Flying to Sydney

mattbuddy

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I'm moving to Sydney in February and I am trying to find a great airline to get there. I am going to fly out of LAX or SFO or Vancouver (I don't know their abbreviation). I am kind of a picky flyer though this time around because being 6'4 on a long plane ride, I will not fly coach. I am looking for an airline that has a really nice Business or First class. I thought British airways was really nice and I found first class for 6,000 bucks. :biggrin1: but they fly from LAX to Chicago to London to Sydney which was 43 hours. :eek:

So does anyone know good airlines that fly from the states or canada to sydney with no stop overs in Europe with a good business class? :confused: I'd really appreciate it as I am looking for flights this week! :biggrin1:
 

D_Bussbye Bushsticker

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If flying from LAX, it's Air NewZealand you need, they easily have the best business class from the West Coast. Air Canada from Vancouver won't be terrible.

From the West Coast, then Singapore can take you from JFK via Frankfurt and Singapore. Alternatively Emirates would be good, and Virgin would be excellent in Upper Class.

The simple rule of flying to/from the US, is ignore the American carriers if you want good quality and service...
 

aussiejerk

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I think you're only other alternative is Qantas. Their Business class is roomy. Air NZ is good too, but you have to fly via NZ first.
 

nudeyorker

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United have routes from LAX and SFO to Sydney it will most likely be the least expensive business class. The service is actually quite good (that's a lot coming from me because I hate United) Best bet out of Vancouver is Cathay Pacific. CP's service is outstanding.
 

SpeedoGuy

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So does anyone know good airlines that fly from the states or canada to sydney with no stop overs in Europe with a good business class? :confused: I'd really appreciate it as I am looking for flights this week! :biggrin1:

For in-flight service and comfort, I've had the best luck on QANTAS from LAX to SYD (or MEL). I've done this flight three times in the last three years. QANTAS, however, damaged my baggage last time around.

I've also gone on United on from SFO to SYD. In-flight service not quite as good but no damaged bags either.
 

jason_els

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Nudeyorker is right. Cathay Pacific has outstanding service and consistently ranks as one of the best airlines out there. I'd have no qualms flying Cathay anywhere. Singapore is ranked even higher, frequently garnering the top spots in surveys. You can't go wrong with either.

In my mind, however, flying to Australia means Qantas. Qantas are the masters of long-haul flights and know how to treat customers unaccustomed to traveling such distances. They still maintain a whole bunch of runways in the nowhere of the Pacific in case of trouble and Qantas (knock wood) has never had a fatal jet accident. I view airlines like doctors. They tend to be the best at their specialties. When you get a surgery, you want a doctor who has done hundreds of the exact same surgery you're going to get. Qantas knows how to do these flights and they have very good seating in business and first class and allow you to get up and move around frequently to prevent economy class syndrome (deep leg thrombosis). They also fly 747s on that route and, frankly, I trust the 747 beyond any other plane particularly for long-haul water routes. They have loads of room, four engines, and don't fall out of the sky for no reason. I agree with others here. Avoid the American carriers at all costs. Their seats and service suck in comparison. Qantas' service is not quite up to par with Cathay or Singapore, but it's far from horrible. If it's any indication, the Aussies I know who fly to the US frequently tend to prefer Qantas because they fly direct and are understanding of the tedium of these kinds of flights.
 

mattbuddy

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Nudeyorker is right. Cathay Pacific has outstanding service and consistently ranks as one of the best airlines out there. I'd have no qualms flying Cathay anywhere. Singapore is ranked even higher, frequently garnering the top spots in surveys. You can't go wrong with either.

In my mind, however, flying to Australia means Qantas. Qantas are the masters of long-haul flights and know how to treat customers unaccustomed to traveling such distances. They still maintain a whole bunch of runways in the nowhere of the Pacific in case of trouble and Qantas (knock wood) has never had a fatal jet accident. I view airlines like doctors. They tend to be the best at their specialties. When you get a surgery, you want a doctor who has done hundreds of the exact same surgery you're going to get. Qantas knows how to do these flights and they have very good seating in business and first class and allow you to get up and move around frequently to prevent economy class syndrome (deep leg thrombosis). They also fly 747s on that route and, frankly, I trust the 747 beyond any other plane particularly for long-haul water routes. They have loads of room, four engines, and don't fall out of the sky for no reason. I agree with others here. Avoid the American carriers at all costs. Their seats and service suck in comparison. Qantas' service is not quite up to par with Cathay or Singapore, but it's far from horrible. If it's any indication, the Aussies I know who fly to the US frequently tend to prefer Qantas because they fly direct and are understanding of the tedium of these kinds of flights.

Yea, I want to fly out with QANTAS because everyone seems to love them, but 16,000 dollars is a lot for a plane ticket for me. I just want to buy a coach ticket then buy the points to upgrade like they do in United, but I dont know if they do that with Qantas. :confused:
 

jason_els

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Yea, I want to fly out with QANTAS because everyone seems to love them, but 16,000 dollars is a lot for a plane ticket for me. I just want to buy a coach ticket then buy the points to upgrade like they do in United, but I dont know if they do that with Qantas. :confused:

$16k US for a business class seat? That's nuts!

I will tell you though, one of the ways first class can pay for itself is to purchase a long-haul travel and fly backwards like British Airways is offering. The reason is that first class tickets have unlimited stopovers. Spend a few days in each place on your way, spend a week if or two or five if you like. It's just about the only time First Class actually pays for itself and, of course, on each leg you fly First Class. It's a nice way to make a vacation for yourself; kind of a mini world tour.
 

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I brought up United in the first place because your profile says Colorado, and I assumed you would be departing through DIA. I just went on United.com and looked up a flight through DIA via LAX to Sydney and could get a coach fare for around $700.00 could get the upgrade to business with miles. If you want to code share they are Star Alliance partners with Air New Zealand but you would have to go through NZ. It worked out more cost effective to book an excursion fare on United. Like I said earlier I'm not a big fan of United's domestic service, but I have used them for Japan and Australia and it was just fine. Friends of mine are flying to Brisbane on Thursday on Delta out of LA, I'll ask them what they thought when they get back.
However you decide to get there it's a great trip....Just a long flight!
 
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mattbuddy

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I brought up United in the first place because your profile says Colorado, and I assumed you would be departing through DIA. I just went on United.com and looked up a flight through DIA via LAX to Sydney and could get a coach fare for around $700.00 could get the upgrade to business with miles. If you want to code share they are Star Alliance partners with Air New Zealand but you would have to go through NZ. It worked out more cost effective to book an excursion fare on United. Like I said earlier I'm not a big fan of United's domestic service, but I have used them for Japan and Australia and it was just fine. Friends of mine are flying to Brisbane on Thursday on Delta out of LA, I'll ask them what they thought when they get back.
However you decide to get there it's a great trip....Just a long flight!

I'm going to fly Frontier out to LAX or Vancouver since they are sooo cheap. I actually found a first class ticket from Air Canada that goes down to Sydney for six grand. I don't think that's too bad compared to all the other ones. I wonder if Air Canada is nice?
I flew United first class to Honolulu and it was pretty nice, I agree. United is just so annoying to me. They are just fee after fee after fee and it's not even that great of a plane. I will use them if I could buy some points and upgrade easily as you mentioned though! That's the way to do it. :biggrin1:
 

SpeedoGuy

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Hey, here's a photo I snapped on my last flight from LAX to MEL on Qantas. This was about over Fiji just after the sun came up...about 12 hours into the flight.

I figured out which seat I'd been assigned based on which airline and which type of aircraft by looking at:

Airline Seating Charts - Best Airplane Seats - SeatGuru
 

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BiItalianBro

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Good find...AC has a good C class product and the 777-200LR is an excellent plane for long...long...LONG missions. Did you schedule any time in YVR or are you just going to connect? I loves me some Vancouver ;-P

Out of curiosity, what are you going to do for a living in SYD? I head getting a work permit in Australia is a nightmare unless you have a very specialized skill.
 

mattbuddy

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Good find...AC has a good C class product and the 777-200LR is an excellent plane for long...long...LONG missions. Did you schedule any time in YVR or are you just going to connect? I loves me some Vancouver ;-P

Out of curiosity, what are you going to do for a living in SYD? I head getting a work permit in Australia is a nightmare unless you have a very specialized skill.

I am going to do my graduate work down in Sydney and I am lucky enough to have gotten a paid internship. :biggrin1:

To an earlier comment showing the air canada seats: those are the weirdest looking seats in an airplane. I looked at those seats earlier on their website as well and was a lil curious about it...they look nice yet bad at the same time ... but for six grand I think they look damn nice! :wink: