booking great flight deals...

[travelwith4kids]

Hi everyone.

We (well just me really) have been continuing with our trip plans but I'm feeling a bit lost with our flights. I dont think I am being proactive enough in researching and organising them so fear the good specials will come and go and I wont even know about them

With 4 kids getting a good deal is very important and we would hope to be able to fly the 6 of us to LAX (return) for $7000. Unreasonable?

We are looking at 10/09/15- 10/10/15 but am lost at when would be the best time to buy them? Whether we should book through a travel agent? or if we should be checking out travel expos etc.
I signed up for a few email flight alerts but they always seem to give me the same costly amount and when I look it up myself it is different. Suggestions on good price alerts or best place to look for specials?

Also before kids we just flew with whoever but having the usual parent anxieties I am thinking maybe just virgin or qantas. Or does anyone have any other faves? Although cost is of course crucial we would like decent entertainment so that the parents with 4 kids dont go insane!

So please, if you have any help, suggestions, thoughts or even just your own opinion let me know. Its the first time we have taken our kids overseas so would like to be organised!
TIA

 

[minneylovesmicky]

hi, we booked our holiday in Feb 2015 in May this yr, so 10 months out, we booked through our local travel agent. The release a few weeks ago of early bird prices with QANTAS, showed that i was right to book them when i did, as the prices i got in May were $400 cheaper than the "early bird" prices for the same time of yr, also if we had left it till last month to book, the accommodation was dearer as well, as they had a price increase in June/July, so savings there too.


I would book as soon as you can afford too, as it gets it done and out of the way, prices will go up and down, try to look for a time frame out of school holidays if you can, as they are often cheaper. We originally looked to go over to LA from SYD in Jan 2015, price for flights was almost double what we got for Feb 2015. so if you can play around with dates, do it


I know QANTAS has loads of movies and TV shows on their entertainment systems, not sure of what your kids are into, so not sure if they would suit. Those magnetic travel games, books, sketch pads/pencils, Ipad/Ipods would keep them occupied.

hope that helps some what

 

[aussie shaz]

Our trip in May 2013 cost us $4400 for 3A1C, so I think it should still be doable. We flew Virgin and were very happy with them. I think you should stay with someone who flys direct, unless you want a few nights stopover either way. I think United now have entertainment, so I would consider them. Maybe Hawaiian if you don't mind a stopover.

 

[travelwith4kids]

Thanks for your replies!

Our dates so far would be leaving 1.5 weeks before our sept school hols and coming home a bit less then a week after they finish... do you think this makes our flights more expensive, having our hols whilst we are away? Or is it only if we fly during our school breaks? We would rather not take our kids form school for the whole month if we dont have to and also DH is a school teacher so it means less of his leave.

I wen to a TA a couple of weeks ago and she told me to come back in a month lol so obviously I am too early but I do have the money sitting there for when/if there are cheap flights.

We will be flying out from Brisbane and as its an early morning flight it will mean we fly all day (awake kids) and arrive first thing in the LA morning (cranky kids who would need to stay awake all day, totally wouldnt happen!) so I thought if we could manage to get a stop in Sydney on the way out that would be way better even though we would have to be at Syd airport for a few hrs. It would have us leaving in the afternoon so hopefully the kids would then get a handful of hrs sleep before landing. I think it will be worth it for us to try work it out that way, they will be miserable otherwise!

Thanks for the tips on keeping them busy. I thought I would wrap up some small gifts that will keep them busy/entertained for some of the flight.

 

[minneylovesmicky]

Thanks for your replies!

Our dates so far would be leaving 1.5 weeks before our sept school hols and coming home a bit less then a week after they finish... do you think this makes our flights more expensive, having our hols whilst we are away?

When i booked our trip it was a massive difference in price from leaving Syd on the 31/1 to leaving on the 1/2, we went with the 1/2 as it was much lower, so i am guessing it would be the same for the Sept school holidays.

 

[ozliz]

In my experience the biggest impact on the flight price is the date you depart Australia and sometimes leaving one day later can result in both your flights going up significantly if it puts you into a higher season. Have a good look at prices for different dates to see if there are any season changes but honestly $7000 sounds fine for that many people (I have no idea about kids prices though).

Sorry I don't know when the sale fares come out for that time of year. Usually avoiding the actual school holidays does help with prices though. Also consider what you are willing to pay more for, I have travelled enough to know that saving $100 on a ticket is not always worth it if the flight times and connections are terrible. With kids you might want to consider what will make them least irritable vs total savings given the number of tickets you are buying.

 

[LivingforDisney]

I have flown to L.A twice on Virgin, twice in Sept.
Both times we left a week before the holidays started and were away for about 3 weeks.
I suggest you look every day on VA website, as the flight prices seem to chop & change daily.
2010 I logged on & got flights for $880 return (adult) kids were 3/4 of that I think.
Last year kids were adult fares, we flew again 8 days before hols started and came back Sat before they went back to school on the Monday.
We stayed in L.A , NY, Orlando & then L.A again for a night on way home.
Flights were with VA & Delta & cost $1453 each.
Don't know why , but I have been lucky with Sept flights.

 

[LivingforDisney]

I just looked at Virgin website, the flight from Brisbane leaves around the same time as the one from Sydney , they both get in early am to L.A.
Doesn't make any sense to fly to Sydney & wait around the airport, just go on 10.50am from Brisbane , direct.
Because the flights from Bris fly to Syd so that you can either catch the VA or Delta flight , Delta gets in 8am & Virgin around 6.55am.
Unless you fly Qantas, not sure what time they leave & arrive.

 

[mum2fourkids]

Hi OP, I am in Brisbane and I also have 4 kids.

We traveled to LA earlier this year and I managed to get airfares for the 6 of us for just under $6500. 2 of my children are classed as adults by the airlines, so 4A2C. We flew with air NZ. left bris at lunch time. Had a stop over in NZ from 3:30-7:30 (qld time) then arrived in LA at 2:30pm their time. We found the stopover worked well as the kids stayed awake for the 3 hr flight to NZ, then they had a few hours to eat and run around at the airport. As we boarded the long haul flight at 7:30 pm qld time it was close to their normal bedtime so about an hour after takeoff they crashed and slept most the way. We arrived in LA at 2:30, arrived in anaheim around 5:30. We then searched for some dinner and soon enough it was bedtime.

Actually really liked air NZ and will happily fly with them again. The kids loved having their own 'tv' to pick whatever they wanted to watch.

We are also looking at travelling next September, but to Orlando this time, so I am also on the lookout for cheap flights.

 

[travelwith4kids]

LivingForDisney, I thought I saw some afternoon flights from Sydney, wouldnt be worth it for an hr or 2, your right!

mum2fourkids, your flights sound like what we need to do! I just really dont want to arrive in LA and they havent slept at all. It would be a nightmare. Although stopovers are usually a pain it will be better then wrecking the first day or 2 of our trip with cranky kids! Thanks for your suggestion, will look into Air new zealand. Good luck with your flights! If you come across great deals for LAX let me know!
The lunch Brissy flight would be better too as we in Ballina so wouldnt be such a mad rush to get up there!

 

[beejai]

Definitely if you leave even a few days before the school holidays airfares will be cheaper.
We travelled with 2 kids from Brisbane on qantas, both our kids slept on the flight, they were 4 and a half ,and 12.
We booked our accommodation from the night before so we could check in when we arrived.

 

[LivingforDisney]

Virgin and Delta code share.
Virgin leaves around 11.30am and Delta a couple of hours later. From Sydney.
They have changed it around, because both times I flew Virgin left in the afternoon.
Myself I would prefer the earlier flight, as I can't sleep on planes anyhow.
You could try Qantas, but I always found they were more expensive for my dates anyhow.
Our first time we flew Air New Zealand as my friend from the Gold Coast was coming with us. She flew from Brisbane and we met up in Auckland.
Air NZ were wonderful, especially with kids. I would fly with them again, but it was a very, very, long trip, if you add it altogether with getting to the airport, the check in, security process, then waiting around in Auckland it is a long day, before you even start the leg to L.A
My kids said please don't go that way again lol.
Another thing they have changed their baggage allowance, you can only check one bag, where the others allow 2.
Something to take into consideration.
VA were great must add.

 

[Babysaurs]

Hi we are planning a sept 20 to oct 12th trip next year and I remember there being flight specials out surround New Years last year with Anz. Then 2a 2c was $4k so that's what I'm hoping for this year coming from Adelaide we don't get a direct flight so if anz are cheaper we will go with them most likely

 

[travelwith4kids]

Thanks for the info and personal experiences! Just what I needed to hear to get myself organising!!

 

[meagus]

Hi OP, I am in Brisbane and I also have 4 kids.

We traveled to LA earlier this year and I managed to get airfares for the 6 of us for just under $6500. 2 of my children are classed as adults by the airlines, so 4A2C. We flew with air NZ. left bris at lunch time. Had a stop over in NZ from 3:30-7:30 (qld time) then arrived in LA at 2:30pm their time. We found the stopover worked well as the kids stayed awake for the 3 hr flight to NZ, then they had a few hours to eat and run around at the airport. As we boarded the long haul flight at 7:30 pm qld time it was close to their normal bedtime so about an hour after takeoff they crashed and slept most the way. We arrived in LA at 2:30, arrived in anaheim around 5:30. We then searched for some dinner and soon enough it was bedtime.

Actually really liked air NZ and will happily fly with them again. The kids loved having their own 'tv' to pick whatever they wanted to watch.

We are also looking at travelling next September, but to Orlando this time, so I am also on the lookout for cheap flights.

Couldn't agree more!
We arrived back in Melbourne yesterday after our two week trip to LA, flying with air NZ, and they were fabulous! Our kids are 7,5 and 2 and they all slept for most of the flights, and used their personal screens on their seats to watch what they wanted or play games to keep themselves entertained. They kids meals were great too! (My hubby and I were eying them off!!). We too had a quick stop in Auckland there and back, but that really suited us and the flying times they offered.

We were told when booking (which was in October last year), to wait til flight centre have their "world expo" in January/February to get the best prices. We ended up booking a week before that when air nz released flights for about $1180 per adult, so for the five of us, the flights were about $4500 I think. We stayed at the Howard Johnson too......it was awesome!

 

[marvel]

Personally we found qantas to be worth the extra $100 or so per person which it sometimes is over virgin. Found virgin seats very uncomfortable and the qantas a380 a cut above generally . Also like the qantas lounges, the virgin terminal in LA is embarrassingly horrible for any length of time .

 

[dabecs]

We are in Orlando at the moment

Our last trip (2012) we flew Qantas and this trip United - we found them very comparable in terms of service, entertainment and food. United have seat back screens now so they have caught up with the other airlines!

United only give you one checked bag though which may be a problem for some...

Hopefully our return flight is as good as the one over here

Once you find a price you are happy with and book a flight stop looking! It can be so hard to see great deals come out once you have booked!

 

[zanzibar138]

Honestly with 4 young kids, I'd try to go direct. I don't think it will make that much difference in the end. Young kids tend to sleep on long flights anyway, even if it's during the day. Travel really takes it out of them. Adding a layover makes it a really long and tiring process, and they are just as likely to be more grumpy having to wait around for the next flight (obviously all this depends on each individual child of course, just been my experience from observing how kids behave).

Whichever way you go, they will be exhausted that first day, just from the combination of long flights, waiting around, over-excitement, and jetlag. If you arrive first thing in the morning, I would check straight into your hotel and allow everyone to have a short nap if they need it (keep it to 2 hours or less). It might still be a hard day, but it will get you through til bed time which will get you straight into the new time zone.

If you are considering adding a layover, I recommend looking at Fiji Airways. They seem to be one of the cheaper airlines, but their planes are pretty new and the staff seemed to be really good with the kids on my flights. They include on-demand entertainment too. Fiji airport is not much fun to hang around though - it's pretty basic. Otherwise as others have mentioned Air New Zealand seems pretty good (although I haven't actually flown with them yet).

 

[lffam]

We are in Orlando at the moment


Once you find a price you are happy with and book a flight stop looking! It can be so hard to see great deals come out once you have booked!

thats good advice! yes it can sting a little, but in the end you have your flights locked in and can focus on either organising other things or just raising the excitement level till take off!

 

[travelwith4kids]

I went to a TA today, just to get a quote and ask a few questions. If they can match the online sale prices we will probably book flights through them? but I think we will be best off booking everything ourselves, will see what they come back with. She said that the best time for us to book will be Dec/Jan and if not there will be expo specials in Feb. I cant wait to have the flights booked! It will make all this seem real instead of a dream!!

If we fly direct through the day the girls might nap for an hour or 2 at best
We are going to try to get a flight that will have us arriving into LA after lunch, I REALLY want them to sleep for as much as possible. As much as I am deliriously excited for this trip I am starting to fret a little about the flight. I dont love flying at the best of times- and to add 4 young kids to the mix- starting to think I might be in a little bit of denial