Flights to Australia

zagfles

jimi_man said:

zagfles said:

jimi_man said:

I found that having a flat bed on long flights was an absolute game changer and makes the flight something to look forward to rather than dreaded and becomes part of the holiday instead of a means to an end. I’m 6’3 so any form of economy seat is distinctly unpleasant. 

However it’s horses for courses and I know you’re not a fan from previous discussions. 

However in this case the OP has specifically asked about business fares to Australia. 

I know, I was initially just responding to the PP who suggested time doesn't matter if you have a comfy seat, OP specified they wanted low travel time. Time can matter for other reasons than those who consider economy purgatory that must be endured. (though personally I'd much prefer 12 hours on SIA to 3 hours on Ryanair, but each to their own)

You could of course use the transit hotel even if you fly BC, as has been suggested here before, if a "dorm bed" is a "game changer" then surely a private hotel room with en-suite facilities is a match changer! And the cost will be trivial compared to the cost of BC. Assuming of course you can afford the extra 8 hours or so. 

Yes I’m with you on that one. Haven’t used SIA for 25 years but they were pretty good then. I won’t use Ryanair - not least because I don’t live anywhere near Stansted. 

The transit hotel is an interesting concept. I can see the benefit possibly on an economy ticket, but on a business ticket where a bed is provided on the plane and sleep is a lot easier then it’s possibly a bit of a waste of time and an unnecessary delay to one’s journey. I suppose it depends on how pushed one is for time. I don’t have time constraints so it wouldn’t matter to me, though I’d probably rather stay for a couple of days and hoover up some black pepper crab. 

Yup a proper stopover for a few days is a good option if you can afford the time. But the beauty of the transit hotel is you only need a few extra hours, not days, and you can book it through as a normal connecting flight, except instead of the usual 2-3 hours transit time you have 9-10 hours. It could just make the difference between arriving in Aus/NZ late evening or arriving early the following morning, so the only time it's cost you at the destination is time you'd be in bed. 

Your bags are checked through as with any connecting flight so you don't need to collect them and recheck them in, and the hotel is airside so you don't need to go through immigration etc. 

It's an option to consider, anyway, regardless of class of travel. Sleep I guess is the main issue, how well you think you'll sleep in a seat, in a dorm, or in a hotel room.