Booking Award Flights from USA to Australia return - suggestions?

[slinky123]

Hi everyone, I'm looking at booking flights for my daughters friend to come and visit us over here. When looking on the Qantas site, due to originating flight being in the USA , I was directed to the USA site.

When looking for economy awards, they are available, 90000 points but the taxes are $823 USD which is way way in excess if it was booked the other way round from Australia to USA. A full paid flight return was just over $1000 US.

I looked on the AA site but do not find any way to use Qantas points to book there.

Would anyone have any suggestions as to how we could book an award flight without those massive US taxes.

Thanks so much

 

[dajop]

Just a correction, they are not taxes. They are Qantas greed surcharges, and on economy tickets issued outside Australia they are charged at about 2.5x the charge for economy tickets issued in Australia. One way of reducing them is to put the outbound and returns into two separate bookings. That will save a reasonable amount, although won't bring it down to the price for Australia-USA return.

I am not sure if you call up QF in Australia and ask for it be issued in Australia (at a cost of 6000 pts per ticket for booking over phone) whether this helps or not, may be worth a shot.

 

[cjd600]

Is there any AA availability on QF site?
Surcharges much more friendly

 

[slinky123]

Thankyou for that I wasn't seeing an AA there, but changed a few dates and some are there via Auckland which would work. Just have to find the right dates now. Wow, what a huge difference in surcharge.

 

[Dr Ralph]

Hi everyone, I'm looking at booking flights for my daughters friend to come and visit us over here. When looking on the Qantas site, due to originating flight being in the USA , I was directed to the USA site.

When looking for economy awards, they are available, 90000 points but the taxes are $823 USD which is way way in excess if it was booked the other way round from Australia to USA. A full paid flight return was just over $1000 US.

I looked on the AA site but do not find any way to use Qantas points to book there.

Would anyone have any suggestions as to how we could book an award flight without those massive US taxes.

Thanks so much

Cathay Pacific via Hong Kong.

 

[Mattg]

You can also fly Fiji Airways via NAN. You can usually find flights out of LAX and SFO, and the transit times in NAN are short if connecting to/from SYD. Taxes are very low.

 

[toasty]

I am not sure if you call up QF in Australia and ask for it be issued in Australia (at a cost of 6000 pts per ticket for booking over phone) whether this helps or not, may be worth a shot.

I don't think that'll work, as the fuel surcharges are calculated based on the country where you start your award flights.

 

[Mattg]

I don't think that'll work, as the fuel surcharges are calculated based on the country where you start your award flights.

That is correct.

But the OP could always book the flights as 2x one-ways. Then they would at least get the lower fuel surcharges for the return leg.

 

[dajop]

I don't think that'll work, as the fuel surcharges are calculated based on the country where you start your award flights.

I tried it last in 2009 or 2010, did it a couple of time, and it worked with AU fuel surcharges, but the discrepancy at the time was in the order of a hundred dollars, not hundreds of dollars. Things have almost certainly changed.

I still boycott QF as much as I can, because of this insidious practice. A fuel surcharge is a fuel surcharge. Fuel surcharge on A-B-A shouldn't be 2.5x fuel surcharge on B-A-B. Same sectors, same miles, same amount of fuel.

 

[grussellt]

JFK-LAX-NAN-SYD has surcharges of only $US39.78 but is 60,000 points. Obviously it could be fewer points from nearer the West Coast. The layover in NAN can be as short as 3 hours. FJ now has quite new planes on the LAX leg.

 

[UP4014]

And a fuel surcharge should be part of the ticket price!

 

[serfty]

I don't think that'll work, as the fuel surcharges are calculated based on the country where you start your award flights.

And carrier - see post #4.

 

[fairbasa]

Booked a oneway in J on QF7 for next year and paid $500pp in taxes and fines!!! This just after completing a Oneworld Award trip in J (avoiding QF and BA) and only paid $700pp for all 13 flights.

Hopefully some AA flights will open up so I can avoid QF altogether.

 

[PaulST]

Cathay Pacific via Hong Kong.

This!
Cathay are a great option.

 

[fairbasa]

This!
Cathay are a great option.

Depends on your flexibility. It adds about 10hrs and 43k points (each way) to the cost, but saves taxes.

 

[Dr Ralph]

Depends on your flexibility. It adds about 10hrs and 43k points (each way) to the cost, but saves taxes.

This just isn't true.

It did not add 43k points to my flights to the US nor take 10 hrs additional. Taxes are around 10% of what Qantas wanted.

 

[fairbasa]

It did not add 43k points to my flights to the US nor take 10 hrs additional. Taxes are around 10% of what Qantas wanted.

It does not add 43k points and 10hrs to every itinerary, but did to mine. If travelling from the East Coast of the US, I can imagine the time difference is much smaller.

MEL to LAX is about 14.5hrs direct, the quickest via HKG is 24hrs.