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First time long haul back to SYD - morning or night arrival

Sydney, Australia
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4 posts
38 reviews
32 helpful votes
First time long haul back to SYD - morning or night arrival
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Hello, just seeking advice for first time long haul return back to SYD - either a morning or evening arrival

We will be departing from London (LHR) after EU holiday & will have spent 6 days in LHR prior to going home.

We are looking at two options with preferred EK:

Depart LHR 1415

Arrive SYD 2205

Pros: LHR - Check out of hotel & go directly to airport. SYD - Arrive late night & can go to bed (as best as possible due to jetlag)

Cons: Final day in LHR wont offer any extra time to get out & about if needed

Depart LHR 2215

Arrive SYD 0605

Pros: LHR - Get a few extra hours in London if needed

Cons: LHR - may be 'kill time' waiting for flight after hotel checkout & need a hotel that can keep our bags. SYD - have to say awake all day fighting jetlag

I appreciate everyone is different but not sure how some first timers found either option (ie morning/night arrival into SYD) & what works best for you now? I know in flight sleep (how much/lack of) would be a factor. We are leaning towards bus class but that wont necessarily guarantee a good sleep (but will be a good start).

Many thanks !

Sydney/Melbourne
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18,156 posts
83 reviews
84 helpful votes
1. Re: First time long haul back to SYD - morning or night arrival
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I'd personally take the late arrival in Sydney -for all the reasons you mentioned.

I generally find that my last day in any country is a bit of a waste - again for the reasons you mentioned.

A 10 pm departure means needing to store luggage or going back to the hotel if they are storing it, needing to find somewhere to get cleaned up after a day in the city before getting on the flight, worrying about evening peak hour traffic and getting to the airport way too early and as a result hanging around the airport a lot longer than necessary.

By arriving late and going straight to bed you will probably avoid jetlag altogether as you will be knackered from the flight and will sleep like a baby.

Sunshine Coast...
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3,440 posts
35 reviews
52 helpful votes
2. Re: First time long haul back to SYD - morning or night arrival
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This is a very personal decision but my preferred time to arrive after a long haul flight is in the late afternoon to early evening - 3pm to 9pm. This gives time to eat something, go for a bit of a walk, shower and then get to bed. I get a good sleep and the next morning I am ready to go.

For me the absolutely worst time to arrive is early morning - 3am to 9am - sadly that is when so many of my flights seem to arrive. You either have to risk having a sleep and prolonging the jetlag or you have to somehow stay awake all day. If I'm arriving in an exotic location I can almost manage on adrenaline and excitement but coming home - I would be wrecked.

It's a shame you're leaning towards EK as the Dubai stopover doesn't really help as much as Asian stopover with the time zones but splitting the flight home makes a big difference to me. I have promised myself that (barring an emergency) I will never do the 22 hour marathon to or from Europe in one flight ever again. Instead of hanging about in the airport for an hour or two at the transit point I love quickly transferring to a hotel and spending the night (or even better a few nights!) in a real bed with a real bathroom. If you've got the time a few days stopover somewhere can make the journey so much better. However this is again a very personal decision as many people prefer to fly straight through.

Victoria, Australia
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3,182 posts
455 reviews
263 helpful votes
3. Re: First time long haul back to SYD - morning or night arrival
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I like the late departure, early arrival option. It gives that extra day in London and most hotels will store your bags for you. I always want to maximise my time overseas and if you are lucky you may then be tired enough to grab some sleep on the plane.

Early morning arrival in Sydney, get home, then unpack, do laundry etc to keep going until the evening, have a good sleep and hopefully you will not suffer from much jetlag.

I have travelled a lot and NEVER managed to sleep on a plane, but I do not get jet lag either so I am kind of lucky. I always fly EK from Europe and always take the evening departure, flying straight through and arriving back in MEL early morning. That is just me though, it is a personal choice.

Sydney, Australia
Destination Expert
for Fiji
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2,389 posts
40 reviews
33 helpful votes
4. Re: First time long haul back to SYD - morning or night arrival
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I agree with HarleyB - a late afternoon / evening return works well for me, and if not possible, a stopover in Asia certainly helps break up the long trip (regardless of class of travel).

A morning arrival presents far too many opportunities for me to shut my eyes "just for a few minutes" and then..... several hours later, I'm awake for the day just as the sun is setting!

Sydney, Australia
Level Contributor
4 posts
38 reviews
32 helpful votes
5. Re: First time long haul back to SYD - morning or night arrival
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Thank you very much - your suggestions/advice are very appreciated.

Australia
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1,441 posts
106 reviews
93 helpful votes
6. Re: First time long haul back to SYD - morning or night arrival
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I like an early arrival - though I don't get a great sleep on the plane, I do feel rested with energy to burn.

I tend not to plan too much for that first day - but I do stay awake until at least 9pm, to increase the chances of a solid night's sleep the first night.

Canberra, Australia
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1,485 posts
43 reviews
22 helpful votes
7. Re: First time long haul back to SYD - morning or night arrival
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Forme it doesn't matter as we have done both. I do like arriving to Europe in the morning though. I am trying to decided if flying premium economy helps or a stopover in Singapoe is better. Jet lag really knocks me around for at least a week either side.I also don't get much sleep and dislike flying. Be grateful for your thoughts. Sadly business or first class is not an option.

Connecticut
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497 posts
68 reviews
37 helpful votes
8. Re: First time long haul back to SYD - morning or night arrival
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I'm with Emerald Diva here. My 3 arrivals in Australia (from NY) have been 2 in the early morning and 1 in the late evening. Early arrivals, the key is to stay active until mid evening that day. No naps! Then you get a quality sleep and you will be a long way toward being over the jet lag. My late evening arrival resulted in a very poor night of sleep, and continued jet lag for several more days. Very personal I know, but that is my vote.

Sydney/Melbourne
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18,156 posts
83 reviews
84 helpful votes
9. Re: First time long haul back to SYD - morning or night arrival
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Jann, it might be better to start your own thread as your question is quite different to that of the OP and the answers could get rather confusing.

FWIW, I prefer a stopover with a sleep in a bed and a proper shower to a slightly bigger seat any day. Usually works out cheaper than paying extra for PE.

Sydney, Australia
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282 posts
254 reviews
149 helpful votes
10. Re: First time long haul back to SYD - morning or night arrival
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I would get the late arrival into SYD. I find jetlag is a killer when doing the early morning returns for some reason. Also it is hard to sleep on the second leg as you are basically taking off in the morning and your body wants to be awake, but QF will darken the cabin and make a false night feel.

Even in J class it's hard to sleep and you end up worn out when you get here so I prefer to land late and sleep in my own warm comfy bed.

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