Of the the airline companies offering cheap flights from Coolangatta airport (OOL) – Airnorth, Pacific Blue, Jetstar, Tiger, Virgin Australia and AirAsia – AirAsia certainly has captured the overseas market and represents the largest number of incoming and outgoing flights from that airport. The AirAsia flight experience is certainly budget, the savings are good, but the greatest advantage is the number of overseas destinations it makes available from the Gold Coast.
Air Asia Offers Cheap Flights to South East Asia and Europe
Air Asia uses Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia as its hub. In itself, this bustling, modern city, with its gigantic Petronas Twin Towers and the 421 metre Menara Tower, is a great tourist destination, but the Malaysian carrier (owned by entrepreneur Tony Fernandes) Air Asia has many connecting flights from that hub; it is possible to access numerous South East Asian, Indian, Chinese and Japanese destinations … and even to travel to Europe and Britain – flying into Paris or London.
South East Asian cities accessible via the KL hub (usually without a stopover) include Bali, Jakarta, Singapore, Penang, Langkawi, Phuket, Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Siam Reap Phnom Penh, Teipei and Seoul.
Budget Flights from Australia to India, China and Japan
AirAsia flies to the following cities in China: Macau, Chengdu, Shanzha, Guangzhou, Hangzhai and Hong Kong. In India, it services such fabulous places as Chennai, Bangalore, Mumbai and Delhi. It also flies to Osaka and Tokyo in Japan, where cheap flights from either centre (by different carriers) can take the budget traveller across to the United States (or vice versa).
Ludicrously Cheap Flights to Europe
By flying to Kuala Lumpur and staying over, it is possible to fly AirAsia KL to Paris for only $216 -$322 AUD (plus the cabin cost of some extras like meals and luggage allowance amounting to approximately $75. These figures are for March 2012, booked in December 2011 – obviously prices will be much higher for shorter booking periods and prime travel dates. Nevertheless, on these genuine figures, obtained by using the website to make a booking for this period, it would be possible for an Australian to fly from Gold Coast to Paris by AirAsia for $667 AUD, plus the cost of a cheap hotel in KL.
The Budget Airline Experience with AirAsia
The AirAsia slogan is ‘Now Everyone Can Fly’. Undoubtedly, the company has brought the cost of air travel down, but at some cost to amenities. For example, on the 10-hour Gold Coast to Kuala Lumpur flight the traveller must buy meals from the menu or go hungry. The long flight is made without benefit of seat-back or cabin TV or DVDs. The flyer may rent a hand-held DVD player with a limited number of DVDs available. Seating will seem cramped for larger passengers. If the traveller is aware of these facts, and factors them in to the decision to go budget, then well and good. It is also essential to cost out all the additional add-ons and make a price comparison with the convenience of flying with a non-budget operator.
The budget-conscious Queensland traveller may find that the slight inconvenience of flying from Gold Coast airport, a small but excellent regional airport, and the slightly less amenable in-flight conditions of AirAsia is still worth the significant savings over travel with regular operators.
