Best time to book for Australia ?

[suis]

DP will be going to Australia on his own next August. Can any of the seasoned travellers out there advise onw hen is the best time to book flights to get the cheapest price. Flights can go any strange route or time of day as he will be on his own.

Thank you

All I know is that on a certain date in december - about the 16th the price goes sky high but August to fly to an Australian winter should be cheaper any time you book....?

And can anyone tell me what a "good" price would be ? I have no idea what sort of price I am looking for ?

We havejust booked and flying on a Monday was nearly £75 cheaper than flying fridays or weekends. Not sure what a good price is though as DH has a miles deal with Emirates.

I think a "good" price is around £500...but there are sometimes super deals for around £400 albeit with restricted travel dates (they also sell out very quickly).

Hard to say when the best time to book is but have a look at austravel/travelmood for ideas of what the different airlines are charging for different times of year.

I wouldn't book next August just yet unless there is a super deal on. Most airlines are only offering to June at the moment.

They release tickets flights 10 months before and that is when they are at their cheapest so buy them now!

i second nikki buy them now the cheapest fares are always just as they are released
we flew business class to aus for xmas last year and got a fab price as we booked the day the flights were released

Have done it both ways- the day flights were released as we were going to a wedding and would be there for xmas and new year and last minute when we flew out mid feb.

Cheapest airlines are Emirates and Royal Brunei. August should be medium busy- winter there but school hols here..

Christmas and summer holidays are when the flight costs triple. Usually around 500/600 but in peak times it hits the 1200/1400 mark.

Oh and try Etihad - the new UAE national airline. We are flying with them and they are supposed to be good and they are a fair bit cheaper at the moment.

Christmas last year was expensive £4,000 for 2 adults and one child, we flew 18th December with Singapore airlines, wouldn't change a thing about it though, the whole experience was fantastic.

If you can get a ticket for £500 tell me where!!! Most are more like £1000 when you add the taxes etc. Unless you are travelling at xmas the prices are pretty much the same. Availability becomes an issue if there is a sporting event or similar but generally the prices are not that different. It is worth paying more and going on a better carrier. My worst flights have been on Korean Air and the best on Singapore.

I've just been looking into it - flights get cheaper after about 20 April. But think the days of £500 flights are gone, best i can find are around £680-700 with malaysian air.