FLIGHTS TO AUSTRALIA

If you’re lucky enough to be taking a flight to Australia it’s worth doing plenty of research first to ensure you get the best possible deal. Australia is a long way (London to Sydney is approximately 10,000 miles!) and a direct flight will take about 23 hours.

Many people opt for a stopover on the way, both to break the journey and take the chance to see another part of the world. Depending on which direction you travel in you could fly west and stop off in the USA, for example in Los Angeles, or take the east route and stop off in Singapore or Bangkok. A couple of days break in one of these cities will help you recharge your batteries and combat jet lag, plus you’ll be able to do some wonderful bargain shopping!

Many airlines fly to Australia and cheap flights can be found on the internet or in the newspapers. The other option is booking your flight through a travel agent, although you may find this costs more than booking direct with the airline. Quantas is the main Australian airline and several flights a day leave London. One point to remember with a flight to Australia is that you’ll probably have to confirm your flight before flying. This means telephoning the airline or agent and confirming you will be travelling to ensure your seat is booked. Otherwise you may find your seat has been allocated to a standby passenger. Remember to do this on your return journey as well.

Australia is so vast that you should plan your itinerary carefully to make best use of your time in this spectacular country. The main gateways to Australia are Sydney, Perth, Melbourne, Darwin, Brisbane, Adelaide, Townsville and Hobart. You might not be able to fly direct to one of these towns, however, Australia does have a very efficient internal flight system that will get you where you want to go.

If you want to travel around and see as much of Australia as you can it’s worth considering purchasing an airline ticket that will allow you a certain number of domestic flights. These can be paid for in advance but travel dates can be flexible – you just need to confirm your reservation with the airline. So if you can’t tear yourself away from the cosmopolitan city of Sydney for a few more days you can change your flight and see the outback of Darwin later on.

The cost of an airline ticket to Australia varies tremendously depending on when you wish to fly and where you wish to stop over. It’s cheaper to fly in Australia’s low season (March-June) but it won’t be as hot as the Australian spring and summer months. If you’re really after a bargain and search hard enough flights can be found from as little as £300.