Flights to Sydney help

[Muncha]

We're planning on going to Sydney in November 25 and I wondered if anyone could help advise on flights please?

We've never flown longer than 11 hours before and feeling a bit out of my depth with best way to do it.

Would you seasoned travellers recommend a short stop, in say Doha, for a few hours then powering on, or stopping off for a day or two to break it up? Where is good to stop?

Also when is the best time to book for November 25?

Any other tips would be great too.

DD has moved there for 5 years and we want to go but can't before then as we need to save.

We will need accommodation in Sydney too which I'm guessing will not be cheap.

Thanks

Whether to stop or power through is really a matter of preference. But if time isn’t limited and you can afford to pay for extra accommodation, I’d go for a stopover.

Assuming you want to go with a full service airline, the obvious choices for where to shop are Dubai, Doha & Singapore. Otherwise, Qantas has flights from Heathrow direct to Perth.

If you’re looking to keep costs down on accommodation, you could consider a house swap or sign up to Trusted Housesitters and see if you can housesit for someone in Sydney.

Stop or power through depends on cost really. If you can afford (time wise and financially) a stop over then do it for 2 or 3 days. Really helps, with jet lag too. Id think about Singapore maybe? Its lovely, safe, loads to see. And from UK around 13 hrs, then your 8/9hr flight to Sydney. You can fly Singapore Airlines and Emirates which are both, in my experience, great airlines. Id avoid British Airways long haul, nothing but shocking experiences with them.

Thank you both, DD is absolutely loving life and although I miss her it's so good to see her so happy.

I think we could afford a night or two stopover so might do that on the way out so we're not totally done in when we get there and maybe power through on the way back.

I'll avoid BA, thanks for the tip.

We're going this November via Singapore where we're stopping for 3 nights and then on to Sydney - all via Singapore Airlines. We got a travel agent to sort it as they got good deals on hotels both in Singapore and Sydney as well as flights.

Your DD may be able to sort out the hotel in Sydney so you're as near as possible to her?
We booked in May.

When we went to NZ we did it with just a short stop in Doha. I think it's easier to get it done in one go, and just take a sleeping tablet the first couple of nights there and back.

For accommodation DD could put a house sitting post on her local fb community groups. We see a lot like that and our friends do it for their parents each time they come over.
Im not sure how long you are staying but hotels and serviced apartments will often have a long stay rate which is cheaper per night than advertised but usually requires an email or direct phone call.
Sydney accommodation is pricey but you can find some gems and it's before the schools break up so it shouldn't be too bad.
Air bnb also a good option, just check you are near transport links- metro, light rail or train. Buses are either great or MIA.
Which part of Sydney are you looking at staying in?

She is currently living in between Randwick and coogee beach (not sure how to spell it) and will be staying around there, I think it's a bit further out from her work in the business district but rent was cheaper.

Do you mind me asking what sort of cost it was? Would it be a travel agent like trailfinders? I've only ever used places like Thomas Cook before

I never do a stopover, it just means 2 lots of jetlag.

I hate a stopover. It's just delaying things.

The flights start going up for Christmas on around December 9th so that's something to consider. How long are you going for?

It's easy enough to book your own flights online. It's a good idea to get your dd to find somewhere for you to stay, maybe a serviced apartment.

We did the Quantas flight from Heathrow to Perth and it worked well for me A lot of it was overnight and I liked having an hour in Perth to get off,get changed and then only having a short flight to my destination. We flew Premium Economy and I thought the larger seat and smaller cabin was worth the extra cost
We stayed in the Hotel Morris which looks to be on a tram route from Randwick. Not fancy and the room was small but it was clean, well maintained and quiet,

I would power through rather than stopping, stopping just leaves you to deal with jetlag twice in each direction. Yes, it is a shitty 24 hours, but once you're here, it's done. One piece of advice, though? Plan to arrive in the morning, then stay awake until 9PM. Once you get up the next day you're through the worst of the jetlag. And do ask your daughter to post on her local FB group, you might even be able to get somewhere to stay for free if you don't mind house-sitting. There are hotels in Coogee, but they are pretty pricey. You could also check Stayz.com.au to see if there is anything near your daughter.

Plan to arrive in the morning, then stay awake until 9PM.

Yes, we do this on emirates. Sometimes the dc go straight to school.

We have done this trip many many times as we’ve lived in Aus for 18 years and have gone back 1-2 times a year.
i had never done a stop before but last time we decided to stop in Hong Kong and it was LOVELY! We did two nights and one day and it massively helped with the jet lag and was just a very nice city to spend a day. My parents always stop in Singapore and love it too.

Either is fine but I’ve been converted to the stopover as it was really nice getting off the plane and thinking “I don’t have to do that for another couple of days”

Best airlines (IMO) are Etihad, Cathay and Qantas but Emirates and Qatar are meant to be brilliant but I’ve never flown with them.

If you want cheaper though, we’ve also flown with Vietnam which was absolutely fine although we had a long stop and next time I would just have a day there instead. My husband also flew China Southern and said he wouldn’t recommend as the entertainment was mostly in Chinese.

I would look to stay around Coogee or any of the beach areas around there because it’s very easy to get everywhere from there and it’s also lovely. November is a great time to come and visit. I would also look on Airbnb for places to stay. Have somewhere to sit outside (even a tiny courtyard or balcony) as the weather will be beautiful then. The other advantage of self catering is that eating out all the time is expensive and also the portions over here are massive! My parents self cater and find they normally have lunch out and then just a tea of something on toast which they like being able to do themselves.

Also agree with arriving in the morning. Then whatever you do, power through and then you’ll be over jet lag in no time. Do NOT give in to your body’s demand for an afternoon nap! Go for a walk instead and go to bed at 9pm. You’ll probably wake early but Sydney is an early city so you can go and get a flat white on the beach at 6am and watch the city wake up. Bliss!

I prefer to fly straight through. Then get out in the sun to boost that melatonin and that helps a lot with jet lag. Jet lag is worse coming to Australia, than the other way. November is a beautiful time of year to be in Sydney.
Airbnb is possibly your best option or Stayz, as the cleaning fees don't seem to be as silly. If you get a two bedroom I guess your daughter could stay when she is not working etc. Coogee, Bronte and ,Bondi Junction would all be good places to stay.
Another option is The Coogee Sands hotel. It's right on the beach, perfect for November.
I just book airfares online, haven't used a travel company in years, but perhaps they may help with cheaper fairs.
Have fun planning.

I’ve done UK to Australia many times and prefer to power through. I don’t fancy the rigamarole of going through customs etc twice. If I was to do a stopover, I’d go for Singapore over Dubai/Doha. These days, I try to book the London to Perth flight and just take a melatonin at the right time. November is a great time to visit Sydney and you’ll soon perk up by the beach in beautiful sunshine!

Thank you all so much, it's a long way off but I'm feeling really excited about it already.

There is a transit hotel in Singapore, I loved that for breaking up the journey. If you have a few hours until your onward flight you can shower and sleep for a bit. Then when you need to leave you are already at the airport.

We fly on Singapore and the flights are usually cheapest when they are first released which is around 12 months prior. We now fly straight through as we have been to Singapore and prefer to spend our time in Australia however Singapore do offer good rates for a stopover. If I am going straight through I prefer at least a 2 hour layover but did it in less than an hour last time. It is usually a walk/train from where the London flight arrives and the Aus flight departs.

My preference is to arrive mid afternoon with time to sort myself out and then get a good nights sleep. Using this method I don’t get jet lag.

I book everything direct no agents and would be looking to rent an apartment not a hotel. Not sure if Quest have any in the area.

Thanks again, loads to start looking into.

I think we will go for an apartment but the Coogee beach hotel looks great.

Is 14 nights long enough not including any stop offs or travel? Time off work will be pretty tight.

Yes, that will be a decent amount of time to see some sights and hang out with your daughter. Obviously longer would be better, but 2 weeks would be great.

I've just done this (both ways) and did it a lot in the past.

My preference is always to do it in one go with the shortest stopover. I always found that a long layover prolonged the journey and made getting over the jetlag more difficult. Singapore is my favourite - the airport is a destination in itself with stuff to keep you entertained for a few hours.

Singapore airlines are very good as a carrier.

Aim for a flight which leaves and arrives at a good time for both your journey to the airport here and journey to your accommodation at the other end.

I booked my accommodation on booking.com - plenty of options with good cancellation policies so I changed a few times when better deals came up.

Book your flights asap as they get more expensive as the seats get booked up.

I got a quote from Trailfinders that was significantly more expensive, with less flexibility, than booking it myself.

If you can only take two weeks off work, then I'd fly straight through and forget the stopovers. Maximise your time in Sydney. There's a lot to see and do, as well as family time with your DD. There are also plenty of day trip opportunities, so you won't be short of things to do.

Flights are usually only released 11/12 months in advance, so you won't be able to book until November/December.

Top tip for booking flights: use an incognito/safe browser to search for flights. Many airline websites track your searches and the more you look at a particular route, the higher the price they will offer you. I recommend using a site like Skyscanner or Kayak to check your route and the best prices. Filter by one stop only (otherwise you'll get options that will be cheap, but have up to 4 separate flights and will take literally days to get there). Once you've decided on the airline and flight, book directly with the airline on their own website.

Again, for accommodation, look at sites like Booking or TripAdvisor. But once you have found a place you like, check the accommodation's own website because often you can get a better rate. Occasionally, the price on Booking is cheaper (often cheaper still on the app). I would avoid Expedia, as I've only heard bad things about them when things go wrong.

Once you've booked, take out travel insurance. Read the terms of coverage, for what it will and won't cover before you buy. That way if you have to cancel or change anything, you should be covered. Make sure you get coverage for emergency travel and repatriation. (You're OK for medical treatment in Aus because of the reciprocal arrangement, but that won't cover getting you home).