Qantas and Virgin slash fares, increase reward seats in an effort to fill aircraft
In an encouraging sign for travellers, competition is heating up between Qantas and Virgin Australia, with both launching fare discounts and reward seats.
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In an encouraging sign for travellers, Qantas and Virgin Australia are both rolling out special deals in the form of discounts and reward seats.
Qantas has launched a 72-hour sale across a million domestic seats, with fares as low as $109 for Sydney to Ballina, or 6400 points — plus $45 in taxes.
Other offers include: Brisbane to Sydney for $129 or 7200 points; Melbourne to Sydney for $139 or 8400 points; and, Brisbane to Melbourne for $155 or 10,100 points and $54 in taxes.
Perth-Sydney fares have dropped as low as $299 one way and Canberra-Melbourne seats are going for $159 or 8400 points; Adelaide-Melbourne has been slashed to $149 and Hobart-Sydney to $139.
The one-way fares are available for travel from March 1 to April 3, April 29 to June 26 and July 22 to September 18.
It comes after scorching criticism of skyrocketing domestic fares over the summer holiday period in the absence of competitors Rex and Bonza, both of which collapsed in 2024.
Not to be outdone, Virgin Australia has tripled the number of reward seats on offer on new international flights operated by Qatar Airways from Sydney, Brisbane and Perth to Doha.
Popular QSuites in the business class cabin can be booked for 89,500 Velocity points plus $247 in taxes and $742 in carrier charges. Economy seats are available for redemption for 42,000 points plus $247 in taxes and $194 in carrier charges.
Qatar Airways’ Boeing 777 aircraft will be used on the new flights due to start in June, providing the deal gets final approval from the consumer watchdog and Foreign Investment Review Board.
Velocity chief executive Nick Rohrlach said the tripling of reward seats available to members, meant international travel was more accessible than ever.
“Whether it’s a bucket-list trip to Europe or a dream holiday in the Middle East, there’s never been a better time to be a Velocity frequent flyer,” said Mr Rohrlach.
“We know this is a big investment Virgin Australia is making to support its new flights for the European summer. We also know this will drive greater member engagement with our program and for our partners which is the key to continued growth and success of our Velocity program.”
Europe is expected to see even stronger numbers of Australian visitors during the northern summer, as a result of the tragic Los Angeles wildfires in the US.
Data from ForwardKeys.com, which analyses forward airline bookings across the world, showed since the wildfires began on January 7 demand for LA has slowed significantly.
“Domestic tickets issued for future travel are currently down 35 per cent compared with the same period the previous year, while international bookings have decreased by 23 per cent,” said a statement from marketing officer Marta Laporta Molina.
“Within the US the largest origin market, New York City, has seen a 57 per cent drop off in tickets issued. From Australia, there has been a 17 per cent fall in tickets to LA, and an 18 per cent decline from Japan.”
Ms Molina said first quarter travel was the most impacted travel period, followed by summer bookings, which were down 20 per cent.
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