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Malaysia Airlines


WaltAM

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I am looking for tickets for my hubby and young son - Cape Town to Brisbane (one way) - and thus far, Malaysia Airlines have quoted the cheapest airfare.

Can you please provide me with your experiences using this airline?

Thanks

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I am using Malaysia Airlines for the first time next month.

When will you be travelling?

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I am using Malaysia Airlines for the first time next month.

When will you be travelling?

My hubby and son are looking at flying at end of March from Cape Town.

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I have mentioned our trip with them on here a few times, so skip if you are bored by now.

If I was single and in no rush I would take them again, food and service was good and it was quite a bit cheaper than the others. BUT, it took us a total of 26 hours from getting on in Sydney to stepping off in Cape Town. We sat in KL for at least 5 hours (in the early morning hours) and it also did a stop in JHB that we were not told of before, nowhere in Flight Centres details or mentioned on our tickets. We had a very small baby with us too. Some days of the week you basically have to spend the whole day in KL to wait for your flight, 9am to 10pm, if I remember correctly. I would not hesitate to stop over in KL if I really have to take them again. I have been to KL before and it is a great place for food, shopping and experiencing something quite different but generally safe. So, without kids yes, with kids no.

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Thanks for the feedback.

This will be the 1st time my 2.5 year old son will be travelling on a plane, so we want it to be as easy as possible, since my hubby will be all on his own with him.

What I do like about Malaysia airlines (other than the good price) is that there is only 1 stopover (so they say) in KL, and not too long either. Also, it is the airline with the shortest travel time.

But, the feedback I have been reading on another website, where airlines are rated, it has not been getting very good feedback.

So, now I am considering Singapore airlines - very good feedback, and we used them 8 years ago to fly to Phuket and it was a good experience. They are a couple of thousand more expensive, and a couple of hours longer for travel time as they have 2 stopovers (Jhb and Singapore).

Any feedback on recent travelling on Singapore airlines would also be welcome please?

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I did not want to have to clear customs in JHB, collect my luggage and board anther plane with a baby on the hip, that is why I decided to use them. I thought the KL stopover would be fine but the JHB one just broke me. Remember I had to do feeds with every take off and landing with the baby, so I did it SIX times in our flight, sometimes the kids just did not want any! The air hostesses loved the baby and was very attentive, we also got tons of baby stuff/food from them. If it is seriously so much cheaper, why dont your husband and son stop over in KL for a day, stay at a hotel close to the airport with a pool and relax/sleep a bit. Worth considering.

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Singapore is one of the best airlines going... and their Changi airport is rated as one of the best in the world.

They seem to have the mentality, we are a dot on the map, so we have to give people a reason to transit through here...

The food is good, the seats are OK and the hostesses are very good.

I was stuck in Changi airport recently because the plane we were to fly out on flew through an electrical storm on it's way in. Apparently there was a strict protocol that dictated that plane had to be thoroughly checked. So we had to wait for an alternative plane.

But they automatically re-booked our connecting flights. They gave us free food vouchers and served food and drinks at the boarding gate. They also gave us a leather "Singapore Airlines" passport protector as a gift.

But what impressed me was their dedication. The Singapore Airlines guy sat in the food court for 4-6 hours waiting to hand-out food vouchers. If that had been other airline, he would have gotten bored and left when he thought he had handed out enough vouchers. That just shows their dedication to customer service.

So yes, two thumbs up to them. If I was flying with a baby I would seriously consider them

Cheers

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I've flown a couple of times to the Uk from Brisbane on both Qantas and Singapore Airlines. Qantas effectively uses Singapore as a hub from Europe into Australia. They use the big 380 from London to Singapore and then smaller planes to SYD, BNE et al. Makes it pretty cost effective for Qantas.

I don't know KL airport at all but I do know Singapore terminal 3. There is a Rain Forrest club were for 8 Singapore dollars you can get a shower. There is also a hotel in the terminal were you can rent rooms by the hour (I've heard). Maybe a consideration if the stop over is a longish one.

I found the Rain Forrest perfect for the 2 or 3 hours I have to wait. A clean set of cloths in your hand luggage, a shower and shave and it makes the last flight a lot more bearable. Maybe not an option for travelling with a toddler though, but I would investigate the hotel in the terminal option.

There are lots of free internet terminals within Singapore Airport as well.

Don't forget when the pilot says the plane has crossed the Australian coast there is still at least 5 hours to go!

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Malaysia airline is as great as Singapore or Qantas. The staff is very friendly and helpful. I'd say just investigate KL airport, I havent been there, but if they are like Singapore Changi, it will be fine.

We have rented a room in the changi airport before, I planned a 12 hour stopover there specifically to cut the price. We would be able to take the free Singapore tour, and then hav a shower and a sleep for 6 hours in the room.

Our little tale : Ofcourse, in the real world, no one was tired by the time we had to sleep, Hubby bought some Small Batch Jim Beam duty free, and we decided to open it, and after the 2nd drink, we realised oops, now it cant go back on the plane ! So we tried our bestest to finish as much of the bottle as we can, I ended up having a good sleep, because of that (read : pass out) But Hubby hiked through the airport and almost bought out all Coke supplies ! My son played Playstation/Xbox in one of the entertainment hubs until we had to board the plane. I was well rested, but the two of them was knackered ! Hubby was drunk as a skunk, and took the aisle seat and passed out on my shoulder. After 6 hours I had to wake him coz I needed the loo, BADLY !

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Sepang in KL is rated among top 5 airports in the world, i flew there in 2005 and it was equivalent to Changi. Go for it!

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Hi, we used Malaysian Airlines in January when we flew to Brisbane. It was a one way flight and we were lucky because the stand over in Kuala Lumpur was only 3 hours. I thought the service was very good and the flight was fine. I can certainly recommend them and their quote was by far the best for us. I know though that Singapore Airlines is also very, very good - I am looking now to book for my son for end of June and at this stage Singapore is the better one with price, etc, and also because they just come to visit I don't want them to spend precious time on airports!!

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If you are flying Malaysia Airlines from CPT, there is a stop in Joburg but it is a refuelling stop and Joburg passengers get on board. I dont think you have to get off because it is on the ground for a short time

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Thanks for all the feedback and input.

I am currently leaning more towards Malaysia Airlines, can get 2 one way tickets (1xadult, 1xchild) for about R10700. Singapore is quoting me over R14000 for the same. What I am liking with Malaysia currently is that there is only change of plane in KL (no changes in Jhb). And, because it is Malaysia all the way to Brisbane, I am sure they will be able to book the luggage all the way through - anybody know about that? All this will make it easier for hubby and son.

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Why not get a quote from IOM. We fly to Perth in May, R6900.00pp, 40kg of lugguage and its a direct flight on SAA. Their price was by far the best.

Flo

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Thanks for all the feedback and input.

I am currently leaning more towards Malaysia Airlines, can get 2 one way tickets (1xadult, 1xchild) for about R10700. Singapore is quoting me over R14000 for the same. What I am liking with Malaysia currently is that there is only change of plane in KL (no changes in Jhb). And, because it is Malaysia all the way to Brisbane, I am sure they will be able to book the luggage all the way through - anybody know about that? All this will make it easier for hubby and son.

Hi, your luggage will be booked all the way through - we also decided on them because of their price - we paid more or less R5000 per adult for our January flight. The only thing that you must consider is that you have only 20 kg per person for luggage - we were totally overweight!! The stand over on Kuala Lumpur airport is not bad - it is a beautiful and big airport with lots of shops - I know that some flights have a standover of almost one day and then they will book you into a hotel room and you can go out to the city and have a look around. We stood over for 3 hours and just have some coffee and wait on the airport - before you know you are boarding again. We used them twice already and I will definitely book with them again. Hope this helps!!

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Thanks for all the responses.

Just an update....

Went on to the Malaysia airline website this weekend and they had reduced their adult tickets, and I could now get both tickets for R9485. I did request a quote from IOM last week, but have still not heard back from them. Hubby reckoned that he would not need the 40kgs checked baggage in any case (he had put all his winter clothes into the container and my son's summer clothes, that still fit, are so light that it would weigh almost nothing), so, I went ahead and booked (before the special was no longer available and it saved me R1300 on the previous quote). He also liked the fact that the baggage would be booked all the way through and that there was only 1 stopover of less than 3 hours in KL (this would be easiest with a 2 year old).

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FYI - Got quote from IOM and they quoted R15490 for travel from CPT to BNE

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We flew at the end of Jan with Singapore Airlines and what we liked most was the fact that we could book our bags straight through, AND there was no stop AT ALL in Jhb... not even to pick up more passengers. I'm not sure if they only do that particular type of flight during peak (Dec/Jan) times, but it was a blessing to us.

We left CT at midday, and if you choose the soonest connection in Singapore, you arrive in Brisbane in the evening/night time (8pm-ish) and as soon as you get to your hotel you can sleep off the jetlag, rather than arrive early in the morning and have to sleep during the day and knock out your bodyclock completely. Only, when flying back from Brisbane to Cape Town you have a ghastly long, dead-hour stopover... it nearly killed us the last time!

Oh and another thing - you can ask Singapore Airlines for 5kg (or more?) extra allowance for baggage cos it's one way :D

That said, I haven't flown with Malaysia Airlines before, so can't give feedback on them :ph34r:

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Was anyone able to use AUD at the the airport in Kuala Lumpur?

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not likely, the Malaysian ringitt is their currency. but you can change AUD for MR at forex places at the airport.

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Was anyone able to use AUD at the the airport in Kuala Lumpur?

Good question...never thought of this....will let hubby know.

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It might just be my pregnancy brain talking here, but if I remember correctly, I have payed with other currencies in airports around the world. Especially if they are on a popular route and they have many people with that currency coming through. There are issues like, yes you may pay with pounds but they will only give you change in the local currency, etc. If you pay by credit or debit card you obviously dont have to worry about these details.

Then again, my heartburn might have fried my brain and I am now hallucinating :blink:

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It might just be my pregnancy brain talking here, but if I remember correctly, I have payed with other currencies in airports around the world. Especially if they are on a popular route and they have many people with that currency coming through. There are issues like, yes you may pay with pounds but they will only give you change in the local currency, etc. If you pay by credit or debit card you obviously dont have to worry about these details.

Then again, my heartburn might have fried my brain and I am now hallucinating :blink:

Hahaha. Thanks.

Yes, I think you might be right. In a few airports I have been able to use 'other' currencies, but it was just very expensive...

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Was anyone able to use AUD at the the airport in Kuala Lumpur?

Yes - paid A$5.00 (cash) for a 250ml bottle of water.

Regards,

Scott

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FYI - Got quote from IOM and they quoted R15490 for travel from CPT to BNE

How many people was this quote for adults/children??

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