Cant say it is Christmas price this time Qantas!

[Pushka]

$700 for a return economy flight Adelaide to Melbourne in February. It isn't Christmas, it isn't Easter, it isn't School Holidays but it IS too damn expensive!

 

[amaroo]

Don't book it:!:

 

[djfuzz]

I've found fares in Feb as low as $230 return - can you be a little more specific with dates and times? There are plenty of other reasons why the cheaper fares on any particular date might be sold out already.

 

[anat0l]

A quick scan of the dates in February show ADL-MEL r/t Red e-Deals giving at most about $350. Most flights are going at $112 or $139 one way. A few select days are out of Red e-Deals and cheapest is Flexi Saver at $229.

Where are you getting $700 ($350 each way) from? I can only get that at the Red e-Deal level if I select the indirect options.

 

[yo yo ma]

Don't book it:!:

True... It's all about supply and demand.

 

[Pushka]

They are both 7pm flights - the timings that Business people have to take. Same flights a couple of weeks ago cost around $350 total. :evil:

We have to book, our client is interstate!

 

[kezsco]

I bought my fares SYD to ADL for this Thursday. Cost approx $550 per person. For one meeting. Crazy, but Adelaide business is going from strength to strength.

 

[Robert K]

Skype them ?

 

[anat0l]

They are both 7pm flights - the timings that Business people have to take. Same flights a couple of weeks ago cost around $350 total. :evil:

We have to book, our client is interstate!

Well, as they say, you missed out. Especially since you are trying to travel in the most wanted times. I'm sure the schlub who ended up booking those $350 worth of flights is going, "Woo! Lucky I got these - they were the last ones! Feel sorry for the next schlub who wants the same flights..."



Needless to say I've booked plenty of flights at typical business people travel times and gotten the best Red e-Deals, but this has only happened in advance (months, not days or even weeks sometimes!) And these are in the golden triangle...

 

[Pushka]

Well, as they say, you missed out. Especially since you are trying to travel in the most wanted times. I'm sure the schlub who ended up booking those $350 worth of flights is going, "Woo! Lucky I got these - they were the last ones! Feel sorry for the next schlub who wants the same flights..."

Needless to say I've booked plenty of flights at typical business people travel times and gotten the best Red e-Deals, but this has only happened in advance (months, not days or even weeks sometimes!) And these are in the golden triangle...

And we were also able to get good prices all throughout last year, until October, when the prices went through the roof (when they were flying, that is!) Then the availability of cheaper fares disappeared, but it was said to be due to Christmas. But it seems that the availability of discount flights throughout all time periods, (and not just the quiet times,) has disappeared this year.

It would be a fascinating statistic to see the proportion (or availability) of discount flights this year compared with last year.

 

[anat0l]

And we were also able to get good prices all throughout last year, until October, when the prices went through the roof (when they were flying, that is!) Then the availability of cheaper fares disappeared, but it was said to be due to Christmas. But it seems that the availability of discount flights throughout all time periods, (and not just the quiet times,) has disappeared this year.

It would be a fascinating statistic to see the proportion (or availability) of discount flights this year compared with last year.

Don't know what your experiences have been like, but for me I always book when the sales are on for the periods that I want to travel.

At short notice, I can only hope for good Red e-Deals. Sometimes I'm lucky, sometimes not. When I'm not, it's time to consider an ASA instead. But I don't expect there to be good Red e-Deals all the time.

Also, I've always kept in mind that the cheapest fares are during sales. Outside of sales, even for the same bucket the said prices may not exist.

Of course, non-sale prices have just risen according to the last press release by QF. (Not to the extent you describe - these are the base Red e-Deals that you can't find / are already gone).

And once again, you are referring to specific times of the day that you want to fly. Although some days continue not to surprise (Fridays and Sundays come to mind, but other specific day/time combinations are notable), in the time period which you flagged in the topic, there are several options at "reasonable" price levels, but they are just not the time of the day that you want.


Personally, I don't know why ADL-MEL is so popular. It seems to out-class ADL-SYD in terms of traffic. Next to the golden triangle, CBR political travel and trans-continental, ADL-MEL seems high on the traffic list.

 

[nlagalle]

And we were also able to get good prices all throughout last year, until October, when the prices went through the roof (when they were flying, that is!) Then the availability of cheaper fares disappeared, but it was said to be due to Christmas. But it seems that the availability of discount flights throughout all time periods, (and not just the quiet times,) has disappeared this year.

It would be a fascinating statistic to see the proportion (or availability) of discount flights this year compared with last year.

I'm guessing the rate of domestic travel has increased. I've seen my flights from syd average between 280-380 on a Friday night.. That's booking less than 2 weeks out though.

On the other hand I've seen cheap flights, about $112 on the off peak times.

 

[medhead]

Interesting thread. My experience in 2012 has been that qantas is the cheapest option by a fair bit. Having said that I've booked my Feb flights in December and booked my march flights during the last sale. If I was going to complain it would be about an airline with a lead in fare of $119 on my preferred route but my preferred flight is $145 all the way until October.

As for the OP firstly the client is ultimately paying for the flight. Secondly if you want cheap flight you really need to book in advance.


Sent from the Throne (80% chance) using Aust Freq Fly app

 

[yo yo ma]

Same flights a couple of weeks ago cost around $350 total. :evil:

Unfortunately that's how it is with airfares; they adjust with supply and demand.

Some examples: I booked a JQ $49 fare MCY-SYD a few months ago for travel next week - that same flight today is $179. OTOH, my last family trip to the USA was booked in Jan 2011 for travel in October 11. I used points but if I paid cash it would have been just under $11k at the time of booking. Two weeks prior to departure the cost was under $7k (for 5 people in Y).

As these examples show, you can be lucky or unlucky with fares - next time you need to have certain flights, it might be better to book early (if your business allows you the flexibility.)

 

[anat0l]

The other alternative is to book at the Flexi Saver level.

In this case, the fares would be a lot more consistent (you'd have a better chance finding a low-bucket Flexi Saver on any given day than not. It's not guaranteed that way, but it's a much better odds than banking on Red e-Deals.)

The problem is that there is a premium to be had for such flexibility. Might be too hard a sell to the client.

 

[ric_melb]

I have always found Adelaide/Melbourne flights to be very full on Qantas.
Now looks as if demand is well and truly exceeding supply.
Anything cheaper available on Virgin?

 

[markis10]

The other alternative is to book at the Flexi Saver level.

In this case, the fares would be a lot more consistent (you'd have a better chance finding a low-bucket Flexi Saver on any given day than not. It's not guaranteed that way, but it's a much better odds than banking on Red e-Deals.)

The problem is that there is a premium to be had for such flexibility. Might be too hard a sell to the client.

Flexible savers still require fare difference to be paid when changing, that can be a lot even at the fare buckets they book into.

 

[travelislife]

I do find a lot of people connecting to OLP on the ones I am on, but that could purely be that time of day.

 

[11sjw]

Bill the client for the flights.

 

[amaroo]

This is a little like saying that unleaded was X last month now it's Y - life is full of fluctuating pricing