Hi all. We are looking to travel from Brisbane to Europe departing mid December 2022. 5 adults.
Happy to fly in/out of wherever is best value. Ideally prefer open jaw to any of the following: LHR / PAR / AMS / FRA / ZRH / MUC so into one city and out of another. Ideally into or out of LHR at either end would make best sense and then other end one of the European cities.
Any suggestions as to where has the best deals?
Thanks Adam Bandt.
The only reputable airline that seems to be doing any real discounting right now for Christmas is JAL, with fares to Europe at around the $1500-1600 mark. Try searching from Sydney first to get a sense of combinations/flight times/prices, then adding in a Brisbane leg next. In normal times a lot of people would choose to stopover in Japan for a few days one or both ways, but who knows when they'll actually open their borders… Also the flight out of Sydney is typically quite early in the morning, which means you'll most likely need to overnight in Sydney on the way there too (but not on the way back)
Thanks, that is a great tip to look ex SYD. Shall check out JL. Appreciate you taking the time to help :)
Reckon it should be a prerequisite of joining OZB a potential member needs to undertake a basic course in using Dr. Google.
Not terribly helpful - of course I have been on Google. I was hoping some experienced members here would have some suggestions and share their thoughts.
Bugger it I'm bored, give me some dates and I'll see what I can do.
AdosHouse thank you! We can depart Brisbane anytime from 13/12/22 - 17/12/22 and return anytime between 13/1/23 - 18/1/23. There is wiggle room with these dates if it makes a difference with fares. As there are 5 of us all on adult rate it gets up there. I was wondering if airlines are yet to release their seats for Dec/Jan as they open up post COVID? Seems all the 'deals' currently only go through to Sep/Oct departures. Any truth in this do you think? Any advice you have will be much appreciated. Thanks!
I'll see what prices I can find tonight, got a few things to do today. I'm a nightowl, late night is when I do my best work.
So a month in total, 1 day loss at either end for the Aus-Europe legs. So looking at about 4 full days in each of London, Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Zurich, and Munich? Might I suggest Berlin over Zurich, I've been to Berlin, tonnes to see. Munich is great though, I plan to go back, amazing place especially for beer and meat lovers.
Okay mate, had some time, I'm assuming the destinations I said in the previous post are correct. Best I can see is $2735 for all flights with decent airlines with I believe baggage included.
This is the dates I got, Brisbane to London on the 15th, London to Amsterdam on the 21st, Amsterdam to Paris on the 27th, Paris to Zurich on the 1st, Zurich to Munich on the 7th, Munich to Frankfurt on the 13th, Frankfurt to Brisbane on the 18th.
Through the joys of stopover flights I got this.
Skyscanner search found a flight booked through Expedia which is Singapore Airlines from Brisbane to Cairns, Cairns to London. Then coming back it includes a flight with Lufthansa from Munich to Frankfurt, then Frankfurt to Brisbane with Singapore Airlines again. That's $2155.
https://ibb.co/jRkX0xD
Then KLM from London to Paris with the 5 days 'stopover' in Amsterdam is $193.
https://ibb.co/FsdmPhG
Then Paris to Zurich with Air France is $192.
https://ibb.co/B2D92c0
Then Zurich to Munich with Eurowings is $194.
https://ibb.co/v3d9Nt7
See how that goes for you.
Thank you so much! Really appreciate your help. I will look into all of this now. Do you feel Aus-Europe flights will only get more expensive given we are looking at Christmas time or may we see 'deals' released in May/June or even July? Thanks heaps
@DreamingofTravel: I see no reason for Airlines to drop the prices. Many, many, people have not seen their families for Christmas for years, now countries are opening up. I only see flights going up from here.
I've been to Europe a couple of times, but the same flights are about 50% MORE than what we paid 5 years ago.
Peak season so unlikely to get any deals. Skyscanner is a great way to check
Thank you I have been on Skyscanner. Do you think that perhaps any 'deals' are still to be released as airlines open up again? Seems the better fares are through to Sep/Oct for now. Thanks for your response. :)
Pre-covid, i travelled to the UK each December for 8 years. I don't ever remember getting any deals for December. Most airlines mark this as peak season. There are so many expats in Australia who look to go home (Europe) for Christmas and the flights fill up fairly quickly. I have found that flights in December only get more expensive as the year progresses. I used to pay around $1,800 Return for December whereas outside of peak season pre-covid was around $1,300.
Given people haven't been able to travel to Europe for the past 2 x Decembers, i think this year will be even busier than others. Also, don't forget the recently added fuel surcharge :)
Commission?
I use kayak.com.au for searches. I find Google flights has a fair bit of phantom availability. Kayak allows you to do open jaws and dates +/- 3 days, presenting the results in a matrix format.
Yes, also use ITA Matrix and just set up alerts through Google. $1,400 - $1,500 seems about best at the moment for economy, however airlines are increasing schedules weekly. Premium with JAL $2,600.
https://www.google.com/travel/flights/search?tfs=CBwQAhpVagw…
https://www.google.com/travel/flights/search?tfs=CBwQAhpVagw…
Google