Hainan Airlines: Low fares between Sydney - Shenzhen from $618 return

Many moons ago, this blog used to wax lyrical about an amazingly cheap airline, the now-defunct Viva Macau. Back in 2009, it seemed like every other day I was making mention of their rock-bottom fares between Sydney and Southern China – rock-bottom fares which consequently drove them out of business (alongside reports of crap service and antique aircraft).

When they folded, I assumed the era of the cheap Chinese carrier was dead.

Then this morning at the airport, I came across a banner for Hainan Airlines. Their claim to be ‘China’s 5-Star Airline’, combined with the fact that I had never heard of them had my curiosity aroused. So I did a couple of searches and immediately, memories of Viva Macau came flooding back. To cut a long story short, they offer wonderfully cheap flights between Sydney and Shenzhen, China. From here, they fly on to Europe and Canada, but lets keep this matter simple for now.

So, on to the good stuff: between 1 September and 31 October, 2011, fares for direct flights between Sydney and Shenzhen start from $618 return (inc. tax, see above). These fares are plentiful and appear to include weekends and holiday periods, including the Labour Day long weekend in October. Sure, that their booking system is a little slow, a little wonky and won’t return any logical fares beyond December, 2011. But play by the rules and you’re bound to get a cheap flight – book now on Hainan Airlines’ website. Hainan also accepts Paypal.

If you’re wondering what my fascination is with this southern Chinese industrial city is, let me get this straight – it’s Hong Kong, baby, Hong Kong. From Shenzhen, this shopping and cultural mecca is a bit over an hour away by train. Then once you’re ready to move on, Hong Kong is an excellent launch pad to the rest of Asia. Note that you will require a Chinese visa prior to departure.

Finally, I’d like to end the comparisons between Hainan and Viva Macau, except when it comes to price. Based on SKYTRAX passenger reviews, Hainan Airlines rates an 8.9/10 – an exceptional score, even outshining Qantas (who scored 8/10 at the time of writing). Unlike Viva Macau, folks genuinely seem to like flying with Hainan Airlines. So lets hope they enjoy greater prosperity than their low cost, low service cousin.

Have you booked tickets, or flown with Hainan Airlines? I’d love to hear about your experiences in the comments below.

Southern Alps, New Zealand. Photo: GothPhil

If the smell of fresh snow from across the Tasman has become too much to bear, then take heart. A full-on fare war has begun amongst Jetstar, Virgin Blue and Air New Zealand over the hotly-contested east coast – Christchurch routes, resulting in some of the most competitive peak ski season fares I’ve seen in a long time.

All three airlines are offering promo fares during August, with additional travel dates spanning late-October to mid-December, 2011. Here are the cheapest return fares available at present between Sydney – Christchurch during the August period:

• Jetstar: $199.36 (New Zealand sale)
• Virgin Australia: $222.93
• Air New Zealand: $229.06 (using discount code ‘NZ150′, valid until 2 June)

All airfares include tax and don’t include optional extras like check-in baggage.

Yes, there are direct flights between Australia’s east coast cities and Queenstown, New Zealand’s ski mecca. However, unless you’re short on time, it’s always far more economical to travel via Christchurch, then drive, bus or fly Jetstar down to the snow. With fares starting around the $30 one way mark for the Christchurch to Queenstown leg, you get my drift.

Heading to New Zealand’s ski fields really is exceptional value. Unless you are unlucky enough to encounter a very warm season, you will find that everything from snow quality, to accommodation absolutely eclipses what’s on offer in Australia. So, pull on your boots – if you’re planning to hit the white stuff this season, this is the time to get planning. Happy flight hunting and first tracks!

Akaroa, New Zealand. Photo: math89 (flickr)

As the weekend very quickly comes to a close, my mind is in hazard-avoidance mode, trying to distract itself from the prospect of 5 days ahead sans a lengthy sleep-in and breakfast at midday. So, it’s time to look towards the next holiday – and if you’re a long-time reader of this poorly-kept blog (thank you!), well, you may reason that I’ve got a lot of things to think about, really.

This upcoming Queens Birthday long weekend (11-13 June) is a brief pleasure – it’s long enough to pack the bags for, but not quite long enough for anyone to really go troppo. However, if you’re keen to capitalise on the high Australian dollar and want to really feel like you’re overseas (instead of over the street), my tip is to give New Zealand a thought.

I’ve been tracking fares between Australia’s east coast and New Zealand over the last few weeks and without a doubt, we’re approaching the end of my ‘good value’ window*. Flights from Sydney to Christchurch begin at a tempting $263 return (inc. tax) with Virgin Blue over the break period, if you’re happy to tack on an extra day at the end. Combine that with accommodation and travel expenses that are considerably below Australian rates and you’ve got your sights on a tour that even the Queen would envy.

Now, I’m not going to skirt around the fact that New Zealand has had its share of troubles lately. Much of Christchurch’s CBD is still off-limits after the February earthquake and the odd tremor is a part of life for many South Islanders. However, as the locals have stressed repeatedly, outside of central Christchurch it’s business as usual – and boy, do they need the business. For a relaxed, earthquake-free weekend away, you can either rent a car or catch a shuttle to the French-influenced town of Akaroa. Just over an hour’s drive south of Christchurch, its main draw is an expansive harbour that is home to endangered (and very cute) Hector’s dolphins. Two hours of swimming with these little guys is a bargain $104 via Viator and the tour operator is keen to stress that warm wetsuits and warmer post-swim showers are provided!

If that sounds a little too energetic, there are also wine tours in the Waipara region, or even sneaky day trips to Mt Hutt to taste the beginning of New Zealand’s snow season. While we’re on the topic of snow, I’ve seen Jetstar NZ offering fares between Christchurch and Queenstown for roughly $30 each way. If you ask me, there are certainly advantages to swapping over 5 hours of sketchy driving, for 45 lazy minutes in the air en route to your massif of choice

If you’ve been to New Zealand before, then this excursion across the pond will seem like a bargain no-brainer. However, if you haven’t, then this is a good time to become a fan of New Zealand’s hospitality, winter-warming food and Jemaine from Flight of the Conchords. Even if you miss the latter, it will still be a truly amazing trip.

* A fortnight prior, fares for the same route were $202 return. The price increase since is most probably due to increasing holiday demand, but I’m also keeping an eye on whether the recent Virgin Blue brand and price restructure has had an impact on ‘everyday’ prices.

Tiger Airways - The verdict is out.

Recently I had the pleasure of flying Tiger Airways between Sydney and Melbourne, on my own coin, of course. Prior to the flights, I had been inundated with both positive and negative stories regarding Tiger flights, ranging from, “Oh, you have to walk on the tarmac, ooooh!”, to “Well, it’s $28 a pop”, not to mention exposure to Channel 7′s controversial show, ‘Airways’. Combining these tales with my own experience, I realised that, for all its merits, perhaps Tiger Airways isn’t really for everyone. The following is my breakdown of what to expect on a Tiger flight; hopefully it will help you decide whether Tiger should be your carrier of choice, or if you should invest that extra few dollars to avoid the mobile stairs.

On the Ground

Most of the criticism towards Tiger Airways’ operations have been directed at activities on the ground, such as check-in procedures and crowded boarding areas. I collaborate with these points, as it can’t be denied that Tiger Airways’ check-in queues appear to be consistently long (one of the results of having no web- or self service- check in facilities) and while in queue, the thought persists that you may not make it for their ’45-minutes prior to departure’ cut-off. On the flight to Melbourne (departing Sydney’s domestic airport), there were two check-in agents who were working diligently enough, however one seemed to be engaged for over ten minutes in processing a five-man metal band and their shabby assortment of guitar cases. Fifteen minutes into the wait, people in queue were starting to shift their weight uneasily, looking at watches, perhaps anticipating that an ‘Airways’ cameraman would turn up any moment now…

Which leads me to the return leg, via the legendary Melbourne (Tullamarine) Terminal 4 corral. This time, the ‘Airways’ crew were already standing in wait, like bored vultures with boom mikes. Yes, we had been warned – a placard on the door declared that we were to be filmed – but the fact that the crew were making themselves so obvious, so close to check-in cutoff and in such an enclosed space made for a very uncomfortable atmosphere. Were they really waiting out for the cutoff so they could pounce upon the hysterics of some suburban mum, all in the name of ‘good television’? I willed the queue to hurry – it wasn’t my intention to personally kick-off ‘Airways’ Season 2.

Security screening at Sydney and Melbourne was stock-standard, as security should be. The gates at each respective terminal, however, were miles apart in terms of comfort to passengers. So, lets talk about terminals. Sydney domestic T2 is shared with all the other domestic carriers – Qantas, Virgin Blue, Rex, Jetstar – meaning that you enjoy facilities of a standard befitting premium-fare passengers. This is not the case with Melbourne’s Tiger-exclusive Tullamarine Terminal 4, which resembles, well, a busy weekend at Bunnings Warehouse. Look, I won’t knock it too hard – it keeps out the weather and is of the same construction as the Low-Cost Carrier Terminal in Kuala Lumpur (LCCT). But that said, it is a budget commission – the plastic seats are hard, there aren’t enough of them (especially when people sleep across four abreast), people crouch/lie/pray on the dense carpet and the arcade machines have come to die (if they haven’t already).

People sit so closely in Terminal 4 – back to back – that you can catch snippets of low-cost conversation:

“I spent nine years in boarding school… Think of all that family time I missed… nine years…”

“Ya couldn’t have said it any louder, luv!”

A girl sits in the shadow of her Henleys-jock boyfriend, so blue it makes her spray-tan look a less than complimentary grey. A ground staffer announces delays to Tiger flights bound for Sydney and Canberra. He wavers, sounds uncertain.

Moving onto boarding the aircraft, it’ll break it to you gently – boarding is via the front and rear stairs. If you have a problem with climbing stairs for reasons other than age or disability, then honestly, discount travel is not for you. In fact, I recommend staying in bed.

That said, mobile stairs do pose an interesting problem in Melbourne, which is as famous for its volatile weather as it is for its Chapel St ragtrade. Both on arrival and departure, we were met on the naked tarmac with bone-chilling gusts of wind. I pulled my coat around me in a stranglehold.

Melbourne’s T4 baggage carousel is sheltered, but not from the wind. I met a cockatoo once, who lived in a similar enclosure.

In the Sky

Well, this is what you pay for – the romance of flying, skirting the elements for the price of a DVD. And at this task, Tiger Airways is perfectly adept. However, in the spirit of discount, there are a few caveats – snacks have to be paid for, the seat pitch is not for basketballers and when the seat in front of you reclines, it momentarily seems like you’re going to be cradling the seatback in your lap. But for an hour of cheaply-priced flight (or in my case, 47c per minute), it’s completely acceptable.

I picked up a well-worn copy of Tiger Tales, their inflight magazine. It’s one of Ink Publishing’s better in-flight magazines. I wanted to tear out the destination guides and an interesting article on Mt Kinabalu. Someone had already beaten me to a third of the cover, after all.

The flight attendants are all amiable and confident. They all looked full of Spring, unlike the Jetstar insomniacs I had met when trans-Tasman last month. One gives a fellow a stern, but fair rap for using his phone while the plane is refuelling. I’d want that FA on my raft if we were ever to ditch into Lake Burley Griffin.

On the Phone

Important Note (29/09/09): Tiger Airways’ call centre is based in the Philippines. Due to the recent catastrophic events following Typhoon Ondoy, telecommunications’ services have been thrown out of whack, as well as the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. If you are trying to contact Tiger Airways, visit their Call Centre Update page for details.

I love talking to the Tiger Airways’ call centre staff. I don’t really like waiting 10-15 minutes for the pleasure of it. And I wish they could do something more for me. But there’s one rule on a $28 fare and that’s that it will cost you another $28 to book a new ticket. Want to change your flight time/date/name on ticket? Too bad – that will cost you $50 per person, per sector. A new ticket will generally cost you less than that. And that’s what the call centre will tell you – more politely, of course.

In Conclusion…

I may really like to knock around what is a very competitive new airline on the Australian travel scene, but Tiger Airways met my optimistic expectations. Yes, Melbourne’s Terminal 4 is a bit droll and having the ‘Airways’ film crew on the wings sure makes one reach for the antiperspirant, but in the air, they’re fine. So, here’s the wrap:

Why you should fly Tiger Airways:

• Flights are consistently cheap, starting from $28 between Sydney and Melbourne;
• They have a great in-flight magazine (hah!);
• They fly to Tullamarine, not Avalon;
• They fly. As in, they stay in the air. Singapore Airlines’ 49% stake ensures this.

Why you shouldn’t fly Tiger Airways:

• No web- or self service- check-in; queues can be long and worrisome;
• Boarding and disembarking involves walking on stairs and tarmac (potentially into Melbourne weather);
• You have agoraphobia – Melbourne (Tullamarine) Terminal 4 can get pretty crowded;
• You’re a tall person and the seat-pitch is saying, ‘no’.

Make sure you share your Tiger Airways’ experiences – good and bad – on this blog, as I’d love to hear from you. Happy flying!

Race to Adelaide with Lance! Photo Credit: Anita Ritenour

Flying to Adelaide

Adelaide is more accessible than ever, as it is serviced by all of Australia’s major low-cost carriers (Jetstar, Tiger Airways and Virgin Blue) at very affordable fares. For example, Tiger Airways flies Sydney to Adelaide twice-daily for $49 and Melbourne to Adelaide for $39 each way for the duration of the Tour. For international guests, Adelaide also entertains discount flights from a handful of Asian and Pacific cities.

As of August, Adioso has not indexed fares to Adelaide, however if you’re planning to book a ticket closer to the date, do check Adioso for details.

Staying in Adelaide

View Larger Map

The great news – Adelaide’s CBD is relatively compact, so staying in the city will keep you near all the action during the first (Tour Down Under Classic, Rymill Park) and final stages of the tour. The bad news – affordable accommodation currently seems to be in short supply, so here’s a shortlist of hotels that won’t break the budget:

• Hostel 109 – 109 Carrington St, Adelaide – from $25 (dorm)
• Majestic Minima – 146 Melbourne Street, North Adelaide - from $99
• Breakfree Directors Studio – 259 Gouger Street, Adelaide - from $118
• Quest Mansions Apartments – 21 Pulteney Street, Adelaide - from $145

Make sure you also check TripAdvisor for hotel reviews before you book. Enjoy the Tour before Le Tour!

For more information:

• Tour Down Under Official Website – http://www.tourdownunder.com.au/
• South Australia Official Website – http://www.southaustralia.com/
• Lance Armstrong on Twitter – http://twitter.com/lancearmstronG

From the email:

1. Book a return flight at Jetstar.com by 16 August 2009, where the return date for your trip is on or before 15 September 2009.

2. Make sure you use the email address that you have used to register for JetMail (ie. the email address we have used to mail this email to you) in the booking process.

3. We’ll email you a $100 Jetstar flight voucher within 28 days to put towards your next flight with us.

Please note that I cannot verify if this still works for subscribers who have not personally received this email (such as myself). If you do get a voucher out of this, do kindly share your experiences, as I’d love to hear from you! Check out the Jetstar voucher email for further details. Good luck!

Buy your tickets with low-cost carriers at the right time and save money. Photo Credit: Martin Gommel

Everyone will tell you – Earlybird specials are dead. So when exactly is the best time to book that budget holiday and how? Here are some lessons I’ve learnt from tracking sales and booking fares, so don’t let anyone bully you into buying an airfare 10 months in advance!

When to buy a bargain airfare (and the travel dates to target)

Here are some tips on when to book that Holy Grail cheap flight:

Book 1-4 months ahead. As a rule of thumb, discount airlines seem to release their choice sale fares 1-4 months prior to their travel period. For example, you should start looking in July if you plan on travelling in August to November. The exception to this rule are discount airlines like AirAsia, who often sell sale fares for travel periods up to 10 months ahead. Balance the risks against the price – you may end up paying roughly $50 – $100 more for a sale fare between Melbourne and Kuala Lumpur by skipping the first or second sale that comes around, however at least you will have a greater sense of security by booking closer to your intended travel date.

Stick to ‘shoulder periods’ and avoid holidays. When booking fares in Australia, the travel periods to avoid are from 15 November – 31 January (Christmas), 27 March – 31 April (Easter) and Australian school and public holidays (depending on where you’re travelling to, of course). Conversely, I have also found that awesome sales and fares seem to appear just after major holidays (eg. Christmas), as if to compensate for that post-holiday dip. February – March and July – early November seem to be blessed with an abundance of sale fares, so as per tip #1, start shopping around from July onwards for sale fares in November, or even as far afield as February and March.

That said… If you’re after a particularly popular, yet non-holiday period such as the Winter ski months in Queenstown, New Zealand, the rules can go out the window. For example, Jetstar’s notorious $160 return fares to Christchurch in July/August, 2009 went on sale at the beginning of December, 2008 (Note: this was also the launch of the new SYD – CHC route, there were sales in the following months, too). If you’re into seasonal activities like skiing, look into what an “average” fare is like and use discretion, not rules, to decide when it’s the right time to buy.

Look for Tuesday and Wednesday (mid-week) airfares. Commonsense will dictate that the most popular time to fly are weekends. Be flexible and look for mid-week fares – airfares for Tuesdays are almost consistently cheaper than weekend flights and even opting to fly back on a Monday morning instead of a Sunday night can save you a considerable amount of money. An exception to this rule is Tiger Airways, who commonly release sale fares on Saturdays, however you will have to book fast to get them!

Buy your web fares in the morning, or late at night. Unless the sale is blink-and-you’ll-miss-it, you’re best booking online when the least amount of people are hitting the airline’s website as well. To save yourself the stress of a potentially slow online booking process, check and select fares first thing in the morning, or well into the evening. Lunch and dinner are times to avoid. Get the jump on Asian sales as well – if an AirAsia sale starts at midnight (Malaysian time), just get up early the following morning – you will be at least 2 hours ahead of the rush (unless you’re in Perth… Sorry, fellas).

Where to find and book a discount fare

In so much as purchasing fares online is all the rage, don’t forget your friendly travel agent – they’re still in business for a reason!

Book one-way and short/medium haul trips online, long-haul, complex and round the world tickets with your travel agent. If you’re planning a quick trip from Sydney to Melbourne, the days of coughing up the big bling to your travel agent are well over. Do the research and shop around online for flights to domestic and short to mid-distance international destinations, too. A great site to check is Adioso, an airfare comparison site for discount carriers, both here and abroad. Also check this site (Flighthacker) regularly… It’s my serious hobby, after all!

That said, once you add multiple hops to your itinerary, or travel beyond  Asia and the Pacific, the value in purchasing multiple point-to-point fares with discount carriers diminishes considerably. Shop around online and compare fares with your travel agent. Some will even match fares available via Australian-registered online businesses (eg. Webjet, Zuji.com.au), so you can be secure in knowing you have found a good deal and have the personal service of an agent to match.

Finally, consider your travel needs – if you need a ticket with flexible dates, have specific requests or simply need creature comforts during a long flight, book a full-fare airline ticket with your travel agent. If all you need is the equivalent of a bus ride, then buy a discount fare online. You get what you pay for.

How to find out about cheap fares and sales

Subscribe to airline email newsletters, follow airlines on Twitter, or… Check this blog, of course! I’m already subscribed to a whole bunch of newsletters and follow multiple airlines on Twitter, so you don’t need to do the legwork. However, if you’re particularly interested in that cheap flight to Malaysia, subscribe to AirAsia’s email newsletter. Check AirNinja for carriers that fly to your desired destination and make sure you sign up for your favourite airlines’ sales and offers.

Check out alternative routes. Is Sydney to Hong Kong too expensive? Check out fares from Sydney to Macau, then transit to Hong Kong. You may be very surprised at the price differences. Also, target nearby holiday destinations or alternate airports. In Asia, it is often cheaper to fly into a tourist-town like Phuket, then transfer to a low-cost flight to reach your final destination. Particularly in Europe, many discount airlines fly into “alternate” airports that service a particular city, so research what other options are available with AirNinja and Adioso.

Visit Australian online forums and bargain sites. Established sites like the Australian Frequent Flyer Community can provide oodles of insider advice. OzBargain commonly features sales just as they break. Find a community you like and subscribe to their email newsletters, RSS or follow them on Twitter.

Ask around. Talk to your travel agent, friends/family and send me a Tweet. It may sound obvious, but often the best tips are home-grown!

Finally…

None of this is a hard and fast, so send me your top tips and I’ll update this article accordingly. Now, make your friends jealous and buy that dirt-cheap airfare!

Photo Credit: P J Partridge

To celebrate the launch of CherryPow.com yesterday, I’ve decided to write on a topic that has many ski-bunnies quaking in their boots, being how to carry your prized ski equipment on a low-cost flight in Australia and New Zealand.

Now, many of you will be saying, “Well, I’m paying thousands for a holiday to the snow, why skimp on the airfare?”, however with the glut of cheap Winter fares to New Zealand in recent months, it’s inevitable that many people, perhaps including yourself, would have purchased a cheapie fare and worried about the consequences later.

The good news first – it is possible. The bad news – you may have to pay for it. Here is a breakdown of how each discount carrier handles ski equipment.

Jetstar

Checked-in Baggage Allowance: 0kg (JetSaver Light), 20kg (JetSaver & JetFlex fares) or 30kg (StarClass)

Excess Baggage Fee: $20 AUD / $20 NZD per kg

Jetstar was the cheap ski-season fares culprit for 2009 and justly, I’ll tackle them first. Jetstar can check-in your ski equipment, on the following conditions:

• Your skis and gear are carefully packed into a bag that is less than 1.9m long
• You check in at least 2 hours prior to the scheduled departure time for flights departing from a domestic terminal and 3 hours prior to the scheduled departure time for flights departing from an international terminal
• No bag should weigh more than 23kg

Once you weigh your ski clothes, boots, stocks etc together, you may find yourself pushing the 20kg limit. Keep an eye on those excess kilos, as they can soon erase the savings on your bargain fare and Jetstar is entitled to refuse flying your gear should you not comply with their baggage policy. Note that you are also entitled to 10kg of cabin baggage (being a cabin bag and a smaller bag), so distribute your cargo carefully and check-in early to save yourself (and the ground staff) any undue stress. Read Jetstar’s baggage policy here.

VirginBlue

Checked-in Baggage Allowance: 0kg/23kg (‘Go’ or Blue Saver fares, $8 per sector for 23kg allowance), 23kg (Flexible Fare) or 32kg (Corporate Plus or Premium Economy fare)

Excess Baggage Fee: $8 AUD / $8 NZD per kg

VirginBlue have a more flexible policy towards checked-in equipment and their excess baggage fees are considerably cheaper. As snow skis are categorised as sporting equipment, the following rules apply:

• If you check in skis, you are entitled to an additional 5kg of baggage allowance on top of your existing allowance (see above). For example, if you have purchased a baggage allowance of 23kg, and are travelling with skis, you will be eligible for a total checked baggage allowance of 28kg
• All ski gear must be properly packaged and cannot exceed 3m in length
• You check must in at least 2 hours prior to the scheduled departure time
• No bag should weigh more than 23kg

Nice, an additional 5kg on your allowance. VirginBlue are certainly more flexible with ski gear and their excess baggage fees don’t hurt anywhere as much. Plus you have an on-board allowance of 7kg (across two bags), so again, consider how you pack. View VirginBlue’s sporting equipment policy here.

Tiger Airways

Checked-in Baggage Allowance: 0kg/15kg/20kg/25kg/30kg (Free/$10AUD/$20AUD/$35AUD/$70AUD, with advanced booking), $30 flat fee for ski equipment (Sporting Equipment)

Excess Baggage Fee: $15 AUD per kg

Tiger Airways categorises ski gear as ‘sporting equipment’ and  charges a flat-fee of $30 AUD per item, per sector, irrespective of weight! Well, up to 30kg per item, anyway. However, this is followed by the ominous caveat:

Tiger Airways is prepared to carry such items on a ‘limited release’ (i.e. entirely ‘at your own risk’ for damage or delay) basis. You may therefore wish to ensure that you have suitable private insurance cover in force for such items. If the fee is not paid on your outbound journey it will still be imposed on your return journey.

That said, common sense applies – if you’re going to bring your pricey gear, you sure as heck should insure it!

Other rules are:

• You must check in at least 2 hours prior to the scheduled departure time
• No bag should weigh more than 30kg

Good one, Tiger! Cabin allowance is 7kg. View Tiger’s checked luggage policy here.

AirAsia

Checked-in Baggage Allowance: 0kg/15kg/20kg/25kg (Free/$10AUD/$28AUD/$53AUD, with advanced booking)

Excess Baggage Fee: $30 AUD (up to 15kg), $10 AUD per kg thereafter

Finally, for our Asian guests, ski equipment is not categorised as sporting equipment and therefore must be checked in as part of your baggage allowance. Note that even when baggage allowance is pre-booked, AirAsia’s fee schedule is not very forgiving, so weigh your gear and pre-purchase your baggage allowance accordingly. A kilo over your pre-ordained allowance and bam! $30 worth of excess baggage fees!

More fine print:

• You must check in at least 1 hour prior to the scheduled departure time
• No bag should weigh more than 32 kg and have combined dimensions of more than 81cm height, 119cm wide and 119cm depth

That said, AirAsia is a great ride, but hang on to your pennies, folks! Cabin allowance is 7kg. AirAsia’s carriage conditions can be viewed here.

Anyway, that’s the skinny of it! Amongst the discount airlines, VirginBlue and Tiger Airways appear to have the most skiier-friendly baggage policy, however it pays to read the fine-print and check with your airline if you have any questions. Enjoy the powder!

Photo Credit: Jon Keegan

After reader Mark threw down the gauntlet regarding my recent ‘Round the World on Discount Airlines‘ article, I made it my imperative to sum up how much it would cost to actually travel Round The World solely on discount airlines. Based on my “RTW #1: 24-hour Party People (ex. Sydney)” itinerary, I totaled up the trip cost as follows (based on travel dates in Oct/Nov):

Sydney, NSW, AU to Honolulu, HI, USA – Jetstar – $463
Honolulu, HI, USA to Vancouver, BC, CA – Westjet – $186
Vancouver, BC, CA to Las Vegas, NV, USA – Westjet – $172
Las Vegas, NV, USA to New York, NY, USA (JFK) – JetBlue – $207
New York, NY, USA (JFK) to Ibiza, ES – Air Berlin – $413
Ibiza, ES to Berlin (Tegel), DE – Air Berlin – $204
Berlin (Tegel), DE to Phuket, TH – Air Berlin – $774
Phuket, TH to Sydney, NSW, AU – Jetstar – $390

Discount Airline Total: $2809 (inc tax).
Mark’s Full-Fare RTW ticket: < $2700.
The winner is… Batty travel. And Mark. Game and match!

In conclusion, discount fares seem to be at their best value when used for short- to medium- haul flights, however the savings are much diminished once longer flights or many hops are introduced to your itinerary. Also, due to the inflexibility of most low-cost fare rules, I would not recommend packing in a handful of such discount airfares if there is any chance that your travel plans may change. Often the only way to change details such as departure dates is to either pay a hefty fee, or purchase a new ticket.

Many thanks to Mark at RoundAbout Travel for being a good sport; if you would like to have your discount airline questions answered, please feel free to shoot me your travel questions via this blog, or on Twitter. Bon voyage!

Photo Credit: Gemma (3fold)

Foremost, I’ve read a handful of articles proudly proclaiming that “you can now fly around the world using discount airlines alone!”, but sadly, no-one has told their fair readers how this can be done. Secondly, I’ve read countless round-the-world (RTW) itineraries and they all share one thing in common – they’re all the sort of trips that your mum would put you on. So let me hit two birds with one stone, friends. Not only am I going to show you how to travel RTW solely on low-cost carriers, but provide you with two itineraries that not only showcase the variety of airlines that can get you there on the cheap, but will provide trips to remember. For all the wrong reasons.

First of all…

The initial disclaimer – flying around the world solely with discount airlines may not be the cheapest or most efficient option. If you’re serious about shopping around for a RTW fare, make sure you check with your favoured travel agent as well. Also, this method requires you to book each leg of your itinerary separately. When I did a circle trip of Asia in March, this meant that I was carrying around a plastic folder stuffed full of print-outs of my air tickets and boarding passes. So if you’re comfortable with this (or just darn curious), read on…

How to get from A to B on the cheap… Or die trying.

For this exercise, you will need two websites:

Google Maps – An interactive world map. For plotting your route, or alternate destinations

AirNinja – A directory of low cost-carriers and routes. For finding the airlines to get you there

Fire up AirNinja and select and in the area labelled “Step 1: Enter trip details”, click “Use drop-down list”. In the “From:” section, enter your country and city of departure. In the “To:” section, select your destination (or closest airport to it). The “Step 2: Check low-cost airlines” section of the page will automatically update with the airlines that fly the route you have selected. For details and to book, simply click on the name of the airline you wish to fly with.

Please note that you may not be able to get to your desired destination directly, so either a) choose the nearest airport, or b) enter your intended destination into the “From:” section and work backwards from there. Also, not all airlines listed are of equally good value. For example, whereas Air Berlin, JetBlue or EasyJet seem to have consistently cut-price fares, Aer Lingus, S7, Philippine Airlines and others that are listed tend to provide comparatively pricey flights, so if you are stuck with one of them, you may want to see if you can split the journey into two legs by flying via a stopover with a better-value carrier(s).

Sample Itineraries

So now you know what it’s all about, here are two sample itineraries that will hopefully, inspire you to plan your own nutty low-cost RTW adventures. Without any further ado:
View Round the World via Discount Airlines (ex. Sydney) in a larger map

RTW #1: 24-hour Party People (ex. Sydney)

Sydney – Waikiki – Vancouver – Las Vegas – New York – Ibiza – Berlin – Phuket – Sydney

This is for people that save their money so they can book high-end hotels, yet inevitably end up sleeping on beaches, beer bucket still in hand. Or don’t see sunlight for three days straight while being holed up in a Berlin warehouse party with “aspiring” models. If this sounds like you, don’t forget to pack a pillow, as the only sleep you’re going to get is on the long-haul flights…

Sydney, NSW, AU to Honolulu, HI, USA – Jetstar
Honolulu, HI, USA to Vancouver, BC, CA – Westjet
Vancouver, BC, CA to Las Vegas, NV, USA – Westjet
Las Vegas, NV, USA to New York, NY, USA (JFK) – JetBlue
New York, NY, USA (JFK) to Ibiza, ES – Air Berlin
Ibiza, ES to Berlin (Tegel), DE – Air Berlin
Berlin (Tegel), DE to Phuket, TH – Air Berlin
Phuket, TH to Sydney, NSW, AU – Jetstar

RTW #2: Bad Habits (ex. Sydney)

Sydney – Macau – Bangkok – Paris (and Monaco) – Las Vegas – Los Angeles – Sydney

Your parents are always telling you not to end up like the kind of people that book trips like this one. Meaning, the kind of people who suddenly clear the till one evening and skip the country, because of a bad habit. If these bad habits are indeed your own, then the fares had better come cheap – roulette, girls and cigarettes aren’t free, you know.

Sydney, NSW, AU to Macau, CN – Viva Macau
Macau, CN to Bangkok, TH – AirAsia
Bangkok, TH to Paris, FR – Air Berlin (need Monaco? Book a side-trip to Nice, FR)
Paris, FR to Las Vegas, NV, USA – Condor
Las Vegas, NV, USA to Los Angeles, LA, USA – JetBlue
Los Angeles, LA, USA to Sydney, NSW, AU – V Australia

Download these Itineraries

Both these routes can be downloaded as a .kml file (requires Google Earth to view). Good luck!