Add Category
It can be costly to fly from Canberra to other capital cities but experts say that's not always the case.
Lillian, this week's Curious Canberran, noticed the price of flights shortly after she moved to the city in 2014.
"I used to drive between Melbourne and Canberra quite frequently and then I thought I would look at flights one day, to see how expensive they were," she said.
"I was really surprised by how much more they cost then say a flight from Melbourne to Sydney."
To save money, Lillian continues to drive between the cities.
Lillian's heard a couple of different theories about what contributes to the cost of Canberra's flights, and she was keen to know if any of them were to blame.
There are a handful of factors, some of them unique to Canberra, that push domestic airfares up.
Before we get to those, here's a quick look at how airfares are calculated.
Do Canberrans pay more to fly?
The airlines I contacted didn't comment on specific routes and they're not obligated to breakdown the costs of airfares either due to commercial in confidence.
"They change minute to minute, day to day, depending on your destination, what type of plane you might be flying in, what airline you're flying with.
"So it's actually quite a complex issue to figure out when prices are going to be more expensive than others."
Peter Harbison, the executive chairman of CAPA Centre for Aviation, says the price you pay has more to do with when you book your flight and what time you fly.
He used Qantas as an example, pointing out their range of fares from a "bare bones" Red e-deal, to a flexible economy fare, and two business class fares.
"That's the way airlines fill their aircraft, so you automatically get bumped up to the flexible fare."
To prove his point, Peter compared the price of two flights scheduled to depart the next day.
On the Canberra to Melbourne route he found an economy fare leaving at 5pm for $700 one-way.
He found a Sydney to Melbourne fare leaving at 8.30am for $700 one-way.
"When you're measuring against that, sure a $1000 round trip Canberra-Melbourne sounds expensive... but if you're travelling in peak hour or at the last minute that's perfectly normal."
Here's what does push prices up:
1. Shorter flights cost more per kilometre
Dr Tony Webber, CEO of Airline Intelligence & Research and a former Qantas chief economist, says two routes dominate flights into Canberra.
"Sydney-Canberra and Melbourne-Canberra and they are very very short sectors or distances," he said.
"When you spread those costs over a short distance, the cost per kilometre is much higher."
Airport costs and on-route charges also get added to the ticket price.
2. The passenger mix - more work, less play
"One of the reasons Sydney-Canberra costs a lot is that there are a lot of Government corporate deals done," Peter from CAPA Centre for Aviation said.
Dr Webber says public servants and corporate travellers dominate certain interstate flights.
"On those routes the real driver is the economy and political activity," he said.
"Whereas Sydney to Gold Coast, and even to some extent Sydney to Melbourne, it's more about 'Can we go on sale to motivate people to go on this trip?'"
3. Popularity of the route
Tilly South from CHOICE says the price of airfares are "similar to any product you might buy in the market - you'll see that usually competition creates lower prices."
"It's the third or fourth biggest route in the world so you're going to get much much more competitive fares."
4. Who's flying to town
Competition is also shaped by the number and type of airlines flying into Canberra.
"And that's simply because the full-service carriers have an all-inclusive price that doesn't unbundle services."
The reintroduction of Tigerair in December 2016, put an end to the airline duopoly.
The low-cost carrier will be adding a Canberra-Brisbane route in September.
That's good news for those travelling for leisure.
"If Tiger or Jetstar is flying into your airport... that can be a cheaper option because often business travellers won't book on these airlines," Tilly South said.
Can higher airfares be avoided?
Consumer advocates, aviation experts and the airlines themselves give the same advice - book early to secure lower fares.
"It's always best to travel out of peak times," Tilly said.
"We do find that booking as soon as you can, will get you the cheapest fare."
That's the approach our questioner Lillian takes but she says it doesn't always guarantee a low airfare.
Despite this, she's managed to find an upside to flying in and out of the city.
"If I had to choose, it's a great benefit being able to find parking and picking people up, so I wouldn't be able to give that up!"