Flight to Oz - is it worth paying extra £££ for 'well known' airlines?

Mr_Wang

Price for me, I have flown South China and they are fine.

Old aircraft with those massive comfortable seats in Economy.

BUT - If you can wangle a 2 day stopover I'd take Cathay which I'm assuming stops in HK.

Or Emirates/Ethihad if you can stop in Dubai/Abu Dhabi.

Re Singapore: The airport is fine, not quite as much to do as Hong Kong, but 7hrs won't pass by too slowly.

LadyDee

I had a very similar question myself but I'm travelling in March. I was initially a bit wary of flying with the 'cheaper' airlines but in the end decided to go with Royal Brunei, which on the whole have very reasonable reviews.
I came to the conclusion that much depends on the airplane. RB are using the new 787 on the UK/Australia route and it looks superb - very good reviews on the facilities and comfort - good seat sizes etc., so that was the deciding factor for me.
It was not the cheapest but was £100 less than my favoured airline - Emirates, and not much more than the 'cheap' airlines.
After trying various travel sites I went direct to the airline - I just feel better knowing that if there is a problem I won't get bounced back and forth between agent and airline, and it only cost about £10 extra to buy direct.
I'll report back when I return in June.

dawyldthing

it might not go up, but it will probably be altered if you fly back late December or something. As an example i've looked for next month as an example and theres flights for 783 or 808 with quantas or 816 with emirates. If it was me i'd probably wait until you know for sure as that 200 can be like a weeks wages or so so might as well be in your pocket or extra spends for something on your trip.

Not sure where you have got your quotes but i'd recommend also looking through travelsupermarket as i know when i went to Thailand I got return from Heathrow with Jordan airlines for 420 return in May, coming back in June so there are offers out there. Its all about timing with many of them. Also then check to see if you can get cashback as i got some with topcashback at the time which made it even cheaper when it came through. Not sure on the dates you are going but going 2nd coming back 31st is 840 with them with emirates so definately worth also looking into

Gloomendoom

LadyDee wrote: »

I had a very similar question myself but I'm travelling in March. I was initially a bit wary of flying with the 'cheaper' airlines but in the end decided to go with Royal Brunei, which on the whole have very reasonable reviews.
I came to the conclusion that much depends on the airplane..

I've flown quite a mix of aeroplanes long haul... two engines, four engines, Boeing, old and new, Airbus old and new.

I couldn't pick one that was more comfortable than the other. Even the A380 left me wondering what all the fuss was about.

None of them are cruise liners.

InsideInsurance

These things are always variable and an element of the luck of the draw. You can go on the most budget airline and be lucky with fantastic seats and good "neighbours" and you can go on the most expensive brand and be stuck with grumpy staff and a kid behind you constantly kicking your seat.

Personally I'd go for VS, Emirates or Etihad if all other things were equal. Given they're not then on price I would chose Cathay Pacific. Of cause if you have status or collect points with any of these airlines or their group then that may influence your decision