Rufin

Hello everyone!

I have been browsing the BAEC forum for a good while now and am excited to finally join the chat and activity.

Unfortunately I am not a business traveller and so only get a few weeks of the year to travel with time off work. I began flying with BA last year and have generally enjoyed the experience and would like to work my way up the tiers.

I have a holiday to NZ coming up soon.. as I am based in GLA, EK probably offers the most straightforward route, but I would like to travel BA if possible. However it looks like the flight would be Gla-Lhr-Hkg then Cathay from Hong Kong to Auckland..

Can anyone give me their thoughts on the service between EK and Cathay Pacific and recommendations?

Cymro

Which class would you like to travel in?

I'm off to NZ next March, which will be on Qatar Airways.

I'll be flying Milan-Doha-Kuala Lumpur; then back Wellington-Sydney (on Qantas), then on to Doha and finally to Stockholm. All booked through a travel agent in business class in a big sale, that worked out at about Ł1,900.

Currently a straightforward Stockholm-Auckland return is about Ł2,000 for my dates with the sale that just launched. EDI-LHR-HKG-AKL is currently just over Ł3k on Cathay or EDI-DOH-AKL is a little more on Qatar.

In business class, I'd rate both of those more highly than BA; in economy, I'd say it's fairly similar though I do think the A380 is the best BA economy product.

I've never flown Emirates, but if you are planning to credit to BA, you need to make sure the flights are booked as a Qantas codeshare.

golfmad

Hello Rufin and a very warm welcome to the BA Board. As well as the advice above I'd suggest a look at this thread (even though it's 3 years old):

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/briti...z-flights.html

FlyingScientist

Since this appears to be the alternative QR forum: Dine on demand in J on EDI-DOH-AKL and 1 stop only.

muishkin

Seconded on Qatar airways. I truly enjoyed all 17 hrs of the AKL-DOH segment this year in J.

wolf72

How was the jet lag after when you landed? Did it take you long to recover?

muishkin

My final destination was Paris. Of course there was jet lag since I just went through 10 hrs of timezone change. However I felt extremely refreshed when I arrived in Paris in the morning after having flown 24+ hrs. Probably because I got a solid 11 hrs of sleep on the AKL-DOH-CDG trip.

wolf72

Wow..11 hours is amazing. My record is 8 hours on an MH A380 to London. 11 hours is fantastic. Flying business class vs economy on these long flights makes a massive difference in how tired or comfortable you arrive at your next destination.

IAMORGAN

Has American completely cancelled their AKL service? If not, look at GLA-LHR-LAX-AKL. A380 and 787 (or you can do it on all AA metal).

The other option is GLA-LHR-KUL-AKL (KUL-AKL on MH). I'd choose CX over MH though.

Finally, if you want to fly on BA as far as possible you could do GLA-LHR-SIN-SYD on BA then SYD-AKL on QF.

1010101

Qatar will enable you to change once and still earn Avios/Tier Points. I would do that over the equally good Emirates option.

Depending on your dates you could pick up the new Cathay Copenhagen service (from May 2018) and get the brilliant A350 on both long haul legs, and book a cheapo positioning flight. Service is give or take on par with EK/QR.

BA would be the last choice, but if you must fly BA the A380 (BA31) is a decent option to HKG where you can then pick up a CX service to AKL.

corporate-wage-slave

I've been travelling to South Island, from the UK, twice every year for many years. I've tried all sorts of options over that time and many airlines. Now I don't get jetlag, but I've travelled with relatives who certainly do (and won't take advice!).

On a service that long you need to consider whether you'll be able to operate in the first 48 hours or not on arrival. Maybe your first 48 hours won't matter, you can plan on crashing out until your body reaches you, in which case just book the cheapest. The worst way is on the Air New Zealand service via LAX. With US immigration..... A good enough airline, but the time zones and sheer boredom of trans Pacific will not have a good impact. Nearly as bad is via Dubai/Qatar etc, in fact they can be worse if the layover in the Middle East is of poor quality. SIN is OK, so that would mean a booking via SYD or MEL, and booking onwards from there either via the Contact Centre or Travel Agent, be cautious in the second scenario.

But actually the best route, and the shortest amount of flying unless you go via NRT, is via Hong Kong, so your idea may well be the best. Now I'm a big fan of HKG, having lived there in the past, but if you take an overnight in HKG and plan on "best endeavours" sightseeing there, then you'll arrive in New Zealand in the best shape overall.

Ideally wake up a bit earlier than normal on the day of departure, take a later services from the UK to HKG, ideally an A350 from Cathay or BA's A380 - the latter is worth paying a bit extra for if you can get upper deck WT, assuming you are in economy. Then you'll be in your hotel in HKG around 4pm, so early light meal, and early to bed. Then book a next day evening service from HKG to NZ, which arrives lunch time in NZ. Spend the morning and early afternoon in Hong Kong doing the Peak and Star Ferries, being outdoors in other words in what passes for fresh air over there, to get the body to work for you. Then in NZ an early-ish night and you should be fine. Two nights in HKG is better still of course!

Jagboi

You may be mixing alliances, but what about either BA or AC to YVR, then NZ to AKL? It avoids the nastiness of US immigration.

corporate-wage-slave

It does, yes, but the trans Pacific aspect doesn't go away (and is in fact slightly longer). I don't quite know what the problem is, but it is the worst way around.

TheJayHatch

I'd second HK and C-W-S's timings.

Did it easter this year (back via SYD) We (Mrs JH + 2 kids) took the early evening CX, had an afternoon, evening and most of the next day in HK, arrived in AKL, transferred to NLN arriving early evening, and all woke up in the Abel Tasman NP the next day feeling fresh!

The thought of a short hop to the Middle East and a longer leg to AKL just filled me with dread. 12 hours on a plane is long enough for anyone. Even with a positioning flight to LHR you are still better off in my opinion. And the CX J is an excellent product (especially on the 350 LGW-HKG-AKL).

Just as an aside, flying NZ domestic is fun! No security (aside from a ticket check.) It is like catching a train. Refreshing.

Phil the Flyer

Many a true word said in jest.