What Qantas’ Non-Stop 17.5 Hour Perth to Paris (QF33) Flight is Really Like

I survived Qantas‘ non-stop Perth to Paris flight, and in this article, I’m going to tell you exactly what it’s like to spend 17.5 hours, 1,050 minutes, or 63,000 seconds, onboard a plane.

It’s a strange feeling to know that you’re about to spend the best part of two full work days at 38,000ft. That’s especially true when you’re not heading overseas on holiday but for a work trip. Still, someone has to fly to the south of France to review the latest Rolls-Royce Ghost Series II. Leaving from Sydney, my one-way trip would encompass a flight from Sydney to Perth then Perth to Paris and then Paris to Marseille for a total travel time of around 35 hours.

Before I get into my experience on QF33, we have some housekeeping to attend to. I flew Business Class onboard a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner for this trip thanks to Rolls-Royce. Of course, in an ideal scenario, we would pay for this trip to bring you this review, but thanks to AI, no publisher on Earth can afford to do that anymore. Unlucky for AI, they can’t fly on a plane. Now we’ve got that out of the way, let’s get into the review.

RELATED: Qantas’ Tech-Filled A330 Economy Cabin Upgrade Brings 4K OLED Screens.

Why Would You Fly to Paris Through Perth?

There are a few ways you can get to Paris from Sydney, Australia. However, few are more convenient than this non-stop Perth to Paris flight. It runs three times per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and the return flight (which is shorter at around 16 hours flight time) runs on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.

These are the alternatives to the Qantas QF33 Sydney, Perth to Paris flight:

• Air India: Layover in New Delhi
• Asiana: Layover in Incheon, South Korea
• Cathay Pacific: Layover in Hong Kong
• China Eastern: Layover in Shanghai
• Emirates: Layover in Dubai
• Qantas: Layover in Singapore
• Qatar Airways: Layover in Doha
• Singapore: Layover in Singapore
• SriLankan: Layover in Colombo
• T’Way Air: Layover in Incheon, South Korea
• Thai Airways: Layover in Bangkok
• United: Layover in San Francisco
• Vietnam Airlines: Layover in Tan Son Nhat
• XiamenAir: Layover in Xiamen

Depending on the length of your layover and the day you plan on leaving, most of these routes take around 25 hours.

The quickest route from Sydney to Paris is onboard the Emirates (EK 415) flight which takes around 23.5 hours to complete. As such, there’s no particular time advantage to going to London or Paris via. Perth as both routes take around 25 hours. However, if you’re attempting to make a connection on the other end e.g. to a smaller airport like Marseille, which has limited flights per day, there can be an advantage.

How Was the Pre-flight Experience?

I’ve always had a positive pre-flight experience when travelling with Qantas and the check-in process at Sydney Airport is easy. The flight from Sydney to Perth is at 3:30 p.m., and as such, you’re not arriving at the airport during the peak of the morning or the afternoon, so it’s always going to be this way.

The flight from Sydney to Perth takes 3.5-4 hours and is often onboard one of the two Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners that will make the long-haul flight to London or Paris that evening.

I flew across on a 787-9 that was equipped with the 100 Years livery and its final destination was London. My Perth to Paris plane came in from Brisbane just before we arrived from Sydney, and it was a standard Qantas liveried 787-9 Dreamliner.

Once you touch down in Perth you deboard the plane, take all your belongings, and those eligible can make their way to the Perth International Qantas Business Class lounge.

This lounge is specifically designed for these ultra-long-haul flights with an outdoor patio area, Refresh space, shower suites, body clock intervention light therapy, a Quench hydration station, and even a BBQ grill where you can take advantage of Neil Perry’s finest. However, once you’ve been fed a full lunch on the plane from Sydney to Perth you’re probably not that interested in having too much food.

Both the Perth to Paris and Perth to London flights leave within an hour of each other, as such the lounge can get busy for these flights. I’d highly recommend heading to the lounge immediately once you deboard the plane.

What Plane Flys from Perth to Paris?

Qantas flies a fleet of Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners from Perth to Paris, they include:

• VH-ZNC
• VH-ZND
• VH-ZNF
• VH-ZNI
• VH-ZNL

There are 42 Business Class seats, 28 Premium Economy seats, and 166 Economy seats. Business class is set up in a 1-2-1 configuration, Premium Economy is 2-3-2, and Economy is 3-3-3. There are seven toilets, every seat has access to laptop power, USB ports, and an in-flight video entertainment system.

I was travelling in Business Class and selected seat 3A, which I highly recommend as it’s a ‘true window’ seat that provides a gap between your seat and the aisle. Business Class seats onboard a Qantas 787-9 Dreamliner have the following features:

• Seat width: 23-24-inch
• Bed width: 24-25-inch
• Fully flat 80-inch seat length
• Privacy screen
• Adjustable headrest
• Extendable leg rest 
• 100% cotton duvet and mattress
• European style pillow
• USB charging and AC power outlets
• Large 16-inch seatback screen to watch inflight entertainment

Now that you know what you’re getting, let’s talk about the in-flight experience.

What is the In-flight Experience Like?

The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner is one of the newest planes on the planet, and as such, it’s unbelievably quiet. That’s especially true from seat 3A which is far in front of the engine. You can comfortably hold a conversation with someone, and I found myself sleeping without my noise-cancelling headphones on, which is a first.

Business Class seats are spacious with a 23 to 24-inch width that expands to a 24 to 25-inch bed. These Qantas Dreamliner seats are larger than the seats found on a Qantas A380, and compared to other top-tier airlines such as Emirates, Qatar, and Singapore, they’re up to 6 inches wider. This can make a difference when you’re travelling 17.5 hours to the other side of the world, and I found the seats very comfortable.

Seat entertainment is standard for an international business flight, and the in-seat screens are 16 inches in size which makes them smaller than those found in an Emirates A380 (23 inches) and the new Turkish Airlines A350 (18 inches). However, I was impressed by the movies and TV show selection as it included several new releases. I was less impressed by the fact there’s no WiFi on board.

It’s worth noting quickly that the entire flight is pitch black outside and lights out inside, so don’t expect to see any landmarks along the way. If you’re lucky you’ll spend most of the 17-17.5 hours of flight time sleeping.

Once you take your seat Business Class passengers are welcomed by a glass of Champagne on arrival. The dinner service starts about 1-hour into the flight, and while I’ve never been particularly impressed by Qantas food, the service is always top-notch onboard the flight. This time, we had a choice of Seared cod with ginger and shallot sauce, Slow cooked lamb shank in red wine with garlic roast potatoes, and a Beef fillet with potato puree. I made the mistake of eating way too much in the lounge so I skipped dinner, which was a mistake.

Breakfast isn’t served until 2 hours before you land, so there’s a large 12-13 hour gap between meals. Still, you’ll never go particularly hungry with a handful of mid-flight snacks that include Goat’s cheese with asparagus, beans, and potatoes, Stir fried prawns with chive and egg fried rice, and a Pithivier of chicken and tarragon with onion puree.

The breakfast choices were fairly stock-standard with bacon and eggs or a continental option. I chose the bacon and eggs, croissant, and yoghurt option and it was fine.

How Does it Feel to Arrive in Paris?

Once breakfast has been served there’s less than two hours to go until you arrive in Paris at around 6:30 am local time. If you’ve had a decent amount of rest then you’ll feel surprisingly refreshed, but if you’re like me and you struggle to sleep on a plane then you’ll be thinking about getting to the hotel quickly.

Would I recommend the Perth to Paris flight? Well, there are quicker ways to get to Paris, but my circumstances meant that this was the quickest route to Marseille.

It mostly comes down to timing. However, there’s also a novelty element, and I can now say that I’ve completed one of the longest flights in the world. I’m still trying to get my head around the idea that you can take off on Australian soil and then arrive in Paris. When I flew from Sydney to Vancouver (14.5 hours) 10 years ago it blew my mind, but this QF33 service makes it look like a Sydney to Melbourne.

Of course, I can’t even begin to imagine what it would be like to spend more than 17 hours sitting upright in Economy Class, and there are other routes I would recommend for those travellers (via. Singapore, Dubai, etc.). However, for work trips or where Business Class is a viable option, the Perth to Paris flight can make a lot of sense, especially if you’re connecting to another city with a smaller airport.

You’ll also like:

• Qantas’ $100 Million Plan to Upgrade Global Lounge Network Unveiled
• Qantas Unveils New First and Business Class Cabins for Non-Stop Flights to NYC and London