Family trip to India

Lsourdawg on 29/04/2014 - 23:50

Well, my partners brother is marrying an Indian girl in Bangalore in December and we would all like to go. Specifically, myself, my partner and our 1 child (4yo) and 1 infant (7 months when the wedding rolls around) would like to attend. I have been playing around with dates and stopovers but am not getting anything cheaper than 1207 per adult return. We would like to fly from Melbourne to Kochi around December 18-20 and out of Bangalore to Melbourne around January 5-10. We are happy to stopover pretty much anywhere, but we do have 2 children to entertain.

Is anybody up for the challenge? We are reasonably flexible with return dates, but 18th is about the earliest we can leave and we would like at least 2 weeks.

Thanks

Travel

Comments

    • sourdawg on 29/04/2014 - 23:58
      +2

      Ok…

    • SavatteDodo on 30/04/2014 - 17:00
      +2

      Are you going to look after the kids?

  • airzone on 30/04/2014 - 00:26
    +2

    I've done Sydney -> Bangalore a few times and it's not cheap. But I fly with Singapore Airlines and have a few hours R&R at Singapore between flights. It would probably be good for your kids on a flight for that length.

    One other thing to note about Bangalore airport is that you need to bring print-outs of your e-tickets otherwise the security guards won't let you in the front door of the airport.

    In terms of safety and hygiene, the usual "asian" rules apply… Freshly cooked foods, bottled water from reliable sources, fruit that you peel is OK. Stay alert and don't leave your stuff lying around. If your baby is being breastfed then that's fine. Otherwise if it's formula fed, then spend a lot of attention on cleanliness of your equipment, reliability of formula, and quality of water. I've never been sick and never had any security issues (and have been to many dicier places in the line of work).

    If you've never been there before, then travel with open eyes and ears.. It's an eye opening experience and puts into perspective how lucky we are to live in Australia.

    • sourdawg on 30/04/2014 - 00:32

      Thanks for the helpful advice and tips. We have travelled with the older one reasonably extensively so we are not complete strangers to the issues of travelling with an infant, although with a bored 4 year old in tow things could be a little more difficult!

  • Gorodemon on 30/04/2014 - 02:23

    You're looking for advice in the wrong forum! Check travel websites such as Flyer Talk, Australian Frequent Flyer, or even Whirpool in the travel section. Do not expect to get your answers straight away, you need to spend a lot of hours reading and researching the forum if you want to get it cheaper than $1207/adult. Use ITA Matrix software to plan your itinerary and search for cheapest price.

    Good luck!

  • stealthdirect on 30/04/2014 - 06:28
    +3

    Outsource the question to flightfox.com, I have always got good results with them.

  • gevidian on 30/04/2014 - 07:30
    +2

    If you get 1200 return, you would be doing well. Dec/Jan is peak season airfare and even the budget of budget carriers like Air Asia would set you back about 1200 return per adult and that would require booking your tickets well in advance (like now). As you get closer to Dec (say in Oct), you would probably be looking at about 2000 or more return per adult.

  • sourdawg on 30/04/2014 - 07:53

    Thanks for the help everybody, I'll go ahead and book the tickets I have found already

  • rvsure on 30/04/2014 - 08:35
    +2

    As you have more than six months time and also traveling with family it is better to book your tickets through travels agents. There are some travel agencies specialized in this. If you are OK with traveling by Thai or Malaysian airlines I think you can get an adult return ticket for $850 - $1000. Best and Less travels and Value world travel are two travel agents I know who are specialized in Indian flight bookings. Give it a try and get a quote from them by calling them or emailing them. The prices on their websites will be same as the others but if you contact them personally and insist on cheaper prices they can give you a better price.

    • jdf on 30/04/2014 - 09:34

      I second Best & Less travel too, they beat an expedia price for me by not too much….but 50 dollars a person can add up.

    • tendliya on 30/04/2014 - 15:50

      Their travel dates are in December/January. There is no way you will get a return ticket under $1000.00. They are usually around $2,000 during those months.

  • kuikui on 30/04/2014 - 09:38

    By walk is the cheapest way or your can try fishing boat..

    • mick123 on 30/04/2014 - 10:35
      +1

      Should he have left by now then?

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join