Travel tips

Once you have your visa in your passport, you can usually get a better deal from most flight companies.  Nowadays this is in the form of extra allowance for your baggage.  Gone are the days when they offered you a reduced price for the ticket!

Singapore Airlines offer a double baggage allowance (from the usual 20Kg to 40Kg) providing you are holding an unused migrant visa that states to remain in Australia indefinitely.  If you hold a valid visa, you will be entitled to the double baggage allowance on production of the visa at check-in.  However, it may be prudent to tell them at the time of booking that you have a valid migrant visa, as the last thing you want to do is pay the extortionate excess baggage prices that airline companies charge.  

As an example, for March 2008 you can get a one way ticket to Australia with Singapore Airlines for under £500.  Now this is out of season and will be higher for Christmas, Easter and other times of the year, but it should give you a good idea of what to expect.  

Qantas

Now, you would have thought that Qantas should have been one of the cheapest and should have given migrants the best one-way deal.....  Unfortunately this is NOT the case.  Buy a standard ticket and it will cost you about the same as a similar flight with Singapore Airlines, around £500.  But this does not include the extra baggage allowance, so you phone them up and explain the situation.  You'll be given a new allowance of 40Kg for the flight, but the flight will now cost you over £700!!!!  Their argument is that on a standard ticket, to pay for another 20Kg of excess baggage will cost you far more than the extra £200 for the ticket.  Probably best to not bother with these guys!

Emirates

Whilst Emirates offer the best baggage allowance of 50Kg, alot of people are deciding to stear clear of there airports due to their extremely strict drug laws.