Why does it sometimes cost more to fly return from Sydney to Dubai than it does to fly from Sydney to London via Dubai? Especially if both trips involve the same airline and even the same aircraft?
I once asked this question of Qantas and was told that it was to do with “capacity”.
I’m not entirely sure what that means, but I guess it’s more efficient to fill the plane up with people who are flying all the way from Sydney to London than to risk having empty seats on the Dubai-London leg.
That doesn’t quite explain why the Dubai passengers are charged more, but I guess that comes under the category of “because we can”.
It’s not unusual to travel further for less money. For example, a return Etihad flight from Munich to Brisbane, with two long stopovers in Abu Dhabi (where I live), cost me about three-quarters of the asking price for a simple Abu Dhabi-Brisbane return.
Why? Presumably because Etihad is by far the predominant player in Abu Dhabi, whereas it faces competition in Europe, so it has to adjust its prices accordingly.
So the tip there is to try to find the airline that’s looking for market share on a particular route and is willing to undercut its competitors to do so. For example, Oman Air and Cathay Pacific are both offering decent fares out of the Middle East at the moment.
In Europe and in Asia, budget and charter airlines are often a good choice. I’ve found Air Asia quite good for flights in and out of Malaysia and Thailand, and despite the negative press they get, I’ve had hassle-free experiences withe EasyJet and RyanAir (although with the latter especially you have to know that the plane will probably land at a minor airport some distance from your intended destination).
In general, the best advice is to keep checking prices for the flight you want to take, and to be willing to be creative about how you get to where you want to go.
