Flights from Sydney to Perth

[two_n_six]

Hi all I'm hoping someone can give me some advice here.

My wife and I are coming from Scotland to do the Perth to Sydney Celebrity Solstice cruise in February 2015. Our international flights are booked however we are flying to Sydney to spend time with friends before we fly to Perth for the cruise. We haven't booked our Sydney to Perth flights yet (probably Quantas) but we've noticed that the prices are dearer then than they are just now. I'm not sure if I should wait till nearer the time to book but is the higher price due to the time of year or is it because it is so far ahead that prices haven't been reduced yet. Also is there an alternative carrier that you would recommend ie Virgin Australia. We have to take into consideration we will have in the region of 60kg of luggage between the 2 of us.

Any advice would be appreciated.

[Lanwood]

Hi Two n Six

We'll be travelling to Scotland not long after your trip down under :)

You have a couple of options to consider.

 

Qantas - very reliable - most expensive though until they release there specials. These will not be released this far out for domestic flights. My last e-mail from Qantas had their special's for flights in June, my e-mail last month was for flights in May etc. But this is not guaranteed (although common). Your baggage allowance for check in will be one piece up to 23kg. (you can have more if you are a specific level in One World ie - if you are a member of British airways etc). I believe you can pre-purchase additional pieces for $30 per piece (domestic flights only). Check their website for more details, but probably log in on their Australian site (select Australia in top right corner) Qantas is my preferred airline (mainly because I have life time Qantas membership and am Platinum in the flyer programme) but in your case, taking a cruise, it would definitely be my preferred airline, even if more expensive, mainly because they have many flights each day between SYD and PER. If you are late to the airport for any reason, or your flight is delayed or cancelled, you can easily be put on the next flight and make it to your cruise. I would generally select an earlier flight that gave you this advantage.

 

Virgin Australia - also a reliable airline, competing strongly with Qantas in the Domestic market. They will have similar Baggage restrictions, depending on ticket type purchased, and I believe you can prepurchase additional pieces for $35. However, Virgin will only have 2 early morning flights that would make it to your cruise if delayed or cancelled.

 

The other option, and less desirable would be Jetstar. But their only direct flight would be late at night, which would require an overnight in Perth, unless you connect from a difference capital. I would not recommend this as Jetstar is the most likely to have cancelled or delayed flights, and there are not many of them to get you there if there is a problem.

 

I took a cruise on the QM2 from Perth about 2 years ago, and took a very early Qantas flight, just in case there where issues, there where two more flights that could get me there well in time. We got to Fremantle very early, left our luggage at the cruise terminal and spent the morning exploring Fremantle until we could check in.

 

Hope this helps....

[OzKiwiJJ]

The prices are dearer as February is within the peak period for holiday travel in Australia.

 

Australian airlines allocate a certain number of seats to each price category and once they are sold the prices go up. It is possible that if some flights were seriously underbooked the airline may lower prices and I have noticed the occasional sale in Australia.

 

The difference between Qantas and Virgin Australia is that Qantas includes meals on it's lowest priced flights, VA doesn't but you can buy stuff on board. VA also has a slightly lower price if you don't want checked baggage but that won't apply in your case, just be aware that the cheapest VA flight does not include baggage.

 

For economy travellers you are allowed 1 checked in bag each of no more than 23kgs. If you fly business class or if you have status in One World or Star Alliance you are allowed 2 bags. Excess baggages charges are quite high, I'd recommend checking the website of each airline.

 

Personally I prefer Virgin Australia as I find their economy seats more comfortable. With Qantas it very much depends on what plane you end up on. I'm not sure what they operate on that route but the Airbus economy seat rows used to be so close together that I had difficulty reading a book during the flight, but the 767s were OK.

 

I would recommend monitoring the prices over the next couple of months just in case you spot a sale but don't leave it too late to book.

[Cruise_me_Crazy]

:D I note no-one has mentioned Tiger! For good reason, definitely steer clear of them LOL!:eek:

[The_Big_M]

Actually, February isn't in the peak period for travel.

 

As said by Lanwood, it is likely that specials will be released, but it is too early right now.

 

They have a mailing list for specials, which I suggest you join. You'll then get notified when they have specials and the time frame for flights, and you'll have a few days to book. Stay on that, and watch the time frame for specials being offered. You'll see it progressively moves forward (but is not consistent, e.g. they may repeat certain periods when sales are slow).

[dizzy1948]

Hi all I'm hoping someone can give me some advice here.

My wife and I are coming from Scotland to do the Perth to Sydney Celebrity Solstice cruise in February 2015. Our international flights are booked however we are flying to Sydney to spend time with friends before we fly to Perth for the cruise. We haven't booked our Sydney to Perth flights yet (probably Quantas) but we've noticed that the prices are dearer then than they are just now. I'm not sure if I should wait till nearer the time to book but is the higher price due to the time of year or is it because it is so far ahead that prices haven't been reduced yet. Also is there an alternative carrier that you would recommend ie Virgin Australia. We have to take into consideration we will have in the region of 60kg of luggage between the 2 of us.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

Don't wait while the last minute - book reasonably early as unlike UK - prices don't go down here as it gets nearer the time. - they go up. :eek: I'd say get booked in around June/July. Watch the prices with the various airlines - start monitoring now. Pick a price that you thinks is reasonable - and go for it. Taking into account your luggage allowance - some do 20kg - some do 25kg and you could add the extra weight whilst doing your booking. Don't do it at the airport - mega mega dollars if you do

Only my opinion of course. Works for me ;) I own up to flying Tiger - thought it was better than Virgin and Jetstar IMHO :p

Edited May 10, 2014 by dizzy1948

[fishtaco]

We get out Perth to Sydney flights at around 6 months out and they are cheapest at that time.

 

I like Qantas but Virgin is my first choice as its a lot cheaper than Qantas and more reliable than Jetstink.

 

It is however a 5 hour flight Perth to Sydney flight costs one way during the sales are $199 -$240 AU, Virgin does the $199 flights more often:)

[two_n_six]

Thank you for all the replies you have all been very helpful. I will sign up for the mailing lists and ensure I book early enough.

What i didn't mention in the original post is that we are also spending a few days in Perth before we sail so we have a bit of leeway regarding dates but most probably want to fly on Friday 20th Feb.

[dmccue]

I work in the airline industry and early Feb could still have some school holiday bookings returning but later in the month it is low season.

As everybody else has said Qantas (no U in it's name) and Virgin are your best choices. I have flown Jetstar and they have been fine and would compare to Easyjet so if you have been happy with them go for it if you wish to save some money . I would never go Tiger as they cancel all the time.

 

Cheaper fares wont get published until closer to the date but a search on the web just now shows there are 9 Qantas flights per day and 4 Virgin Flights per day for 10th Feb.

Cheapest fares are generally Tues or Wed (off peak) and early am or late pm (Red Eye). Lowest Price for 10Feb is $305 on Qantas which includes luggage & a meal or $279 on Virgin (no luggage or meal) and $295 (luggage included but no meal) whilst cheapest fare in a weeks time from now on Qantas is $219 so if you wish to wait until closer you may get a similar fare which is a saving $86 but no guarantee.

Jetstar is showing $226 for 10Feb now (no inclusions) .

 

Depending on your International Fare and who your carrier is you may be able to get an add on fare to fly domestically cheaper than waiting for a special so I would be checking with your TA and see what they can do.

 

I travelled Solstice in March this year from Auckland back to Sydney via the NZ Coastline & Hobart and it was sensational.

 

Good Luck

Edited May 10, 2014 by dmccue
Update

[MicCanberra]

I work in the airline industry and early Feb could still have some school holiday bookings returning but later in the month it is low season.

As everybody else has said Qantas (no U in it's name) and Virgin are your best choices. I have flown Jetstar and they have been fine and would compare to Easyjet so if you have been happy with them go for it if you wish to save some money . I would never go Tiger as they cancel all the time.

 

Cheaper fares wont get published until closer to the date but a search on the web just now shows there are 9 Qantas flights per day and 4 Virgin Flights per day for 10th Feb.

Cheapest fares are generally Tues or Wed (off peak) and early am or late pm (Red Eye). Lowest Price for 10Feb is $305 on Qantas which includes luggage & a meal or $279 on Virgin (no luggage or meal) and $295 (luggage included but no meal) whilst cheapest fare in a weeks time from now on Qantas is $219 so if you wish to wait until closer you may get a similar fare which is a saving $86 but no guarantee.

Jetstar is showing $226 for 10Feb now (no inclusions) .

 

Depending on your International Fare and who your carrier is you may be able to get an add on fare to fly domestically cheaper than waiting for a special so I would be checking with your TA and see what they can do.

 

I travelled Solstice in March this year from Auckland back to Sydney via the NZ Coastline & Hobart and it was sensational.

 

Good Luck

 

Welcome to CC dmccue, great first post.:D

great advice, I too am waiting on a sale that will cover March 2015, and will most likely need to wauit another couple of months. As for the OP, getting the TA to add a flight to an already booked flight may be easier and cheaper.:D

[Cruise_me_Crazy]

I work in the airline industry and early Feb could still have some school holiday bookings returning but later in the month it is low season.

As everybody else has said Qantas (no U in it's name) and Virgin are your best choices. I have flown Jetstar and they have been fine and would compare to Easyjet so if you have been happy with them go for it if you wish to save some money . I would never go Tiger as they cancel all the time.

 

Cheaper fares wont get published until closer to the date but a search on the web just now shows there are 9 Qantas flights per day and 4 Virgin Flights per day for 10th Feb.

Cheapest fares are generally Tues or Wed (off peak) and early am or late pm (Red Eye). Lowest Price for 10Feb is $305 on Qantas which includes luggage & a meal or $279 on Virgin (no luggage or meal) and $295 (luggage included but no meal) whilst cheapest fare in a weeks time from now on Qantas is $219 so if you wish to wait until closer you may get a similar fare which is a saving $86 but no guarantee.

Jetstar is showing $226 for 10Feb now (no inclusions) .

 

Depending on your International Fare and who your carrier is you may be able to get an add on fare to fly domestically cheaper than waiting for a special so I would be checking with your TA and see what they can do.

 

I travelled Solstice in March this year from Auckland back to Sydney via the NZ Coastline & Hobart and it was sensational.

 

Good Luck

 

I agree. Welcome to CC and great first post! You have set the Barr high for future posts, you that right?? :D

 

Dizzy :) LOL, have also flown Tiger, but agree with dmccue. I think they cancel too regularly and do not offer customer service in line with the others. They don't give 2x hoots about leaving customers messed around by their decisions, so we refuse to add to their profit margins! ;) glad you have had acceptable experiences from them though.

[MicCanberra]

I have flown with Tiger but have also not flown with them several more times due to cancelled flights. getting your money back is ridiculously hard and often they will only offer a credit.:(

[fishtaco]

I have flown with Tiger but have also not flown with them several more times due to cancelled flights. getting your money back is ridiculously hard and often they will only offer a credit.:(

 

Tiger is fine in Asia and the Perth Singapore flights are never cancelled, it is a regular run.

 

I have no problem booking Tiger to Singapore or Tiger Singapore to other Asian destinations but I wouldnt fly Tiger domestic Australia!

[taninaus]

This is great info even for us flying domestic

 

TanInAus

[Cruise_me_Crazy]

Tiger is fine in Asia and the Perth Singapore flights are never cancelled, it is a regular run.

 

I have no problem booking Tiger to Singapore or Tiger Singapore to other Asian destinations but I wouldnt fly Tiger domestic Australia!

 

Actually fish taco, now you mention it, I have also heard reasonable things about their international flights. :)

[MicCanberra]

Actually fish taco, now you mention it, I have also heard reasonable things about their international flights. :)

 

I will avoid them, due to poor service in the past. Not that they fly out Canberra anyway.:D

Edited May 11, 2014 by MicCanberra

[dmccue]

Tiger AUSTRALIA are now 60% owned by Virgin & they are are regular service (4 x daily) to Gold Coast where I am based and they will probably get better now they are owned by VA but they still have too many problems and cancellations for my liking. It was not that long ago that the whole airline was grounded because they flew too close to the ground coming into Melbourne and they are not that much cheaper anyway by the time you add baggage/credit card fee/seat selection etc.

I would not bother with the hassle & so for mine its Qantas or Virgin then Jetstar if you want to save a bit & remember the old adage "you get what you pay for".

[Flipper133]

We did the Solstice over the top cruise Feb last year...absolutely fabulous.

 

Flying to Perth from the East Coast is a fair way...5 hours...hey its only 3hrs to New Zealand. When we did our cruise we got Celebrity to throw in the flights (they are less generous nowadays). We flew Virgin (B737) which was Ok but no in flight entertainment.

 

Ex Sydney Virgin fly the B737 and Qantas fly the Airbus A320.

 

I think that ex Melbourne Qantas fly the B767 on some flights

 

Not sure what the el cheapo mob fly... not even sure if they have indoor toilets:eek::D I do know they have less Baggage allowances (20kgs)

 

I think that you should choose the flight time that best suits you...as I said its a long way so its best to be a bit comfortable when you get to Perth...mid arvo would work for me. Remember that in Feb there is Daylight saving in Sydney..but not in Perth.

 

cheers

[MicCanberra]

We did the Solstice over the top cruise Feb last year...absolutely fabulous.

 

Flying to Perth from the East Coast is a fair way...5 hours...hey its only 3hrs to New Zealand. When we did our cruise we got Celebrity to throw in the flights (they are less generous nowadays). We flew Virgin (B737) which was Ok but no in flight entertainment.

 

Ex Sydney Virgin fly the B737 and Qantas fly the Airbus A320.

 

I think that ex Melbourne Qantas fly the B767 on some flights

 

Not sure what the el cheapo mob fly... not even sure if they have indoor toilets:eek::D I do know they have less Baggage allowances (20kgs)

 

I think that you should choose the flight time that best suits you...as I said its a long way so its best to be a bit comfortable when you get to Perth...mid arvo would work for me. Remember that in Feb there is Daylight saving in Sydney..but not in Perth.

 

cheers

 

Don't forget the normal 3 hour time difference as well. So you leave at 7pm and arrive at 10pm. Coming back you leave at 3pm and arrive at 11pm.:D

[FionaK]

Qantas is always my first preference. I rank Virgin and Jetstar as an equal second.

 

They're not as "flashy" as some airlines and the hosties aren't always pretty young girls, but.... you will always get where you need to go.

 

You also get a meal, movie, a choice of newspapers, and a reasonable magazine that has a disproportional number of adverts for fancy watches.

 

They're the worlds oldest airline yet have a very young and up to date fleet and have never lost a jet. This in my mind makes them the safest airline on earth however the folks who do the actual rankings seem to find ways to sneak airlines that have had catastrophic crashes onto the list above Qantas.

Edited May 11, 2014 by FionaK

[MicCanberra]

Qantas is always my first preference. I rank Virgin and Jetstar as an equal second.

 

They're not as "flashy" as some airlines and the hosties aren't always pretty young girls, but.... you will always get where you need to go.

 

You also get a meal, movie, a choice of newspapers, and a reasonable magazine that has a disproportional number of adverts for fancy watches.

 

They're the worlds oldest airline yet have a very young and up to date fleet and have never lost a jet. This in my mind makes them the safest airline on earth however the folks who do the actual rankings seem to find ways to sneak airlines that have had catastrophic crashes onto the list above Qantas.

 

'Rain man' comes to mind when talking of the attributes of airlines.:D

[The_Big_M]

They're the worlds oldest airline yet have a very young and up to date fleet and have never lost a jet. This in my mind makes them the safest airline on earth however the folks who do the actual rankings seem to find ways to sneak airlines that have had catastrophic crashes onto the list above Qantas.

 

Not quite as e.g. KLM are older than them, and they have had some scary incidents of their own e.g. Bangkok, that are down to good fortune including skill rather than inherent safety and reliability. But I still rate them highly.

[Lanwood]

What i didn't mention in the original post is that we are also spending a few days in Perth before we sail so we have a bit of leeway regarding dates but most probably want to fly on Friday 20th Feb.

 

Ahh - in that case, you won't need to worry about getting to you cruise on time direct from the flight.

o.k - Same options as advised before, and by others, but my money would still be on Qantas. (Keep in mind Australian domestic flights are different to international flights - service, planes, check in times, peak fares, baggage etc). Being a 5 hour flight, Qantas has offered an international type service on its Sydney to Perth (East to West) run, and have dedicated a fleet of A330-200 wide body aircraft to compliment it (2.4.2 seating config). As stated already by other posters its all inclusive, so your baggage, meals, drinks, papers etc are all included. Plus, on this flight, like international ones, you also have AVOD (Audio and Video on Demand). If you have additional baggage over the limit, which is one piece at 23kg (for economy), you can pre-purchase cheaply additional pieces at $30 per piece. And you have about 6-7 flights (syd to per) per day to migrate over to if there is a problem.

Virgin has upped their game also on the East/west run, but I think Qantas still have the edge for above reasons.

[two_n_six]

I work in the airline industry and early Feb could still have some school holiday bookings returning but later in the month it is low season.

As everybody else has said Qantas (no U in it's name) and Virgin are your best choices. I have flown Jetstar and they have been fine and would compare to Easyjet so if you have been happy with them go for it if you wish to save some money . I would never go Tiger as they cancel all the time.

 

Cheaper fares wont get published until closer to the date but a search on the web just now shows there are 9 Qantas flights per day and 4 Virgin Flights per day for 10th Feb.

Cheapest fares are generally Tues or Wed (off peak) and early am or late pm (Red Eye). Lowest Price for 10Feb is $305 on Qantas which includes luggage & a meal or $279 on Virgin (no luggage or meal) and $295 (luggage included but no meal) whilst cheapest fare in a weeks time from now on Qantas is $219 so if you wish to wait until closer you may get a similar fare which is a saving $86 but no guarantee.

Jetstar is showing $226 for 10Feb now (no inclusions) .

 

Depending on your International Fare and who your carrier is you may be able to get an add on fare to fly domestically cheaper than waiting for a special so I would be checking with your TA and see what they can do.

 

I travelled Solstice in March this year from Auckland back to Sydney via the NZ Coastline & Hobart and it was sensational.

 

Good Luck

 

Thanks again to all of the posters who provided some great tips and advice. From the advice I signed up for the alerts and I've been sent countless alert emails but the dates were not suitable until todays email from Virgin.

 

I managed to book 2 seats on an A332 @ AUD 185 each (including complimentary dining and 23kg baggage allowance) and an additional piece of luggage for AUD 35 as you can see from the prices quoted above amount to a saving of just under AUD 200. We will have 5 days in Sydney and now we are ready for a relaxing 5 days in Perth before joining the Solstice.

 

Many thanks again:)

[MicCanberra]

Thanks again to all of the posters who provided some great tips and advice. From the advice I signed up for the alerts and I've been sent countless alert emails but the dates were not suitable until todays email from Virgin.

 

I managed to book 2 seats on an A332 @ AUD 185 each (including complimentary dining and 23kg baggage allowance) and an additional piece of luggage for AUD 35 as you can see from the prices quoted above amount to a saving of just under AUD 200. We will have 5 days in Sydney and now we are ready for a relaxing 5 days in Perth before joining the Solstice.

 

Many thanks again:)

 

Good work.

I will love the time here in Australia so much you will not want to go home.:D