Flight research Brisbane to Sofia

[quilpie100]

Hi Folks

First time poster reaching out.

I am going to Milan or Bulgaria to study for a few years. My partner will commute from Brisbane to Sofia during school hols 4 times per year (April, June, Sept, Dec-Jan) and I will return to Brisbane from Sofia twice a year (Jan then Jul-Aug-Sept) times. I am trying to investigate an economical way of budgeting and planning (or booking) for these trips in advance each year. I need exit seating due to basketball stature (long not round... Not being a guru on all the variables, trick or tips, I thought I would ask you folks to see what thoughts you may have that could help us maintain our love (25+ yrs and still going strong long distance without breaking the bank. Your thoughts would be much appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[Boca68]

Well, many variables there.

So is it Milan or Sofia? In reality , I don't think it would make much difference concerning long haul flights to Australia.

First off, you mention your partner travelling to Europe during school holidays, right? So, I'm assuming children are involved or is it work related? So many of your projected travel months are so close. Can one or the other extend at some point? So as to possibly have one less sojourn? Assuming no children?

Anyway, on to flights. Milan and Sofia, both have excellent connections for travelling towards Australia. Most flights can be done with one stop. Qatar and Emirates both will do it via their respective hubs. I fits going to be for several years as you indicate, suggest both of you join a relevant frequent flyer program. Now which one, depends on the path you choose. Your home city in Australia could play a part. I see Brisbane, so that might make Qatar less significant. Emirates, Qantas, Cathay (possibly) or Singapore.

Qatar I know fly SOF-DOH-MEL/SYD/ADL. And MXP-DOH-MEL/ADL/SYD. Emirates do similar except for flying to ADL, but they do fly to BNE, which might be relevant to you guys.

Do a bit of your own research on flights. The timing and availability first. Then pricing and then factor in if you want to join a frequent flyer program, which I would advise. It will bring the benefits in a year or 2, but worth it.

 

[kevrosmith]

It may be worth investigating booking returns ex-Europe as well.. you may save some money.

 

[quilpie100]

Thanks to both of you for your thoughts. It will more likely be Sofia rather than Milan. Emirates don't have the exit seating purchase option so Cathay, Singapore and Qantas are viable options.

 

[kevrosmith]

Is it easy to get from Sofia to Istanbul? I see Turkish flies to HKG and SIN, and SQ into SIN. Turkish is part of *A.

 

[dajop]

SQ have good fares ex Sofia, to SIN but alas not all the way to Australia. Or they did have when I last checked. You need to get quote from local sales agent in Bulgaria (contact details on SQ website). Codeshare via IST or ZRH I think.

 

[bsb]

There are usually great deals out of Stockholm and Cairo, if you can cope with the short hop to either. You might need to be creative, but you will probably also get to see some interesting places enroute.

Booking ex Europe return will be cheaper than ex Aus for both of you. As you say you want to book ahead, this may be quite cost effective.

You also might want to think about loyalty to one alliance. This may get you status, which will help with seating and points which will give you some freebies. Make sure one or both of you sign up for new credit cards with big sign on bonuses. This will get you a long way to freebies. Also use those cards for everyday purchases, be disciplined and pay it straight off and you'll be surprised at how many points you will get.

With that in mind, Oneworld will most likely be your best alliance via QF. Qatar has good specials out of ARN CAI SOF often. Finnair is another great option for you both - ex AU and EU. And BA does too, but it's not the 'worlds favourite airline' anymore, so bear that in mind.

Another option is to buy cheap ex AU Y flights to Asia, which currently are priced ridiculously, pay for leg room and then connect in Asia. Preferably BKK and you'll get cheap EU flights. Norwegian flies out of BKK - watch for cheap J flights.

Go go to the Flyertalk forum, which is predominantly EU/US and look at the mileage run threads.

Finally, be like the rest of us and spend too much time researching on this and other forums and you'll save a fortune, see cool places and keep your relationship alive. But beware, it's addictive.

 

[quilpie100]

Brilliant, thanks. You kind folks are giving us the tools we need to do the research. We appreciate the time taken to reply. We have started researching on sky scanner etc and have some idea of routes and costs, but anticipated we were mugs in the travel game. Reaching out and your assistance has been helpful