A Week In Australia

[MelainesLaugh]

I’ve always wanted to go to Australia, and I’ve recently been looking at British Airways Flights and Holidays. They do direct flights to Sydney now and it got me wondering whether a weeks holiday would be feasible.

With 23 hours on the plane and no change I could easily use that to sleep. Which would, hopefully, then have me refreshed to spend the days in Sydney before doing the same on the way back.

AIBU to consider this or is it an absolutely ridiculous idea.

Wouldn’t go all that way to spend a week in Sydney. Overrated. The country has far far more to offer. If you really can’t spare more than a week I’d do west coast

I wouldn’t personally because the flight is punishing. I did it at 19 and it completely wasted me and I was there for three months.

I just don’t think a week is long enough. Sydney is nice but not so special it’s worth the jet lag and upheaval.

But it depends how much you want to go. If it’s your lifetime ambition then it will be worth it.

Wouldn't do it myself but have met someone while travelling who did, though not a direct flight. They timed their flights so they landed in the evening and it helped beat the jet lag. I don't know how they felt when they got back home though. My flights also landed in the evening and I had no jet lag in Australia, hit me like a tonne of bricks coming back though. Only thing I would say though is will a week be enough? I've done a total of 3 weeks in Sydney now and it's still not enough! 😂 There again I don't think any amount of time out there would be enough for me.

The only thing I would say though is take some good ear plugs for the flight, snoring seat neigbours do not equate a good sleep.

Qatar is great, I've not flown to Australia with them but have taken many other long haul flights with them to Asia, Maldives and South America. Hands down way better than BA, great service and the food was decent, well somewhat edible at least. Also part of the One World alliance (same as BA) so makes sense to collect points for a long flight to Australia if you're going to do any other short haul flights in the same year or if you fly BA regularly, so I would choose Qatar over Etihad for this reason alone.

Yes, I take my kids on trips too. Took my DC2 to South Africa just this summer. It was an 11hr overnight flight and he sat in First with a flat bed, only an hour time zone difference. A 13hr flight in economy and then 2hrs on the ground and then another 8hr flight in economy and a 9hr time zone change is a very different thing!

To the poster who said their friend was cabin crew and went to Sydney for 24hrs - that would be as part of a 9 day trip, with 2 nights off in Singapore on the way out and another 2 on the way back in order to rest and to deal with the time zone changes. They are there for so little time they tend to stay in Singapore time (7hrs time zone change) for the duration of the trip, and don’t do much but rest. Singapore is where they let their hair down.

It really isn't worth flying that far for just a week. I'd want 2 weeks excluding flight days to make it worthwhile spending all that time and money on flights.

Looks like you’re all saying I’d be mad!!

It would just be me, my DH and I take a weeks holiday alone each year as well as the one we do with the kids together. He usually goes and plays golf with friends and I tend to go somewhere a bit boring. Which was why when I saw the Heathrow to Sydney flights saying 0 changes I thought it might be a possibility.

Im not really into night life so wouldn’t be planning on staying out late all night. But by the sounds of it I wouldn’t even be able to go to the Opera House.

Just to see Sydney it’s not worth it

I love Sydney and have lived there but it’s not worth going for a week there isn’t that much to do there and anywhere else you will want to go that seems close to us Brits is actually miles and miles away

save your money and go when you have 2-3 weeks and plan your trip well to make the most of it

I actually got told off leaving Australia for not staying 'long enough' I'd been there for 2 weeks and it was my third visit.

So many beautiful cities far closer and far nicer than Sydney for a weeks holiday…..Sydney is lovely…..for a few days…..then you move on to the rest of Australia…..all that flight money to see the Sydney opera house? Nah , do t do it

If you really wanted to I think you could make a week work for you.

Make sure you plan well what you want to do and go for it. You could spend a day or two doing the hop on hop off tour bus which would give you a brief visit to a lot of the tourist attractions like Bondi Beach and the Opera House.

A ferry ride across the harbour would get you to the Zoo and near to Camp Cove beach (my favourite so far, lovely views towards Sydney). And the ferries, buses, trams and trains operate on a system similar to the Oyster card so it's easy to navigate and cheap to travel.

There's a fair few places to catch shows in the evening as well such as West End shows.

You won't see everything. No matter how long you spend there you won't, even if you live there. If its a place you really want to go to I'd say go for it. Figure out the places you would want to see and plan it out well and you'll be great.

Jet lag always worse flying west to east meaning you will take at least 2 days to recover even if you sleep on the plane.
Why not wait until you can go for longer ?

Its a hell of a long way for a week (excluding flying days). We go for 2 weeks min (actually going in 3 weeks)
I suffer on the way back so need at least a few days before being functional again. We arrive back on a Friday and not back to work until the Monday.

Big thing is if you can sleep on planes... I can not so being refreshed when I get anywhere never happens.

I'd personally just go for it @MelainesLaugh !

A week in Aus with some jet-lag is better than not going at all :) You'll still have a few fab days if you can cram lots of activities in

When you are flying halfway around the world the direction matters little (although it's clearly quicker to Sydney going east). You have no concept of day and night within a few hours and you are missing two nights of sleep. Both ways are bloody awful.

My visitors to NZ do the trick of staying up until 9pm on arrival having been sleepless since the UK 2 days earlier. All, including my 80yr old parents and PILs are able to spend a day of gentle sightseeing the next day.

I think you'll be fine OP. Just power on through and Its a great story and an adventure.

I used to live in Sydney. Once you've walked darling harbour and circular quay and the botanical gardens you've not got much left except find a beach to lie on and eat at nice restaurants. Nice and easy even if you do have jet lag.

Worth going to the blue mountains? I went there a few times when I lived there but would 'one' go if you were there for a week? You can do a day trip there and back can't you?

Go to Canada! Going across the Atlantic tends to have worse jet lag coming back, rather than outward bound.
I highly, highly recommend west coast of Canada but for a quicker flight, Montreal in Quebec! It's an amazing place. Far fancier than you'd ever expect.