Kittie

Hello again! <BR> <BR>I have another question... <BR> <BR>I have looked into purchasing airline packages for domestic travel while in Australia. I have only looked at Quantas and Ansett. The Quantas package for 4 or 5 segments is about $200/person more than Ansett. The packages seem equal except for the price. <BR>Is Quantas that good or are they just higher-priced? Any suggestions of another domestic airline that I should look into? <BR>Thanks <BR>Kittie

peg

Kittie, Oz has only the two domestic airlines, Qantas and Ansett and they are almost identical, so I don't believe you will find any disadvantage in taking the cheaper package if the rules are the same. Peg.

David

Kittie, <BR>I fly extensively with my work on both airlines. There is no difference, take the cheaper option! <BR>The only point of differentiation is flying to country area's. They both don't fly to some places, but if you are sticking to major routes you will have no problems. <BR>David

Michael

Take the cheapest option, they are both safe, efficient and both serve terrible food!

Kittie

O.k..... <BR>majority rules! <BR>I'll take the Ansett package. I don't rely on airline food anyway... &lt;g&gt;. <BR>Here's another question: <BR>I heard that the Sydney airport is one best avoided... we could drive or take a train to Melbourne or Brisbane (itinerary not yet completed). Any advice? <BR>

Steve

Kittie: <BR> <BR>Very true that they are identical. We got a great rate (4 internal flights) for $728 US per person. We went Qantas and if all things being equal i would say go them because we were able to accrue these flights for our US AIr frequent flier miles. <BR> <BR>-Steven <BR>

Michael

Kittie, <BR>In comparision to major airports around the world Sydney rates extremely well. At the moment their is a lot of construction around the airport in preparation for the Olympics next year so the terminal areas at International look terrible but are functional, at the domestic terminals both airlines have just been through massive upgrades, as to air traffic congestion apart from peak travel times you won't encounter any real delays in the air (certainly nowhere near what I've come across at JFK, LAX, Chicago etc). The airport is also as close to the centre of a major city as any in world - only a 15 minute taxi ride to downtown. What ever you do , do not alter your type of transport based on what you may have heard about the airport - I fly in and out of that airport at least 40 times a year and it is fine. <BR>Rgds <BR>Michael

Gary

Ansett is fine. We used it without any problem and it is equivalent to Qantas.

Richard Krause

Kittie, <BR> <BR>My wife and I traveled around Australia this past September. We flew to most of our destinations (some metropolitan, and some out in the bush so to speak). <BR>I will disagree with some posts that the two airlines are "equal". Ansett by far flies to many more locations in Australia than Quantas. Quantas has very few flights that go to the smaller towns and villages. Also, don't forget that Ansett and Air New Zealand are "partners". <BR> <BR>Dick

GLen

Hi Kittie <BR> <BR>Ansett and Qantas are our 2 main domestic airlines in Australia, as previously stated. They both also operate smaller subsidiary airlines, Qantas has a large network under the guise of Airlink and Ansett operates smaller airlines such as Skywest and a few others on the east coast. So really their networks probably cover just as much ground. Both are affiliated with different US airlines for Frequent Flyer miles. If you look at their homepages you can see which one suits you best. Ansett can be found at: www.ansett.com.au and Qantas at: www.qantas.com.au. Hope this info helps you out. From a frequent Qantas and Ansett flyer!!! <BR>Happy travelling!

Rick

Hi Kittie, I am going to borrow your forum here for a minute. Hope all your plans are working out well. Everyone here seems pretty familiar to me for helping out. Could anyone of you please recommend a reasonable hotel in Cairns for a 1 night stay. It will be the end of our 2 week trip and just want something relatively close to the airport since we have an ungodly early flight back to the US, specifically Florida and we are going straight through. I know crazy huh.

Michael

Glens response to Dicks note about equality is correct, they both operate large "bush" airlinks under various affiliates and once you enquire you will find that the coverage is the same - Glen also makes a good point about the links to US carriers flyer programs by the 2 which probably should come into your consideration. <BR>Rgds <BR>Michael

Kye Johanning

I have recently looked into domestic air travel in Australia and I got identical prices from both Ansett and Qantas. For foreign traveles (e.g., US-based travelers), both airlines offer discounted tickets if you book in the US and have proof of return flight. Qantas offers a "Boomerang Pass" while Ansett offers a "G'Day Pass." Ask the airlines about these when you book. As I saind, when I booked, both airlines offered the same fares, but they had different availabilities. Hope this helps.

Kittie

Thanks to everyone for the great advice! I will be getting with a travel agent this Friday to get things finalized. <BR>Rick, no problem...actually I have the same question. <BR>Kittie