MELBOURNE: AirAsia and Australia’s leading surfing bodies have announced a joint partnership that will see the Kuala Lumpur headquartered international low cost carrier become Surfing’s official airline partner in Australia.
To mark the occasion, the airline has launched its “Surfs Up, Fares down” sale alongside a special offer that will allow surfers to pack and travel with their surfboard free of charge to selected destinations on the AirAsia network.
AirAsia’s Surfs Up, Fares down sale kicked off on Monday, 19th March with fares from Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and the Gold Coast to the surf spots of Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Bali and Thailand starting from just $239 one way.
The partnership fare using the promotional code ‘FREESURF’commenced Monday.
Announced on the Gold Coast alongside the World Surfing League’s (WSL) Quiksilver and Roxy Pro Gold Coast event with pro surfers Connor O’Leary, Tatiana Weston-Webb, Keanu Asing, and Paige Hareb, the deal between Surfing Australia, State territories and the WSL’s Australian professional series has the stated aim of encouraging Australians to adventure beyond their own backyard and explore the hottest surf spots of Asia.
AirAsia Group CEO Tony Fernandes said: “Travelling with your surfboard has never been easier with AirAsia.
“Aquatic activities such as surfing are part of what makes Australia a special place to live and visit, and we are delighted to form such a strong partnership with the Australian surfing community.
“The vast majority of the 675,000 Australian guests we carry on our flights each year travel solely for leisure purposes – activities such as surfing and watersports.
“Through this partnership, we want to encourage even more Australian guests to pack their surfboard and discover the more than 200 surf breaks across our network in countries such as Indonesia, Thailand, Japan, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.
“With over 130 destinations across Asia Pacific and our exceptional service, we are confident Australian’s will have no trouble finding the perfect set to call their own.”
Surfing Australia CEO Andrew Stark noted: “Waves of Australians have been packing their boards and jetting off on surfing holidays to parts of Asia for many years.
“Surfing Australia and our state surfing bodies are extremely excited about the program of work we have planned with AirAsia and delighted to have them on-board as the Official Airline Partner in Australia.”
World Surfing League CEO Sophie Goldschmidt said: “WSL fans can expect to see some wonderful additions to our Australian series including the awarding of the AirAsia Big Air© at the Quiksilver Pro on the Gold Coast, Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach and Margaret River Pro in Perth.
“I’m genuinely excited about the additions to the program and more importantly the engagement of our fans as part of this partnership – the WSL welcomes AirAsia to our surfing family.”
