Overview of Airlines Flying from Australia to Bali in 2024

Bali is one of the most popular holiday destinations for Australians, with well over a million Aussies flying there in a typical year. So it’s no surprise that there are tons of flights available to Denpasar from eight different airports across Australia.

In fact, there are currently 221 weekly return flights on eight different airlines from cities across Australia to Bali’s Denpasar Airport. That’s 42 more weekly flights than this time last year, and 47 more weekly flights than before the COVID-19 pandemic.

From June 2024, there will even be a ninth Australian city with direct flights to Bali. Batik Air will launch 3x weekly Canberra-Denpasar flights from 14 June.

This article contains an overview of the airlines flying from Australia to Bali. Find out which aircraft are used, what type of service each airline offers and how to book flights to Bali using frequent flyer points!

Australia to Bali on Jetstar

With 82 return flights to Denpasar’s Ngurah Rai International Airport every week, Jetstar has by far the most flights between Australia and Bali of any airline.

Perth, Darwin and Cairns are served by narrow-body Airbus A320 aircraft with Economy-only seating. Most flights from Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney use Jetstar’s new A321neo LR jets, which are also configured only with Economy seats.

Limited Jetstar flights from Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane to Denpasar are on Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners which feature a small Business Class cabin. However, Jetstar’s Business Class seats are just large recliner seats (and not lie-flat beds). Jetstar is preparing to phase out its use of Boeing 787s on Bali routes later this year, which will result in fewer Business Class seats being available.

As a low-cost carrier, Jetstar often has some of the cheapest flights to Bali. But Jetstar’s base fares only include the seat – baggage, meals, drinks, in-flight entertainment and even seat selection will all cost you extra. You can add a bundle for extra inclusions, including Qantas points & status credits.

Jetstar’s schedules on some routes are also not ideal, with many redeye (overnight) flights.

If you happen to have a Qantas Club membership or hold Qantas Gold, Platinum or Platinum One status, you can enjoy Qantas lounge access when flying Jetstar internationally from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide or Darwin. There is no Qantas lounge access available for Jetstar passengers in Bali.

Booking Jetstar with points:

You can redeem Qantas Frequent Flyer points and Emirates Skywards miles to book Classic Flight Reward seats on Jetstar. As an example, it would cost 19,200 Qantas points + taxes & carrier charges for a round-trip Jetstar flight from Darwin to Bali.

Australia to Bali on Virgin Australia

Virgin Australia currently flies from Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Gold Coast to Bali. However, Virgin’s pre-COVID Port Hedland-Denpasar route has not returned.

All flights are on Boeing 737-800 aircraft with eight domestic-style recliner Business Class seats. In-flight entertainment is available to all passengers for free to stream on their own devices.

If you’re in Economy Class, meals are not included in the fare, but food and drinks are available for purchase. Tea, coffee and water are available for free. You might also wish to pack your own snacks as only a limited number of meals for purchase are loaded onto each flight.

In Business Class, meals and drinks are included.

If you’re in Business Class or have Velocity status, beware that Virgin Australia is not currently offering international lounge access. However, passengers who are normally eligible can access the Virgin Australia domestic lounges in Adelaide, Gold Coast or Melbourne prior to departure from those airports.

Booking Virgin Australia with points:

You can redeem Velocity Frequent Flyer points to book reward seats on Virgin Australia. Subject to reward seat availability, you could also book a seat using points with partner airline frequent flyer programs, including Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles, United MileagePlus miles and Air Canada Aeroplan points.

Australia to Bali on Qantas

Qantas flies daily from both Sydney and Melbourne to Bali.

If you have a choice, it’s much better to fly from Sydney to Bali because Qantas uses a wide-body Airbus A330 on this route with lie-flat Business Class and a more spacious Economy Class cabin. On the Melbourne-Bali route, Qantas uses narrow-body Boeing 737-800 jets featuring recliner Business seats and a more cramped experience in Economy.

Unlike Virgin Australia, Qantas offers full service, including a complimentary checked baggage allowance, meals, drinks (including alcohol) and seat-back in-flight entertainment for all passengers.

If you’re in Business Class, have a Qantas Club membership or hold Qantas Gold, Platinum or Platinum One status, you can also access the lounge before your flight.

Booking Qantas with points:

You can redeem Qantas Frequent Flyer points or miles with any Oneworld or partner frequent flyer program to book Qantas flights. Perhaps of interest is that Melbourne-Denpasar is a sweet spot when redeeming Cathay Asia Miles at just 15,000 Asia Miles one-way in Economy or 33,000 Asia Miles one-way in Business, plus taxes & carrier charges (if you’re lucky enough to find reward availability).

Australia to Bali on Garuda Indonesia

Before the pandemic, Garuda Indonesia offered daily flights from Sydney, Melbourne and Perth to Denpasar. This has now been scaled back to just four weekly flights from Melbourne to Bali and five from Sydney.

That said, Garuda offers a comfortable bed in Business Class between Australia and Indonesia on its Airbus A330-300 aircraft. This is one of the best ways to fly from Australia to Bali in 2024! As a full-service airline, Garuda also includes meals, entertainment and baggage in Economy Class.

Booking Garuda Indonesia with points:

You can redeem points with any SkyTeam frequent flyer program to book a seat on Garuda Indonesia, such as Virgin Atlantic Points, Delta SkyMiles, Flying Blue miles or GarudaMiles. Or, just keep an eye out for a good sale fare.

Australia to Bali on Batik Air & Batik Air Malaysia

Indonesia’s Batik Air (with “ID” flight numbers) offers Boeing 737 flights from Perth, Sydney and Canberra to Bali, with Economy and (recliner) Business Class available.

Batik Air Malaysia (with “OD” flight numbers) also operates its own flights from Perth, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane to Bali. This is technically a different airline and used to be called Malindo Air. These flights all continue onwards from Denpasar to Kuala Lumpur, with the Australia-Indonesia legs sold as fifth-freedom flights. Batik Air Malaysia does not generally offer Business Class to/from Australia.

Batik Air does not partner with any frequent flyer programs of particular interest to Australians.

Australia to Bali on Indonesia AirAsia

Indonesia AirAsia is an ultra-low-cost carrier flying 25 times per week from Perth to Bali using all-Economy Airbus A320s. Like Jetstar, Indonesia AirAsia has very low base fares, and all extras are available for purchase.

In addition to Bali, Indonesia AirAsia flew from Perth to the Indonesian island of Lombok in 2019. However, this route has not returned since the pandemic.

Booking AirAsia flights with points:

You can redeem airasia rewards points (formerly BIG Loyalty points) for AirAsia flights. It is possible to transfer points from CommBank Awards into airasia rewards, although we wouldn’t necessarily recommend doing this. The airfares are usually cheap enough that you’re probably better off saving your points for another reward!

Australia to Bali on Citilink

Citilink, a low-cost carrier owned by Garuda Indonesia, flies daily from Perth to Denpasar. These services are on Airbus A320s with Economy Class only.

There is no practical way to book Citilink flights using frequent flyer points earned in Australia, but the airfares are usually fairly cheap to begin with.

Matt Graham

The editor of Australian Frequent Flyer, Matt's passion for travel has taken him to over 90 countries… with the help of frequent flyer points, of course!
Matt's favourite destinations (so far) are Germany, Brazil & Kazakhstan. His interests include aviation, economics & foreign languages, and he has a soft spot for good food and red wine.

You can connect with Matt by posting on the Australian Frequent Flyer community forum and tagging @AFF Editor.