Flight Centre
Verified3,589 reviews
AI reviews summary
The overall sentiment for Flight Centre is overwhelmingly negative, particularly regarding their online and call centre operations. While specific in-store consultants are occasionally praised for their expertise and personal service, these positive experiences are overshadowed by systemic failures in post-booking support. Customers frequently report significant financial losses, extreme difficulty in processing refunds or changes, and a disconnect between online bookings and physical store assistance.
Pros
- Exceptional In-Store Consultants: Specific staff members (e.g., at Ballina, Port Macquarie, and Tuggerah) are praised for their deep travel knowledge, meticulous planning, and proactive communication.
- Ease of Initial Booking: Users generally find the initial process of booking a flight or holiday package online to be straightforward and user-friendly.
- Specialised Advocacy: In rare, complex cases (such as travelling with assistance animals), dedicated agents have successfully advocated for customers to secure refunds and airline compliance.
Cons
- Ineffective Call Centres: Recurring complaints highlight long hold times, offshore agents with significant language barriers, and a lack of authority to resolve issues, often resulting in conflicting information.
- Refund and Credit Obstacles: Multiple users report waiting 12–18 weeks for refunds, being charged "hidden" fees to use existing flight credits, and having travel insurance claims (Europe Assistance) denied for situational emergencies.
- Booking Errors and Mismanagement: Significant issues include incorrect name entries on tickets, failure to sync seat selections with airlines, and "ghosting" customers who request quotes for complex itineraries.
- Online vs. In-Store Disconnect: Customers who book online are frequently refused help at physical branches, leaving them trapped in automated or offshore phone systems during emergencies.
Verdict
Flight Centre appears to function as two different entities: a high-quality traditional travel agency when dealing with specific local consultants, and a problematic budget booking platform when used online. Due to the high risk of excessive fees and poor support during cancellations or changes, consumers are advised to book directly with airlines or only use highly-rated in-store agents.
Captains package is a complete scam! It isn't insurance and offers nothing for a misplaced bag besides what they call blue ribbon, essentially they track your bag and bomb you with WhatsApp messages with false information! So far I've been waiting 3 days for a bag that I was told was left in Sydney, then was told it was being delivered to Curitiba… Read more
yesterday, only to get to the airport and find out they sent it to Sao Paolo instead and now won't be here until tomorrow at the earliest and that's assuming federal police don't intercept it, which I was told that as it's an unaccompanied bag they most likely will, adding more days to wait. All credit to Madie at flight centre who has gone above and beyond to help but her office has been replying to my emails as she is now on leave. I was told the captains package is a tracking service for bags and mine isn't 'lost' and to speak to the airline or my insurance. Flight centre take no responsibility for selling a scam product that offers no real assurance or insurance! Do NOT BUY their garbage product!
FLIGHT CENTRE how many times must i remind you that C&P LUXURY ACCOMMODATION ROME has never had a booking or received payment for 5 nights from the 20th to the 25 of may 2026 for us and then last week you send me a notification asking how was my flight and accommodation stop giving me repetitive replies and supply me with details as to where my… Read more
money for accommodation went very unprofessional flight Centre and i would recommend people not to use their services based on my experience
Because I booked online I could not get any help from in-person stores, so had to call. And the call center employees were useless and never helpful. I wanted to change my flights back, and had to call three times to make this happen. First time, I was told I had to select flights from the same carrier. So I went and found flights from the same… Read more
carrier. Second call, I was told those flights aren’t available. I look online and find the same flights are still available. Third call – I have all the information available (including flight numbers). He tells me the flights aren’t available, I literally refresh the website while on the phone and tell him they are still on the Flight Centre website. After ages, he says he’ll have to call me back. I get a call back hours later saying they can’t change my flights – I argue that no where does it say it can’t be changed, just that it needs to be equal or more. I ask to speak with a manager, manager comes on and all of a sudden; they can change my flights!
Then on the day of my flight Jetstar cancelled their flight, they say they will inform the other carrier, but can’t help me further because I booked through Flight Centre. I call Flight Centre, and after an hour on the phone; they cannot confirm my flight has been cancelled, and even if they did they could not help me get on another flight that day. Meanwhile Jetstar and the other carrier have already automatically booked me in for the next day.
This was my first overseas trip and I thought going through an agent would give me some security. But they only proved to be the problem every step in the way. I will go straight through the airlines in future and tell people to avoid Flight Centre.
Hi there, we're sorry to hear about your… Read more
Reviews with attachments
COMPLETELY SCREWED OVER OUR FLIGHTS – Flight from Adelaide to Bali through Virgin has been redirected and changed as Virgin stopped during direct flights to Bali. However Flight centre failed to inform us of these changes so we were unaware when we went airport they informed us these flights weren’t corrected and that we missed our flight although flight centre never informed us.… Read more
Spoke about 4-5 hours on customer service online with flight centre and she did not understand us at all, had minimal English and speaking skills. It was frustrating and now we don’t have any flights. They are refusing to tell us what is happening with our return flights from Bali. The lady has zero knowledge or idea about what to do or the fact virgin has discontinued all of its flights. We asked her about whether our outbound flights from Bali to Adelaide would be impacted and she said no there is no change (watch the video). She also confirmed she had documented everything and that she had contacted virgin. But when we talked to virgin they told us the flight that flight centre booked is no longer in service so pretty much this lady and flight centre were placing us on a flight which did not exists!!!!! DO NOT USE AT ALL WE MADE A BAD MISTAKE AND NOW WE ARE SO DISTRESSED
Hi Prasadika- I believe our Customer Relations… Read more
Online Bookings have hidden Cancellation fee – Flight Centre have always been one of the worst and most deceptive companies. I could talk about many things and how they change the price of bookings to make more commission etc but this is directed at online bookings. I haven’t used them for years, thought I would give it another chance and it had lead to disappointment once again. I made an… Read more
online booking that says “free cancellation before 21st March 6pm”. Which I thought was great, nah when I went to cancel they said there’s a $50 per person cancellation fee? This isn’t written ANYWHERE WHEN BOOKING. It feels like false advertising. If you charge a cancellation fee then that is not FREE cancellation. I feel sorry for the staff that have to deal with this because I’m sure it comes up time and time again and people complain.
On top of that, I researched it and booked it myself with instant confirmation - what is the fee possibly for? I wouldn’t have this charge with any other online booking platform unless it was advertised.
I’ve posted a screen recording of the process. The itinerary where it mentions cancellation , additional fees and my attempt to click on the terms and conditions although it did not even work.
If you are going to charge a $50 cancellation fee that is fine but you need to be upfront about that and not hide it. How is flight centre getting away with that?
Sorry to hear about your experience Jasmina. This… Read more (+1 reply)
Scott Bevan provided absolutely outstanding service in helping us get back to Australia with our assistance cats under very challenging circumstances. He went above and beyond, working tirelessly with multiple airlines and advocating on our behalf when most would not recognise our cats’ accreditation. Thanks to Scott’s persistence, we were able… Read more · 1
to fly with Korean Air with our cats in the cabin, and he even successfully arranged a refund when the airline changed its terms after booking.
Throughout the entire process, Scott was professional, responsive, and genuinely committed to helping us find a solution during an incredibly stressful time. We truly could not have made it home without him.
Highly recommend.
Nearly 1.5hrs on the phone - mostly on hold. To be told we could change our flights for an extra $300 than if we just rebook ourselves on your website that has to be illegal. Warning - Do not use Flight Centre Show details
Hi Melinda, we're sorry to see you're not happy… Read more (+1 reply)
- +7
Disappointed with the accommodation in the travel package, and Flight Centre will do nothing to assist. When I called, the agent told me that since I was there, I had to sort it out myself. We are still currently on trip until 15/11/2025 We paid extra for an upgrade to a superior room at Pacific Views Resort in the Gold Coast. We were given a… Read more
standard room, but instead received a dirty, smelly, and falling-apart room. The air conditioner was incredibly dirty and very noisy. They have changed the filter. There is mould in the showers and in the sinks (which can be cleaned, not just the silicone). Dust in the hairdryer. Cockroaches in the rooms and bathrooms. The linens are stained, and we had two towels replaced. The blankets are dirty and stained - only the sheets on the bed are made, and I don't think they wash the doonas or blankets. The room smells like smoke or something; it is not pleasant. Many light fittings are falling from the ceiling. Photos do not match the pictures. e.g. TVs in bedrooms, there aren't any and more issues.
Supposed to be a celebration, and it has been horrible.
We’re sorry to hear that your experience didn’t… Read more
Flight Centre, due to the competition posed by Skyscanner’s online sales, has recently engaged in misleading practices in collaboration with Aunt Betty, selling tickets without clearly displaying baggage allowances. They claim that baggage information will be provided in the e-ticket, but the e-ticket does not include it. In order to make… Read more
Skyscanner lose its customers, they have adopted unethical and unprofessional methods. I purchased a flight on April 2, 2026, from Tokyo to Cairo through a Flight Centre partner, and these issues have caused significant problems for me. I do not recommend other travelers to purchase tickets from Flight Centre or its partner Aunt Betty.
Hi there, thanks for your message. While Aunt Betty… Read more
Latest follow-ups
The worst – Totally agree with all the negative comments. Nothng has changed. Do not use flight centre. Wish I had read these reviews before I used them. I never will again. Worse than terrible. Total [Content Removed]. Show details
Follow-up · Flight Centre advertises that you can change your flight for a fee which was fine with me as I had made a mistake thinking the flight from Auckland to Dunedin was the same day as my flight from Sydney to Auckland. It was the next day meaning I would have to pay for hotel rooms for the whole family. Then I discovered Flight Centre would only change… Read more
Hi Zoey, if you'd like to provide any specific… Read more (+1 reply)
flight Centre customer service are horrible and No help when need – We were travelling to Australia from Dhaka and the entire journey had been really frustrating. China southern airlines don't provide assistance in situations like sudden cancellation of flight. We tried to reached out to service team at the airport… Read more
office and the China southern online support to see if they can help or assist. Flight centre or the airlines nobody is there to help the customers.
We have wastes a whole day and our little 2 year old son got serious sick because of all the hassle we had to deal with.
Absolutely hopeless service
1. After arriving the airport found sudden cancellation of the flight. 2. Neither flight centre nor china southern airlines notified about the cancellation of the flight. 3. Long wait about seven hours at the airport without any support which leads us absolute discomfort, Including nausea and vomiting for long at dhaka airport. 4. China Southern airlines management is absolutely horrible and unfriendly at Dhaka airport didn’t help us at all, specially with my child we have to hold for such a long time. 5. After a long long wait they managed to find a flight with Thai airways, unfortunately that was another horrible experience because we had to walk all the way to catch the plan without any from one terminal to another. 6. My wife is sick, has immune disease and body weaknesses. I have had back surgery recently so I have no strength to hold our two tear old for such long time long, Meanwhile we were looking for assistance at the airport. Nobody was there to help. 7. Additionally, we couldn’t find a suitable seat or didn’t have suitable food on the fight as we made our dietary preference before the flight. So we had to stay hungry the whole journey.
We have had the worst and most horrible flight experience in our life. We have tried to contact the flight centre customer service few times but nobody is taking the responsibility and nobody is there to help.
Follow-up · What support was expected? I expected Flight Centre to assist with obtaining compensation or a refund from the airline and to provide support after the cancellation. Instead, I received very little to no assistance. Was travel insurance used? No, travel insurance was not used. What was the resolution? There was no satisfactory resolution.… Read more
Hi Ocean, We're sorry to see you're not happy with… Read more
On 22/4/26 unbeknown to me my 80 year old wheel chair ridden Wife who suffers from Stage 4 Pancreatic cancer & Dementia went into Flight Centre Tweed City when I thought she was having lunch with friends & was sold a trip to Subiaco for 6,182 .33 ,… Read more
& paid a deposit of $2,757.90 ,$1875.00 in cash. This was for the 3rd of June when she is very unlikely to be alive! When I contacted the Agent & said was unethical she got angry & said well you'll be going with you. We are long term customers of Flight Centre & had informed another Agent in February that we were unable to take anymore holidays because of her condition. When I placed a review on Trust Pilot the response was that there was nothing wrong with my Wife .I totally reject the inference I was lying, I don't know anyone who would be fabricating the medical condition of a loved one. I assume this came from Management. The whole Company seems to be devoid of integrity .Fortunately a promoted Agent we used to deal with heard of our situation & managed to arrange a refund. Probably one of the most distressing scenario I've ever been involved in.
Follow-up · My Wife who Flight Centre insisted had nothing wrong with her when they stitched her up for a trip to Subiaco in their quest for commissions is now in Tweed Valley Hospital Palliative Care Ward, heavily medicated and unlikely to survive the week. This is about the same time Flight Centre were sending her on the trip which they insisted she was capable of.
Hi Dave, We’ve replied to your other review, and… Read more (+2 replies)
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Positive reviews
Robert has done the most Amazing job helping us with European holiday. Answered everything ,arranged everything. WE can't wait to get on plane tomorrow. Thanks Robert for helping us. Show details · 1
We booked a trip to NZ North Island for 10 days mid March with Jess at Flight Centre Toormina. She booked our flights from Sydney/Auckland/Taupo and return flights from Taupo to Auckland to Sydney. Very helpful consultant. Professional approach and knowledgeable. We enjoyed our holiday and the tours recommended and booked for us. Very Happy with the service. Thank You Jess Show details · 1
On the 14th October 2025 I went into Flight Centre at Tuggerah Westfield. I spoke with Anita. It’s the 3rd trip I’ve booked with Anita who is one of the nicest people anyone could have the good fortune to meet. Anita is simply amazing at her job- like previously she sorted out my tickets and trip to perfection, no fuss, no hassle no problems and… Read more · 1
all with a smile on her face. Anita is truly an asset to Flight Centre and no words can thank her enough for her professionalism and her thoroughly delightful manner towards her customers. I plan on seeing Anita for every trip I want. Thank you.
Negative reviews
Booked flight from Perth to Brisbane online but had to postpone the trip. I received credit which was good but when I went to rebook one operator said I couldn't use my credit because he didn't know the price so held my seats and told me to ring back in 2 days. I did this and the girl i spoke to said this has now expired and will have to book it… Read more
all again, and in these 2 days the price has gone up $200 for each ticket. The service is painfully slow , surely you put in my booking number and all my details should be there . Also very hard to understand operators and they keep talking over you so you have to raise your voice to make them listen, Very Disappointed with Flight Center. Ill be booking straight through the airline next time. Not good enough Flight Centre and no cheaper than booking direct
Thanks for your review Richard, we're sorry to see… Read more
Extremely poor experience with Flight Centre Online. We were charged for tickets that were not issued, told to pay again, and still had to spend around 8 hours on the phone and escalate to a supervisor just to get the matter resolved. The problems continued when an amended itinerary by a Flight Centre agent incorrectly placed my wife and son on… Read more
separate flights on different days back to Sydney. I only discovered this after contacting China Eastern directly. Fixing the issue meant even more calls, long hold times, repeating the same story to multiple agents, and being told to call back the next day.
The entire experience was stressful, inefficient, and badly handled from start to finish. In contrast, my previous experience with a local Flight Centre branch was smooth and professional. Based on this experience, I would not use Flight Centre Online again. Never again.
Hi Ziad, I'm sorry to hear about your experience. I… Read more (+1 reply)
I can't begin to express the incompetence of Flight Centre. I have been trying to use flight credit and every time I call, I get a completely different response as to whether I can use the credit, where I can go with the credit and what is the expiration of the credit. I will never use flight centre again, especially if there is any chance of… Read more
needing to make any changes to the booking.
My only advice to anyone who has used them is to keep calling back because you will get a different person every time and hopefully one of those people give you an answer that is helpful. Not that that happened to me.
I had $860 flight credit and had found flights online that I wanted to use them for. There was a rebooking fee of $129 + the difference of the flights which I could see online as $986 total.
So this would mean I would be paying an extra $129 + 126 = $255. I was fine with this amount.
But Flight Centre I would need to pay a total of $550. When I asked about the extra charges they said it was taxes.
This was after I had been told the wrong date as to when I needed to rebook my flights for and countless pointless phone calls.
I'm sorry to hear of your frustration, Bridget. To… Read more
Recent reviews
I paid for a flexible fare and the Captains pack to ensure I had extra coverage on my return domestic flights only to be told I could not cancel one of the flights. The very straight forward call went for 40 mins with someone from overseas with a thick accent who didn't know the major airlines polices and constantly put me on hold for 3 to 5 mins… Read more
every time I asked a question. The Captains pack was worthless, the customer services was outsourced to the Philippines and I realised there is no reason to book via Flight Centre at all. I paid for a middle man that provided no service besides taking extra booking fees and then referring everything to the airline.
Hi Lara, I can't find a booking based on the… Read more
Terribly arrogant employees in this company talk to you like trash I had a problem changing the last name but the seed I tried to solve it But it took two weeks before I even spoke and in the end they don't want to refund my money I cancelled the flight ticket they don't want to refund my money Horror very bad experience!! I recommend avoiding… Read more
this company Flight Center because they are very problematic, they do not accommodate the customer, and in the end they systematically rob customers and do not want to refund money for canceled flights.Flight Center stole from me, they refunded my money for the flight ticket, so I lost $1,800, that's really disgusting, a dirty theft!!
Hi Robert, I'm sorry to hear about your experience.… Read more (+3 replies)
I went to book a flight Tokyo with flight centre with Singapore Airlines, The consultant suggested Qantas as they are on sale, I specified no add ons or Qantas points cr#p during our conversations he sent me an email to select a choice of 2 shares I was confused by this and he suggested to tick the first box. I now know that this was a [Content… Read more
Removed] to extract more money from me as it was for a Captains pack totally unsuited to me and exactly what I told him I did want. $188 for nothing with a $188 cancellation fee. What a rip-off. I have tried to get my money back but it's a well tried [Content Removed]. Be warned do not agree to anything with flight centre, get all details printed take it home and check it before paying. Bill.
Hey Bill, we're sorry to see you're not happy with… Read more
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Wanted a brochure and a quote for a trip to Hawaii Response was “ we don’t have brochures “ specially for Hawaii. Only information we have is to do with booking a tour” Stud park Left me standing there pondering why I wasn’t offered a quote. Isn’t everyone that walks in the door an opportunity? No idea Show details
Hey Ken, I'm sorry to hear about your experience -… Read more
SHOCKING!!!! DO NOT BOOK WITH FLIGHT CENTER book directly with Qantas, Virgin etc. I called 2 to change a flight 1 hour the first call, got told the flight was changed. Never received confirmation. Rang back 1 hour to find out the flight was not changed!! change it and got charged $369 that's a 3rd of original cost of the flight. The call center… Read more
is in India, so hardly understood "can you send a confirmation email to say flight has been changed?" SHOCKING don't waste your money.
Hi Veronica, I'm sorry to hear about your… Read more (+1 reply)
We used Flight Centre to plan and book our flight home from Denver USA. Was booked Qantas but ended up American Airlines - quality difference to start. We missed our connection, just, the flight did not wait but we were at terminal 3 of us well… Read more
before the flight left. We believe they on sold our seats but can’t confirm. The domestic Eagle Flight landed in a remote terminal that took a bus to get to the main terminal, which then took a 20min run/walk to get to the departure terminal - impossible on the day. We were organising transfers, Hotels etc at 1.30am - they couldn’t provide our new boarding passes. Shuttles had shut down for the night. Then the hotel charged us for accommodation, without authority and it took us a week to get funds back. A litany of dramas which shouldn’t happen when you use a professional company.
Follow-up · Hi readers. Well no refund everything totally dismissed by flight centre without communication. AA (American Airlines) rang me from USA and spoke it through at least - they were concerned with a legal challenge I believe. Flight same route but 24 hours later so two overnight vouchers - that’s another issue. Flight Centre Customer service - main… Read more
Hi Norman, we're sorry to hear you've missed your… Read more (+2 replies)
Ok for booking flights, but terrible if you need assistance for a problem. I booked flights to New Zealand, and took up the option to select our seats, which of course came at an extra cost per seat, each way. Despite me paying for this additional option, at check in, my request wasn't honoured. Now I can understand how my booking may not have… Read more
flowed through to Air New Zealand, so I assumed Flight Center would be happy to refund the the cost of the product purchased, but not provided - Nah, I was wrong. Once they get your money, you ain't getting it back.
[Name Removec] at Flight Centre has refused a refund, and responded that Australian Consumer Law allows Flight Center to change the price of tickets. Well [Name Removec], I wasn't after a refund for a price change in a ticket, I'm after a refund for a service charged for, but not provided.
Best option for those considering Flight Centre is - DON'T. And if you do choose Flight Centre, I hope you never need to deal with [Name Removec].
Not a big refund requested. I suggest the cost for you to deal with Dept of Fair Trading will cost you more.
Hi there Mal, sorry to see you're not happy with… Read more
We booked a holiday via Flight Centre, Essendon. We were NOT clearly informed that our fees/ charges included their travel insurance. We did NOT know that their fee for their travel insurance, Covermore, was in fact DEARER than the top fee Covermore… Read more
themselves charge. Then there is the issue of seats and how pathetically we were treated by their staff when we sought to change seats and that staff saying one thing and Qantas another. We will NEVER use them or any Flight Centre outlet AGAIN.
Follow-up · 1. The insurance we paid was HIGHER than the top fee that Covermore charge 2 YES it was unclear as neither of us realised we were buying it OR at the price 3 My wife wanted a different seat and the staffer claimed WE had to do it but Qantas advised in writing that as we booked via her only she could do so
We're sorry to see you're not happy with your… Read more (+1 reply)
Booked Batik return flights through Flight Centre online. Batik changed the flights to leave/return 2 days later. Flight Centre online have no relation with in store bookings. Had to rebook my flight’s only to be told by Flight Centre online that my… Read more
refund would take 90 days to be processed. Customer service was rude and had to wait online for hours. Unsure if we will get a full refund. DO NOT BOOK THROUGH FLIGHT CENTRE ONLINE.
Follow-up · Still no sign of a refund !! Flight Centre unable to provide an update.
Sorry to hear your booking was affected by an… Read more (+1 reply)
Needed a document printed & was advised that it could be done at flight centre. Sydney International airport. I was stunned, they charged $10 for a one page document. “Your joking?” The woman didn’t flinch just a quick glance at the other consultant she’d been sitting & chatting to when we walked in. Don’t know if this is the norm but I decided… Read more
to put it on my card rather than give them cash. I could have bought a full ream of copy paper for less than that and a laser copy is on average .07 cents per copy. I have kept the print to add to my holiday memories.
Hi there, we're sorry to see that you are not happy… Read more (+1 reply)
Booked a flight to Greece for my wife with Flight Centre 15/05/22 flying Singapore Airlines as per the Itinerary ( Refer Below) Paid premium amount as believed she was flying with Singapore Airlines. Once the itinerary was displayed on the screen and the information provided by Flight Centre that my wife was flying with Singapore Airlines we paid… Read more
the amount. After we paid the amount Flight Centre changed the flight details with part of the flight changed to Scoot Airlines ( a budget airline) this was not on the original itinerary and we would not have paid premium prices for a budget airline. We have tried on numerous occassions contacting Flight Centre for a refund but will not agree even though as seen below they have acknowledged that we were deceived.
Hi Alex, I'm sorry to hear that you're not happy… Read more
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Hi Ang, we have replied to your several other… Read more