Help me plan my trip! (MEL-WAW, max flight 1.5hrs/1500km)

[Virgin Bart]

To me, probably the worst thing about flying long haul to Europe is the "long" bit! Next year I'm planning on taking 3 months off work (might be more) and I figure I'm going to fly to Warsaw minus the "long" bit!

I'm not sure exactly what restriction I should put on, but I'm thinking nothing over 1.5 hours or 1500km? Thoughts?

So.. I'm probably going to stay a night or two at each of the destinations, and am hoping to see wonderful places that I normally see on the IFE map!

So far, getting out of Australia is proving a challenge! I figure there's the eastern route (MEL-SYD-BNE-...?) or the central route (MEL-ADL-ASP-DRW).

Join in if you like, have a read if you like, or keep walking if you like!

 

[RooFlyer]

I would have thought 1.5 hours is a bit too great of a restriction. Three hours isn't long haul, and barely medium haul; you can go less than three if it suits on occasion

If you stick to 1.5hrs, your biggest challenge will be getting through the Stans and surrounds. You'll be doing local domestic flights in Pakistan, then across the Stans and Iran, which wouldn't be my cup of tea (flying the domestic airlines there, not the countries).

 

[k_sheep]

With those restrictions pretty sure it'll take more than 3mo too!

Also, will be tremendously expensive ... lots of one way tickets to odd routes.

Visas will become an issue too for many of the countries you'd likely have to transit.

A fun goal though Might be worth starting a google map with pins every 1500km or whatever ... then start to see where the problem spots are, and how to get around them.

 

[Must...Fly!]

Echoing thoughts of others, I'd perhaps either increase the time or just dump the time limit completely. For example it makes getting to CMB difficult. And getting out of the middle east affordably would not be easy either without a longer hop, I don't think. Cool idea though!

 

[TripleB]

As the risk of being booed - if you really want to see places up close have you thought about maybe (ahem) doing some train travel on the way? The Man in Seat Sixty-One - the train travel guide... has some really good info.

Otherwise if you wanted to exclusively fly I echo the comments about the 1500km being overly restrictive once you get to about as far west as Pakistan.

I'd be inclined to let the flights be slightly longer and spend 3 or 4 days on the ground as opposed to shorter flights and just 1 or 2 days on the ground.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

To me, probably the worst thing about flying long haul to Europe is the "long" bit! Next year I'm planning on taking 3 months off work (might be more) and I figure I'm going to fly to Warsaw minus the "long" bit!

I'm not sure exactly what restriction I should put on, but I'm thinking nothing over 1.5 hours or 1500km? Thoughts?

So.. I'm probably going to stay a night or two at each of the destinations, and am hoping to see wonderful places that I normally see on the IFE map!

So far, getting out of Australia is proving a challenge! I figure there's the eastern route (MEL-SYD-BNE-...?) or the central route (MEL-ADL-ASP-DRW).

Join in if you like, have a read if you like, or keep walking if you like!

I think the 1.5 hour / 1500km has to be either/or - 1500km will take monger than 1.5 hours!

Leaving Australia DRW-DPS I guess?

There's a trip report on airliners(.net) by someone who did narrow bodies all the way from Sth Korea to London. I might be possible to break down some of those flights via intermediate ports: Narrowbodies from Korea to the UK, P.5, Astana-Minsk-Gatwick, Belavia Boeing 737-800/Boeing 737-500 - Airliners.net

Alternatively - check out this Imperial Airways map from AU to the UK. That will give you a list of short sectors Airline - Wikipedia Most of it is still possible today, except you might have to swap out Baghdad-Cairo and fly Kuwait-Cairo non stop.

 

[RooFlyer]

Love the 12 sectors BNE-DRW

 

[Catweazle]

Well I'd say doable but yes – what the heck is your budget for this, have you reinvested your mortgage and given up driving?

But hey, hotdamn, I'd love to do something like this if I could.

From Australia to south east Asia it's actually pretty simple but as others have said, 1500kms is just not far enough unless you learn to fly yourself or charter a plane.

Google Flights is useful for charting routes like this. You can head up the East coast of QLD with those QF mail runs that fly into and out of BNE, ROK, GLT, TSV, CNS. Alternatively, take Rex to Mt Isa and back out to CNS again (8 stops, or something to that effect). From CNS it's a little under two hours flying time to Gove/Nhulunbuy from which you can hop to DRW. JQ or some such airline to DPS would still come in at almost 3 hours flight time from there.

Easy hop to Jakarta, then up through Indonesia via Padang to KUL or SIN, followed by Panang (Padang, Panang haha) and BKK. Breathe!

Airport hop across China into the Stans or else via Chiang Mai, Yangon, Dhaka, and across India to New Delhi. Kabul isn't so far away but holy heck, hold on to your hat and don't go without checking the latest government warnings! Then via the Middle East or, if you want to stick to your original concept and still route in under 3hrs: Almaty, Astana, Yekaterinburg, Moscow and onwards to Europe however which way because by then you'd be pretty much home and hosed!

Now do keep us posted, old chap. Looks like quite the adventure!

 

[dajop]

If you apply 1500km, DRW-DIL-DPS gets you out of Australia, and if going via SE Asia/South Asia/Middle East AMD-MCT is another key leg to avoid Pakistan. The rest is easy!

But 1.5 hrs would be tougher to achieve, maybe if you're talking 1.5 hrs take off to landing vs 1.5 hrs schedule (gate to gate time) would be easier.

 

[Virgin Bart]

Hi all! Great last few posts. Just to let you know I have done a total of zero planning so far. I'll keep everyone updated once it starts though! Sorry for the false start.

 

[seanpodge]

The 90 minute rule is too hard (potentially impossible unless Concorde comes back into service), but the 1500 km rule opens things up a bit.

 

[Virgin Bart]

View attachment 124009

The 90 minute rule is too hard (potentially impossible unless Concorde comes back into service), but the 1500 km rule opens things up a bit.

seanpodge, what an amazing effort, thank you!

Everyone's thoughts on a couple of final rule changes:
a) making it Australia to Warsaw (this would save me a lot of money within Australia, and for little benefit since I've visited all the Aussie locations on your map)
b) formalising the 1,500km rule (at the cost of the 90min rule). That still meets my goals of a good experience, good story and new destinations (10 in your itinerary).

 

[seanpodge]

seanpodge, what an amazing effort, thank you!

Everyone's thoughts on a couple of final rule changes:
a) making it Australia to Warsaw (this would save me a lot of money within Australia, and for little benefit since I've visited all the Aussie locations on your map)
b) formalising the 1,500km rule (at the cost of the 90min rule). That still meets my goals of a good experience, good story and new destinations (10 in your itinerary).

No problem.

Once you're over at DIL or indeed anywhere along Indonesia/PNG/East Timor, it's pretty easy to find flights within 1500 km. Main issues are where you want to go and perhaps more pertinent where you want to avoid. Iraq and Syria aren't included in that map for instance. Pakistan was avoided too, although it'd likely be a safer bet than Iraq or Syria.

Visas are another issue too, but for Oz passports, most of the above would be no problem at all. In fact, main issue might be if one wanted to travel to the US after traveling through some ME countries.