number_6

From BOS you are better off flying east. EK BOS-DXB-MEL (can connect to QF A380 for a nicer experience), or BA BOS-LHR-SIN connecting to QF SIN-MEL, or BA BOS-LHR-HKG etc. Lots of other possibilities. I've done over hundred JFK-SYD flights going both east and west and much prefer eastbound. As for J quality, there isn't that much difference between the top-tier carriers (QF/BA/EK/EY/SQ/CX/NZ). All have pluses and minuses but are quite nice (better than F was a decade ago before sleeper seats were universal).

travelsmooth

Wow, that's quite a lot of travel between JFK-SYD. Just curious if the particular reasons you much prefer eastbound. For some reason, before looking at potential itineraries, I just assumed westbound would be faster, but trip duration appears to be approximately similar going east or west from BOS. Thanks!

Dieuwer

West bound IS faster according to the Great Circle. But of course, very long layovers can change this. Also, consider that by going East you get two very long flights (e.g. BOS-DXB-MEL), while going West is a combination of a medium length flight and a ultra-long flight (BOS-LAX-MEL).

stevenshev

Some of these "better" suggestions are nuts!

East? HK? AKL?

Why would you possibly do any of those things?

For those of us who actually travel East Coast-Australia with regularity, the only option is BOS-LAX (if you can't find a decent plane, I guess you could connect through JFK, but even that is a chore), LAX-MEL on QF or UA.

QF and UA both have perfectly acceptable business class products on the route - based on the OP's reviews of other airlines, he will be pleased with either one and will save oodles of time and effort.

ryanbryan

Also, I don't really know about your individual situation, but am assuming you will need this on a single ticket if it's for work, which means that a combo of say NZ and EK is out, as is Eastbound, which means you likely don't have as many options as you might think.

FWIW, like the poster above says, anyone that does this route with regularity would not go via Europe/ME to Aust.

travelsmooth

Thanks. Yes, for work purposes, a single ticket would be more straightforward. My intuition was that the eastbound route (e.g. via Europe or ME) did not make as much sense, as 'stevenshev' mentioned. But 'number_6' mentions one is better off flying east. So I was curious as to why one poster prefers the eastbound route.

Dieuwer

How much longer would CX be compared to UA via LAX?

bensyd

+1.^

number_6

Eastbound has tailwinds (jet stream) while westbound is headwind -- just look at the flying times LAX-SYD. BOS-LHR-SYD is just under 14k miles while BOS-LAX-SYD is just over 10k miles. So 40% longer going eastbound, but only about 25% longer in time. Flying EK would be 1 stop with 2 very long legs which allow lots of sleep and work time on-board. Much more productive than the short BOS-LAX leg followed by 3 am departure LAX-SYD with 5 am dinner service (east coast time).

Those who think this is nuts have simply never tried it. I have dozens of trips in both east and west directions and prefer eastbound. But I travel in F most of the time which makes my plane time productiive so my objective isn't to minimize on-board time but rather to arrive in the best shape at destination as I usually work an hour after landing. Admittedly that isn't the FT norm

bensyd

I've done it both ways. If you go the long way you hate yourself, regardless of what class you travel in.

wallaby

As above, stick to the simple BOS-LAX(AA) and LAX-MEL(QF).
AA domestic First is quite adequate for BOS-LAX.

RDUDEVIL

FWIW, I'll be a newbie to Oz travel (SYD) this June. Needed to leave from BOS for SYD, then eventually return to BOS after a work stay in HKG. Like OP, I'm traveling in J on work's dime. So with the new BOS-HKG service on CX, I decided to book the whole thing on CX given general good quality of their product. BOS-SYD via HKG, then SYD-HKG, then HKG-BOS. Yes it would have been faster to head outbound BOS-LAX-SYD but I wanted CX for the other legs and am willing to spend a little more time getting to SYD to have it--especially since the BOS-HKG flight leaves 1am ish, connects to the one CX daytime flight HKG-SYD (also now the one 77 flight on CX that route), getting you to SYD on the evening of your +1 day. Sleep the first half of BOS-HKG, work etc for the rest of it and for the HKG-SYD leg. Arrive SYD in evening and be able to sleep that night and then function the next day. Or that's my theory. Hope I made the right call.