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Have you ever done it the other way flying that is

Have you ever done it the other way flying that is

Old Mar 20th 2005, 8:25 pm
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Wink Have you ever done it the other way flying that is

Just wondered if anyone went via the USofA?

Been looking for fares but no sites seem to be of any help!

Has anyone got any links for flights to Brisbane that will allow for stopovers be it usa or singapore cos i am

Tried searching expats but still not found much except the usual travelbag opodo etc etc.


Thanks world as Alan Wicker would say
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Old Mar 20th 2005, 8:31 pm
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Default Re: Have you ever done it the other way flying that is

Originally Posted by Bed Of Roses
Just wondered if anyone went via the USofA?

Been looking for fares but no sites seem to be of any help!

Has anyone got any links for flights to Brisbane that will allow for stopovers be it usa or singapore cos i am

Tried searching expats but still not found much except the usual travelbag opodo etc etc.


Thanks world as Alan Wicker would say
Sorry cant be any help but would be interested in any replies so bumping it back up again.
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Old Mar 20th 2005, 8:41 pm
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Default Re: Have you ever done it the other way flying that is

Originally Posted by Bed Of Roses
Just wondered if anyone went via the USofA?

Been looking for fares but no sites seem to be of any help!

Has anyone got any links for flights to Brisbane that will allow for stopovers be it usa or singapore cos i am

Tried searching expats but still not found much except the usual travelbag opodo etc etc.


Thanks world as Alan Wicker would say
Hello,

Have you tried http://www.ebookers.com/ - when I was looking they would come up with a NZ Airways route via Los Angeles and Aukland. The price was similar to flying the short route via Singapore with Singapore Airlines.

On both of these routes you can arrange stop-overs (but I think you pay a little more because of airport taxes). Stopping over at places not on the main route (e.g. Florida) will cost quite a bit more.

Regards
Alistair
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Old Mar 20th 2005, 8:45 pm
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Default Re: Have you ever done it the other way flying that is

Originally Posted by Bed Of Roses
Just wondered if anyone went via the USofA?

Been looking for fares but no sites seem to be of any help!

Has anyone got any links for flights to Brisbane that will allow for stopovers be it usa or singapore cos i am

Tried searching expats but still not found much except the usual travelbag opodo etc etc.


Thanks world as Alan Wicker would say

Hiya Bed Of Roses,
people have done it the other way, via USA.

I think the last person who went that way used United and found it ok.

You may have to ask a travel agen to work out the costs.
A around the world ticket may be cheeper or the way to go about it.

I'm sure people will have looked into it & let you know about it.

Bye
Mark
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Old Mar 20th 2005, 10:52 pm
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Default Re: Have you ever done it the other way flying that is

I started going via the USA with United about 3 years ago as I needed to get to Aus for a wedding around Easter and BA/Qantas/Singapore etc going the usual way were charging huge fares.

Since then I have always used United as their prices and service are far better than anything BA offer (their cabin crew don't think they are doing you a favour by allowing you to fly!)

My original post with details is post #13 on http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=290025

Check the United UK website first http://www.unitedairlines.co.uk/ and get a quote from there as they quite often have web specials then try Flight Centre Direct who are still usually cheaper.

United allow you to prebook seats on the plane too although Flight Centre weren't able to do that for me, all you need to do is when your flight is booked ask the agent for the PNR Number for your booking, then phone United reservations and they will allocate you preferred seats.

When I emigrated in November I paid £1100 for a FULL fare economy as I used my United air miles and upgraded to business the whole way to Aus, and stopped for a couple of days to see a friend in Denver.

If you do stop off be aware of a couple of things, don't let them book you on too short a connection in the US, even though you are checked through to your final destination you have to clear immigration, collect bags, go through customs and hand bags in at transfer desk then go back into terminal and go through full security screening to get to gate. If connecting to an internal flight in the US this will mean changing terminal at most airports which is a pain. When you head from US to Aus try and go via San Fran and not LA, LA airport is a hideous place and a nightmare for transfers, San Fran is newer, smaller and much easier to get about in.

It's not as bad as it sounds and I would definitely recommend it, as long as you leave enough time for transfers it is stress free and United staff are all helpful and friendly. (As an aside United are the only airline I've ever travelled with who haven't smashed up my luggage, I even brought two pictures back from Oz in bubble wrap and not a scratch on them - unlike BA's trained chimps who will dissect your cases with military precision at every opportunity)
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Old Mar 20th 2005, 11:01 pm
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Default Re: Have you ever done it the other way flying that is

My Hubby and I came to Oz in October 04 going via Florida. Stopped for a couple of weeks (had an awesome time through Hurricane Jeanne ) and our tickets were only 500ish quid (sorry, Aussie keyboard and no pound symbol)

We flew United and can highly recommend them. You also get 64kg each for luggage allowance also.

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Old Mar 21st 2005, 1:12 am
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Default Re: Have you ever done it the other way flying that is

Hi there,

Mr GG and I arrived in Sydney just over a week ago and travelled via the States. We flew with Air New Zealand and had free stopovers in LA, Fiji (Nadi) and New Zealand (Christchurch via Auckland). Our one way tickets cost about 575 squid (no GBP sign, sorry. Aussie keyboard.) each. We booked the flights with Trailfinders, who were very helpful - both about routes and one-way fares, which is more than a lot of travel agents. Although I think their website is not overly-user friendly and their shops are few and far between. But they're good on the phone.

As has been said, the biggest advantage of the US route is the enormous baggage alllowance (which, for example, has meant we've been able to bring an air mattress and bedding etc which is going to be useful in our unfurnished rented place whilst we wait for our shipment to arrive!). One way to minimise the hell that is LA airport is to try and ensure you book seats at the front of the plane. We cleared LA customs in less than 15 minutes, so it can be done!

Hope that helps.

GG

Originally Posted by Bed Of Roses
Just wondered if anyone went via the USofA?

Been looking for fares but no sites seem to be of any help!

Has anyone got any links for flights to Brisbane that will allow for stopovers be it usa or singapore cos i am

Tried searching expats but still not found much except the usual travelbag opodo etc etc.


Thanks world as Alan Wicker would say
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Old Mar 21st 2005, 1:39 am
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Default Re: Have you ever done it the other way flying that is

[QUOTE=Bed Of Roses]

Hi there,
We came via the USA in Aug 2003. We flew United to New York, then on to Chicago, Orlando and LA before arriving in Sydney. The flights for 2 adults and 1 child cost GBP1700 one way. I think the original flight price of Heathrow to Sydney included 3 free stopovers and we paid extra for the 4th one but we were happy with our deal. The luggage allowance was a bonus and the month we took to get here was great fun. Apart from being "Randomly Selected" for extra security every flight we took (this was aparantly because we only had one way tickets) we didn't experience any long queues at immigration and found United airlines to be absolutely fine.

We booked through Travelcare (the CoOp) and at the time they were quoting cheaper than we could get through the Flightcentre. When I looked at United website for prices they were quoting huge prices so in the end we went with Travelcare.

Good luck and have fun which ever way round you decide to go.
Julie
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Old Mar 21st 2005, 2:25 am
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Default Re: Have you ever done it the other way flying that is

Originally Posted by Flying Banana
I started going via the USA with United about 3 years ago as I needed to get to Aus for a wedding around Easter and BA/Qantas/Singapore etc going the usual way were charging huge fares.

Since then I have always used United as their prices and service are far better than anything BA offer (their cabin crew don't think they are doing you a favour by allowing you to fly!)

My original post with details is post #13 on http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=290025

Check the United UK website first http://www.unitedairlines.co.uk/ and get a quote from there as they quite often have web specials then try Flight Centre Direct who are still usually cheaper.

United allow you to prebook seats on the plane too although Flight Centre weren't able to do that for me, all you need to do is when your flight is booked ask the agent for the PNR Number for your booking, then phone United reservations and they will allocate you preferred seats.

When I emigrated in November I paid £1100 for a FULL fare economy as I used my United air miles and upgraded to business the whole way to Aus, and stopped for a couple of days to see a friend in Denver.

If you do stop off be aware of a couple of things, don't let them book you on too short a connection in the US, even though you are checked through to your final destination you have to clear immigration, collect bags, go through customs and hand bags in at transfer desk then go back into terminal and go through full security screening to get to gate. If connecting to an internal flight in the US this will mean changing terminal at most airports which is a pain. When you head from US to Aus try and go via San Fran and not LA, LA airport is a hideous place and a nightmare for transfers, San Fran is newer, smaller and much easier to get about in.

It's not as bad as it sounds and I would definitely recommend it, as long as you leave enough time for transfers it is stress free and United staff are all helpful and friendly. (As an aside United are the only airline I've ever travelled with who haven't smashed up my luggage, I even brought two pictures back from Oz in bubble wrap and not a scratch on them - unlike BA's trained chimps who will dissect your cases with military precision at every opportunity)
I am a big fan of United Milage Plud too. You only need 20000 miles for a domestic flight (or to NZ, Fiji, etc) compared to 30000 with most other programmes.
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Old Mar 21st 2005, 3:11 am
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Default Re: Have you ever done it the other way flying that is

Originally Posted by mamichelle
I am a big fan of United Milage Plud too. You only need 20000 miles for a domestic flight (or to NZ, Fiji, etc) compared to 30000 with most other programmes.
It's a darn site better than the tight 'One World' scheme operated by BA/Qantas/Cathay I think with them it meant you would need 6 or 7 full fare economy flights to Aus a year to get a silver card as it all goes on how much you spend, not how far you fly.

With United (Star Alliance) one UK/US/AUS round trip (25000 miles) will give you their silver card for a year which means you get first chance of front row/exit row seats in economy and on their jumbos economy plus, which is std economy service with about six inches extra legroom. (Which makes one hell of a difference to how you feel on arrival at sydney after a 14 hour flight! )

Do two trips to Aus in a year (50000 miles) and you get the gold card which will give you lounge access at the airports which is great when you have a 5 hour stopover in SFO.

Since I first got my silver card with them every time barring once I have flown to Aus from London I have been upgraded to Business for the LHR/SFO leg, Sydney flight is usually too full for upgrades.

When I emigrated I used 30000 air miles to upgrade to business the whole way which was great, cost £1100 but business would have been nearly £6000 so well worth it.

As others have mentioned their staff are all friendly and helpful and I have yet to have a bad experience with them.

Also can't recommend Flight Centre Direct in Crawley enough, they have regularly gone out of their way to get me the best deal and for my one way flight the girl I dealt with spent nearly two days on the phone to me and United to ensure I got upgradable seats at the cheapest price, turned out to be a bit more complicated due to the US stopover but in the end was half the price straight from the United Website.

Again as others have said transiting US Customs isn't much of a problem and I have always found SFO immigration to be a damn site quicker than at Heathrow! Just mentioned it as I have been told at check in numerous times (even by United) there is no need to collect bags etc when it is US law and you don't want to queue for customs to be sent back for your bags and have to join the back of the queue.
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