Low oil prices mean there’s never been a better time to fly away

Planning a trip to New York or London? You should be because airfares have hit a 20-year low as oil prices tumble.

 

Planning a trip to New York or London? Tourism executives reckon there are a swag of ­reduced airfares available as oil prices drop, airlines face heavy competition, and demand for travel softens as the federal elect­ion looms.

But most of the deals are on foreign carriers, with the cost of Qantas flights rising 7 per cent last year and Virgin Australia fares up 12 per cent, according to a new Australian Aviation and Airfare Analysis report.

Webjet managing director John Guscic said international airfares were phenomenally cheap. “We are seeing prices across the board that are 10 per cent cheaper than last year, and last year was 5 per cent cheaper than the year before.”

Mr Guscic reckons airfares are at 20-year lows, particularly flights from New Zealand to Los Angeles.

“You can get to the City of ­Angels from the City of Sails for $800 economy return on the American and New Zealand carriers,’’ he said.

“Fares are so cheap because the collapsed oil price has triggered a reduction in the operating costs of all the airlines and they are passing it through to the consumers.”

Helloworld product manager Jason Strong has scores of red-hot long-haul deals.

“It’s really about the oil prices, but travel can lull in the lead-up to an election … discretionary spend in the lead-up to an elect­ion is ­always cautionary,” Mr Strong said.

Helloworld has Melbourne to Los Angeles return economy fares from $945 on Air New Zealand, on sale until June 16, and from July 5 to September 21.

Sydney to New York fares start from $919 a person on American Airlines from October 10 to Novembe­r 26; while Perth to Dublin on Etihad Airways are a low $1312 from September 27 if booked by May 7.

“It’s a combination of a lot of extra carriers competing and fuel prices down significantly,” Mr Strong said.

Flight Centre said competition was driving the low prices.

“Seventy years ago the average fare from Australia to London cost the equivalent of 85 weeks’ work, or $130,000; now it costs less than one week’s work,” executive Haydn Long said. Flight Centre has fares to London on Vietnam Airlines starting from $1079 economy return.

“We have a $999 return flight to New York; it’s the cheapest I can remember,’’ Mr Long said.

“It’s cheaper than the Sydney to Los Angeles fare.

He said there had been some “softness” on the London, New York and Los Angeles routes.

Meanwhile, the analysis ­report produced by Flight Centre and CAPA reveals the Adelaide to Sydney and Canberra to Sydney routes attracted the highest fare increases last year, particularly in business class.

“As a result of the significant competitive tension in the market­place over the previous five years, the passenger exper­ience has continued to improve,” ­the report said.