heads up if your going to Australia

[Hawaiidan]

Ok, Flying to Australia is expensive like $7000 to$ 9000 for business class which for the 15 hour non stop from just the west coast is the accepted min seat unless you are a masochist .

Second airlines like United have very tight controls of award seats and to fly business your going to have to pay 350,000 hard earned miles pp to get to Sydney rt... or 175,000 to 195,000 each way!!! Only way, and as said few seats.

HA!!!! I have discovered an end run .... Forget Sydney... fly into Cairns and buy a cheap ticket to Brisbane or Sydney for under $200 and 2 hours or less ! Plus you can stop over in Honolulu or Guam!!! and on the return choose Tokyo too!

 

By flying on a Wednsday or Monday, on UAL from SFO or LAX you can get a 1 way ticket for 70,000 miles in business first through HNL and Guam. that's 140,000 miles sports fans and only 40,000 more miles than a domestic first class!........ rt that's a whopping 210,000 miles less than flying the same class to Sydney.... Or said another way its 70,000 miles more than 2 rt flights ( 350,000- 280,000)

 

So.... consider chucking Sydney for little Carins where you can enjoy several days at the Great barrier reef !!!

[Paulchili]

FYI,

OneWorld option - Qantas one way business US-OZ 62.5K miles (very hard to come by) or fly Cathay via Hong Kong (with free stopover) for 2 awards 55K + 35K = 90K AA miles - much easier to get than Qantas.

Hawaiian (via HNL) and Fiji Airways (via Fiji) is economical at 62.k miles but their business class is nowhere near either Qantas or Cathay

[Paulchili]

By flying on a Wednsday or Monday, on UAL from SFO or LAX you can get a 1 way ticket for 70,000 miles in business first through HNL and Guam. that's 140,000 miles sports fans and only 40,000 more miles than a domestic first class!........ rt that's a whopping 210,000 miles less than flying the same class to Sydney.... Or said another way its 70,000 miles more than 2 rt flights ( 350,000- 280,000)

 

So.... consider chucking Sydney for little Carins where you can enjoy several days at the Great barrier reef !!!

 

Caveat - that business first on the Hawaii/Guam flight is not a lie flat seat and no better than a domestic first. It's OK to Hawaii (maybe Guam) but not all the way to OZ.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Caveat - that business first on the Hawaii/Guam flight is not a lie flat seat and no better than a domestic first. It's OK to Hawaii (maybe Guam) but not all the way to OZ.

 

But not bad for us philistines who can't afford Biz class. We flew to Bangkok on PE (Premium Economy) and it wasn't half bad, but not a bed, obviously.

[Hawaiidan]

Caveat - that business first on the Hawaii/Guam flight is not a lie flat seat and no better than a domestic first. It's OK to Hawaii (maybe Guam) but not all the way to OZ.

 

Actualy that's true to Guam and Lax/sfo to HNL but its only a 5 and 6 hour legs with a nice break in HNL or Guam then a 4 hr to CNS in a 737-800 All in all with the breaks and plane changes.

to save 210,000 miles its getting Business seat for the price of a free coach.

the other option is not an option..Hawaiian

 

Hawaiian first class/ Business class, is NOT even up to the standards of United domestic first class seat.... In fact its even narrower and reclines about what a economy plus seat does.... its a joke on you. so the serve a crummy little meal....woopie

 

Hawaiian.... where customer service is not in their business plan....

From experience The put 8 more seats on the same plane as the others. I would fly Hawaii only if someone bought the ticket and second if they paid me to fly.....

[Paulchili]

Actualy that's true to Guam and Lax/sfo to HNL but its only a 5 and 6 hour legs with a nice break in HNL or Guam then a 4 hr to CNS in a 737-800 All in all with the breaks and plane changes.

to save 210,000 miles its getting Business seat for the price of a free coach.

the other option is not an option..Hawaiian

 

Hawaiian first class/ Business class, is NOT even up to the standards of United domestic first class seat.... In fact its even narrower and reclines about what a economy plus seat does.... its a joke on you. so the serve a crummy little meal....woopie

 

Hawaiian.... where customer service is not in their business plan....

From experience The put 8 more seats on the same plane as the others. I would fly Hawaii only if someone bought the ticket and second if they paid me to fly.....

 

You may be right about Hawaiian - I have never flown with them and have no plans to when Qantas, Cathay and Japan Airlines are my alternatives. I only mentioned them as an alternative to OZ for AA miles if nothing else can be found.

[AllanWW]

And Cairns is a great place for a stopover. Not only does it have the Barrier Reef, but also the Daintree Rainforest, Port Douglas and the Atherton Tableland. The Kuranda Scenic Railway is a hoot!!!

 

Allan

[Emma Chisit]

Forget Sydney... fly into Cairns and buy a cheap ticket to Brisbane or Sydney for under $200 and 2 hours or less !

 

Creative idea! Just be sure to check the carryon and checked baggage limits for whichever airline you use for the cheap domestic flight, after you fly internationally into Cairns. Our domestic carriers are quite restrictive, both for weight and dimensions of bags – and the baggage policy is enthusiastically enforced by the gate agents. Recently Jetstar (one major domestic carrier, the other is Virgin) reduced its carryon limit in economy class to one bag of 7kg (15.4 pounds), in line with the others. If you have a personal item like a purse or coat it is included in the 7kg allowance. Policy came into effect 25 Nov 2014.

http://www.jetstar.com/au/en/planning-and-booking/baggage/carry-on-baggage

[Hawaiidan]

For the huge sum I am saving, I do not care what a bag charge will be. We are talking many thousands $$$ in miles or dollars.

 

Trips of 15 to 20 hours for me must be in not less than business. I don't want to spend 3 days of the cruise recovering from the flight...

 

Because its pretty easy to get 140,000 miles and is about the same as a coach ticket in miles....it make no sense to fly coach. As I said it costs 100,000 to fly domestic USA first class.... .

If you plan it in advance and pick up several credit cards and spend normal routine amounts you can easily get 100,000 in 12 months...or more.

 

 

My cruise plan is to fly into CNS and then fly down to Brisbane to catch the cruise then on the return catch the Tilt train...a 23 hr trip with meals and sleeper seats from Brisbane to Cairns for about $220 usd and getting a chance to see more of OZ rather than a airplane ride at 30,000 ft.

 

Then spend 2 days in Cairns touring the reef and fly home......

[Emma Chisit]

For the huge sum I am saving, I do not care what a bag charge will be. .....

 

It’s not about flying business class across the water, or a possible excess baggage charge here in Australia. You mentioned a cheap domestic flight in Oz. Domestic flights here (even in business class) are much more restrictive as to what you can carry on board than those in the US. If your carryon bag does not comply with the weight and dimensions restrictions then you run the risk that it will be taken from you and placed in the hold. Has happened to me. You may have fragile/valuable items in your carryon that you don’t wish to be parted from. My experience (and we fly business class) is that check in staff in Australia routinely check carry-ons and enforce limits. While some agents may apply discretion you cannot count on it.

Tilt train sounds a good idea; however, though I live in the same state, I have no personal experience of it.

[Hawaiidan]

I travel light very light in the tropics and on this cruise going solo as my wife is not interested in the area and" cruised out" after our recent 34 day trip..

I plan to check everything except my wallet. Plus train travel at the end requires light and easy...

 

Thanks for the up-date

[Emma Chisit]

Wise move to travel light while flying in Oz, given our restrictive rules for carry-ons! Always amazed at what people seem to be able to take on board in the US. Again, congrats on such a creative idea for getting rewards travel for your trip.

[qldtraveller]

Hi

Agree with my fellow Queenslander.

If you are concerned about a 15 hr flight to OZ wait till you do the Tilt Train once it is reduced to a speed of less than 60mph some 4 hours out of Brisbane. QLD runs a very narrow gauge system so the train rocks a little. Also it is not a tilt train as we know in Europe, UK and Japan. I am a train buff.

Also some people are fortunate they can fly business class.

May I respectfully suggest premium economy which are better than most of the business class SEATS offered by the American Airline System. Fly Qantas(Direct in 14 hours) or Air New Zealand(via Auckland and only 9 - 10 hours, layover and fly to Syd and is around $1,600USD each way). Look at the seats available on their web page.

 

In regards to flying from Cairns to Sydney etc. please be aware that should you miss your connection with Virgin or Jetstar(supposedly a QF subsidiary) you will most probably have to buy another ticket at full price. We flew from Bangkok to Sydney and missed our connection so had to buy new tickets to get home. Never again.

 

Cairns Airport is not a busy airport so facilities such as lounges are limited.

 

As many of us think there are easier ways to do it and even Virgin offers flights from USA to Australia and are linked with Delta.

 

Maybe one should look a little deeper at their options before deciding to waste points and money.

 

As an aside Air New Zealand Premium Economy has won a number of awards.

 

Also you CANNOT check your luggage all the way through if connecting with a cheap airline(Virgin(unless you fly Virgin from USA) or Jetstar). You need to pick it up, wheel it across to the domestic(walk) and recheck at least 30 minutes before the flight. No late check ins allowed. Also all luggage etc. is extra.

 

Also our budget airlines are no better than most of the American airlines and what they offer so buyer beware.

 

I hope the comments are taken as result of what we experience in Australia when we need to fly from and to USA.

[Hawaiidan]

As far as the train.....I really am not in a hurry...I don't care if it goes 30 mph and rocks like a cradle ! I still get to see more landscape than flying. Plus for the $230 fare I save 1 a rental car gas, a hotel night and3 meals.

 

Thanks for the suggestion for Air NZ $1600 economy Plus....and I appreciate the comment that OZ airlines are nothing special.

 

I have a fare however carved out with United... Palm Spring-Los Angeles-Honolulu-Guam- Cairns , arriving 2350Thursday.. catch a OZ flight for Brisbane at 0600 so no danger on connections.

Return Flight: Monday 0045 , Cairns-Guam-Inchon-Los Angeles Palm springs. All in First/Business class seats!... Fare:$ 11.50 usd ..... rt and 140,000 points

 

The main reason for my post was to offer a creative way to fly to Australia and save 210,000 miles !!! Because, to fly to Sydney its 175,000 to 195,000 points EACH WAY ! This route is some 60% cheaper And in addition it gives some 3 hours lay over times , which is good on a flight that long 3 hours in Honolulu and I get 2 bags up to 70 lbs.

I travel at about 40 lbs and 1 case and a 8 lb rucksack I have found that if I need something, well they have stores where I am heading.

 

The airlines have a heavy demand for Australia and very few flights in order to keep demand and fares high. ( they did this to Hawaii too... where they used to fly 747's from LA or SF and now its in little 737's... Reduce seats, raise fare !!!)

 

Mind you I maintain a 700-800,000 mile account and my wife 300,000, so points/miles are not a problem In fact spending 255,000 to fly to Saipan, Palau and Iwo Jima in march)

 

So thanks all you OZ folks...fair dinkum

[ChatKat in Ca.]

We just flew on Virgin Aus using Amex Miles into Melbourne and out of Sydney, Business Class on a Delta Code Share. 150k miles.

[Hawaiidan]

We just flew on Virgin Aus using Amex Miles into Melbourne and out of Sydney, Business Class on a Delta Code Share. 150k miles.

 

That's still 10,000 more miles........ for delta.

[ChatKat in Ca.]

That's still 10,000 more miles........ for delta.

 

Oops - I went back to check 120K per RT ticket

[Hawaiidan]

Oops - I went back to check 120K per RT ticket

 

Its possible too on UAL..theoretically and to get first class rt for 160,000 too.....

 

However in reviewing the available dates I only found 6 possible flights in a 8 month period... a real crap -shoot

 

Whereas, into CNS nearly every date and flight is open.... way more usable and practical for me. ( I only Use UAL/star alliance)

 

This was what I discovered and what I wanted to pass along as a realistic/practical option.

[Paulchili]

Oops - I went back to check 120K per RT ticket

 

You were very fortunate indeed.

Delta SkyMiles (aka Sky Pesos) usually requires 2 or 3 times the miles AA or UA charges.

Good on you :)

[BeagleOne]

Actualy that's true to Guam and Lax/sfo to HNL but its only a 5 and 6 hour legs with a nice break in HNL or Guam then a 4 hr to CNS in a 737-800

 

Guam is an eight-hour flight from Honolulu, not five or six. I lived on Guam for seven years and did that flight more times than I care to remember.

[BeagleOne]

Actualy that's true to Guam and Lax/sfo to HNL but its only a 5 and 6 hour legs with a nice break in HNL or Guam then a 4 hr to CNS in a 737-800

 

Guam is an eight-hour flight from Honolulu, not five or six. I lived on Guam for seven years and did that flight more times than I care to remember.

[BeagleOne]

Sorry, double post.

Edited November 29, 2014 by BeagleOne

[Hawaiidan]

I ROUNDED IT OFF Living for a decade in Hawaii I always found 30 to 50 min shaved off for KOA-LAX flights So I Applied them to GUM. UAL shows a 7.5 enroute. time.

 

By the way how was the service. seats....???

 

By the way I found that returning from Australia via Inchon on Aisiana ( a UAL partner I can get back to LAX for 80,000 mles one way... in a lie flat bet after GUM-ICH in std Business first.

[Paulchili]

I ROUNDED IT OFF Living for a decade in Hawaii I always found 30 to 50 min shaved off for KOA-LAX flights So I Applied them to GUM. UAL shows a 7.5 enroute. time.

 

.

 

Except that KOA-LAX is flying East with a tail wind (thus time can be "shaved off") while HNL -GUM is just the opposite :)

[Paulchili]

I ROUNDED IT OFF Living for a decade in Hawaii I always found 30 to 50 min shaved off for KOA-LAX flights So I Applied them to GUM. UAL shows a 7.5 enroute. time.

 

.

 

Except that KOA-LAX is flying East with a tail wind (thus time can be "shaved off" with a good tail wind) while HNL -GUM is just the opposite :)