HAL Air to Australia??

[shoppern]

Has anyone had HAL book their flight to Australia? I'm thinking of an air-inclusive cruise, but would like to hear of your experiences--it's such a VERY long flight{s}. Is the bargain worth it?:confused:

[ninkb]

DH and I had no trouble on the air HAL booked for us on our cruise . . . BUT . . . we were traveling with his sister and her husband . . . in January. They had a flight from Pittsburgh thru Chicago to LA. We were to meet them in LA.

Thanks to snow, the flight to LA was too late for them to make the connection for Sydney. HAL tried to reroute them through Auckland, but that wouldn't get them to Sidney in time for the precruise flight to Cairns.

HAL was also of no help to us while we were in Sidney wondering where the rest of our family was. Fortunately, we were able to connect with our daughter who got on the phone to the airline and helped us to find the lost travelers. It turned out well, but we learned a valuable lesson.

We learned about consolidator tickets and making our own schedule. If you don't know about consolidator tickets go to the Cruise Air threads and read the sticky.

For me, particularly when flights can be delayed because of winter storms or lava ash or WHATEVER, I want extra time built into my flight schedule. Unless Holland America allows you to select your flight schedule, I would not recommend cruise air.

[Rutland Gate]

Consolidators are the best bet. They have offers which make Business Class more affordable, and with a 19 hour flight that's very important. We've been to Australia and New Zealand twice, and you will enjoy both, I'm sure