Airfare from east coast OMG!

[cruise junky joan]

We have been invited to take a trip with friends to New Zealand and Australia in the fall. Our friends have tons of air miles to pay for their FIRST CLASS tickets but we will be paying the full tariff ourselves. I just checked business class on VAustralia from New York and it looks to be a about 6,000.00 apiece. I know Alaska Airlines offers a companion fare of 50.00 if you take out their credit card does anyone know of any specials like this for Australia? Joan

[room010]

I'm organising flights in the opposite direction from Oz to NYC in November and if you can get business class for $6000 then grab it! I've heard some good things about the VAustralia service from frequent travellers and also from a couple of travel agents. Aussies are always on the lookout for a good deal to the US because the choices are so limited. I'm not aware of any special deals with other airlines but perhaps if you contact an Aussie travel agent, eg Flight Centre, they might be able to help.

[Aquarians]

We have been invited to take a trip with friends to New Zealand and Australia in the fall. Our friends have tons of air miles to pay for their FIRST CLASS tickets but we will be paying the full tariff ourselves. I just checked business class on VAustralia from New York and it looks to be a about 6,000.00 apiece. I know Alaska Airlines offers a companion fare of 50.00 if you take out their credit card does anyone know of any specials like this for Australia? Joan

Kia ora,

Air Tahiti were flying direct from New York to Tahiti & then on to this part of the world, so it may be worth checking them out.

Aquarians

[amusea]

If you have any miles that can be used on Delta you may be able to snag "Z" fares to Sydney. We are only going one way from Tucson but we booked very early and got a fare of $1770 per person in "M" coach class which we upgraded to business class "Z" fare for 25,000 miles each from LAX. You won't find this on the Delta site. You have to call and ask an agent. Don't book the M class until you are guaranteed the Z upgrade.

Delta uses a 777-200LR on the LAX - SYD route which has true lie-flat beds in the herringbone configuration for the 14 hour flight. Each pod is individual and private. The planes are new.

[Globaliser]

I just checked business class on VAustralia from New York and it looks to be a about 6,000.00 apiece.

If that's too much money, look at the cost of premium economy on both Qantas and V Australia. Qantas' PE product is more like "business lite", and although I have no personal experience or second-hand tales to relate, I find it difficult to imagine that V Australia will be much different. If you don't want to fly standard economy but can't afford true business class, this can be quite a good compromise. PE (on British Airways and Qantas) is now my normal cabin.

 

If you are flying Qantas and can start from JFK, it means that you can fly a decent airline across the continent.

[Grumpy100]

We flew Qantas from LAX to Sydney in economy. It was a long flight but with the entertainment and the ability to walk around the hugh plane (we flew the A380) it wasn't so bad. We were treated very well with free wine, headsets, socks, snack packs, two full meals. We survived. But if you can afford to fly first class by all means go for it. We just couldn't afford it.

[SheilaNC]

We were able to use frequent flier miles to Honolulu and then got a really good fare on Hawaiian Airlines to Sydney. A longer trip but it was broken up with a couple of days in HNL and we thought the great fare was worth it!

[Budget Queen]

OK, I'm cheap. I did a second Austrailia/New Zealand trip/cruise due to a bargain opportunity a year ago. (had no plans to revisit) A 14 day cruise air special, from JFK for $2100pp, with taxes.

[cruise junky joan]

Thanks everybody for the suggestions. I just can't wrap my mind around spending 6,000.00 on a plane ticket. I will check out all the options mentioned. It is unfortunate that my husband refuses to use a credit card to accumulate points or miles. We are strictly debit which is fine but it doesn't get us any extras. Joan

[MMDown Under]

Thanks everybody for the suggestions. I just can't wrap my mind around spending 6,000.00 on a plane ticket. I will check out all the options mentioned. It is unfortunate that my husband refuses to use a credit card to accumulate points or miles. We are strictly debit which is fine but it doesn't get us any extras. Joan

 

Just keep your eye open for specials. Sometimes it is not much more expensive to fly from the East Coast than it is from the West Coast, when specials are on offer.

 

Agree Qantas from JFK to Australia is heaven.

 

Make sure that you join a frequent flyer programme before you fly, so you get the benefit of the long haul miles.

[deniuh]

Speaking of Specials...just got an email from farecompare and regarding Quantas' G'Day USA fare sale. Think it end soon (Jan 26th or Feb 1st) and has specific date ranges allowed. Hope this helps.

http://www.qantas.com.au/travel/airlines/home/us/en

[Aussie Gal]

We were in the U.S and finished our trip in Honolulu in December. We flew home with Jetstar using their Star Class.

 

I couldn't fault it. We were served three different meals which were all reasonable. It was a day flight leaving at 8.15am and arriving into Sydney around 4pm. The seats were comfortable and there was plenty of leg room. For the price, it was a steal.

 

Of course, on the leg from Sydney to Melbourne we were in proper Business Class on Qantas and there is a big difference but then the difference in price between Jetstar and Qantas is huge.

 

On that flight which is a nothing, (just over 10 hours) I would use Jetstar again.

 

Jennie

[MMDown Under]

Speaking of Specials...just got an email from farecompare and regarding Quantas' G'Day USA fare sale. Think it end soon (Jan 26th or Feb 1st) and has specific date ranges allowed. Hope this helps.

http://www.qantas.com.au/travel/airlines/home/us/en

 

Thanks for the link.

 

http://www.qantas.com.au/travel/airlines/gday-usa/us/en?int_cam=us:qf:fy10:gday-usa#jump1

 

These are great short term specials from US for economy, premium economy and business to Australia, so check quickly. You could also check V Australia who may match these fares for the G'Day USA celebrations.

 

(26th January is Australia Day)