Flights to Asia from east coast US

About to book Bali to Osaka cruise in Feb. 2015. Suggestions to get to Jakarta and Bali for pre-cruise on our own? What entry city would you use for this journey?What airline (economy or economy plus is the reality NOT business)?

Thanks -- looking for suggestions and appreciate your thoughts.

I would start by working backwards from Jakarta back to your origin. Find preferred carriers who service Jakarta then see what their routings would be. I do know that KLM services Jakarta, so you could fly to AMS then on to Indonesia. Going by way of the Pacific actually could be more inconvenient.

None of the major USA carriers serves Jakarta - you'll need to eventually fly a European or Asian carrier for the final (or more) into Jakarta.

I would start by working backwards from Jakarta back to your origin. Find preferred carriers who service Jakarta then see what their routings would be. I do know that KLM services Jakarta, so you could fly to AMS then on to Indonesia. Going by way of the Pacific actually could be more inconvenient.

 

None of the major USA carriers serves Jakarta - you'll need to eventually fly a European or Asian carrier for the final (or more) into Jakarta.

To expand on what Flyertalker said prior to that statement and as an example, Delta and KLM are partners so you could fly Delta for the domestic portion. This would take you from your originating city through either Atlanta or New York (or possibly Detroit) on Delta, then you'd end up on either a Delta or a KLM flight from there to Amsterdam and KLM the rest of the way to Jakarta. All on one ticket though, just using partner airlines.

Denpasar - DPS - the airport serving Bali, is a major international airport, with service from numerous Asian cities including Hong Kong, Tokyo, Bangkok, Singapore... and of course it's on a different island from Jakarta.

I'd set up a simple open-jaw itinerary, WAS-DPS//TYO-WAS (returning from Tokyo.) Easy peasy.

Sorry....missed the part of it being Bali (DPS) to Osaka (KIX). Got focused on Jakarta since you mentioned it.

You can get surprisingly cheap pricing on KLM for a hop between SIN and DPS. You might just want to make the major ticket USA-SIN and KIX-USA. Then get a cheap one-way on KL from SIN to DPS. Would give you a stopover in SIN, and a lower cost than USA-DPS, which can be relatively expensive.

Lots of options....what are your priorities? Do you want a stopover along the way to DPS? Airline alliances for mileage earning? Only you can know what's most important.

Thanks for the suggestions. There are so many good options and the trip is not to that place where we have answers to what is most important except of course getting to the cruise on time! If I do an open jaw, LAX to Tokyo (where lots of flights land in Asia), then Jakarta flight how long could we stay in Tokyo as a stopover. I am of an age where the body needs a stop to catch up with the jet lag -- thus I dislike the idea of arriving NRT waiting 2 hours or more for another major flight (7 hours). Not so much sightseeing but resting and getting ready for rest of trip. I also often have separate ticket BWI to LAX if I get a good price and that allows for family visit so that is another break. In Asia, one way flights NRT to Jakarta then another flight from Jakarta to Bali might be our choice. Are there lower cost airlines in Asia that are good choices?

Thanks for the suggestions. There are so many good options and the trip is not to that place where we have answers to what is most important except of course getting to the cruise on time! If I do an open jaw, LAX to Tokyo (where lots of flights land in Asia), then Jakarta flight how long could we stay in Tokyo as a stopover. I am of an age where the body needs a stop to catch up with the jet lag -- thus I dislike the idea of arriving NRT waiting 2 hours or more for another major flight (7 hours). Not so much sightseeing but resting and getting ready for rest of trip. I also often have separate ticket BWI to LAX if I get a good price and that allows for family visit so that is another break. In Asia, one way flights NRT to Jakarta then another flight from Jakarta to Bali might be our choice. Are there lower cost airlines in Asia that are good choices?

You should familiarize yourself with ITA, the "gold standard" in searching airfare and schedule options - http://matrix.itasoftware.com/

You can't buy tickets through ITA, but it's a very powerful search engine that lets you do a lot of "what if" planning so you can see your options. Once you see a fare on ITA that you like, you can usually book it with the first airline you see on the itinerary, or go to some online travel agency like Expedia or Orbitz, and come up with the same fare. ITA is the "engine" behind several popular websites such as Kayak.

Buying a round trip ticket to Tokyo then a one-way ticket to Indonesia might be a fairly economical way to go. Make sure you give yourself plenty of time in Japan, since the onward ticket's airline won't care if you miss the flight because the incoming flight was late.

Don't underestimate the distances within Asia. Tokyo to Jakarta is farther than New York to London.

I am finding out the distances! I have plenty of time especially in the front and so might just do a stop in Tokyo for pure rest in a hotel. Then onward to Singapore since we want a couple of days there seeing the things that a shore excursion just hinted at (we were extreme herding mode that day!:( ) then on to Jakarta (because we have things to see there temples and Java Man) and on to Bali where we catch the cruise but I have to have a few days on those beautiful beaches! Homeward bound have to decide Tokyo to LAX or Osaga. Would like to ride the fast train and DH wants to see Mt. Fuji.

I just love this stage of the trip -- all is possible/not too hot or tiring/ not too expensive/ all is possible. Reality sets in when you start flapping the credit card down. :D Thanks for the patience and help. Dreaming on.

Always check your options on ITA Matrix!

You are talking about going to Singapore. Singapore Airlines flies both to DPS and KIX (Osaka), as well as CGK (Jakarta), is a good and reputatable carrier, and often has special fares with stopovers in Singapore.

Recently, of course, Malaysian airlines has had some negative publicity. They fly to CGK, DPS and KIX from Kuala Lumpur (KUL). We were actually more impressed with MH than SQ last time we flew with them.

Another really good option is flying with Middle Eastern carriers. Often cheaper or same price as other legacy airlines, but better seating and service. Emirates is a good example, they fly to SIN, CGK and KIX from Dubai, but not to DPS. Some Arab airlines do not serve alcohol.

The question was: low cost airlines. A low cost Asian airline is Air Asia. They fly from Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and SIN to Osaka, Denpasar, and Jakarta. You will have to buy a separate ticket to get to these gateways from the US. A low cost carrier has the down side that the sticker price might be cheap, but you have to pay extra for everything (luggage, meals, etc) and that they do not have agreements with other airlines should you get stuck somewhere. Please note that low cost airlines often departs from domestic or low cost airports, in Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok there are 2 airports, and do you really want the taxi ride through town, etc?

Another really good option is flying with Middle Eastern carriers. Often cheaper or same price as other legacy airlines, but better seating ... Emirates is a good example ...

Try Star Alliance. You could certainly do UA to Osaka. To get to Bali also via Japan on ANA. Or you could do ANA the whole journey since they fly out of IAD.

CX do it one stop in HKG each direction

Working it on out! Too early for the domestic flight to LAX on Southwest but regularly go BWI to LAX for $150 each way. Then open jaw LAX to NRT 2 day stopover. NRT to SIN 2 day stopover SIN to Yogyakarta (we really want to be in JOG rather than Jakarta for temples/crafts) 3 day stop then still to pick up a flight (40 mins?) from JOG to DPS. At end of the cruise fly NRT to LAX and this is quoted at $1,159.40 on ITA. The cruise air for the LAX to DPS then KIX to LAX was quoted at $3,320 in economy. This is why I really like to do my own air. I get it the way I want it and usually cheaper. All flights are Singapore Air with no special fares -- The flight to JOG (Yogyakarta) is Silk Air. This trip I JOG and KIX too -- maybe I will loose some weight.

This is why I really like to do my own air. I get it the way I want it and usually cheaper.

:D Please scream that all over this board loud and clear everytime somebody post here "cruiseair is a great idea, because it is so cheap and they are going to give me a perfect itinerary" :D