avneeshj

I will do that. In the mean time I have also posed this question to my travel agent and she will get back to me after confirming.

Also sorry I missed your earlier questions in the last post.

The tickets are on separate PNRs. We are passport holders of India with Australian Visa traveling in TG F.

percysmith

You should await your TA's confirmation but my expectation will be no http://www.virginaustralia.com/au/en...al-connections
- separate PNR
- no codeshare

Worst case you take the train. Time wise it looks doable. Just not a very comfortable experience.

Think you should get Express Lane passes from TG for SYD immigration/customs. Those may help.

I really don't like transferring at SYD.
You can't reroute this ticket through MEL instead? It's the easiest port to transit International-Domestic.

JClasstraveller

Don't think VA have flights from MEL-AYQ.

avneeshj

That is correct. Plus I can't change my incoming flight from SYD to MEL anyway.

Seems like I might just end up going to AYQ later on in the trip or not at all. All the feedback I have gotten so far hasn't been very favorable.

docbert

I've never had any problems using either the Qantas or Virgin transfer buses for international -> domestic when arriving into SYD on separate tickets on a different airline (UA).

Note that the Virgin transfer area entrance is *before* you leave the secure area - after passing through customs you turn left right before you go through the door to the main arrivals hall.

If you miss it you can also get there from the main arrivals hall, but that involves making your way through the mess that the arrivals hall often is.

avneeshj

Would you care to elaborate more on this? Considering an arrival on TG F landing at 0710 and connecting to a separately ticketed VA fligth at 1000, you think making this connection is a possibility?

docbert

~3 hours is plenty, presuming an on-site arrival. The only catch is that 7am is peak hour at SYD international - the curfew ends at 6am, and after that multiple large jets land in quick succession - in the hour before your flight arrives there's about 10 wide-bodies landing, all of which need to go through immigration/customs.

However given you're in Thai F you'll get an Express Pass which will speed your trip through both immigration and customs, so you should be through faster than most people even as a non-citizen.

The Virgin bus goes via land-side roads (ie, the same roads a taxi would take) so it's a little slower than the Qantas bus which runs airside, and can get held up by traffic - but regardless ~3 hours is plenty.

eng3

Will be arriving in SYD in the morning after about 24hrs without a shower. I'm flying UA in J and am UA1K (*G). I don't think there are any UA lounge options on arrival. Reading this thread, I hear there are free showers. Some say they are very clean where others seem to say the opposite. I cringe thinking about a shower in a public restroom but I may be pretty desperate at that point. Are these still available? Is there a preferred one that's perhaps cleaner?

joanneoelofsen

Hope someone can help. I'm traveling on Qantas from Johannesburg South Africa arriving in Sydney at 14h45 T1, then need to transfer to T3 to catch a connecting Qantas flight to Melbourne departing at 16h15 - only 90 minute layover. Any advice to ensure I don't miss my connecting flight to Melbourne?

When I return to Johannesburg I depart Melbourne, arriving in Sydney T3 at 09h35 and need to catch my connecting flight departing at 10h35. My bags will be checked in straight to Johannesburg from Melbourne. Again, any advice?

I guess what I really need are some directions around the airport so that I don't waste time getting lost.

Kiwi Flyer

Welcome to Flyer Talk joanneoelofsen

T1 and T3 at Sydney are quite a distance apart so both of your connections are very tight.

I hope your flights are on a single ticket. If the connections are across 2 tickets then there is a very high risk of misconnecting and I'd look to change to a later SYD-MEL flight and an earlier MEL-SYD flight.

After arriving at Sydney from Johannesburg you will need to clear immigration and customs. Rush - do not waste time at duty free as the connection is tight. Once through customs and landside turn right and head towards the end of the terminal. There will be signs for Qantas domestic transfers which leads to the bus to domestic. These leave every 15-30 minutes and take about 10-15 minutes. You can see why 90 minutes is not much time to allow for all of this. I generally allow 3 hours for international to domestic connections at Sydney (on same ticket). At least if you are on a single ticket there are lots of later Qantas flights to Melbourne and so you will probably be able to be rebooked on one of those.

In the opposite direction after leaving the aircraft follow the signs for Qantas international transfer. You will clear immigration and security after the bus ride to the international terminal.

joanneoelofsen

Thank you for the tips. The flights are all one booking. Should I miss a connecting flight due to delays in flight arrival or long ques at customs or shuttle bus, is it likely that Qantas will just book me on the next available flight? Will there be a cost involved? Does travel insurance cover this sort of event or only flight cancellations?

Mwenenzi

As 1 ticket QF will put you on the next flight to MEL at no cost. This is not uncommon.

On the way back to JNB is more of risk, but you should be OK. Melbourne traffic from the city to the airport at that time of the morning is very slow & congested. Try to get to MEL early and look if your flight is on time. If not on time, go to the QF service desk.

JDiver

Welcome to FlyerTalk. It's good you came and asked, as you do not have a lot of time for these transfers! You'll certainly have no time to dawdle or shop.

When you pass through immigration and exit customs and walk (fast) to your right, you'll spot the proper Transfer Lounge close by the McDonalds sign. You'll process security before accessing the lounge. "Qantas Seamless Transfer" (if only!) busses depart as short as 10 minutes headway, as long as 30 minutes. The bus travels across the airport via a roadway within the airport itself via the western runway threshold and arrives Terminal 3 at Gate 15.

T-3 Gate 15 is where you will pick up your bus back to T-1, where you'll have to process immigration and security yet again before trekking through Duty Free toward your gate (or the airport lounges if you have access). Frankly, I'd recommend trying to get an earlier flight from MEL - SYD if you can (assuming there even is an earlier flight); the idea of one hour for transfer T-3 to T-1 makes me cringe. In any case, you best bet:

See here for all SYD inter terminal transfer options.

For a PDF map with all options, click here

Note: I added some to the thread title for easier / broader search by other members seeking this information. I've redacted much of what was posted here and created a Wikipost for others with similar questions. /JDiver, Senior Moderator

TravelTexan

I will be coming through SYD on domestic flights (to and from AYQ and MEL), but am looking for a night in a hotel at the SYD airport that will allow me to do laundry (washer and dryer, due to leaving the next day) before heading out again traveling. Rydges comes up in many posts as a good hotel and it says it has laundry facilities so anyone have any details? Thanks

And thanks for all of the above information on international to domestic transfers since I will be coming into SYD a week earlier on bus class Virgin Australia and need to go over to domestic terminal for SYD-HTI flight- it sounds like four hours should be enough with a bit of padding time-wise in there.

kcupp95

Flying in from Cairns on Virgin arriving at 0915. Departing at 1200 on United to San Francisco. All booked on one ticket through Expedia - full itinerary comes up on both Virgin and United websites.

I have been reading about the Virgin transfer service.....
1) I believe my bags will be automatically transferred for me - I won't have to collect my bags in Sydney?
2) Will the Virgin transfer desk be able to issue my United boarding pass or will I have to check in with United at the international terminal.
3) What is the transfer bus? Is it Virgin specific and stays airside or is the normal airport T-bus?