Japan’s borders are open and flights are back – could the land of the cherry blossom be your next destination to book with points?
Qantas has resumed flights between Brisbane and Tokyo, meaning Australian-based travellers have yet another way to travel to Japan.
The welcomed revival of the Red Roo’s Brisbane to Tokyo service comes just in time for the Japanese ski season, which runs from December to April or March.
Whether hitting the slopes is your cup of tea or not, Japan has established itself as an increasingly popular tourist destination, with pre-pandemic tourism figures topping almost 32 million foreign visitors in 2019. Here’s what to know about the reinstated Brisbane-Tokyo service.
Brisbane-Tokyo: The service
Flying Qantas from Brisbane to Tokyo could be an appealing option for business travellers, with 28 lie-flat business suites onboard the Airbus A330 making for a pleasant inflight experience.
Operating three times a week, the Brisbane-Tokyo QF61 service will depart Brisbane every Monday, Thursday and Saturday morning at 11.50am, reaching Tokyo Haneda at 8pm.
As for the return leg, passengers will fly out of Tokyo on QF62 at 9.30pm and arrive in Brisbane at 7.35am the next morning (those lie-flat business suites could make for a full night’s sleep on the flight home!)
Frequent Flyers will also be pleased to learn that the service will use Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, which is situated much closer to the city than Narita Airport.
What about Virgin Australia flights?
As the world welcomes the lifting of travel restrictions in Japan, we can expect to see demand for flights increase over the coming months.
So far Virgin Australia is yet to launch its own Brisbane-Tokyo flights, but we’ll be sure to report the commencement of any Australia-Japan services. Watch this space.
Summary
Back in October we saw Qantas announce two Points Planes between Sydney and Tokyo (Haneda) to celebrate Japan’s reopening.
The recommencement of the Brisbane-Tokyo service joins the national carrier’s seven times weekly Sydney-Tokyo service and comes just before the awaited return of its Melbourne-Tokyo route in March 2023.
In just a few month’s time, travellers on Australia’s East Coast will be able to take advantage of countless flights to the land of the cherry blossom.
Have you got your sights set on a Japan trip this holiday season?
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