Heading4Tassie

56 minutes ago, Greystones said:

HI, can I ask how long they gave you as an extension and when they dated it from?  We are in a similar situation, have the 309 granted and first entry is 12th April 2022, but thinking about applying for extension as it looks volatile in Australia just now with the lockdowns etc and good chance our flights could get bumped!

The extension gives you a year, my initial entry date had passed so I was given a year from the date I applied for the extension. It comes back quickly too very easy to obtain.

6 hours ago, VERYSTORMY said:

Speak to a good pet shipper such as Pet Air

I second this and can thoroughly recommend Petair we just used them to fly our fur kid (not a snub nose breed though) but Annabelle was fantastic. They are very good at putting your mind at rest (well as much as you can relax about your dog flying so far)

There is a 'flying your pets to australia' fb group too if I am allowed to post that info which has other people in the same boat as you @Daveydrz they share good info.

On 03/07/2021 at 00:00, Phil1712 said:

Hi how did your dogs cope with the move?

He is 10 1/2 yrs and quite an anxious rescue dog but he coped admirably. He even had 5 nights boarding after PEQ and then flew pet charter to tassie. He is settling in fine and none the worse for his 3 flights and quarantine. He was perhaps a bit slimmer than when he left home but in very good health and condition. Think I was more anxious about him than anything else but he super happy he is here and has plenty of space now

7 hours ago, Searchingforsun said:

I think the Tas weather will suit us as it won't be too hot but we are of course hoping for a bit more sun and less torrential rain!

It really is a huge move and we have never been to Tas before so we are taking a big risk. 

 

We just arrived in Tassie a few weeks ago from the UK and have found the weather to be great so far for 'winter' we are presently up in Launceston lots of sunny days early morning and nights are chillier. We rented an airbnb for a few weeks then have a short term rental before we decide where to settle.

Tassie is a lovely place and I am sure that you love it here its a risk but hey what's a life without risk but being here finally for us is super. My other half had never been here before we moved permanently with our fur kid as loves it already. We are not sorted for everything yet but am quite chilled about it as its easy to go with the flow and a nice slower pace of life at the moment until we have to start work.

We flew into Sydney and flew business class as was concerned about being bumped plus we matching up with our fur kid flying too. First flight Lon to Doha 58 people on board only 8 in business rest in economy then Doha to Sydney 45 people only 7 in business, a few on the flight to Sydney were diverted from Melbourne. So most people were flying economy class on both flights.

On 23/05/2021 at 07:14, Chris 2020 oz said:

Thats another 250 quid if thats true lol. Tried to call qatar yesterday with no answer

 

We just flew from UK this week with Qatar, got our pcr tests done at Gatwick airport by express test it was only £60 per person there and £80 per person for Heathrow in case that helps at all.

36 minutes ago, Mink75 said:

They said we’d lose over £1000 not including the cost of the quarantine space money. I’m just concerned whether I’ll actually be able to achieve getting my dog into Australia this year either way. Are dogs getting into Australia at the moment at all? 
 

We've been told that the actual  quarantine fee is refundable if you pay and tour pet can't travel. You only have to pay a week before though for flight booking they will generally check to see you have a quarantine place confirmed which means paying before the flight is booked. Hope that helps. We are travelling couple if months time. 

42 minutes ago, bicek said:

We've just had the blood tests come back yesterday for our cat (earlier then expected yay!) so I've uploaded everything last night and hoping we can get an import permit and quarantine space secured for him in the next few weeks 

That's great news then you can start building the rest of your plans around the pet quarantine. It's a good feeling when u can start getting plans in place. 

7 hours ago, Jon the Hat said:

Hi All

Now I have sold the house, flights are booked for mid September, and I am looking at temporary accommodation.  Found a nice unit on AirBnB - but the question is how many weeks to book?  I would rather not have to move around, but don't want to book a month as the flexible booking does away.

We are travelling ex UK end of May and have booked airbnb for 3 weeks (to get the fllexible cancellation policy) We had a credit from last years cancellation to use after that we found a different property and contacted owner directly to get short term rental following the 3 weeks since we have a fur baby and rentals in Tassie are hard to come by. If there is not a huge discount for the month booking you could perhaps  make separate bookings too get the longer stay but flexible conditions?

Some airbnb owners are happy to do a deal direct but its near impossible to get contact info if they only featured on airbnb as they obviously want to protect their bookings and emails and tel nos just get deleted.

5 hours ago, bicek said:

Yes we are using Petair UK. Have you gone through an agent too? 

I have no idea if the wait times have improved or got worse. Around December time they were telling us it could be 6-8 months waiting time on a quarantine place.

Yes we are using pet air they have been very good.

It was definitely a 6 month weight in December as that is when we were able to book in for 4th June arrival for the fur kid

6 minutes ago, bicek said:

How long did it take to actually book a quarantine space once you got the results through? Was it days or weeks?

We waited 4 weeks between the jab and the RNAT test. And they've told us it takes about 4 weeks to get the results back from the lab. So after that we can then submit those documents, but not sure how long it actually takes for that bit, to secure the quarantine space. 

They apply for the import permit first then once they have this then can request quarantine space.  Think it was about 3 weeks in total we needed to get booked in quick as the RNAT was running out in July. Fingers crossed it will be arranged quickly. Are you using an agent? 

6 minutes ago, bicek said:

We are headed to Melbourne but I think we will book to fly to Sydney as well. The caps are more generous there and the accommodation is meant to be really good. And at the moment, feels more certain that international flights will be landing there. And like you say, a few days in Sydney after release from quarantine might be quite nice! I think anything will feel like a holiday after all this covid stuff. I'm also (bizarrely) slightly looking forward to quarantine . Just any change feels exciting! I know, I'll probably regret saying that ha ha. But I will feel a huge sense of relief to get that far, so I doubt I'll be complaining much if/when we make it. 

That's great news that the import/quarantine stuff for pets moves quickly once you get the results through. I am COUNTING THE DAYS until the test results come back. Feel very anxious to speed it along but totally helpless to do anything. I just have to wait, which is excruciating. 

Pretty much our thinking regarding the flights. Initially I did have Melbourne but just got a feeling I should swap to Sydney so I did. Presently not thinking about all the other pieces that need to fall into place at the same time. 

I Know what you mean about any change, just getting out of the house for something other than food shopping will be a joy.  

3 minutes ago, bicek said:

Assuming by your name that you're headed for Tasmania? Will you be flying into Sydney or Melbourne first and then catching a domestic flight after quarantine? Can I ask who you're booked to fly with?

Yep we are flying into Sydney with Qatar then we do quarantine and fly into Tasmania. Looks like we can't fly same day as quarantine release so think we will stay in Sydney for 2 or 3 nights I think. Who knows that may even feel like a holiday

9 minutes ago, bicek said:

Yeah, I think the quarantine space is the issue and not so much the flights for animals. So the quarantine space is what dictates when we can actually get them sent over. Really hoping we can time our flights with our pet closely enough that is reasonable. And that the pet quarantine doesn't hold us up! It is taking forever to sort the initial rabies work - I had no idea you had to wait weeks between each appointment and the results otherwise I would have started the process much sooner!

Oh yeah you have to have that back before you can start the process for booking quarantine. Our dog's rabies runs out in August so we had to push through as didn't want to have to start all over  

Should be about 4 weeks between getting the jab and doing the blood test to confirm immunity. After that it cs move quickly for the actual booking. Good luck it's an added stress with a fur baby to arrange I know. 

8 minutes ago, bicek said:

My current regret is not booking something earlier before Singapore jacked up their prices. Because they also have free unlimited changes for a period of time. It's just not clear when we can get a quarantine space for our cat and we need to time our flights with theirs. 

We were in the same position with our dog in the end when we tried to book in early Dec last year thisJune was the first date for pet quarantine availability so we have worked around that booking. Even though the pet flights don't actually get booked until only 3-4 weeks before travel date. 

14 minutes ago, Jon the Hat said:

I have booked flights.  BLOODY HELL I HAVE BOOKED FLIGHTS!

LHR - DOH - PER.  Jesus.  

Booked.  Wow.

PANIC!

Congratulations the next step is in place feels good to make positive moves forward. The fares are good too. 

27 minutes ago, AliQ said:

We had "14" sleeps in the hotel.

Arrived very late on a Sunday night, allowed out two weeks later on a Sunday morning, after those14 sleeps, so, allowed out on what would be day 15.

Thanks for the reply and the clarification that is what i had thought perfect I can book the onward travel then once I know which airport in tassie the fur kid can fly into.  Its ike a game of chess planning this move but someone keeps on moving my pieces and its not me

On 26/02/2021 at 19:52, PickledRic said:

We booked direct via Etihad Airways and our flights went ahead on Monday 22nd Feb into Sydney. We’re currently in quarantine and will be heading over to QLD when we can.

The flights were great; we had a whole row of seats to ourselves so we could sleep. We flew via Abu Dhabi. No issues at all. Would definitely recommend.

Etihad also offer full refunds/free changes to tickets and you have COVID insurance so if you test positive prior to your flight you can rearrange free of charge. 

Congratulations on making it to Sydney and into Quarantine. We are heading this way to in couple of months just re-booked the flights again with Qatar this time. Can I ask have you been  advised it is 14 nights in quarantine or do you leave on day 14? We are planning to head to tassie straight out of quarantine just not sure what date to book the onward flight if its 14 days so 13 nights or 14 nights.

Hope that quarantine passes quickly for you guys and you get to QLD easily to start your new adventure in Oz

58 minutes ago, SusieRoo said:

Good luck with your move, we hope to be doing the same soon (Melbourne via quarantine in Sydney). Can I ask what it costs the ship your dog with pet air? And will your dog be flying directly to Melbourne?

No direct flight from UK to Mel either via Singapore or Doha at the moment with a stopover of 17-24 hours. Presently these the only airlines flying pets from UK far as I know but things obviously can change at any time.

Prices will depend on size of your dog and package you choose they can easily give you a specific quote. We found pet air competitive and service has been really good too. 

3 hours ago, Eagle2020 said:

Hi who did you use to for pet travel?

 

 

 

We have used pet air for sending our fur kid. 

Hi @Dorsetbrit glad to hear you all arrived and safely tucked up in your quarantine hotel. The false positive on the tests is actually what concerns me the most about the whole process. I did read your post accuratley that your wife had already recived a negative test from the NHS before you had to take the other PCR test. We have just booked flights again for the end of May so fingers crossed we can make it this time (3rd time lucky). We had to wait 6 months to get a quarantine space for our fur baby so he got booked in there first.

We are heading for Sydney initially then onto Tasmania, just trying to work out if quarantine is 14 days from when you arrive (we arrive late afternoon) or 14 nights we need to book the onward flight and want to leave asap after quarantine all being well. Would love to hear from you when you are allowed out as to how many actual nights you stayed for.

Seems like you coping well so far with quarantine and have some lovely suggestions on here for what to do when you get out. We are also in the UK so appreciate how lovely it must be to be able to walk out and go places after quarantine and all of the lockdowns here.

Wish you well with your new adventure in Oz, we know how much it took for you to actually make it onshore.

Thanks for posting this I've watched the first video and will catch up on the others too it's really helpful. 

We are trying to migrate to Tasmania with a fur baby from the UK so it's great for motivation and morale to see others who have been in a similar scenario how it panned out. You have to be determined doing his in a global pandemic, kudos to you guys with a toddler too. 

Thanks for this update @BobPetairUK it is much appreciated we had been planning for March so guess we know that is out for now, better get our skates on we had started the process with petair last year but been delayed what with one thing and many others better move this to the top of the list now. Our fur baby has been one of  the reasons we had been delaying travel as would have had 2 lots of quarantine befrore the tassie border opened up.

I still need to get my travel authorised too as I missed my initial entry date on my 100 visa   Sometimes it feels our dream move keeps moving further away.... will be all the sweeter when we finally arrive.

1 hour ago, Aussiebird said:

How do you contact DHA, do you have the details please? I might have to do the same.

Many thanks.

@Aussiebird you have to contact the department of DHA that issued your visa. I went back through our visa agent Concept Australia the reply came from the permanent partner team which can be contacted on email qld.pp.processing@homeaffairs.gov.au or Ph: 131881 

9 hours ago, Toots said:

I think you are heading for Launceston?  Launceston also had a snowfall.  First proper snow in 50 years.  It was gone by midday.  Photo taken last night. Totally different weather where we live but we are at sea level close to the Bass Strait.

 

 

 

Another lovely pic, bet that was a bit of a shock after 50 years. Yes Toots Launceston will be our starting point been researching lots from here and have visited various areas before but we are still open to where we will end up. We want more rural than city but acess to city for work. At the moment we would take anywhere in Tassie over being stuck here. The North coast looks beautiful and some great rural areas up there too if we could get work we are very open minded.