Karratha Airport: How much do Aviair flights to Port Hedland and Broome cost?
Karratha Airport in the Pilbara has several flights a day from Perth. But small Western Australian airline Aviair also flies from Karratha to Port Hedland, Newman and Broome. Aviair flights are very, very expensive, though.
Despite the enormous size of Western Australia, air travel in the state tends to be routed through Perth. This can make for massive detours flying into Perth then flying out again elsewhere.
There are plenty of regional airports in Western Australia, but services flying into them are very limited. Broome Airport is something of an exception – there are flights to Broome from Sydney, Melbourne and Darwin. But there are slim pickings elsewhere.
Karratha Airport flights
Karratha Airport is theoretically a useful one. It is in that massive empty stretch of the Pilbara between Exmouth and Broome, and it’s just off the North-West Coastal Highway.
Karratha was originally a company town, set up by Hamersley Iron. The company also built the airport, although it is now owned by the City of Karratha. It is a surprisingly busy airport, too, mostly servicing fly-in, fly-out miners from Perth working at Rio Tinto’s Pilbara mines.
As that snippet information would suggest, Karratha is not really a tourist hotspot. Very few people are going to fly to Karratha Airport for tourism purposes – although there are good Aboriginal-guided rock art tours here. If they do wish to, there are several daily flights from Perth to Karratha. Both Qantas and Virgin Australia offer direct flights from Perth to Karratha Airport.
Aviair flights from Karratha Airport to Port Hedland, Newman and Broome
However, if you’re prepared to look beyond the major airlines, it is possible to fly from Karratha Airport to other destinations in Australia. Local airline Aviair focuses on the Pilbara and Kimberley in Western Australia. Aviair sells direct flights from Karratha to Port Hedland and Newman, as well as flights from Karratha to Broome via Port Hedland. The schedules are on the Aviair website.
These Aviair flights are not cheap. One way tickets from Karratha to Port Hedland cost $199. Given that’s only a 239km drive, this does seem somewhat pointless. The Karratha to Broome flights are even steeper, costing an eye-watering $649.
Where to stay in Karratha
Booking ahead in Karratha is strongly advised, as hotels can fill up with mine workers and get very expensive if you just rock up on the day. The best Karratha accommodation options are:
- For a relatively cheap, decent bed for the night: Econo Lodge Karratha.
- For overall quality, a pool and a restaurant: Best Western Plus The Ranges or Karratha International Hotel.
- For facilities, space and self-catering: Karratha Central Apartments.
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