Perth to Hobart transit via Melborne

[bigbigman100]

I booked a Virgin flight from Perth to Hobart this coming September transiting through Melbourne for 2 hours, this is my first domestic flight since the start of this pandemic I did however travel from Perth to C.I but that was relatively straight forward.

Assuming this Covid drama haven't been settled yet in September but everything is calm in Perth and Tasmania can I still travel from PER to Hobart and transit via Melbourne then arriving in Hobart WITHOUT Quarantine drama?

 

[drron]

No problems at the moment.WA is low risk and tassie have usually allowed transit even through high risk areas even allowing an overnight stay in an approved hotel.

Travellers from low-risk areas are permitted to transit directly though medium and high-risk areas without being subject to quarantine requirements on arrival under specific conditions – see low-risk areas for more details.

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

View COVID-19 information from the Department of Health (Tasmania).

www.coronavirus.tas.gov.au

 

[henrus]

Assuming this Covid drama haven't been settled yet in September but everything is calm in Perth and Tasmania can I still travel from PER to Hobart and transit via Melbourne then arriving in Hobart WITHOUT Quarantine drama?

No one will be able to say what the situation will look like in September however there are a few things to point out based on current rules and prior history...

If there is an outbreak (or a snap lockdown) in Perth then Tasmania will not let you in unless you are a Tasmanian resident or an "essential traveler" as defined by the Tasmanian government. Otherwise, if there aren't any restrictions imposed by the Tasmanian government you would be fine to enter without any testing/quarantine. If there is an outbreak/lockdown in Melbourne (your transit location) and the Tasmanian government listed Melbourne as a high/medium risk area then you will still be allowed to enter Tasmania as transits through the airport are ok under Tasmanian rules.

Finally worth noting that if you are returning to Western Australia they do not have the same rule about transits. So if you were flying HBA-MEL-PER and Western Australia had declared Victoria a low or medium risk then you'd need to isolate for 14 days upon return. In this situation, you'd need to look at a direct HBA-PER service.

It's worth noting that Virgin Australia (or basically any airline) has given up trying to provide border advice given how frequently it changes. If Tasmania scraps its current policy to allow transits (highly unlikely but possible if there was a bad outbreak) then you may need to look at alternative options including non stop services from PER to HBA which are currently only operated by Qantas or other connecting in other cities.

 

[bigbigman100]

Thank you everyone for the information, I'll just cross my finger that Melbourne will stay green coming weeks and remain so until my travel date.

I did book Qantas Hobart to Perth direct though as I have some leftover asia miles sitting around but not enough for PER to Hobart direct so unfortunately have to stick to virgin as I have heaps of velocity points lying around.

 

[Port Power]

Thank you everyone for the information, I'll just cross my finger that Melbourne will stay green coming weeks and remain so until my travel date.

I did book Qantas Hobart to Perth direct though as I have some leftover asia miles sitting around but not enough for PER to Hobart direct so unfortunately have to stick to virgin as I have heaps of velocity points lying around.

If Melbourne is declared low risk after you leave, at least you will only have to quarantine back at home in Perth from the day you passed through Tullamarine!

 

[Daver6]

Unfortunately, WA considers an airport transit the same as visiting the state (unlike SA for example). So as @Port Power said, if things aren't green in Victoria, you'll have to abide by any restrictions WA will impose.

 

[bigbigman100]

My return to Perth trip is Qantas Hobart to Perth direct, that shouldn't be an issue isn't it even if there is an outbreak at Melbourne during our time in Tasmania?

 

[jakeseven7]

I booked a Virgin flight from Perth to Hobart this coming September transiting through Melbourne for 2 hours, this is my first domestic flight since the start of this pandemic I did however travel from Perth to C.I but that was relatively straight forward.

Assuming this Covid drama haven't been settled yet in September but everything is calm in Perth and Tasmania can I still travel from PER to Hobart and transit via Melbourne then arriving in Hobart WITHOUT Quarantine drama?

You do know Qantas has a direct service? I know it goes against the AFF rule of why go direct when you can connect, but desperate times

Edit: I see you already know this!

 

[henrus]

My return to Perth trip is Qantas Hobart to Perth direct, that shouldn't be an issue isn't it even if there is an outbreak at Melbourne during our time in Tasmania?

How long is your trip in Tasmania?

When you transited through Melbourne under WA's rule you've been in Victoria. WA has in the past backdated it as well, meaning you could be even back in WA and then forced to quarantine if the trip to TAS is short and they decide to backdate.

 

[bigbigman100]

Total 12 days 8 to 20 September.
Considering the Covid drama over at the east and the risk of being caught in between, I am now seriously considering cancelling Virgin and rebook on Qantas direct flight, just need to figure out how to make up for the lack of points for Qantas.

 

[Daver6]

My return to Perth trip is Qantas Hobart to Perth direct, that shouldn't be an issue isn't it even if there is an outbreak at Melbourne during our time in Tasmania?

Total 12 days 8 to 20 September.
Considering the Covid drama over at the east and the risk of being caught in between, I am now seriously considering cancelling Virgin and rebook on Qantas direct flight, just need to figure out how to make up for the lack of points for Qantas.

This is only my interpretation, so please don't take this as gospel. But worst case scenario by my reckoning is if Victoria is declared a hotspot, the most you would need to self quarantine for back in Perth would be two days.

This is of course assuming Tasmania doesn't become a hotspot according to St Marko.

 

[henrus]

This is only my interpretation, so please don't take this as gospel. But worst case scenario by my reckoning is if Victoria is declared a hotspot, the most you would need to self quarantine for back in Perth would be two days.

The way I read it is that if you've been in a low or medium risk area in the past 14 days then you'd have to self isolate for a full 14 days upon arrival into WA. I guess it's worth clarifying with the WA gov first.

 

[Daver6]

The way I read it is that if you've been in a low or medium risk area in the past 14 days then you'd have to self isolate for a full 14 days upon arrival into WA. I guess it's worth clarifying with the WA gov first.

My assumption was you need to isolate 14 days post site exposure. But you're right, calling the WA Covid hotline would be the way to go on this and not rely on arm chair experts like myself

 

[Port Power]

My assumption was you need to isolate 14 days post site exposure. But you're right, calling the WA Covid hotline would be the way to go on this and not rely on arm chair experts like myself

When I did my very recent quarantine on return (direct) from Queensland, I only had to quarantine from when I went through SYD airport on the way to OOL. So only 11 days at home. Test on arrival (if open at PER) or next day, and again on Day 11 from date in SYD.

If I had returned through MEL, I would have had to do the full 14 days as Melbourne was in that risk category.

 

[ferntree]

You will need a transit permit to transit thru Melbourne Airport, even from the Green Zone and even if you will not be leaving the terminal . I discovered this a week ago as I was transiting thru Melbourne Airport and didn't have one. I was able to apply on the spot but nearly missed my connection.

Apply here:

COVID-19 border entry | COVID-19 | Service Victoria

You need to apply for a permit to enter Victoria from anywhere in Australia or New Zealand. Apply border permit online from Service Victoria website.

www.service.vic.gov.au

You will need a permit to enter Tasmania, but can apply no sooner than the day before your arrival. See here:

Tas e-Travel

register.tasetravel.tas.gov.au

Post automatically merged: Jul 14, 2021

 

[Stealthflyer]

One of the other issues associated with transiting through high risk zones is the cancellation of flights. Whenever the Tasmanian border is closed to Victoria, flights get cut or changed, which means your flights might get changed, cancelled or rerouted. The only non-high risk transit spot from Perth to Hobart at the moment is Brisbane!

 

[bigbigman100]

Just want to update here that I have cancelled my Virgin flight and switched to direct PER to Hobart via Qantas, so two ways now going direct. Burnt total 120K Asia miles for both segments for me and the wife for business cabin.

 

[ferntree]

Smart move!

 

[mrmerc500]

Seems like QF maybe obtaining good loads as they’re now daily on PER - HBA compared to the original 3 flights weekly.

https://www.qantasnewsroom.com.au/media-releases/qantas-to-fly-direct-from-hobart-to-perth/

 

[Stealthflyer]

Seems like QF maybe obtaining good loads as they’re now daily on PER - HBA compared to the original 3 flights weekly.

https://www.qantasnewsroom.com.au/media-releases/qantas-to-fly-direct-from-hobart-to-perth/

It was disappointing when VA dropped their direct HBA-PER flight. Direct travel between consistently 'low-risk' centres like Hobart, Darwin, Perth, and (to a lesser extent) Adelaide is largely limited to Qantas and Jetstar flights at the moment. I wish I could fly VA, but I just don't want to transit.