Oceania (Australia, New Zealand & the South Pacific) - US to Australia, which airline/route?

Specifically SFO to Perth (or maybe stop on the way if that's too crazy long). My dime. Never been in Australia.

Should I go with Quantas? Or...? Does it matter? I have this feeling I should go to Australia with Quantas but have no good reason for this.

Depending on the price, this might be economy :( or economy plus :)

Such a long way...looking to make it not torturous. Does it make more sense to stop on the way for a few days (even though that's not my goal). If so, where's the easiest place to stop? Sydney? Brisbane? By easy I mean the least hassle, such as shuttle to hotel, then walk around. Or, rent a car but drive only outside congested areas. Budget decidedly non-luxurious, but kinda picky. :)

I don't have a feel for this trip, just that it's very very very long...any tips appreciated.

My goal in Perth, btw, is tourism. Always dreamed of going to Australia, got Western Australia stuck in my mind, was aiming to work there but don't think it'll happen, so woke up and realized I need to simply go. Have not one plan yet for the trip so I started from the flights and could use some tips.

Unfortunately there aren't many US > AU direct flights from San Francisco now that Qantas (not Quantas) has pulled out of SFO. IIRC only United has a direct flight from SFO which lands in Sydney. Your best bet would be to hub through LAX. Almost all AU-bound flights depart between 10pm and 1am so any mid-day shuttle would be good. I travel to Australia about 3 times a year and my choice of carriers in order would be:

1. Qantas (A380 not B747) - bit more seat width, bigger entertainment screen, decent service/food.
2. Virgin Australia (B777) - Good ride but LAX check-in is pretty bad and they only allow you 50 pounds TOTAL of checked luggage instead of 100 pounds with Qantas. Better service/food.
3. Air New Zealand (B747) - Decent, but you connect through Auckland NZ and sometimes the connection times are tight.
4. Qantas B747 - Ok, nothing special
5. Delta / Hawaiian (via HNL) - never flown
6. United (B747) - No entertainment on demand (one screen for all pax) mediocre at best service.

No one flies direct to PER unless you fly in the other direction with Emirates through Dubai or Cathay Pacific through Hong Kong and a few other Asian carriers so you'll probably have to stop & clear customs in Brisbane, Melbourne, or Sydney.

If it were me I'd try to get to Perth without laying over - you'll be in jetlag wanting to fall asleep about 4pm on the East Coast & waking up about 3am. The one or two days will only keep you frustrated. However on the way back once you've acclimated I definitely would stop in SYD or MEL for a few days just to enjoy the surrounds.

Air NZ fly AKL PER, so is a good option
http://www.gcmap.com/mapui?P=SFO-LAX-AKL-PER%0D%0ASFo-LAX-SYD-PER%0D%0ASFO-HKG-PER&MS=wls&DU=mi
No idea if a HKG-PER flight is available

Unfortunately there aren't many US > AU direct flights from San Francisco now that Qantas (not Quantas) has pulled out of SFO...

Very helpful (entire post). ^

Air NZ fly AKL PER, so is a good option
http://www.gcmap.com/mapui?P=SFO-LAX-AKL-PER%0D%0ASFo-LAX-SYD-PER%0D%0ASFO-HKG-PER&MS=wls&DU=mi
No idea if a HKG-PER flight is available

Good map. I was in Auckland recently and looked up flights to Perth very quickly, saw that they cost as much as west coast - Perth, and decided to do it another time. Many other reasons for this, never mind. I didn't look at the specifics of the flights, who, what, when.

I'll look at SFO-AKL-PER.

I think the Airbus is two flights currently - the 22:10 from LAX to Sydney and the 23:30 to Melbourne. However, the seat pitch for all Qantas airplanes including this is 31 in economy...which btw can be had at 1,500 USD roundtrip which is quite attractive...quite...doable...

Gotta get to Australia before I die...not that I'm dying...

And a roundtrip in economy plus can be found for about 2,000. Huh. Wow. Looking good...

About the jet lag, btw, I didn't suffer so much in NZ. I did wake up at 4AM for a while, but slept well. Coming from the West coast it's nearly 24 hours, so that direction wasn't so bad. The way back was much more difficult.

For Perth, SQ has nonstop flights from SIN. To get to SIN, take UA or SQ from LAX. IIRC there are also flights on these carriers from SFO, but I believe the SQ flights stop in HKG; there's also LAX-NRT-SIN on SQ and DL with good connections in NRT.

Agree that the seat pitch is the same, but the seat WIDTH is about 1" larger in economy in the A380 (18.1" vs 17.2" in 747). Another advantage of A380 is there's a self-serve refreshment bar in the aft of the aircraft with soft drinks, cookies, fruit, etc. instead of the snack bag you get on the 747.

Note that the same QF flight # can refer to different metal depending on day of week.

Agree that the seat pitch is the same, but the seat WIDTH is about 1" larger in economy in the A380 (18.1" vs 17.2" in 747).

Are you calling me fat?

;)

Width is nice but I'm a legroom junkie.

Good tip about different planes on different days.

For Perth, SQ has nonstop flights from SIN. To get to SIN, take UA or SQ from LAX. IIRC there are also flights on these carriers from SFO, but I believe the SQ flights stop in HKG; there's also LAX-NRT-SIN on SQ and DL with good connections in NRT.

Looking at the Delta site, it gives me Virgin flights. I hate this switcharoo, but never mind. I need more than 50 pounds so that doesn't sound good.

Plugging the route into United the cheapest roundtrip in Economy, don't know through where, is 5,000$. No way!

So far the best deal is Qantas economy plus (or whatever it's called). 2,000!

Looking at the Delta site, it gives me Virgin flights. I hate this switcharoo, but never mind. I need more than 50 pounds so that doesn't sound good.

Plugging the route into United the cheapest roundtrip in Economy, don't know through where, is 5,000$. No way!

So far the best deal is Qantas economy plus (or whatever it's called). 2,000!
Wrong. DL flies nonstop LAX-SYD daily on the 777. They also have a daily flight NRT-SIN, which connects to all of the DL TPAC into NRT.

Something else to consider is that arriving into Australia (international) and immediately connecting to domestic at most airports means switching to a different terminal which is quite far away, sometimes necessitating a taxi ride. It's a major pain IMO.

Wrong. DL flies nonstop LAX-SYD daily on the 777. They also have a daily flight NRT-SIN, which connects to all of the DL TPAC into NRT.

Something else to consider is that arriving into Australia (international) and immediately connecting to domestic at most airports means switching to a different terminal which is quite far away, sometimes necessitating a taxi ride. It's a major pain IMO.

I didn't say Delta doesn't fly this route, just when you look at their own website they show you Virgin flights, and for that absurd price.

Good info about switching airports. I wouldn't have known.

Delta does owe me $100, so I'll try to find this flight...

Wouldn't think of calling you fat :p but the extra inch does help especially if you have a hefty seatmate.
MSP is correct about sometimes having a trek between international and domestic but taking a taxi might be a bit of a stretch.

SYD - Arrive international terminal, walk through duty free to immigration, pick up bags and run through agriculture x-ray, wheel bags out the door to the domestic satellite terminal (100 m), check in bags, go through carryon x-ray & magnetometer, walk down to shuttle bus area, shuttles run every 15 min or so to domestic. It's also a fun shuttle as you go by the QF maintenance bays and get somewhat up close & personal to the aircraft.

MEL - Again walk through duty free to immigration (starting to notice a pattern here), pick up bags, possible ag x-ray (usually not), take travelator up to 2nd level & turn left to Virgin or right to Qantas domestic check-in. Pretty painless.

BNE - Same sequence as above, but you have to take the free elevated train to the domestic terminal.

AKL - Arrive international terminal, no immigration/customs if not disembarking in NZ, take the escalator up, carry-on x-ray, magnetometer and you're at the departure gates.

In the last 4 years I've been to AU about 13 times and have never had a problem with a published connection except at AKL which was tight to start and we arrived an hour late.

I'm not saying that you miss international to domestic connections, but I find the hassle factor of taking bags to the other terminal to be miserable after a long flight. How far the distances are depends very much on the carriers involved.

I didn't say Delta doesn't fly this route, just when you look at their own website they show you Virgin flights, and for that absurd price.

Good info about switching airports. I wouldn't have known.

Delta does owe me $100, so I'll try to find this flight...
On delta.dumb, try first going to the expert search/more options page and then searching by schedule or doing multicity to see all of the possible flights.

It looks like flying through Auckland is more expensive, at least with Air New Zealand.

Tip: if you do go through immigration there, a nice man will clean your shoes for you and they're returned nice and dry. But I digress...

So far Qantas (why no U?) economy plus is looking like the best deal.

I'm thinking that maybe two days layover in Melbourne or Sydney would be saner, so I'll have to check again with that in mind.

So far Qantas (why no U?)

Queensland And Northern Territory Air Service

Queensland And Northern Territory Air Service

So you're sure it goes to Perth? ;)

I'm not saying that you miss international to domestic connections, but I find the hassle factor of taking bags to the other terminal to be miserable after a long flight. How far the distances are depends very much on the carriers involved.If you arrive in the SYD intl terminal and your onward dom flight is QF you can check in with QF in the intl terminal. Then take the free QF shuttle to the dom terminal.

But much simpler at MEL: just a 50- 100 m walk

So far the best deal is Qantas economy plus (or whatever it's called). 2,000!Where (what site) and when (dates) are you seeing QF premium economy for $2,000? I can understand $2,000 each way but not roundtrip.... maybe $3,500 roundtrip if you're lucky.

So you're sure it goes to Perth? ;)

Left Field suggestion but since your going to Perth it can often be cheaper and more convenient to fly through an Asian hub or even Dubai. Try and see what Emirates or Cathay will price you to Perth.

Where (what site) and when (dates) are you seeing QF premium economy for $2,000? I can understand $2,000 each way but not roundtrip.... maybe $3,500 roundtrip if you're lucky.

You're right...ouch...sorry...I was in a hurry...

Left Field suggestion but since your going to Perth it can often be cheaper and more convenient to fly through an Asian hub or even Dubai. Try and see what Emirates or Cathay will price you to Perth.

I've looked now - Cathay doesn't have premium economy, so an economy from SFO-PER via HKG lasts about 25-27 hrs, 32 ince seat pitch and costs about 2,500.

Qantas economy from LAX-PER via MEL or SYD lasts about 22 hrs, 31 inch seat pitch and costs about 2,000.

There doesn't seem any great benefit to going through Asia, as far as I can see from my search.

Are you calling me fat?

;)

Width is nice but I'm a legroom junkie.

Good tip about different planes on different days.

Don't know if you were called "fat", but since you raised THAT issue, I'd like to point out that a fat set of buttocks makes for tightness in 3 dimensions. That means seat pitch needs to be longer for "fatties" than for "skinnies" of the same leg length (actually for correctness it should be "femur bone length). The adipose tissue pushes the pelvic socket "forward" and hence more seat pitch is needed for the "fatties". Just FYI... :p