Well, it seems August is a huge month in the world of
travel. Almost every special offer, competition and bonus points promotion finishes on
August 31 - so make sure you are clued up on where to spend your hard-earned dollars to
get the most out of them. Impulse have made a splash in the airfare world by cutting their
Melbourne - Sydney fares to just $66 - find out more in our Airfare Lowdown. We also have
a quick wrap-up of whats been in the media recently in terms of travel. For your
briefing, read Travel in the Media.
And when you have collected all your points, dont
forget to visit www.pocketmiles.com to see how
you can use your Palm Pilot to manage those valuable points!
If you are travelling with a laptop computer, but only plan
to use it in hotel rooms or near a power source, you can remove the battery to reduce your
baggage load significantly.
If you are travelling with overseas with children, you may
worry about what happens if they get lost. Before you go, visit a hospital and ask them to
give you some of the hospital bracelets you wear when youre admitted. Write all of
your details on a piece of paper, and put it in the hospital bracelet. That way, if your
children ever get lost, they can just show the bracelet with all of your contact details
on them.
You may not be able to access your Australian voicemail from
overseas - telephones in different countries have different touch-tones. Make sure you
have a back-up before you leave.
Be sure to remove all of your old travel tickets from your
suitcases before you check in your luggage - not all airlines take them off for you. This
is one (of many) reasons for your luggage not ending up at the same destination as you!
If you are staying in hotel rooms, carry safety pins with
you - they are great for keeping hotel curtains closed (and keeping street lights out).
With the introduction of new airlines this year, the GST and ACCC reviews into rewards
programs, there has been a heavy media interest in the travel industry. Here is a round-up
of whats been happening in the last month:
Ansett is providing Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane domestic
flyers with a new technology from next month - E-check in. By entering their Global
Reward, Golden Wing or major credit card into the E-check in machine, flyers will be able
to check in in an estimated 20 seconds - with or without baggage.
From November, Qantas will be offering 3 non-stop services a
day from Sydney to Los Angeles.
Virgin Blue was due to launch on August 3rd, but the launch
has been delayed, as Virgin Blue has failed to meet its licensing requirements.
Impulse Airlines offered consumers a discount if they booked
their airfares online at www.impulseairlines.com.au. Qantas and Ansett quickly matched the
price, and as of August 7, Ansett offered a $56 flight between Melbourne and Sydney.
Amazing to see what a little competition does!
CASA is employing 12 new staff to scrutinise the major
players in Australias domestic and international airline market. These staff are
experts in flying operations, airworthiness and cabin safety as well as being aviation
engineers.
Qantas has two more European destinations as of September 1,
due to its code-sharing alliance with British Airways. These flights will be between
London and Dusseldorf, and London and Munich. As a result, Qantas now will service five
German destinations from September.
Ansett has teamed up with Telstra to offer its customers the
latest in WAP technology. These WAP displays include flight departure and arrival times
(including gate number information and flight status), schedules for Ansett and Star
Alliance, and Global Rewards points balances. Once you have checked your points balance,
you can find out how far you can go by visiting www.frequentflyer.com.au and clicking on
Ansett Destinations.
Last month The Australian Frequent Flyer launched the latest
in rewards programs and Palm Pilot technology. PocketMiles (www.pocketmiles.com) has just been
awarded a five star rating from tucows.
Qantas added three return flights between Canberra and
Brisbane from July 17th, in order to more fully service the Canberra regions needs.
With Impulse Airlines announcing their $66 Melbourne-Sydney offer, all the other
airlines are starting to follow. Some fares are changing literally as I type (just heard
that Ansett have dropped their Melbourne to Sydney fare to an amazing $56!), so be sure to
check the airlines website's for the latest offerings - as well as those terms and
conditions.
Ansett
Melbourne to Sydney $56 one-way Ansett changed their prices
on August 7, to undercut the new player in the market - Impulse Airlines. As of time of
publication these new fares were not posted on the Ansett web site, but if you go to
www.ansett.com.au, you can see the latest updates
Qantas
Melbourne to Sydney - $66 one-way $132 return. You must
travel by August 31. You must pay at same time you make the booking, and the tickets are
non-refundable, non-changeable, non-transferable. Qantas are yet to match the new Ansett
fare.
Canberra to Sydney $66 one-way $132 return You must travel
by August 31. You must pay at same time you make the booking, and the tickets are
non-refundable, non-changeable, non-transferable.
Perth to Melbourne $653 one-way $556.60 return This is a
NightOwl fare - you must book and pay at least 2 weeks in advance. You also have to travel
on evening flight, which means after 7pm.
Brisbane to Melbourne $220 one-way $440 return You must book
and pay 14 days in advance. There are no time restrictions on this flight.
Impulse
Melbourne - Sydney - $66
Canberra to Sydney - $66
Sydney to Armidale, Tamworth and Port Macquarie - $66
Newcastle to Brisbane - $66
Newcastle to Melbourne - $99 via Sydney
Regional airfares have been cut by up to 80%
Must book online at www.impulseairlines.com.au, and travel
before August 31. Fares are non-refundable, non-transferable, and non-changeable. Fares
are also limited, so get in quick! Impulse expects to fill 15% of its seats with these
special offers, and therefore push their aeroplane seats over the 50% full
mark.
By booking a flight online (perhaps your $56 flight!) before
August 31, you can earn 250 bonus Global Rewards points.
Until November 30, earn a whopping 3,000 Global Rewards
points by joining E*Trade Australia for free! You will need to enter the E*Trade site by
using the buttons at http://www.etaus.etrade.com.au/alliances/ansett.asp. Note that you
will need to transfer $1000 into a share trading account to join. However, there is
nothing stopping you from re-transfering your funds back to your banking account as soon
as you have been awarded the points!!
Medibank Private and Global Rewards are offering 2000 Global
Rewards bonus points by signing up to pay your PackagePLUS premiums by direct debit before
30 September 2000. Existing members of Medibank Private call 132 331. New members call
1800 188 188, or visit http://www.medibank.com.au/
Qantas Frequent Flyers
Qantas oneworld alliances huge offer of 100,000
bonus points is still up and running - but only until August 31. You could earn up to
100,000 points by flying with any oneworld alliance partners to three or more of these
continents:
- Europe and the Middle East;
- Africa, including Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Sudan and Tunisia;
- Asia including the Indian subcontinent;
- Australia and the South Pacific including New Zealand and Papua New Guinea;
- North America including Canada, the US, the Caribbean and Mexico; and
- Central and South America.
The rules are: 1. You have to fly to at least three
continents to commence collecting bonus points; 2. Each continent can only be counted
once. 3 continents - 5,000 bonus points 4 continents - 15,000 bonus points 5 continents -
50,000 bonus points 6 continents - 100,000 bonus points.
Qantas also has a great competition this month. If you make
an online Award flight booking before August 31 (a big date in this months Gazette
it seems ), you will go in the draw to win $10,000 worth of Qantas airfares!
There are no enormous bonus points giveaways this month, but
some new offers include Shells 10 point giveaways if you buy 2 x 50g packets of
Samboys, 2 x 600ml Coke, or a 1 litre bottle of Shell Helix Mulitgrade, and get 200 points
by buying a 4 litre bottle of Shell Helix Standard.
Gifts To Go still have their 500 Bonus points for every
order over $100 before September 30. To see more, go to www.giftstogo.com.au.
You have received this newsletter because you registered with The Australian Frequent
Flyer.
The Australian Frequent Flyer is independently owned and is not affiliated with Ansett,
Qantas or Fly Buys. While every effort has been made to ensure accurate information in
this newsletter, it should be regarded as a guide only. You are advised to confirm all
details before making any travel arrangements.
All information published in The Australian Frequent Flyer Gazette has been made
available for public use. This information is freely available and subject to change
without notice.