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I've travelled to Mexico many times and I'm starting to feel the itch again but I think finding a cheap way there has become more difficult since my last trip 3 years ago.

I have some problems with US customs and immigration which makes getting a transit visa a serious pain so I cannot take any flight which stops on US soil, even to refuel. So all the obvious routes via Hawaii and California are out.

Another restriction is that I want a one-year ticket. It's much easier to find deals on two-week trips than long trips. Booking a few months in advance is not a problem however. Neither is having to travel within a small time window when the price is best.

The last few trips I've flown JAL via Tokyo and Vancouver and was very happy with the airline. I don't mind the long flights and I know how to turn a stop over into a feature of the trip.

But it seems JAL has cancelled this route since they've been haemorrhaging money and needed to make some cutbacks!

I've looked for other options but the airline comparison sites don't make it easy to add in the "avoid USA" parameter. I've looked at going via Canada, Santiago, Buenos Aires, and even London. But all these options work out about double my usual price of about $2,000! (AUD or USD are about the same right now)

I always expected it to be easier to get a cheap one year ticket to Vancouver and then a cheap one year ticket from there to Mexico City. But for some reason this doesn't seem to be cheap even though you can get two week tickets from Van to Mex for a couple hundred bucks.

Is there still any route I can take from Australia to Mexico, avoiding USA, for $2000 or less, for a one year ticket?

hippietrail
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3 Answers3

9

The only thing I can think of is:

  • Air Canada has nonstops SYD-YVR (Vancouver) and YVR-MEX - that's the fastest way.
  • Korean Airlines has SYD-YVR via Seoul
Joel Spolsky
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7

Ok, maybe not an actual answer, but this might be another option:

An ex-coworker who used to have a boat and told me that is quite easy to get a lift on a boat or yacht from Mexico towards (south-) west; so if you're on a budget and not in a hurry you could try to buy a one-way plane ticket to Mexico and then sail back towards NZ or AUS from Mexico. Right now i could only find this one offer, but you have better luck if you ask the locals at the marina in Mexico when you're there...

Plus you get a chance to see all the little islands like Fiji, Cook Islands, French Polynesia etc. on the way.

iHaveacomputer
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2

LAN Airlines now flies from Sydney to Santiago, as well as from Santiago to Mexico City. ITA Matrix gives an approximate price of $2600 for a round flight through Chile.

JonathanReez
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