Flights to Australia/New Zealand
 

Hello,

We are planning our first vacation to Australia for this coming December/January (2012) and are feeling a bit overwhelmed with the options.

We are from Canada so can either fly from Toronto - Vancouver-Australia or from Toronto - LA-Australia. Since we have never been to California we were thinking of flying Toronto-LA on Air Canada, then Booking a flight 2 days later from LA-Brisbane from V.Australia.

While on this vacation we want to see Sydney, Melbourne and New Zealand (and Brisbane of course), but we dont know the best order. Ideally, we could get a 1 or 2 day stopover in Sydney before flying to Brisbane but I am not sure if its possible.

Here are my questions:
1) What is the best airline to book with in terms of price, service and comfort
2) Can anyone recommend a good travel agent that specializes in Australian vacations
3) What are the must-do's and the nice to do's in Australia/new Zealand
4) Can anyone recommend an itinerary.
5) If we select Vaustralia, is it worth it to pay double (or more) for a premium economy ticket or is economy ok?


We are looking to travel total 20-25 days (including flying time) and are doing so on a tight budget (I guess Fiji is out of the question :-( )

All the help is much appreciated.

Hi BW!

There's no way to comment on who will have the best prices in 2012 as they change constantly.

If it's your first time coming to CA may I suggest flying from Toronto to San Francisco on Air Canada, spend a few days sightseeing and then a direct flight to Sydney from SFO?

A good travel agent is what you need and will help save you time and money -- you can find an Aussie Specialist agent in your area by visiting www.australia.com. Use the drop down menu to find a Specialist in your area.

Hope this is helpful!

Melodie
Certified Aussie Specialist

Don't dismiss Fiji quite yet. I just returned from Australia, New Zealand & Fiji. I have been to Australia a few times before and flown Qantas. This time we flew Air Pacific (Fiji's national airline) because it allowed a free (except taxes) stop in Nadi. It was also much less than what QF wanted for it's flights. They also fly to Brisbane from Nadi.

I found an inexpensive but GREAT inn on the Coral Coast (abut $70 USD dollar per night).. It was on the beach, lagoon view. We snorkeled every morning in the lagoon...fabulous. OK, not as great as the GBR in Australia, but mighty good.

On another thread someone mentioned that Qantas will no longer fly direct from San Francisco from 14 May 2011, but maybe another airline does this route?

http://www.fodors.com/community/aust...ay-14-2011.cfm

One of the most popular itineraries in Australia is Sydney (or Melbourne)--Reef (Cairns plus Daintree, Atherton Tablelands)--Rock (Uluru, Kings Canyon, Alice Springs). I would add Tasmania if you like wildlife and walking. I wouldn't do three cities.

Flying from SFO is ideal as I have done it, However as of March Q is ending its flights from there and using LAX and Huston. I would log on to the Q site as well as Air NZ and see whats on offer. The other day Q had RT to Melbourne or Sydney for I think it was 445 or 495 each way.
I booked in January SFO-Sydney-Cairns,then 8 other flights in Australia and return from Melbourne for $1703,which considering the number of flights to out of the way places is more than fair, however that was before they dropped SFO. This changed my plans slightly but they tossed in the RT flights to LAX. Not looking forward to return to LAX which has got to have the worlds worst customs to get through. At SFO it was quick and easy.