Qantas’ direct Perth to Paris route has officially taken off, connecting Australia to France directly for the first time. The new flights will take travellers from Western Australia’s capital to the City of Lights in 17 hours 20 minutes and is the fastest way to get to Paris from Australia. It also marks the return of Qantas operating flights to Paris for the first time in 20 years. 

If you’re travelling from Perth, obviously this new service cuts your travel time by a lot. Depending on where you transit, flying direct from Perth to Paris could save travellers more than three hours of travel time. Some airlines include long transit times and it can take passengers flying out of Perth up to 27 hours to get to Paris. 

Guests flying from Australia’s eastern seaboard will also save time thanks to Qantas’ new route. Including connection time, the Perth-Paris direct flight will cut around three hours off the current fastest travel time between eastern cities and Paris.  

Flights will initially operate four times per week over the busy European summer and Olympic and Paralympics before moving to three services per week from mid-August. The new route will add an additional 75,000 seats between Australia and Europe each year. The new service will be operated on the airline’s Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner which has been specially designed for long-haul travel, with all passengers benefitting from large windows, high cabin humidity and relaxing mood lighting to help them feel more refreshed when they land.

 

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To mark the start of the direct Paris flights, Qantas has launched a number of customer initiatives including limited edition Martin Grant-designed pyjamas with matching amenity kits and Neil Perry-curated menus for the Business cabin featuring classic French dishes such as Bouillabaisse of snapper and Skull Island prawns and a French 75 cocktail, which you can read all about here. 

Qantas is investing big on ultra-long haul flights. In 2025, the airline will launch Project Sunrise and fly travellers from Sydney to London and New York City on a 22-hour direct flight. The airline is making some big changes to the Economy cabin to ensure a comfortable journey. Read about the cabin updates here. 

How long is a flight from Australia to Paris?

If you’re flying Qantas’ new Perth-Paris route the flight duration from Perth to Paris is 17 hours and 20 minutes. The Paris to Perth flight is 16 hours and 30 minutes. From the eastern seaboard a flight to Paris with a stopover in Perth will take approximately 23 hours and 30 minutes flying with Qantas. If you’re transiting in through other international cities like Singapore or Bangkok, travel time is from 24 hours and 20 minutes, or longer.

Related story: Premium economy on Qantas’ direct flight from Sydney to NYC