Ahead of its June 2023 launch date, Virgin Australia has started prepping for its forthcoming Cairns to Tokyo direct flights with a massive ‘Hello Tokyo’ sale.
With tickets currently going for $699 return, what is likely to be the airline’s last big announcement of 2022 should be an easy sell for anyone aching to get back to Japan’s capital. The ‘Hello Tokyo’ sale runs from now until midnight on Tuesday, December 20 or until sold out.
Cairns To Tokyo Launches In June 2023
Virgin Australia will start competing with Jetstar when the airline begins to fly from Queensland to Tokyo. But while Jetstar flies from Brisbane into Narita Airport, Virgin Australia has managed to nab a spot at the coveted Haneda Airport, which is significantly closer to Tokyo and is now regarded as one of the world’s easiest airports to navigate.
The daily Cairns-Tokyo service will lift off on Wednesday, June 28 with VA77 departing Cairns at 1:15 PM for arrival at Haneda at 8 PM the same day. Coming back the other way, red-eye VA78 departs Tokyo at 9:45 PM and cruises through to Cairns for a 6:15 AM touchdown the following morning.
The year-round service adds over 2,000 seats per week to Tokyo, which is a welcome announcement given the city was one of Australia’s most visited destinations pre-pandemic and stands to shoot up in popularity following borders fully opening to international tourists earlier this year in September.
The flights will operate on Virgin Australia’s new Boeing 737-8 aircraft, which has been designed to reduce emissions by up to 15% per flight. The inbound flight to Haneda should take around 7 hours and 30 minutes for passengers leaving Australia’s most tropical city.
RELATED: Kagaya Bar In Tokyo Is An Unhinged One-Man Show
Virgin Australia’s ‘Hello Tokyo’ Sale
Virgin Australia is leading up to Cairns-Tokyo with the aforementioned ‘Hello Tokyo’ sale, where you can purchase fares for flights from July 18. Economy Lite fares start from $699 with carry-on only but those wanting to fly at the pointy end are getting a reasonably good deal as well. You’re looking at around $2,000 for Business if you’re flying direct from Cairns.
If you need to fly from Brisbane, Sydney or Melbourne to Tokyo via Cairns then expect to find tickets starting at $749.
Anyone hoping to use Velocity points to book seats onboard the Cairns-Tokyo route should expect to fork out 27,800 points for Economy and 59,500 points for Business Class. Fees aren’t included in those figures, of course, but the low reward rates are mighty tempting given new routes often have plenty of reward seats available upon launch.
