruise.  Right now for departures in this November, round trip business class from NYC to Sydney and/or Auckland is running upwards of $9000 on most carriers.  Premium economy on some days/carriers is somewhere between $3500 and $6000, which (in my view) is still in the realm of "are you crazy?"  Will fares for next November be higher or lower?  Your guess is as good as mine, unless you're a Hogwarts graduate.   Those fares won't appear until around the first of the year, but when they do, it's unlikely they'll be much less if at all, because the airlines hate uncertainty, and one way they hedge is by setting prices high at the opening of the booking period, in case their costs - fuel, labor, etc. - spike in the meantime.  Protect them profits, chaps!

 

But one big feature of RTW tickets is that they're priced VERY differently depending on where the trip begins and ends.  A Oneworld business class RTW ticket suitable for travel to Australia/NZ that has the trip beginning and ending in the US has a base price (before taxes and fees) of $11,071.  However, the same ticket, but with travel beginning and ending in Norway, has a base price of $5242, less than half the US price.  Ask your Hogwarts prof why, but that's what it is. 

 

Now, what do you get for that price?  Well, you get up to 16 flights over the course of 12 months.  Starting in Europe, you'd need a ticket that's good for four continents - Europe, North America, Australia/Pacific, and either Asia or Africa. 

 

You can spread those flights out over the full 12 months, stopping over for months at a time if you choose.  So imagine this. (Note I'm making this up - it could be completely different.)

 

Sometime next spring you get a cheap flight over the Atlantic.  Maybe a springtime cruise on the Mediterranean.  Use the cruise line's air service for a one-way booking.  (Or maybe you take a repositioning cruise in the spring from Florida to Barcelona or some such.)  Enjoy a cruise or non-cruise couple of weeks in Europe, then hop up to Oslo - maybe a hundred bucks from London.  

 

You've already bought your RTW tickets, so you turn up at the Oslo airport and get on a plane - in business class - and head back home.  There aren't (at the moment) any nonstop flights from Oslo to NYC operated by Oneworld airlines, so maybe the first flight is to Helsinki, then Finnair nonstop to JFK, or to London, or Doha, or Madrid, thence home.  

 

The ticket allows six flights (of the 16 maximum) within North America, which includes the Caribbean and Central America.  Maybe you use the ticket for an Alaska cruise, or for a non-cruise holiday in California, or the Canadian Rockies, or maybe for business trips to Texas or to see family in Puerto Rico... I don't know.  But then you end up back home.

 

Come November and it's time for the Sydney-Auckland cruise.  So it's off to Auckland on the Qantas nonstop, or to Sydney via LAX, or via Honolulu... all in the flat beds in the pointy end.

 

Cruise over, you fly from Auckland to Hong Kong, thence through Asia and ultimately back in Norway before the ticket turns back into a pumpkin.  Stop in the Maldives?  Singapore for the best food on Earth?  No problem.  

 

OR, if you really have the travel bug and with enough time, fly on Qantas' nonstop from Sydney to Johannesburg, and go on a safari for a week or so.  Then it's back to Norway, game over.   You'll have earned enough frequent flyer miles to fly home on miles, or maybe you've put together a master plan/bucket list and just buy another RTW and keep on circling the planet.

 

Now I'll stop here.  If this interests you, post a reply and I can get deeper into the weeds.  Sounds of eyes rolling.

 

 

[FlyerTalker]

No rolling eyes from this seat.

 

Good information can never be posted often enough.  And bad information should never darken our door again.

 

Suggest you save this post to a file, keep it in a special folder on your computer, and bring it out for cut & paste when appropriate.

 

 

[crzncrze]

Wow, thank you all for responding. I certainly have lots to consider. I probably should have mentioned earlier that my start and end point is an Island in the Atlantic, meaning any choice I make will include a 21\2 to 3 hour flight to JFK then a layover before heading to Syd.

[Gardyloo]

7 minutes ago, crzncrze said:

Wow, thank you all for responding. I certainly have lots to consider. I probably should have mentioned earlier that my start and end point is an Island in the Atlantic, meaning any choice I make will include a 21\2 to 3 hour flight to JFK then a layover before heading to Syd.

If it's like Bermuda, have you thought about heading east instead?  In general flights to Australia/NZ from the UK or mainland Europe tend to be a little cheaper - sometimes a lot cheaper - than from the US east coast.  It's not that it's closer, it's that there's more demand.  

[FlyerTalker]

And you don't have to route BDA-JFK.  You could also go through PHL, CLT or ATL.  Or even through Toronto.

 

 

[Zach1213]

43 minutes ago, crzncrze said:

I probably should have mentioned earlier that my start and end point is an Island in the Atlantic

 

Tristan da Cunha, got it 🙂

[crzncrze]

You all are good, it is Bermuda.🙂 Early research on British Airways flights showed something like a 15 hr layover in the UK. That is a real deterrent. I have briefly considered Air Canada and American. United does not presently offer flights in November. I was hoping to explore the experience of a long haul on a Qantas, Singapore Air or even Emirates  although current indications are that Qantas may be the best option price wise.

 

I am aware that everything is subject to change and routes, prices, etc. may be vastly different by November 2024.  What can I say? Planners plan and everyone who has responded has helped with the planning process. Thank you so much.

[Zach1213]

27 minutes ago, crzncrze said:

I was hoping to explore the experience of a long haul on a Qantas, Singapore Air or even Emirates  although current indications are that Qantas may be the best option price wise.

I fly Qantas fairly frequently and always have good experiences. They're a very solid airline and I have no complaints. Do be aware that Qantas and AA codeshare on each other, so keep an eye on the operating airline. I have no overwhelming complaints about AA, but I would rather be on Qantas.

[crzncrze]

Thanks Zach1213, that is actually very helpful.

[jollyjones]

 

How amusing!

I am also cruising Cairns - Sydney next November so have been thinking about this issue as a OneWorld flyer, AA Exec Plat.

I so dislike the BA BDA-LHR night flight that I'm almost certainly going via LAX, with or without a stop over there. And I can't be bothered with working out all the details for a RTW ticket.

One consideration is that if you have to cancel on BA your money's gone, on AA you get a trip credit.

Otherwise there isn't a lot to choose between them - IMO BA has (marginally) better food, AA has a better selection of movies.

 

I pretty much always book about 9 months out as I have found that to usually be the sweet spot of best price plus flight/seat availability.

 

And, of course, then frequently check my bookings to deal with the schedule changes ...

 

[crzncrze]

Hello jollyjones, What a small world!  Thanks for the 9 month out booking tip. Here’s hoping we both manage to book great flights at phenomenal prices.🙂

[Zach1213]

2 hours ago, crzncrze said:

Thanks for the 9 month out booking tip. 

 

Just keep in mind it's very much a tip, not a rule. Sometimes 330 days out is cheapest. Sometimes 21 days out is cheapest. Some days 194.6 days out is cheapest. You're just never really going to know. 

[jollyjones]

10 minutes ago, Zach1213 said:

 

Just keep in mind it's very much a tip, not a rule. Sometimes 330 days out is cheapest. Sometimes 21 days out is cheapest. Some days 194.6 days out is cheapest. You're just never really going to know. 

Er, not from Bermuda. 
Our airlift is limited, it’s absolutely nothing like the US market, prices only ever go up, not down. 
Very occasionally there’s a ‘sale’ but it’s only ever for economy, not biz.