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MEL/SYD to Xi'an (China) from $273 / $286 Return Hainan Airlines Late April - June 2017 Luggage/Meals/Drinks Included @ IWTF

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MEL/SYD to Xi'an (China) from $273 / $286 Return Hainan Airlines Late April - June 2017 Luggage/Meals/Drinks Included @ IWTF
Go to Deal
NotAMoodle on 09/03/2017 - 10:47 iwantthatflight.com.au (1037 clicks)
Last edited 09/03/2017 - 14:12 by 1 other user

A cracking deal to get to China on a full service airline. If you've never heard of Hainan Airlines, they are rated very highly on Skytax and you can read all their reviews here: http://www.airlinequality.com/airline-reviews/hainan-airline…

I posted a previous, similar deal which I thought was on Hainan Airlines, but rather it was a codeshare with Beijing Capital Airlines. I have confirmed these flights are definitely on Hainan Airlines.

All luggage/meals/drinks included (including alcoholic beverages)

Have a play with dates between late April, May and June as it's pretty scattered, however I've included a couple of samples below. Good luck.

A couple of test dates:

Melbourne: http://iwantthatflight.com.au/flight.ashx?&dc=XIY&dd=29%2FAp… $273
Melbourne: http://iwantthatflight.com.au/flight.ashx?&oc=MLB&dc=XIY&dd=… $273
Melbourne: http://iwantthatflight.com.au/flight.ashx?&oc=MLB&dc=XIY&dd=… $273

Sydney: http://iwantthatflight.com.au/flight.ashx?&oc=SYD&dc=XIY&dd=… $286
Sydney: http://iwantthatflight.com.au/flight.ashx?&oc=SYD&dc=XIY&dd=… $299

These prices are even cheaper at eDreams, but after the last eDreams debacle, I have decided never to use them again.

Enjoy!

Credit for original dates to Scott's Cheap Flights

Travel Airfare Asia China Shaanxi Xi'an

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closed Comments

  • uniqualz on 09/03/2017 - 11:14
    +3

    Wow. The entombed warriors are gonna cop a hiding..!

  • pc6673 on 09/03/2017 - 11:17
    +10

    Amazing price consider spend $300+ fly between MEL and BNE..Unlike Shanghai such kind of concrete forest, if you like historic sites, Xi'an is a good place to visit. It was the capital city of 13 dynasties during whole Chinese history and also famous for Terra Cotta Warriors.

    • mightyhawks23 on 09/03/2017 - 11:58
      +3

      Xi'an a much more relaxed pace - kinda like Melb.
      Shanghai was way too busy for me; a lot of people bumping into you on the subway

      • iSamurai on 09/03/2017 - 14:39

        Melbourne is relaxed? hehe Brisbanite here ;)

        • alex27 on 10/03/2017 - 12:04

          Who is from Hobart, ACT or GC, say something.

    • jva on 09/03/2017 - 12:28

      I've heard a lot of great Chinese food in there too, much cheaper and way more delicious than that of in Australia.

      • syme321 on 09/03/2017 - 13:24
        +19

        They just call it food over there :)

      • Dogsbreakfast on 09/03/2017 - 20:24

        Chicken and cashew nut?

      • Bobomonster on 09/03/2017 - 22:47

        better than dimsims?

      • lainey13 on 10/03/2017 - 20:53

        Funny how Chinese food is better… in China ;)

    • peterpeterpumpkin on 09/03/2017 - 13:57
      +2

      Did you find the Terracotta Army exciting?

      I think the intriguing back story and marketing photos (like any tourist destination…) have painted a greatly romanticised view of the museum - which is what it actually is.

      If anyone is expecting to come face-to-face with the warrior demons from Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story you'll probably come away disappointed. As you'd expect, most of the photos you'll see are close-ups. The real feeling you get is that you're walking clock-wise in an aircraft hangar filled with statues.

      Admittedly I'm never easily impressed, but I think the lack of a stereotypically oriental backdrop takes away from the experience.

      Or maybe it was just the OzBargainer in me venting. It was around AUD $30. In fact, almost everywhere in China cost real money, and surprisingly they charge locals the same price, so I felt even more sorry for them. I climbed several mountains and they cost even more (including nearby Huashan). Oh yeah, and in China, when student discounts are available, post-grad Chinese students don't them but ISIC/any-(fake)-foreign-card post-grads do…

      • ely on 09/03/2017 - 14:32

        I found it the most interesting site that I saw in China, travelling through from Pakistan in the west and down and around to Laos in the south. The scenery and the cities themselves were interesting, other sites pretty meh. Didn't help that I was horribly sick the whole time though.

        • Thatbargainhunter on 09/03/2017 - 18:49

          What?

          More interesting than Xinjiang? More interesting than Gansu? More interesting than Qinghai? These are perhaps the 3 most interesting provinces in all of China (although I am also a fan of the Dongbei)

          That said, the terracota army is great if you go there just before closing time. I was literally the last person in there and apart from the security guard (who wasn't in that much of a rush to kick me out), it was only me.

      • Thrawn on 09/03/2017 - 14:43
        +1

        I found the Terracotta Army rather underwhelming. Its also a bit of a pain to get there as its a long way from the city center.

        There's so many people in China that despite high entry prices to tourist attractions.. its generally still packed anyway.

      • zan5hin on 09/03/2017 - 18:09

        I actually found the walls around Xi'an more interesting, bloody huge, it was fun to walk around.

      • Thatbargainhunter on 09/03/2017 - 18:49

        There is no rule with student cards in China. Some places (ie. zhangjiajie) don't accept anything. Some places I've been with people who have shown a health insurance card. However, if a card is going to work, it doesn't matter if it is ISIC or not (ISIC are probably less likely)

  • rumham25 on 09/03/2017 - 11:31

    Anyone found any sub 300 flights for July?

  • sillysam on 09/03/2017 - 11:31
    +14

    I'd feel right at home. I live in Inner sydney. It's basically all Chinese.

    • Jamesx on 09/03/2017 - 12:00
      +5

      So you travel overseas everyday by car

    • fchis on 09/03/2017 - 12:18
      +3

      you mean Australian Chinese?

      • sillysam on 09/03/2017 - 19:11

        No, I mean Chinese nationals who speak little English. Many are students. Many just own investment properties.

        Can't complain. They're hardly ever home, make little to no noise and have sexy luxury cars.

        • fchis on 09/03/2017 - 19:42

          Okay, I find them in Melbourne too! Oh, and Vancouver.

        • sillysam on 09/03/2017 - 20:05
          -1

          @fchis:

          Vancouver is awful. There's just too many of them. No wonder their house prices are through the roof.

        • fchis on 09/03/2017 - 23:18
          -1

          @sillysam: yes, it was already like that 20 years ago. There were 16% Asians lived in Vancouver back then. Australia is becoming like Vancouver especially in SydMel.

    • jva on 09/03/2017 - 12:22
      -2

      So there is no point to visit the real China.

      • joeno on 09/03/2017 - 12:56
        +23

        There's no point to ever visit Europe either. European Australians everywhere!

    • joeno on 09/03/2017 - 12:55
      +1

      You may want to check out the north shore for a seachange. It's basically all Anglo Saxons.

      • snapper on 09/03/2017 - 14:14
        +1

        …except for places like Chatswoo

      • sillysam on 09/03/2017 - 19:25
        +2

        Who vote for Tony Abbott and people like Bronwyn Bishop.

        No thanks. lol

    • Bobomonster on 09/03/2017 - 22:49

      Lol go to Eastwood and seeing one or two Caucasians walking on the street will make you think that they are tourists.

  • [Deactivated] on 09/03/2017 - 12:23

    I think that is temptingly close to the Hua Shan crazy perilous mountain walk/climb.

    • Thatbargainhunter on 09/03/2017 - 12:39
      +4

      Huanshan is the most amazingly ridiculous thing. I have been all over China (spent about 6 months all up) and this is really one of my favorite things in the country. It is so ridiculous. But if you have the slightest fear of heights, than probably a bad idea.

      • BargainShopaholic on 09/03/2017 - 13:24
        +1

        I'm going to Xi'an for 2 days next Wednesday! Going to HuaShan for that trek! Already peeing my pants thinking about it!!

        Any tips? =)

        • mightyhawks23 on 09/03/2017 - 13:31
          +5

          Don't wear high heels like I saw multiple women wearing climbing up the steep stairs…

        • Thatbargainhunter on 09/03/2017 - 18:54
          +2

          You can do it in a day from Xi'an - but you need to leave first fast train in the morning to Huashan North and get a cab.

          Walk up the whole way and don't get the gondola up (get it down if you run out of time). The walk is great.

          You probably won't get to the top to the plank walk until early - mid afternoon. Its a long way. It is a long wait for the plank walk -but do do it.

          Best tip, is don't do it in July like me.

        • xoom on 10/03/2017 - 20:07

          @mightyhawks23: could never understood the logic behind these people. Was at the blue mountains nsw. Saw at least 3 or 4 wearing high hills. Where we were near the 3 sisters. Its not even a concreted road. Its a dirt track. Followed by a steep narrow staircase up or down the side of the three sisters.

          I was wearing sneakers and was finding the walking path a bit of a struggle since its wet and slippery as it just rained like a day or 2 before.

      • sydsm on 10/03/2017 - 09:46

        Im about to book the tickets to Xian—-online i cant find the bullet train to Huanshan from Xian..do you know how its bookable or the website so i can checkout before i book?

        • Thatbargainhunter on 10/03/2017 - 09:53

          http://www.ctrip.com

          Click High SPeed Rail.

          It goes from Xi'an North to Huashan North - takes about 40 minutes.

          You will still have to line up and collect the tickets at the station and this route you can easily buy the day before providing its not a holiday. So it may be best just to get it when you are there - without the 25RMB (or whatever it is now) compulsory hotel credit on CTrip charge.

        • sydsm on 10/03/2017 - 09:57

          @sambutler9876: thanks alot for this..do you know the exact station names as there are 10+ Xians on their site but no Xian north? Same for Huashan north?

        • Thatbargainhunter on 10/03/2017 - 11:30

          @sydsm:
          Xi'an North. You need the apostrophe Huashan North comes up. Are you on the English version.

          Běi is North in Mandarin so Xi'anbei and Huashanbei are the station names in Mandarin.

  • thedud on 09/03/2017 - 12:43
    +2

    Thanks for the post - I was thinking of posting this. Recently booked flights to Shenzhen for not much more too return via Xi'an, with free accommodation on the overnight layover (called Hainan airlines to confirm).

    From Shenzhen, it's also just a 1hr bus/train to Hong Kong. Visa fees won't be a big issue too as you have 48 hours Visa-free in Xi'an/Shenzhen areas to Hong Kong and on the way back to Shenzhen, pay ~$32 for a 5-day pass at the Luo Hu border crossing. So you get the best of Shenzhen and Hong Kong!

    • dealman on 09/03/2017 - 19:21

      Shenzen with similar prices?

      • thedud on 09/03/2017 - 21:50
        +1

        Just checked my invoice - $273 return to Shenzhen too! So you can choose a longer stopover (I think) for the same price, instead of just Xi'an.

    • sydsm on 10/03/2017 - 09:47

      How can i find out on their website if an overnight accom is included? there is an overnight layover in Changsha to Xian but they try to hide it..found it but no mention of hotel?

      • thedud on 10/03/2017 - 11:06
        +1

        I ended up calling them directly. They said that you have to apply for it at the counter at the airport and is pretty easy - I found it on their website. https://www.hainanairlines.com/HUPortal/dyn/portal/DisplayPa…

        Otherwise, worst case accommodation is around $60 close to the airport.

        • sydsm on 10/03/2017 - 16:33

          Decided to switch and go with the 2hr layover…for $7 more i got a flight from Beijing to Xian. sorted!

  • huertano on 09/03/2017 - 12:59

    I've been seeing these prices for MEL/SYD -> Nanjing return for about 1-2 months now. The stopover in Changsha is always around 16h though. The flights to Changsha are even more expensive. Go figure.

    I was wondering if you didn't take the next flight to Nanjing and left Changsha airport, would they cancel the remaining flights back home like some airlines do if you miss a connection?

  • SkMed on 09/03/2017 - 13:33

    Will this one actually work though? The last China deal to come up this cheap was a pricing error which they didn't honour :(

    • NotAMoodle on 09/03/2017 - 14:18

      That was eDreams mate. I have not included them in the pricing for that very reason. They actually have this deal for around $40 return less, but I would stay well clear of them. Reading through many forums, they rarely honour tickets and it seems to be a first in best dressed policy.

      • SkMed on 09/03/2017 - 14:28

        Oh so the flights were honoured on other sites? I was under the impression that the flights weren't honoured at all.

  • mrgeckoz on 09/03/2017 - 13:59

    hainan airlines is one of the top airlines in china too!

  • leeson865 on 09/03/2017 - 15:06
    +2

    Just a warning: Xi'an gets so bloody hot in summer. I went there last year in July and temperature was 38c+ every day with 90% humidity. I almost died!

    • JetBombat on 09/03/2017 - 19:17
      +1

      Did you get some nice chili food to cool off?

      • leeson865 on 10/03/2017 - 16:58
        +2

        Yes, but it didn't help. I was drinking cold water by the litre and that didn't help either. To top it off, Chinese people think cold water is bad for the stomach so most of the 7/11s and stuff don't have their fridges set very cold -_-

  • points4life on 09/03/2017 - 15:55
    +2

    You can book these flights for the same price direct with the airline: https://www.hainanairlines.com
    I've always wondered why everyone seems to froth over IWTF? Is there a reason their search engine is better than others?

    • NotAMoodle on 09/03/2017 - 16:11
      +8

      Helping give a small commission to a local Aussie rep who has been loyal to OzBargain over the years is my main reason.

      • peterpeterpumpkin on 09/03/2017 - 20:32
        -1

        I wonder if anyone here has signed up to Scott's Cheap Flights "Premium"?

        Would it be unethical to re-post his "premium" deals instantly? If you're not a drop-of-the-hat, long-distance-travelling type of person I imagine the benefits aren't that large for an OzBargainer once you subtract the annual membership fee. Some of his deals leaving the US have been amazing but the only real wow-factor flight prices that I've apparently "missed" were from Sydney to China. Which aren't so wow anymore.

        Considering all the fees we get charged on budget airlines I admit his Europe fares come out pretty impressive if you actually intended to go to those places. Like all related websites, I just wish he'd separate Perth from Australia in his mailing lists to stop building up false hopes…:)

        • NotAMoodle on 09/03/2017 - 21:48
          +2

          Hey mate, I don't receive any deals which originate from the US. You can change that in your settings so you only receive flights departing AUS.

          I've spoken with a representative from Scott's Cheap Flights and they are happy with me occasionally re-posting deals which they have found first….. as long as proper credit is given to them.

          If a Scott's rep specifically asked me not to repost deals, then I would seize to do so, however my dealings with them have been positive and they seem happy to be helping out the OzBargain community.

          For what it's worth, I've probably re-posted 5 or 6 out of 100+ deals I've received from them. As a premium member, you can receive 3 or 4 a day (which is what happened today)

          If I feel a deal will benifit the community of OzBargain, I choose to post it, and will take it down straight away if a rep asks me too.

          Hope that clears anything up. Cheers

        • peterpeterpumpkin on 10/03/2017 - 10:15

          @dazzywazzy:

          I think you may have misunderstood my post. I'm no capitalist justice warrior. Scott posts publicly accessible, third-party tidbits of information akin to a newsletter version of pricehipster or any for-profit media outlet. Beyond first-to-the-post alerts of discount prices there's minimal forecasting, creative output or opinion that is typical of most modern subscription newsletters. Paraphrasing his deals is so effortless that he couldn't even prove that a deal was "stolen" even if he consistently publicised those deals first. His only viable threat is to quit the business if it becomes unprofitable.

          Note that I'm not Scott bashing. A lot of people may have benefited from his services. It'll be interesting to see how far his premium model takes him. For a one trick pony in an ad-monetised world it may have been a brilliant business decision.

          P.S. If interested, the impressive US deals from the past are advertised on his home page.

        • NotAMoodle on 10/03/2017 - 10:34
          +1

          @peterpeterpumpkin: Do you actually pay for his premium service? If not, I suggest giving it a go!

          Yesterday he found a fare for premium subscribers for $480 return to Nepal, flying Virgin/Singapore Air.

          I am a bit of a "drop of a hat traveller", so I guess this kind of stuff benefits me more than most, hence the reason why I'm happy to pay for it!

        • peterpeterpumpkin on 10/03/2017 - 11:50
          +1

          @dazzywazzy:

          Not yet!

          I used to be drop of a hat for Asia but I'm Asia'd out (…of course I've still booked a trip to Asia this year as per protocol…and Nepal at that price for full service is tempting…). I'm shocked myself at the prices I turned down already just this year (Philippines, China, Japan).

          If Scott produces sub $600 deals to North and Central America or anywhere in the EU I'll be kicking myself. It's my arbitrary too good to miss out number. Like sub-$150 to Manila return once was.

          Since the chances are slim and I'm not ready to pounce on Asia I would feel like I was buying a scratchie lotto ticket. And that goes against my anti-gambling stance :)

    • potm on 09/03/2017 - 17:58

      I've never worked out how to use IWTF effectively. Skyscanner is a lot easier to use for me. Often times booking through an agent is cheaper than direct. Stupid but that's just how it is.

      • points4life on 09/03/2017 - 18:40
        +1

        Skyscanner & Kayak are better designed tools IMO.
        I'm just curious as to why IWTF is so heavily promoted here even though there is zero advantage in using them over any other search engine. I guess affiliation with the OZB crew is the main driver?

        • NotAMoodle on 09/03/2017 - 19:02
          +1

          IWTF has an awesome rep here to help and answer questions. If Skyscanner or Kayak decided to send some reps over and post individual deals, I have no doubt you'd see more people using them to post deals (myself included)

        • dealman on 09/03/2017 - 19:46

          I love their map view

        • Moderatorneil on 10/03/2017 - 15:03

          I guess affiliation with the OZB crew is the main driver?

          OzBargain is a 100% independent site. We are not affiliated with IWTF at all.

          IWTF, Skyscanner, Momondo, Kayak are, in the case of flights, better to link to, to find cheap flights. Most of the time, the sites will provide cheaper flights than directly with the airline.

          Please see my recent post to quash conspiracy theories and promote asking questions instead of guessing answers.

  • Tasmaniac on 09/03/2017 - 16:59

    There's also some sub $300 flights to Shanghai, also flying Hainan and also around the same time.

  • tonywind on 09/03/2017 - 17:24

    is www.budgetair.com.au ok to book with? Any advice would be great.

    • thedud on 09/03/2017 - 18:33
      +1

      Yeah they're fine - I booked with them. You get a Hainan Airlines confirmation pdf, but be careful as their Credit Card fees are shocking!

      • tonywind on 09/03/2017 - 18:46

        Yes saw that, makes them more expensive than the airline, after a bit of investigation.

        Thanks

        • thedud on 09/03/2017 - 21:54

          Really? Wow. I have two kids so when I did it directly it ended up being around $300 more.

  • pc6673 on 09/03/2017 - 18:58
    +2

    any question regarding traveling/visiting in Xi'an is welcome as living in that city for 20yrs…:p

    • dealman on 09/03/2017 - 19:46

      Best way to get to Shenzen from there?

      • peterpeterpumpkin on 09/03/2017 - 20:11
        +1

        Did you actually want to go to Xi'an? If not you can fly to Shenzhen via Xi'an for less than $100 more with the same airline.

        If you really do want to see see 2 distant places you'd be better off with a multi-trip via China Eastern than booking another return flight in China. Domestic flights in China are expensive (same price as this special for the distance you're talking about!). And China is huge.

    • JetBombat on 10/03/2017 - 20:45

      Do you like it there? Good / bad points?

    • Prinz12 on 11/04/2017 - 12:48

      do you want to send any baggage to xian?

  • stirlo on 09/03/2017 - 19:23
    +2

    Managed to book MEL-XIY + XIY-PEK + PEK-MEL for under $300. Thanks heaps OP

    • Newcroft on 09/03/2017 - 20:27

      Excellent. Can you tell us how you managed that? Multi-city booking or are you just referring to the standard XIY layover on some flights to PEK? I was thinking of calling Hainan Airlines to discuss an extra couple of days in XIY on the way to PEK.

      • stirlo on 09/03/2017 - 21:03
        +2

        Multicity booking. 3 legs as described above. Multiple days at both Xi-An and Beijing. Shanghai was possible for a similar price but I preferred Beijing. It seems internal flights add very little to the total fare. The return leg went through CSX (Changsa) with a few hours layover. The dates were late April including Anzac Day.

    • sydsm on 10/03/2017 - 10:02
      +1

      I tried Syd XIY - XIY PEK - PEK Syd - $722…found it in reverser—syd to pek, pek to xian, xian to sydney for 307..bargain

      • Newcroft on 10/03/2017 - 17:11

        From what I could figure out if you want to go from either Syd or MEL to XIY first, you need to choose one of the days that they have a direct flight to XIY to get the low prices. Play around to find the direct flight dates, and then put in those dates into the multi-city booking.

  • YRT on 09/03/2017 - 19:55
    +3

    Thanks OP. I have annual leave in late May and was planning to visit my grandparents (they live in Xi'an, I'm in Melbourne). This surely is cheap as chips. I still remember paying $1800 ten years ago via Singaporean Airlines..

  • goatcatcher on 10/03/2017 - 14:12
    +1

    Thanks for posting. Was looking for flights to China and this saved me $$$ and many hours in layovers. As noted above, internal flights booked as multi-city trips may not add to the cost of the flight if they can be done with the same airline or one of its subsidiaries. I tested this for XIY to Beijing, Kunming and Changsha. No extra in any case for my dates. I'm sure there are others; didn't try with multiple internal flights.

  • anjel on 11/03/2017 - 02:57
    +1

    As a Chinese, I'm astonished that so many of you really know a lot about Chinese tourist attractions Lol
    My hometown is Shanghai but I enjoyed food in Xi'an very much! I have traveled there several times just for food. Muslims in Xi'an are called Hui people. Their community is called Hui street, which is a crowded street with tons of food huts. If you could accept eating organs, I really recommend you to have a taste of Shuan Niu Du, which means rinsed beef stomach. I missed that cuisine so much T___T
    However, I have to say, always beware the thieves. And there are scams targeting tourists as well. Many occur around the entombed warriors museum. It's like a guy coming to you and telling you that he is a staff of museum, the gate nearby is closed and he will take you to other entrances. If you choose to follow him, he will definitely lead you to another Terracotta army museum which is totally fake! Fake museum! Can you imagine it? It sounds so ridiculous, but it is indeed true Lol

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