judilie

We'll be flying United from Los Angeles to Sydney and then Qantas to Canberra. What is the minimum time we need between flights? This will be on a Sunday morning. If we don't have enough time (e.g., first flight arrives late), will Qantas put us on the next available flight?

JohnFitz

I'd allow 2.5 hours .

Neil_Oz

Yes, 2.5 hours minimum. Sydney airport can be a bit of a zoo at that time, but it will probably help if you have nothing to declare to Customs.

I presume you made your LAX-SYD-CBR booking through United - i.e. you'll be through-ticketed LAX-CBR? If so I imagine that you'll be put on the next available if your UA fliaght is late. If not, your question would be best addressed to Qantas.

I assume you're flying UA for FF points reasons? Don't want to depress you, but Qantas is a much more pleasant way to travel.

judilie

Yes, flying UA because of FF points. I'm using UA points; my husband's using Lufthansa (LH) points. I was planning to book SYD-CBR through Webjet. Would I be better off booking that segment through
UA (and LH)?

By the way, how exactly does Webjet work? Is there a fixed fee in addition to the fares quoted?

Sarvowinner

I find it easier to directly use the airline websites to book fares in Australia. There is additional fees of A $4.40 per person per sector Seat Price Guarantee and a $16.95 processing fee applies per booking. There are only two sites - www.virginblue.com.au and www.qantas.com.au

I agree that you need 2.5 hours. I'm not sure that Qantas will put you on the next flight - it depends on what type of ticket you book.

Neil_Oz

Is it not possible to book end-to-end through UA? What I mean is that UA tickets you SYD-(UA)-LAQF)-CBR. Airlines do this all the time, of course, and I don't see why the fact that you're flying on FF points should make a difference.

The only downside I can think of is that the SYD-CBR leg might cost more than if you book directly through Qantas' website, where you might wangle a special fare.

I'm pretty sure we did that when we flew the same route some years ago. From memory, after disembarking at SYD collected our bags, cleared customs and immigration, then proceeded to the transit lounge to take the shuttle to the domestic terminal for our QF flight to CBR. I believe that Qantas took charge of our bags before we boarded the shuttle and we didn't have to worry about them any further until after disembarking at CBR.

I may be off beam here, but it seems to me that the advantage would be that you'd be already registered with Qantas as an incoming transit passenger, and your movement to the domestic flight would be expedited through their transit arrangements. The alternative would have you dragging yourselves and your bags outside the international terminal to find the shuttle stop. Arriving at SYD after a 14-hour flight and having to negotiate the overcrowded arrivals process is bad enough - anythng you can do to smooth the process is worth doing.

Incidentally, you can buy your duty-free goods at SYD, between the aerobridge and Immigration. That simplifies things a little too.

Sarvowinner makes a good point - make sure you don't get an el-cheapo fare that's subject to cancellation if you don't make the flight.

I don't know anything about Webjet. What advantage do they offer over booking directly with the airline, especially if you have to pay them a fee?

judilie

I checked the airline sites and the prices were sometimes considerably higher than those on Webjet.

I was hoping to book all of the flights tonight before leaving on a week-long vacation tomorrow morning. However, I think I'll wait till I get back (and get the benefit of all of your advice) rather than rushing through this now.

Thanks, everyone!

Sarvowinner

I've never been able to find a fare on Webjet that I couldn't find on the suppliers website. I just did a check on Sydney Canberra, August 20th.