Stopovers

[FirstWorldProblems]

Mulling over flying from the UK to visit the family in Sydney for 3 weeks over Christmas and New Year (and to activate my visa).  Business Class is eye wateringly expensive and I'm too old to do economy.  Not much premium economy availability and having done it before a few time, it doesn't feel like great value.

So we are now pondering going economy, but spending 48 hours each way enjoying a stopover somewhere.   Any recommendations?   5 of us, youngest kid will be 16.

Edited July 14, 2023 by FirstWorldProblems

[Toots]

I suppose it depends who you fly with.  A lot of people have a stopover in Dubai.  Personally, I don't like the place but Kuala Lumpur, Singapore (my favourite) and Bangkok are interesting.

[InnerVoice]

4 hours ago, FirstWorldProblems said:

Mulling over flying from the UK to visit the family in Sydney for 3 weeks over Christmas and New Year (and to activate my visa).  Business Class is eye wateringly expensive and I'm too old to do economy.  Not much premium economy availability and having done it before a few time, it doesn't feel like great value.

So we are now pondering going economy, but spending 48 hours each way enjoying a stopover somewhere.   Any recommendations?   5 of us, youngest kid will be 16.

Too old to do economy?? I thought you ran marathons and stuff?!

Based on personal experience I'd say that Singapore was the best stopover, and if you haven't done it before then there's loads to see and do. You could easily spend a couple of days there, or may be a day on the way there and one on the way back. KL is pretty average to be honest, and I've never found any cheap flights via Bangkok which I imagine is down to it being a very popular destination. It is a great place to spend a couple of days though.

The cheapest flights seem to be via China these days, so Shanghai or Peking could also make pretty good stopovers (although I haven't been myself).

[Marisawright]

4 hours ago, FirstWorldProblems said:

Mulling over flying from the UK to visit the family in Sydney for 3 weeks over Christmas and New Year (and to activate my visa).  Business Class is eye wateringly expensive and I'm too old to do economy.  Not much premium economy availability and having done it before a few time, it doesn't feel like great value.

So we are now pondering going economy, but spending 48 hours each way enjoying a stopover somewhere.   Any recommendations?   5 of us, youngest kid will be 16.

The choice will be made by which carrier you use.  I know people who have enjoyed a stopover in Dubai or Qatar (you can do things like camel rides under the stars but otherwise it's mainly shopping, I think).  I'd think Singapore or Bangkok would have more of interest, but the weather would be challenging in December.  

Having said that, the idea of such a long stopover doesn't particularly appeal to me.  I would go for a 12-hour stopover in Singapore and splash out on one of the luxury hotels in or near the airport, with a nice swimming pool, spa and restaurant. If the hotel isn't enough to keep the kids occupied, the airport is a resort in itself.

[ramot]

Ive spent a lot of time in both Dubai and Singapore.

The temperature  in Dubai will be lovely in December/January,  google the best attractions, but 

4 hours ago, FirstWorldProblems said:

Mulling over flying from the UK to visit the family in Sydney for 3 weeks over Christmas and New Year (and to activate my visa).  Business Class is eye wateringly expensive and I'm too old to do economy.  Not much premium economy availability and having done it before a few time, it doesn't feel like great value.

So we are now pondering going economy, but spending 48 hours each way enjoying a stopover somewhere.   Any recommendations?   5 of us, youngest kid will be 16.

Ive spent a lot of time in both Dubai and Singapore, and suggest you google the best attractions there, as i am a bit out of date 

Singapores public transport is excellent, Dubai relies mainly on taxis.

Hotels are mainly very very good in both places, and both airports have airside hotel rooms, but are ok for a quick sleep/stopover, but aren’t like a real hotel

The weather will be lovely in Dubai, in December/January, great for swimming and there is indoor skiing/snowboarding  in one of the enormous malls, or going out on a desert safari, are definite attractions, and Emirates sometimes offer 1 nights free accommodation. 

The weather will be hot and humid in Singapore, but there is so much to do there, again best google the best activities, night safari at the zoo, adventure water park, bird paradise, Singapore flyer,.

Kuala Lumpur, from only a few visits would be my least choice,, ok zoo, again use google 

All places great to visit, and very different to each other, enjoy whichever you choose.

Edited July 14, 2023 by ramot

[rammygirl]

Singapore is my favourite loads to do and see and easy to get around. Dubai would be second and Bangkok third. I do like KL but probably not as much fun for the teens. 
Economy isn’t so bad these days, I’m in my 60s and would rather spend the extra on a nice hotel!  Although extra legroom seats can be worth a bit extra. 

[InnerVoice]

5 hours ago, rammygirl said:

Singapore is my favourite loads to do and see and easy to get around. Dubai would be second and Bangkok third. I do like KL but probably not as much fun for the teens. 
Economy isn’t so bad these days, I’m in my 60s and would rather spend the extra on a nice hotel!  Although extra legroom seats can be worth a bit extra. 

I'm 6'4", so if there's an option to buy extra legroom seats that's where my money goes!

[Toots]

1 hour ago, InnerVoice said:

I'm 6'4", so if there's an option to buy extra legroom seats that's where my money goes!

I'm a foot shorter than you and I would love to have extra legroom.  Did manage to a couple of times  ................  one of those seats near the exit door.  Made such a difference on a 24 hour flight.

[InnerVoice]

31 minutes ago, Toots said:

I'm a foot shorter than you and I would love to have extra legroom.  Did manage to a couple of times  ................  one of those seats near the exit door.  Made such a difference on a 24 hour flight.

It used to be that only the budget airlines (AirAsia, Scoot, etc) allowed you to book the extra legroom seats, but now they've all jumped on the bandwagon. Last time I flew back to the UK I went with Royal Brunei and they asked me at the check-in if wanted to upgrade on the London - Brunei leg for £35, so that was a no brainer. It's usually a lot more than that though, and I try to arrive at the airport when check-in opens as you can sometimes snag one for free depending on the airline.

[FirstWorldProblems]

8 hours ago, Toots said:

I suppose it depends who you fly with.  A lot of people have a stopover in Dubai.  Personally, I don't like the place but Kuala Lumpur, Singapore (my favourite) and Bangkok are interesting.

Cool. I’ll check out the flight options thank you.  We really like Singapore. It’s the only place we’ve ever stopped over and we’ve done it 4 or 5 times. Always happy to go back but it is nice to try somewhere different.   Quick hotel search there last night was over £1k for 2 nights (2 rooms).  Expensive world these days……

[FirstWorldProblems]

8 hours ago, InnerVoice said:

Too old to do economy?? I thought you ran marathons and stuff?!

Based on personal experience I'd say that Singapore was the best stopover, and if you haven't done it before then there's loads to see and do. You could easily spend a couple of days there, or may be a day on the way there and one on the way back. KL is pretty average to be honest, and I've never found any cheap flights via Bangkok which I imagine is down to it being a very popular destination. It is a great place to spend a couple of days though.

The cheapest flights seem to be via China these days, so Shanghai or Peking could also make pretty good stopovers (although I haven't been myself).

Ok fine. Not too old to do economy. Just too grumpy to be so uncomfortable.   I was actually supposed to be trail racing today at the Long Mynd.  It’s lashing down over there so I’m staying in bed instead!

 

I am definitely keen to visit China.  Wife not so much and the  economy class reviews for those airlines aren’t great.  Air China has business at £21,250 for the 5 of us…….it was <£11,00  when we booked for April 2020 (cancelled due to Covid)

I’ll look into Bangkok- thanks, 

[FirstWorldProblems]

7 hours ago, ramot said:

Ive spent a lot of time in both Dubai and Singapore.

The temperature  in Dubai will be lovely in December/January,  google the best attractions, but 

Ive spent a lot of time in both Dubai and Singapore, and suggest you google the best attractions there, as i am a bit out of date 

Singapores public transport is excellent, Dubai relies mainly on taxis.

Hotels are mainly very very good in both places, and both airports have airside hotel rooms, but are ok for a quick sleep/stopover, but aren’t like a real hotel

The weather will be lovely in Dubai, in December/January, great for swimming and there is indoor skiing/snowboarding  in one of the enormous malls, or going out on a desert safari, are definite attractions, and Emirates sometimes offer 1 nights free accommodation. 

The weather will be hot and humid in Singapore, but there is so much to do there, again best google the best activities, night safari at the zoo, adventure water park, bird paradise, Singapore flyer,.

Kuala Lumpur, from only a few visits would be my least choice,, ok zoo, again use google 

All places great to visit, and very different to each other, enjoy whichever you choose.

Thank you. I will do some research today. 

[ramot]

3 hours ago, InnerVoice said:

It used to be that only the budget airlines (AirAsia, Scoot, etc) allowed you to book the extra legroom seats, but now they've all jumped on the bandwagon. Last time I flew back to the UK I went with Royal Brunei and they asked me at the check-in if wanted to upgrade on the London - Brunei leg for £35, so that was a no brainer. It's usually a lot more than that though, and I try to arrive at the airport when check-in opens as you can sometimes snag one for free depending on the airline.

RBA is not  a bad airline, Brunei is a dry country and  it’s a dry airline, you used to be able to take your own alcohol on board, but it was confiscated in Brunei, when flying from Australia, while in transit for onward UK flight, and same on return. Don’t know the recent rules on this.

If you are visiting Brunei you can take a fairly generous alcohol allowance into the country. It’s an interesting country to visit, and the Empire Hotel is stunning, but there isn’t a lot to do there. It’s a very short flight to Kota Kinabalu Sabah,which has great hotels, not a dry country, you can see Orangutans in the wild, or visit Sandakan on the other side of the island visit the Sepilot orangutan Sanctuary, Weston Probiscus monkey river trip, or a magic overnight trip to Turtle Island.

. Brunei and Sabah will take more than a couple of days to add onto your Sydney visit, so probably not a practical add on, but Borneo is a fascinating country to visit. It was home for me for 10 years.

My godmother, who was a real character, took two small water bottles, that she had emptied and filled with vodka and gin with her, when she flew back to Scotland, this was years ago, and she  had no problem taking them on board!! 

[Nemesis]

5 hours ago, FirstWorldProblems said:

Ok fine. Not too old to do economy. Just too grumpy to be so uncomfortable.   I was actually supposed to be trail racing today at the Long Mynd.  It’s lashing down over there so I’m staying in bed instead!

 

I am definitely keen to visit China.  Wife not so much and the  economy class reviews for those airlines aren’t great.  Air China has business at £21,250 for the 5 of us…….it was <£11,00  when we booked for April 2020 (cancelled due to Covid)

I’ll look into Bangkok- thanks, 

Got an Aussie friend who booked a 3 week trip to China, flew in to Shanghai on Air China in January 2020, said it was a great airline, very friendly, same at the airport, very helpful, put him on a train to a place called Wuhan where he needed to change trains. He got off in Wuhan to find himself escorted to a hotel by armed guards & there he stayed till late April

[InnerVoice]

11 hours ago, ramot said:

RBA is not  a bad airline, Brunei is a dry country and  it’s a dry airline, you used to be able to take your own alcohol on board, but it was confiscated in Brunei, when flying from Australia, while in transit for onward UK flight, and same on return. Don’t know the recent rules on this.

If you are visiting Brunei you can take a fairly generous alcohol allowance into the country. It’s an interesting country to visit, and the Empire Hotel is stunning, but there isn’t a lot to do there. It’s a very short flight to Kota Kinabalu Sabah,which has great hotels, not a dry country, you can see Orangutans in the wild, or visit Sandakan on the other side of the island visit the Sepilot orangutan Sanctuary, Weston Probiscus monkey river trip, or a magic overnight trip to Turtle Island.

. Brunei and Sabah will take more than a couple of days to add onto your Sydney visit, so probably not a practical add on, but Borneo is a fascinating country to visit. It was home for me for 10 years.

My godmother, who was a real character, took two small water bottles, that she had emptied and filled with vodka and gin with her, when she flew back to Scotland, this was years ago, and she  had no problem taking them on board!! 

I didn't realize RBA were a dry airline until we were in the air and they brought the first meal, which was rather disappointing at the time. On the return journey I bought a bottle of red in Heathrow airport and we drank that on that flight, as it recall it took off around 6pm. It worked out pretty well as we had some nice wine to share, and didn't need to wait for the flight attendant to come around and top us up. We didn't both on the Brunei to Brisbane flight as it was a daytime flight. We had a 4-5 hour stopover in Brunei, which was long enough to go and do a city tour, and it was nice to go outside and stretch our legs.

[Blue Flu]

20 hours ago, FirstWorldProblems said:

Ok fine. Not too old to do economy. Just too grumpy to be so uncomfortable.   I was actually supposed to be trail racing today at the Long Mynd.  It’s lashing down over there so I’m staying in bed instead!

 

I am definitely keen to visit China.  Wife not so much and the  economy class reviews for those airlines aren’t great.  Air China has business at £21,250 for the 5 of us…….it was <£11,00  when we booked for April 2020 (cancelled due to Covid)

I’ll look into Bangkok- thanks, 

Only thing with Bangkok being the terrible traffic. You would need possibly more than one night to make it worth while. But depends on time of arrival and departure as well. Nothing wrong with KL. Not as 'sterile' as Singapore , but the latter could serve better for the ease and plenty to do if on a first visit. Both KL and Singapore have great bird parks. Singapore is not cheap anymore though with prices matching Australia. I agree with another poster, flying into Brunei and visiting Sarawak or Sabah for the national parks is a great way to cut the trip and pass a few days. 

 

[Toots]

1 hour ago, Blue Flu said:

Only thing with Bangkok being the terrible traffic. You would need possibly more than one night to make it worth while. But depends on time of arrival and departure as well. Nothing wrong with KL. Not as 'sterile' as Singapore , but the latter could serve better for the ease and plenty to do if on a first visit. Both KL and Singapore have great bird parks. Singapore is not cheap anymore though with prices matching Australia. I agree with another poster, flying into Brunei and visiting Sarawak or Sabah for the national parks is a great way to cut the trip and pass a few days. 

 

Yes, the traffic is horrendous in Bangkok but the Skytrain and MRT are a great way to travel around the city.  Easy to negotiate and cheap.  We used to stay in the Sukhumvit area and the Skytrain stations there are numerous.

 

[Toots]

My brother was one of the engineers when Skytrain was built.

Skytrain andn MRT map.  https://travelhappy.info/bangkok-bts-and-mrt-map/

Skytrain

 

[FirstWorldProblems]

Thanks everyone. Really appreciate the insights. 
 

Based on these and on flight availability/affordability, I’m honing in on Singapore on the way out and Hong Kong on the way back. Couple nights each. 
 

Still hard to get my head around just how much flights cost these days.  The change is staggering.
 

  >£3k pp economy if you want to go 1 stop and <24hr door to door.  Non refundable. That used to be £1,100
 

2 stop and >30hrs is £2k refundable or £3k premium economy. 

[InnerVoice]

20 minutes ago, FirstWorldProblems said:

Thanks everyone. Really appreciate the insights. 
 

Based on these and on flight availability/affordability, I’m honing in on Singapore on the way out and Hong Kong on the way back. Couple nights each. 
 

Still hard to get my head around just how much flights cost these days.  The change is staggering.
 

  >£3k pp economy if you want to go 1 stop and <24hr door to door.  Non refundable. That used to be £1,100
 

2 stop and >30hrs is £2k refundable or £3k premium economy. 

Someone was commenting on Facebook just the other day how much it was to fly back to the UK. I was surprised by the figures quoted, but then it's always been more expensive to fly from Australia to the UK than vice versa. They're saying the main reason is due to high demand as everyone returns to the skies after pandemic, and also the increased cost of salaries.

[Blue Flu]

16 hours ago, FirstWorldProblems said:

Thanks everyone. Really appreciate the insights. 
 

Based on these and on flight availability/affordability, I’m honing in on Singapore on the way out and Hong Kong on the way back. Couple nights each. 
 

Still hard to get my head around just how much flights cost these days.  The change is staggering.
 

  >£3k pp economy if you want to go 1 stop and <24hr door to door.  Non refundable. That used to be £1,100
 

2 stop and >30hrs is £2k refundable or £3k premium economy. 

My understanding is that prices should come down next year with far more availability of flights. Time will of course confirm that. 

[JMcKie]

Regarding the cost of flights as you're looking to fly over in the Aussie summer the prices will reflect this. Me and my partner are flying back to the UK next month for a few weeks with a 3 day stop over in Singapore on the way back which cost us around $4.5k for economy with extra legroom on all flights. So, you can get some reasonably priced flights depending on the time of year.

Edited July 17, 2023 by JMcKie
grammar

[pob]

Why not try Bangkok?

Take the family to Thai boxing one evening, it's great fun!

The next night book a nice restaurant and go to a fancy bar.

I like to wander the markets during the day.

[FirstWorldProblems]

4 minutes ago, pob said:

Why not try Bangkok?

Take the family to Thai boxing one evening, it's great fun!

The next night book a nice restaurant and go to a fancy bar.

I like to wander the markets during the day.

great idea - son and I both used to do Thai Boxing.  I stopped not long after receiving a TKO from a 20-something in the first round.....put me in my place!

[Tychen]

On 15/07/2023 at 17:09, FirstWorldProblems said:

I am definitely keen to visit China.  Wife not so much and the  economy class reviews for those airlines aren’t great.  Air China has business at £21,250 for the 5 of us…….it was <£11,00  when we booked for April 2020 (cancelled due to Covid)

I’ll look into Bangkok- thanks, 

I've done long stopovers in Shanghai both via China Eastern and via a Qantas/BA connection - you arrive and depart from Pudong Airport, and it was relatively easy to get to Pudong's financial district from there, where you can find Western standard toilets (v important to know where these are when travelling in China), cafes, restaurants etc, and from there you are only a ferry or cab ride away from the old European bits and the old Chinese city across the river. You can stay at quite nice hotels in Shanghai for fairly cheap. China Eastern can be v cheap, and definitely towards the budget end of full service, but it was bearable other than the food, which was terrible. Pack your own sandwich.

Another one I've done is Tokyo. This was when international flights only flew into Narita, I think you might be able to arrive and depart from Haneda now (or a mix of the two). Haneda airport is much closer to town. You can easily stay in say Minato or Akasaka or Odaiba and get quite a bit of sightseeing done in 48 hours.

Hong Kong used to be a comparable option to Singapore, but obviously a lot grimmer now.

On an Emirates/Qantas combination you can do one stopover in Asia, then break up the long second flight further with a stop in Dubai - and it would probably be cheaper than Qantas/BA the whole way.