Why Are Flights To Australia So Expensive Right Now (2023 Update)

Wondering why flights to Australia are so expensive this year? 

Me too! I have to travel home to Australia at least once a year, and this time, the flights were around 50% more expensive.

Sure, things have gotten more expensive with high inflation, but surely there must be something else at play here, right?

Let’s take a look at all the reasons why flights to Australia are so expensive!

Lack Of Competition & Population

Qantas has had a strong hold on the Australian aviation industry for decades, and there is far less competition in Australia as a result.

Virgin flights from Sydney internationally

During the pandemic, Virgin Airlines went into voluntary administration and later emerged from that. They then had a hefty operational loss in 2022, although seem to be on track these days. Although this mostly affected the domestic market in Australia, Virgin also has international flights to many continents. And they were often quite competitive. They certainly were one of the few operators who kept Qantas on their toes. But now they 

But there is more to it than just that.

Australia is a distant country with a low population density as well. In fact, Australia is ten times less densely populated than the USA, which of course leads to a scale problem. Companies are less likely to fly to Australia and make the investments needed in aircraft and staff.

The profits just aren’t there for them in such a sparsely populated country where most of the people live in just two cities – Melbourne and Sydney.

This leads us to another problem. The sheer costs involved in operating in Australia.

Cost Of Labor

I first noticed this when I went home in 2022. Australia has gotten insanely expensive. What used to cost significantly less than in Switzerland, a very expensive country itself, was now comparable.

So, where does Australia stand in terms of labor costs on the world stage?

You will find more infographics at Statista

Well, the minimum wage in Australia is the highest in the world, which certainly leads to very high labor costs.

Australia also ranks 7th in the world for salaries, which likely does not take into account most of the jobs that affect a flight to Australia (cleaning, baggage, airport staff etc). However, it just goes to show you how expensive the country is becoming.

Not only is Australia expensive in general, we all know now that the service industry is suffering from the “