Surviving Australia in Y
Jul 30, 2018, 2:08 am
#32
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 87
I do this route quite regularly in Y. What works for me, (bearing in mind it's a leisure trip, so I'm not too time constrained) is to do it as a series of day flights, with generous stopovers:
- Leave LON first thing in the morning, maybe staying the evening before at a hotel near the airport.
- Fly direct to somewhere interesting in Asia (HKG, SIN, BKK etc) arriving in the morning, and stop over for a few days. This is fun and breaks up the journey nicely. Also with the endless tropical sun, it's easier to reset your body clock to approximately the right timezone. As per other posts, avoid ME stopover.
- After enjoying yourself for a few days, catch a direct flight to Australia. Leave in morning, arrive evening.
On the way back:
Leave Australia in morning, arrive at chosen Asian city in the evening. Check in to the airport hotel, have a nice sleep in a proper bed, and board a day flight back to LON in the morning.
Also if you can, try to pay extra for a bulkhead seat with more legroom. Makes a huge difference, often for not much cost. (I think on MH I paid Ł16 per leg?)
I'm not too precious about which airline I take, mostly I choose based on where I want to stopover. If I go into Y withouf too many expectations, I find I can be happy on most carriers.
- Leave LON first thing in the morning, maybe staying the evening before at a hotel near the airport.
- Fly direct to somewhere interesting in Asia (HKG, SIN, BKK etc) arriving in the morning, and stop over for a few days. This is fun and breaks up the journey nicely. Also with the endless tropical sun, it's easier to reset your body clock to approximately the right timezone. As per other posts, avoid ME stopover.
- After enjoying yourself for a few days, catch a direct flight to Australia. Leave in morning, arrive evening.
On the way back:
Leave Australia in morning, arrive at chosen Asian city in the evening. Check in to the airport hotel, have a nice sleep in a proper bed, and board a day flight back to LON in the morning.
Also if you can, try to pay extra for a bulkhead seat with more legroom. Makes a huge difference, often for not much cost. (I think on MH I paid Ł16 per leg?)
I'm not too precious about which airline I take, mostly I choose based on where I want to stopover. If I go into Y withouf too many expectations, I find I can be happy on most carriers.
Jul 30, 2018, 2:35 am
#33
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Provincie Antwerpen, Vlaanderen, België
Programs: MUCCI Gold
Posts: 2,512
I do this route quite regularly in Y. What works for me, (bearing in mind it's a leisure trip, so I'm not too time constrained) is to do it as a series of day flights, with generous stopovers:
- Leave LON first thing in the morning, maybe staying the evening before at a hotel near the airport.
- Fly direct to somewhere interesting in Asia (HKG, SIN, BKK etc) arriving in the morning, and stop over for a few days. This is fun and breaks up the journey nicely. Also with the endless tropical sun, it's easier to reset your body clock to approximately the right timezone. As per other posts, avoid ME stopover.
- After enjoying yourself for a few days, catch a direct flight to Australia. Leave in morning, arrive evening.
On the way back:
Leave Australia in morning, arrive at chosen Asian city in the evening. Check in to the airport hotel, have a nice sleep in a proper bed, and board a day flight back to LON in the morning.
Also if you can, try to pay extra for a bulkhead seat with more legroom. Makes a huge difference, often for not much cost. (I think on MH I paid Ł16 per leg?)
I'm not too precious about which airline I take, mostly I choose based on where I want to stopover. If I go into Y withouf too many expectations, I find I can be happy on most carriers.
- Leave LON first thing in the morning, maybe staying the evening before at a hotel near the airport.
- Fly direct to somewhere interesting in Asia (HKG, SIN, BKK etc) arriving in the morning, and stop over for a few days. This is fun and breaks up the journey nicely. Also with the endless tropical sun, it's easier to reset your body clock to approximately the right timezone. As per other posts, avoid ME stopover.
- After enjoying yourself for a few days, catch a direct flight to Australia. Leave in morning, arrive evening.
On the way back:
Leave Australia in morning, arrive at chosen Asian city in the evening. Check in to the airport hotel, have a nice sleep in a proper bed, and board a day flight back to LON in the morning.
Also if you can, try to pay extra for a bulkhead seat with more legroom. Makes a huge difference, often for not much cost. (I think on MH I paid Ł16 per leg?)
I'm not too precious about which airline I take, mostly I choose based on where I want to stopover. If I go into Y withouf too many expectations, I find I can be happy on most carriers.
My personal experience of long flights in Y is that it leaves me in an impaired state for days afterwards, so it's not a mindset thing and is very much based on experience. As such there is no way I would attempt this journey in economy regardless of the circumstances.
Jul 30, 2018, 2:54 am
#34
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 87
Out of interest, once you've factored in the extra costs accrued through additional hotel stays, days needed for the trip given longer stopovers and so on, at what point does it actually become more cost effective to fly in a higher cabin? As you say I'm sure this would work well for people with no time constraints on a trip that is purely for leisure purposes but it's not for everyone.
MH Y flights for me and my wife LHR->KUL->SYD return were ~Ł750 each, plus ~Ł50 each for extra legroom, plus ~Ł60 for Heathrow and KUL hotel overnights.
So that works out to about Ł830 each. For a similar flight from LHR in J I think you'd be looking at around Ł2k each? My wife has no interest in ex-EU and is Scottish, so would never approve of blowing an extra Ł2k for better seats on a flight!
Jul 30, 2018, 3:13 am
#35
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: UK/Australia
Programs: BAEC Silver, UA2MM, QF Platinum, VA Platinum., Volare Executive Club
Posts: 2,504
My strategy is to fly Y class at either end if it can get me a good deal for most of the way in J. For example, next week I'm flying SYD-MAN, returning a week later. I have a FF QF Y ticket SYD-CGK-SYD and a cheap QR J ticket CGK-MXP-CGK and a FF BA Y ticket MXP-MAN-MXP (flying BE).
The whole trip probably costs less than GBP 1500, and I earn 560 TP, which isn't bad ex-AU. The paid QR ticket cost GBP 980. I know that this isn't exactly the routing that the OP is following, and it's certainly not for everyone, but I think the approach is still relevant.
Works for me, as I have quite a few FF points of various flavours, but even if not using points, will usually save quite a few $$$ over a J class fare out of the UK.
Jul 30, 2018, 3:43 am
#36
Join Date: Jul 2016
Programs: BA Bronze SPG
Posts: 273
Is she from Aberdeen?? I have managed to convert my deep-pocketed Aberdonian husband to the delights of ex-EU and avios collecting and 241 vouchers. Now he complains if we are not in J or a lounge or squashed on a SH easyjet flight!
Jul 30, 2018, 4:21 am
#37
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 87
Jul 30, 2018, 4:25 am
#38
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 6,349
There's surviving and surviving. There's no way (at my age) that I would fly UK - AU (or VV) all the way in Y class.
My strategy is to fly Y class at either end if it can get me a good deal for most of the way in J. For example, next week I'm flying SYD-MAN, returning a week later. I have a FF QF Y ticket SYD-CGK-SYD and a cheap QR J ticket CGK-MXP-CGK and a FF BA Y ticket MXP-MAN-MXP (flying BE).
My strategy is to fly Y class at either end if it can get me a good deal for most of the way in J. For example, next week I'm flying SYD-MAN, returning a week later. I have a FF QF Y ticket SYD-CGK-SYD and a cheap QR J ticket CGK-MXP-CGK and a FF BA Y ticket MXP-MAN-MXP (flying BE).
Jul 30, 2018, 4:54 am
#39
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: UK/Australia
Programs: BAEC Silver, UA2MM, QF Platinum, VA Platinum., Volare Executive Club
Posts: 2,504
I agree, but it's not a problem if you're not in a hurry, and you can have a little break along the way. And the less I spend on one trip helps towards the next.
Last edited by Grace B; Jul 30, 2018 at 5:01 am
Jul 30, 2018, 5:04 am
#41
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: UK/Australia
Programs: BAEC Silver, UA2MM, QF Platinum, VA Platinum., Volare Executive Club
Posts: 2,504
Jul 30, 2018, 6:10 am
#43
Join Date: Sep 2016
Posts: 86
No tip here but I am sure you will be fine!
I used to do it as a four-sector trip (XXX-SYD/MEL-BKK/SIN/HKG-LHR-XXX straight after work, and back (and going straight to work), all in Y, once a month.
I did not die. In fact the vast majority of people do not have the privilege to travel in W, J or F and survive just fine.
I used to do it as a four-sector trip (XXX-SYD/MEL-BKK/SIN/HKG-LHR-XXX straight after work, and back (and going straight to work), all in Y, once a month.
I did not die. In fact the vast majority of people do not have the privilege to travel in W, J or F and survive just fine.
To the OP, you'll be fine in Y. I've done SYD-LHR via DXB at the back on the A380 and it was fine. If you can afford going on W for a bit of extra comfort, go for it.
Personally, I'd save the money to spend in the bars in Oz.
Jul 30, 2018, 7:31 am
#45
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: London
Programs: BA Gold, Honors Gold
Posts: 227
My GF and I are going to JNB in October. She already has a return flight on SAA and I assumed she'd book a cheapo one-stopper on QR/EK etc. to get there. Like any sensible FT'er I was eyeing up ex-AMS in J but she's booked Y on the BA57 so I was resigned to sitting next to her in Y before I remembered the BA55...
Still not sure I'm brave enough to do it!
