Any US folks heading to Australia for shows?

NYbenben

i have always wanted to go to Australia. i was planning to go for my 40th birthday which is December 2010, but i am really contemplating celebrating one year earlier in light of these tour dates. Anyone else heading to the land down under?

decides2dream

NYbenben wrote:

i have always wanted to go to Australia. i was planning to go for my 40th birthday which is December 2010, but i am really contemplating celebrating one year earlier in light of these tour dates. Anyone else heading to the land down under?

i really, really, really want to. last time they were in oz, they had a gig on my birthday...i promised myself next time they headed down under and/or had a gig on my birthday, i'd be there. they ARE having another gig on my birthday....11.22.....but sadly, it is VERY doubtful i will go. $$$ is definitely an issue, but the bigger issue there is just NO way my husband can get off work at that time. now i travel plenty w/o him, especially for pearl jam.....but to go to oz w/o him (tis a dream for BOTH of us to go) AND for my birthday AND more than likely thanksgiving, yea....unlikely. :( and hey, i turned 40 last year, i'd be MORE than happy to turn 41 in australia at a pearl jam show. if i win the lottery, come into $$$, whatever before then, fuck it...i AM going. in all likelihood tho, i am going to have to pass again. :( i AM holding out hope for pearl jam in hawaii the first week of december, b/c we both already have that week off, hawaii is another one of those places on our *list*....and it would ease the pain somewhat of missing another birthday gig. alas, the rumors are for mid-decmber...boo....but we shall see.

sorry for blathering.... ....i say GO FOR IT if you can! celebrate 40 early!

NYbenben

Hawaii is awesome.. I saw Pearl Jam there in 2006 opening for U2... it was a trip planned around the concert... it was very well worth it. My wife wants to see Australia too...but not for a PJ tour and to watch me dive for 3 days on the Great Barrier Reef... she is potentially giving me the pass to do this trip without her. now i need to find someone with the ability to go with. this can truly be a trip of a lifetime.

Good luck with the lottery thing! I hope it works out for you! lol....

decides2dream

NYbenben wrote:

Hawaii is awesome.. I saw Pearl Jam there in 2006 opening for U2... it was a trip planned around the concert... it was very well worth it. My wife wants to see Australia too...but not for a PJ tour and to watch me dive for 3 days on the Great Barrier Reef... she is potentially giving me the pass to do this trip without her. now i need to find someone with the ability to go with. this can truly be a trip of a lifetime.

Good luck with the lottery thing! I hope it works out for you! lol....

yes...hawaii is a more realistic dream IF it occurs the first week of december, much more likely.
and yes, i did the italian tour in 2006, amongst other tours, sans mr. dream.....but there are just certin places i would feel guilty going w/o him. but like i said, i get a nice windfall of cash, fuck the guilt...i'm going.


and i agree, a total trip of a lifetime! alaska was the same, amazing trip! honestly, i would love to spend 3 weeks in australia and new zealand, catch the concerts and go explore....but THAt kind of trip, definitely out of the question this year, unless that lotto win....;)


anyhoo....definitely go for it!
soooooooo jealous!

drop-the-leash

Come on over guys....on the proviso that you don't take a better bloody seat in the 10C tix! (although by now we're more likely not to get any seats!)

I'm presuming you're the good kind of American - if you're a fan of PJ, then you must be. So you'll find more than enough friendly Aussies here to help you out and hang out with.

DROP THE LEASH!!!

philthehip

Im from the UK and sadly will not be trekking down under this time. Im really surprised by the oversight (or oversight it seems) of the pre - sale date being 17th August when alot of PJ fans will be traveling to Manchester for the gig that day. Strange

decides2dream

drop-the-leash wrote:

Come on over guys....on the proviso that you don't take a better bloody seat in the 10C tix! (although by now we're more likely not to get any seats!)

I'm presuming you're the good kind of American - if you're a fan of PJ, then you must be. So you'll find more than enough friendly Aussies here to help you out and hang out with.

DROP THE LEASH!!!

given the 10c #s i've heard of friends in oz AND the seats they have gotten in the past, i cannot imagine any yanks - even if they had better 10c #s - making much a difference! and for the record, my 10c # is mediocre, so no worries there. man...i want to GO! hmmmmmmm...

Zoso

met some Americans in 2006 in Adelaide but since the fact that I just relocated to the states I will be making the Spectrum shows and giving the Australian tour a miss. I doubt there will be as many travelers as 2006 just because of the economy alone.

decides2dream

roundtrip airfare on quantas from JFK to sydney, 11.18 return 11.28........$1166.06. ouch. actually, not that bad. each flight has 1 stop. the flight over says it arrives in sydney 9 something AM + 2. does that actually mean, 2 days later than when i would actually fly? :shock: hahahaha. i know the time difference is crazy insane, along with crazy insane flight hours...but man.
and the flight home, seems like next to no time at all, hahaha.


man, it is a sickness that i even checked.
i wonder how many airmiles would be required for such a flight?
dear gawd....save me from myself....

Freddy Arheehar

Flying via QANTAS from LA is the way to go.
I was playing around yesterday and found this, and its a great deal. I wont use exact flights just dates for an example.
Leave LA 11/12 to Brisabane (stay for a week in the sun!) then to Melbourne 11/20 to Sydney 11/22, to Brisbane 11/23 then leave to NZ for both shows 11/27 and back to LA 11/30.
All up it was $1200 which is a great deal considering LA to SYD, MEL or Brisso in November is normally $1200-$1500.
I wasnt trying to find the best deal, just wanted a ballpark $ amount so you could probably do better.
Its not 2 days, more like 24 hours door to door. So if you leave LA on a Wednesday night at 11pm you will land Friday morning 8am Aussie time so its still Thursday here. So on the way back you leave on say a Sunday morning and arrive back in LA same time Sunday morning - its weird!
You can PM me if you need advice with flying to Aussieland.

decides2dream

Freddy Arheehar wrote:

Flying via QANTAS from LA is the way to go.
I was playing around yesterday and found this, and its a great deal. I wont use exact flights just dates for an example.
Leave LA 11/12 to Brisabane (stay for a week in the sun!) then to Melbourne 11/20 to Sydney 11/22, to Brisbane 11/23 then leave to NZ for both shows 11/27 and back to LA 11/30.
All up it was $1200 which is a great deal considering LA to SYD, MEL or Brisso in November is normally $1200-$1500.
I wasnt trying to find the best deal, just wanted a ballpark $ amount so you could probably do better.
Its not 2 days, more like 24 hours door to door. So if you leave LA on a Wednesday night at 11pm you will land Friday morning 8am Aussie time so its still Thursday here. So on the way back you leave on say a Sunday morning and arrive back in LA same time Sunday morning - its weird!
You can PM me if you need advice with flying to Aussieland.

really i am simply torturing myself with the fantasy....;)
that said i was just plugging in dates in cheapair.com. i am sure the one stop for each flight more than likely IS in LA, or somewhere in cali. i would be coming from NY, so i still have to fly from NY to LA, so whatever (which also adds close to 5 hours of additional flight time). so your $1200 is from LA to oz...plus all the interim travel and then back to LA? that sounds insanely good.

and i do realize it's about 24 hours....as the time difference is 14 or 16 hours depending on time of year + flight time. however, i think the flight it gave me with the best price left at like 6 or 9 PM, thus why i thought perhaps the "+ 2" in the arrival time in sydney might've meant 2 days later. but yea, i see now...i am correct in my thinking, the "+ 2" does refer to the date changing by 2....from wednesday to friday, tho of course not a FULL 2 days, but yea....as to the dates.


also, that is a LOT of vacation time.....and then accomodations, etc...so yea.....costs add up! :shock: it really is a great fantasy tho, exactly the kind of trip i would LOVe to do!


thanks tho...if i get crazy enough, i'll be sure to pick your brain.

Freddy Arheehar

Yep, $1200 from LA and all the stops for each city then to NZ and back to LA. I didnt add Perth or Adelaide though. Adding Adelaide wouldnt add much to the total.
FYI, QANTAS.com has a sale on so maybe it would be cheaper looking there...if you want to be teased some more...
Knowing someone down there is the key, then you arent paying for accommodation.

decides2dream

Freddy Arheehar wrote:

Yep, $1200 from LA and all the stops for each city then to NZ and back to LA. I didnt add Perth or Adelaide though. Adding Adelaide wouldnt add much to the total.
FYI, QANTAS.com has a sale on so maybe it would be cheaper looking there...if you want to be teased some more...
Knowing someone down there is the key, then you arent paying for accommodation.

i don't know WHy i looked at the qantas site.....i plugged in your dates, just to/from NY to OZ, not the inbetweens and sweet bejeebus...

18:40 New York (JFK) 09:20
(Sat) Sydney QF108 $559
16:05
(Sat) Sydney 16:35
(Sat) Brisbane QF536
Duration: 30h 55m - 1 stop


i must stop doing this to myself



and i do know some aussies, tho don't know if i could crash with em, nor exaclty where they all live.....and i know no kiwis....and my gawd WHY am i doing this to myself?!

man, think my mother would give me an unbelievable and amazing 41st birthday gift?

Freddy Arheehar

If my wife and I go you can crash with us...

decides2dream

Freddy Arheehar wrote:

If my wife and I go you can crash with us...

you really ARE a tease, aren't ya?
i think the biggest obstacle, outside of $$$ of course, is my husband. normally, he is more than happy to see me happily go off and do what i enjoy....travel coupled with live pearl jam. however, i have done that a LOT these past couple years, and yea...australia and NZ are both a dream for the 2 of us.....and for me to go on this 'dream trip' w/o him (impossible for him to get ANY time off around thanksgiving) spending all the moeny, etc....i think even HE would be quite tested to be ok with it. i really need to win the lottery.....b/c then he could come over the first week in december!

Freddy Arheehar

LOL - you sound like my wife! She is the PJ fan...I just tag along to some shows even though I am a fan just nothing compared to her and all of you crazy people
I have no worries when she goes all over the world but when it comes to Australia she isnt going without me!
Good luck with the lotto...send some our way when you win

decides2dream

Freddy Arheehar wrote:

LOL - you sound like my wife! She is the PJ fan...I just tag along to some shows even though I am a fan just nothing compared to her and all of you crazy people
I have no worries when she goes all over the world but when it comes to Australia she isnt going without me!
Good luck with the lotto...send some our way when you win

hahaha...you sound like my husband! and he's the one to turn me on to pearl jam initially...poor man!
and yes, he is a-ok with me going all over the world for pearl jam or otherwise, but can't fault the man for actually wanting to join me on occasion. :P and 2 of us doing a 3 week stint in oz/nz..... :shock: ......yea....PRICEY! someday it WILL happen, i am sure of it....but i really, really, really wanna go THIS year! and yea, thanks...i'll let ya know how it goes....

i AM still seriously fantasizing about this, and probably will continue to do so for a long while......

mfc2006

man, i really wish we could go. someday...

Freddy Arheehar

Yeah if he is going to follow you on a tour, Austalia is the one to do it IMO. With the economy being sucky QANTAS has really slashed prices for that time of year so you probably wont ever get a better deal than this. Now if we knew for sure that there would be a world wide full blown tour 2010-11 then we could save and go for sure next time. But PJ only seem to go downunder every 3 years so I dont know if they would go back so quickly?

decides2dream

Freddy Arheehar wrote:

Yeah if he is going to follow you on a tour, Austalia is the one to do it IMO. With the economy being sucky QANTAS has really slashed prices for that time of year so you probably wont ever get a better deal than this. Now if we knew for sure that there would be a world wide full blown tour 2010-11 then we could save and go for sure next time. But PJ only seem to go downunder every 3 years so I dont know if they would go back so quickly?

agreed.
as i said, If it weren't for his work...i am sure, somehow...i could convince him to go. there is just NO way he can get off the week of thanksgiving at all. he had already tried, since my birthday starts off the week. and yea, given how good it is to actually have a good job and all, 20+ years actually....sadly, he could not go then, lotto win or not. :P as i said tho, win the lotto....he can come join me in NZ for a week and then head home together! ahhhhhh...it's good to dream!


thus far, the furthest i've gottem him to travel with me to see pearl jam is is DC, tho i think he would've loved heading to seattle, canada and any of the euro shows i've attended, just his job doesn't allow much movement for spur of the moment travel, and pearl jam seems to tour close to home during the week in june we usually take together, but not so good for the aboad trip dates. *sighs*


and ben, hey sorry for fantasizing so much in your aussie thread ...but hey, bumping it up for other possible travelers!

Freddy Arheehar

That sucks that he cant get time off, you have probably thought of all the different scenarios but has he looked at time off from the 14th? Then you can get Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane? We are no lock to go also, we have a trip planned for Mexico 16-20 that is screwing us right now!
Are you related to my wife or work for the same company? She gets all the time off in the world to travel for PJ shows, USA, Europe and now possibly downunder...She has me going to Seattle and San Diego with her but I cant do them all like she is. :(

decides2dream

Freddy Arheehar wrote:

That sucks that he cant get time off, you have probably thought of all the different scenarios but has he looked at time off from the 14th? Then you can get Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane? We are no lock to go also, we have a trip planned for Mexico 16-20 that is screwing us right now!
Are you related to my wife or work for the same company? She gets all the time off in the world to travel for PJ shows, USA, Europe and now possibly downunder...She has me going to Seattle and San Diego with her but I cant do them all like she is. :(

i used to teach, talk about a lot of time off! tho none too good for travel during the school year. i currently work for a firm with a very generous holiday/vacation package, and as of this year, i get 22 vacation days. add in the 3 i carried forward from last year, plus 10 holidays(3 that are floating this year, my choice)....quite nice. however, i DO have my 'busy season' with work that i cannot take off: march/april and mid-august thru mid-october...thus why no seattle, europe, cali, etc for me. sad thing is, hubby actually gets 25 days vacation annually, plus whatever he carries forward, plus 10 or 12 holidays. he works for the government tho, and the way they do vacation choices makes it VERY difficult. at this point, sure..in theory, perhaps he could get that earlier week off, however, since 'vacation picks' are made in january!.....he would not be gauranteed the time off, if it is available...until 2 weeks prior. not much help when you want to plan a trip to fly around the world. also, i want to go to the 11.22 show in sydney...on my birthday...so yea....he definitely canNOT get that off. so yea, 50% of the reason why i travel for pj solo is b/c it's cheaper...and the other 50% is b/c he can never get the time off right then! :twisted: we'll see, we'll see.....i shall continue to dream........

Freddy Arheehar

Well good luck, maybe things will work out for you both but it doesnt sound like it. Its gotta suck to have all that time off and not be able to use it when you want. I have 'unlimited' time off but i really dont because they keep me way too busy...my wife is another story, she is so lucky with amount of time off she has but she worked her butt off to get it.

decides2dream

Freddy Arheehar wrote:

Well good luck, maybe things will work out for you both but it doesnt sound like it. Its gotta suck to have all that time off and not be able to use it when you want. I have 'unlimited' time off but i really dont because they keep me way too busy...my wife is another story, she is so lucky with amount of time off she has but she worked her butt off to get it.

well, awesome for you both!
and yes, it is a shame.,..all that time off, but difficult to plan spur of the moment trips, or even trips 2-3 months ahead....gotta know what you want to do in january!


and hell, i just plugged in all the cities and flights for the entire australian leg, just for shits and giggles....and :shock:

Flight 1 From To Flight Duration Departure
Terminal Fare Type Checked
Baggage
Wed 11 Nov 09 18:40 New York
(JFK)
09:20
(Fri) Sydney QF108 30h 15m 7 Red Tail 2 pieces
Details
12:00
(Fri) Sydney 13:55
(Fri) Perth QF577 3
Flight 2
Mon 16 Nov 09 09:30 Perth 14:40 Adelaide QF5975 2h 40m 2 Red Tail 2 pieces
Details
Flight 3
Thu 19 Nov 09 11:40 Adelaide 13:25 Melbourne QF682 1h 15m 1 Red Tail 2 pieces
Details
Flight 4
Sat 21 Nov 09 09:30 Melbourne 10:55 Sydney QF420 1h 25m 1 Red Tail 2 pieces
Details
Flight 5
Tue 24 Nov 09 13:05 Sydney 13:35 Brisbane QF528 1h 30m 3 Red Tail 2 pieces
Details
Flight 6
Fri 27 Nov 09 12:05 Brisbane 07:00 Los Angeles QF015 19h 55m International Red Tail 2 pieces
Details
09:00 Los Angeles 17:00 New York
(JFK)
QF107 B


total cost for one person, economy....$2478.86
and that's a WHOLE lotta flying!
sure, i could fly from NY to LA probably on airmiles, but even so. looks like for that trip, the sale prices don't work. who knows...all a dream in any case. thanks for giving me something to fill my empty work time with up until my workday picks up again tho.

"unlimited time off"...paid time off.....that sounds unreal! overall, i am more than happy with my time off, as is hubby, it's just scheduling.... :evil:

Freddy Arheehar

wow, its way cheaper from the west to fly than NYC, that's too bad.
I've been playing shit and giggles flights also, i need to stop just in case we cant go. My family got all excited when they heard PJ were coming as they know what a freak my wife is....
My work is pretty good with giving me time off but its not unlimited like they say it is. I could probably take 25 days without it being a problem though.

NYbenben

decides2dream wrote:

Freddy Arheehar wrote:

Well good luck, maybe things will work out for you both but it doesnt sound like it. Its gotta suck to have all that time off and not be able to use it when you want. I have 'unlimited' time off but i really dont because they keep me way too busy...my wife is another story, she is so lucky with amount of time off she has but she worked her butt off to get it.

well, awesome for you both!
and yes, it is a shame.,..all that time off, but difficult to plan spur of the moment trips, or even trips 2-3 months ahead....gotta know what you want to do in january!


and hell, i just plugged in all the cities and flights for the entire australian leg, just for shits and giggles....and :shock:

Flight 1 From To Flight Duration Departure
Terminal Fare Type Checked
Baggage
Wed 11 Nov 09 18:40 New York
(JFK)
09:20
(Fri) Sydney QF108 30h 15m 7 Red Tail 2 pieces
Details
12:00
(Fri) Sydney 13:55
(Fri) Perth QF577 3
Flight 2
Mon 16 Nov 09 09:30 Perth 14:40 Adelaide QF5975 2h 40m 2 Red Tail 2 pieces
Details
Flight 3
Thu 19 Nov 09 11:40 Adelaide 13:25 Melbourne QF682 1h 15m 1 Red Tail 2 pieces
Details
Flight 4
Sat 21 Nov 09 09:30 Melbourne 10:55 Sydney QF420 1h 25m 1 Red Tail 2 pieces
Details
Flight 5
Tue 24 Nov 09 13:05 Sydney 13:35 Brisbane QF528 1h 30m 3 Red Tail 2 pieces
Details
Flight 6
Fri 27 Nov 09 12:05 Brisbane 07:00 Los Angeles QF015 19h 55m International Red Tail 2 pieces
Details
09:00 Los Angeles 17:00 New York
(JFK)
QF107 B


total cost for one person, economy....$2478.86
and that's a WHOLE lotta flying!
sure, i could fly from NY to LA probably on airmiles, but even so. looks like for that trip, the sale prices don't work. who knows...all a dream in any case. thanks for giving me something to fill my empty work time with up until my workday picks up again tho.

"unlimited time off"...paid time off.....that sounds unreal! overall, i am more than happy with my time off, as is hubby, it's just scheduling.... :evil:

Thats a lot of flying... i am planning on going into Sydney... fly to Melbourne for that show... then back to Sydney for that show... then heading up north to Cairns for a few days of diving and then back to Sydney for a day or two and homw... i am not doing the full tour of all Ausy locations... that is WAAAY to much...

2-feign-reluctance

i wish. we were just there and in NZ for 2 weeks in may. maybe next time.

decides2dream

NYbenben wrote:

Thats a lot of flying... i am planning on going into Sydney... fly to Melbourne for that show... then back to Sydney for that show... then heading up north to Cairns for a few days of diving and then back to Sydney for a day or two and homw... i am not doing the full tour of all Ausy locations... that is WAAAY to much...

oh i agree!
i would never do that either! hahahaha. just that the tools for seeing the 'what-if' was put in my hands, and i ran with it. slow workday.


i would do, at most....3 shows.....definitely including sydney since that IS my birthday show!
so be sure to have a drink that night in sydney and wish me a happy birthday. hopefully i can be there too.....but yea......


actually, i wouldn't mind starting off with the sydney show, then brisbane....then head to NZ for those 2 shows and have hubby meet me in NZ for a week! there's a dream! man, i just love to torture myself.

decides2dream

Freddy Arheehar wrote:

wow, its way cheaper from the west to fly than NYC, that's too bad.
I've been playing shit and giggles flights also, i need to stop just in case we cant go. My family got all excited when they heard PJ were coming as they know what a freak my wife is....
My work is pretty good with giving me time off but its not unlimited like they say it is. I could probably take 25 days without it being a problem though.

well of course it is....you're about 5 hours closer!
even taking away NY, doing the same plan from LA....all flights would = $1700 from my little itinerary. i am sure you could plug in a myriad of date/city combos, time for flights, etc....and come up with a million different possible price combos for flights. bottomline, if you were to do ALL the dates by air, it would most definitely be pricey!

i AM very curious what kind of travel packages pearl jam comes up with.

it's just sad, if hubby could only do my birthday gig, would be perfection. eh well. i wish they'd announce the hawaii dates, b/c again...if it's the first week of december, i'd feel better. then it's just convincing hubby to go! but yea...i really want to see pj on my birthday...... c'est la vie...

dreamtonic

surely there's more of us headed down, right? hubby just submitted his time off request

decides2dream

OMG!
this:

18:40 New York (JFK) 09:20
(Fri) Sydney QF108 $531 Duration: 22h 40m - 1 stop
is soooo tempting!
18th thru the 28th....just in sydney, that would do me just fine!


where's mauichick to come drem with me?



edit, damn...i thought that was the roundtrip price....gotta add in:
12:00 Sydney 17:00 New York (JFK) QF107 $716 Duration: 21h 00m - 1 stop

still damn nice.


i am so going to check out what kind of airmiles are needed to fly to oz.