BNE to HND/NRT (And on to Niseko)

[djchuckles]

Looking for options leaving BNE late 1/2 and being back in BNE any time on 15/2

Best option out looks like VA/SQ 2345 to HND which would enable me to get an internal flight to CTS and bus up to Niseko upon arrival that evening

Coming back I found an option that involves 3 legs instead of 2 leaving HND at 4:40 14/2 and coming via PER. I have an option to pay for a flexi ticket and try my luck for using a comp upgrade. However I looked and on that flight theres no business reward availability - so does that mean there would be no complimentary Plat upgrade option either?

Any other options I should consider?

I have heaps of Velocity points, so did think about getting them into SQ and using a reward flight but struggled to find availability

 

[travelislife]

Out of Brisbane going to Sapporo you would be better off bypassing Tokyo and using Eva or Korean. Shortest travel time by far.

 

[djchuckles]

Thanks. No status credits or points earn though right?

 

[Ausbt]

Any other options I should consider?

How about skiing Honshu instead? Look I love Niseko but there are other places. Once I found a great SYD-HKG-CTS J points redemption with Cathy that was tempting, but I guess doesn't help you. Would be awesome if VA choose Japan as a new Asian destination, but probably unlikely I guess.

 

[travelislife]

Thanks. No status credits or points earn though right?

Not with Virgin, no. But on a trip like that my priority would be time on the snow over FF points.

 

[pythonisman]

Personally I wouldn't go via PER and SIN, that's too roundabout for my liking. I did SYD-SIN-NRT-CTS a couple of years ago and that was plenty of transit time for me. The outbound in Y tired me out so much I ended up upgrading my return flights to J which was delightful though!

If there's an afternoon flight out of BNE which'll get you an overnight connection up to Japan via SIN then it's not too bad, and if you're really keen then getting up to CTS and on the bus to Niseko will give you a solid night's sleep before skiing.

If the only SQ flight is at 2345, and you won't get into Tokyo until about 5pm the next day, that'll make it a very (very) late night inbound to Niseko, as you'll need a couple of hours buffer (in case of delays) before a domestic flight. You wouldn't get in until probably the last bus up to Niseko by which time you'd be pretty wrecked.

Could you make the ~midday EY flight up to SIN and then book SQ from there? That'd let you have a few hours in Singapore (or the airport) before a night flight up to Tokyo (or Osaka potentially if the timings were better) and you'd land in the early AM in Tokyo versus the evening?

I'll be in Niseko for a week (1st Feb - 8th Feb) then another week in Hakuba till the 16th... Let me know if you want to have a ski or a beer or something.
(I'm doing a pretty complex series of QF/MH/JL, partly as I already had QF booked to get to SIN for my brother's bucks in Cambodia, partly for a bit of a OW status run, coupled with incredibly cheap MH J fares out of SIN...)

 

[Ausbt]

I'll be in Niseko for a week (1st Feb - 8th Feb) then another week in Hakuba till the 16th... Let me know if you want to have a ski or a beer or something.

Where are you staying in Hakuba Python? I'll be at Panke Penke around that time.

 

[AustraliaPoochie]

NZ BNE - AKL and then to Japan?
SQ would see you having to transit SIN twice.

 

[pythonisman]

Where are you staying in Hakuba Python? I'll be at Panke Penke around that time.

Haven't yet locked in the accommodation, have a couple of mates who are thinking of staying at a place near Goryu/47 and would probably look to go there if they're gonna be around, but they haven't booked anything yet. Off topic somewhat. Haven't been to Hakuba before so a bit lost as to the best place to stay.

NZ BNE - AKL and then to Japan?
SQ would see you having to transit SIN twice.

NZ via AKL isn't a terrible option, though their fares look pretty high around that time, and I'm not sure how ~11.5hrs in an NZ 767 would be, but maybe not too bad? If you could jag the 787-9 it might be alright.

If you're looking to fly in J I thought the NZ business product was pretty great too.

 

[Ausbt]

Haven't been to Hakuba before so a bit lost as to the best place to stay.

.

Echoland or Wadano probably, unless you are hiring a car (thus not relying on the local shuttle bus). To keep my post a bit more OT I recall one trip up to Niseko where we stopped off in CNS and I suddenly decided I needed some thermals. CNS seems a strange place to sell 100% merino thermals in some ways but I have them to this day, and what fantastic quality they are. Made in 'Straya.