We're seeing a huge nationwide sale to Australia today with fares in the $600s and $700s from nearly every airport in the US. Fares to Australia have come down overall this year, and although we've seen a few flash sales with better prices from major hubs, this is a widespread sale that covers many smaller airports.
United has the most availability for these fares, but you'll also find flights on Delta, American, and partners Qantas and Virgin Australia in some markets.
Related: 6 Countries Where Flights Will Be Cheaper in 2019
Travel Availability
Departures from the USA are available from late April through early December. If you want to stay down under for an extended period over the winter holidays, these fares also work if you depart in early December and return mid-January through the end of the booking schedule.
Outbound travel is blacked out in late July and most of October; Inbound travel is blacked out in late June, late December, and early January.
Travel is valid on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.
Sale Period
This sale is unadvertised and fares may jump at any moment.
Sample Fares
Los Angeles to Melbourne $608 roundtrip, nonstop
Los Angeles to Sydney $620 roundtrip, nonstop
Dallas to Sydney $634 roundtrip
Los Angeles to Brisbane $648 roundtrip
Orange County to Sydney $679 roundtrip
Houston to Sydney $714 roundtrip, nonstop
San Francisco to Sydney $714 roundtrip, nonstop
Newark to Melbourne $716 roundtrip
Cleveland to Melbourne $716 roundtrip
Los Angeles to Adelaide $719 roundtrip
Boston to Melbourne $721 roundtrip
Ft. Lauderdale to Melbourne $721 roundtrip
Duluth to Melbourne $721 roundtrip
Grand Rapids to Melbourne $721 roundtrip
New York to Sydney $728 roundtrip
Chicago to Sydney $728 roundtrip
Nashville to Sydney $728 roundtrip
Austin to Sydney $728 roundtrip
Columbus to Sydney $728 roundtrip
Kansas City to Sydney $728 roundtrip
Albuquerque to Sydney $728 roundtrip
Buffalo to Sydney $733 roundtrip
Charleston to Sydney $733 roundtrip
Asheville to Sydney $733 roundtrip
Helena to Sydney $733 roundtrip
Key West to Sydney $733 roundtrip
This is nowhere near a complete list. Nearly every airport in the U.S. has flights to Sydney (SYD) or Melbourne (MEL) in the low $700s for travel during the months listed above. Some notable exceptions are major Delta and American hub cities but surrounding airports may be included.
Check flights from your city even if it's not listed here. Other cities in Australia may have lower fares than normal as well.
Baggage
These fares include a carry-on bag, a personal item, and two free checked bags.
Seat Assignments
Advanced seat assignments are included.
Alternate Fares
Booking on some third-party sites may bring these fares down even lower. A few routes from Los Angeles (LAX), San Francisco (SFO), and Honolulu (HNL) have lower fares on Fiji Airways or Jetstar. The Fiji Airways flights can work out to be a great 2-for-1 deal if you also want to see Fiji. The same can be said if you want to combine a cheap flight to Hawaii with Jetstar's $408 roundtrip fare from Hawaii to Sydney for August/early September travel.
Example Booking
As an example, I found seats departing Buffalo BUF on Tuesday, December 10, returning from Sydney SYD on Thursday, December 26, for $733 roundtrip. That sounds like a perfect time to escape the cold in Buffalo and spend Christmas down under.
