Qantas has started nonstop flights between Australia and UK since late March with their new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. The flight; QF009 originates from Melbourne with an immediate stop in Perth and arrives in London after 17-18 hours non-stop in the air which makes it the longest B787 Dreamliner flight in the world.
Video Review
Let's explore the cheapest Business Class to fly the non-stop between UK and Australia. Qantas traditionally have much more expensive fare from its home market Australia. So let's turn the search from UK and continental Europe to find lower fare!
I use Expertflyer to search the lowest air fare between Europe and Australia. Expertflyer is a web based travel tool that displays vital data from Travel GDS. You can see the fare listings, real time availability, seat map and create seat/fare alert etc. Read my Smart Travel section for more information on Expertflyer.
A fare search returned non-stop one way flight from London to Melbourne starts from USD 3,833 in discount Business Class (D Class) before tax and fuel surcharge.
The fare became USD 4,744 after tax on Qantas website.
The non-stop pair is usually the most expensive as it is convenient and saves time to travel non-stop. If we change the search from London to Paris, the fare dropped almost 1,000 dollars!
After tax it is USD 3,508 (2,834 Euros) one way from Paris via London to Melbourne. This is $1200 cheaper than the direct flight fare from London to Melbourne.
Tips: Although the fare is lower, but you have to remember to factor in your re-positioning cost (and time) to Paris to see if it is worth it.
After more searching, I've found even cheaper Business Class fare from Athens to Melbourne on Qantas. You can fly either via London or Dubai to Melbourne from Athens on this fare!
But the cheapest Business Class fare is from Cairo to Melbourne on Qantas/Emirates. It is $1,261 before tax and fees! However this fare does not permit routing via London flying on Qantas B787-9 direct. You have to fly via Dubai on Emirates.
Bottom Line
As we know the non-stop city pair has often the most expensive fare, the trick is to find alternative city with a connection. In the Qantas case, I've found much lower airfare from Paris or Athens to fly on the Qantas B787-9 Dreamliner. I am thinking to buy a ticket from Athens to try out the new flight later!
Sam’s Travel Hacks
Do you have similar experience on finding lower premium fare from an alternative city of departure? Please share it!