SFO - CNS

$401 Find Cheap Flights from San Francisco to Cairns

This is the cheapest one-way flight price found by a KAYAK user in the last 72 hours by searching for a flight from San Francisco to Cairns departing on 6/17. Fares are subject to change and may not be available on all flights or dates of travel. Click the price to replicate the search for this deal.
1 adult

KAYAK searches hundreds of travel sites at once for deals on flights to Cairns

 
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from San Francisco to Cairns, as well as popular online travel agencies
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from San Francisco to Cairns, as well as popular online travel agencies
Travelers love KAYAK
41,299,237 searches in the past 7 days on KAYAK

Save 22% or moreCompare multiple travel sites with one search.

Track pricesNot ready to book? Create a price alert for when prices drop.

Bundle and saveSave money when you bundle your flight + hotel.

Filter your dealsChoose cabin class, free Wi-Fi and more.

Flights Deals
Useful Info
Flights Deals

Cheap Flights from San Francisco to Cairns

 
Here are some of the best deals found on KAYAK recently from the most popular airlines for round-trip flights from San Francisco to Cairns that are departing in the next months. While these flights were available on KAYAK in the last 72 hours, prices and availability are subject to change and deals may expire.

Recent round-trip flight deals from San Francisco to Cairns

KAYAK's recommended round-trip deals from the most popular airlines that fly from San Francisco to Cairns.
Discover the best prices for you by selecting your travel dates on KAYAK.
 Logo
6:40 pm - 11:25 amSFO-CNS
23h 45m2 stops
 Logo
12:25 pm - 1:50 pmCNS-SFO
18h 25m1 stop
Sun, May 11 - Tue, Jun 3
 Logo
6:40 pm - 11:25 amSFO-CNS
23h 45m2 stops
 Logo
6:00 am - 1:50 pmCNS-SFO
24h 50m2 stops
$1,156
Find Deal
Sun, May 11 - Tue, Jun 3
 Logo
10:55 pm - 11:25 amSFO-CNS
19h 30m1 stop
 Logo
6:15 pm - 9:40 amCNS-SFO
32h 25m1 stop
$1,173
Find Deal
Thu, Jun 19 - Fri, Jul 4
Air New Zealand Logo
9:05 pm - 9:45 amSFO-CNS
19h 40m1 stop
Air New Zealand Logo
5:40 pm - 12:05 pmCNS-SFO
35h 25m2 stops
$1,176Air New Zealand
Find Deal
Tue, Oct 21 - Mon, Oct 27
Fiji Airways Logo
10:55 pm - 11:25 amSFO-CNS
19h 30m1 stop
Fiji Airways Logo
12:25 pm - 1:45 pmCNS-SFO
18h 20m1 stop
$1,201Fiji Airways
Find Deal
Tue, Jul 22 - Thu, Jul 31
Air New Zealand Logo
10:05 pm - 10:50 pmSFO-CNS
31h 45m2 stops
Air New Zealand Logo
11:55 am - 12:50 pmCNS-SFO
17h 55m1 stop
$1,219Air New Zealand
Find Deal
Mon, Jul 7 - Tue, Aug 5
Qantas Airways Logo
7:55 pm - 12:55 pmSFO-CNS
24h 00m2 stops
Qantas Airways Logo
9:20 am - 8:58 pmCNS-SFO
28h 38m2 stops
$1,533Qantas Airways
Find Deal
Thu, Jun 19 - Fri, Jul 4
United Airlines Logo
11:25 pm - 11:10 amSFO-CNS
18h 45m1 stop
United Airlines Logo
6:00 am - 6:25 amCNS-SFO
17h 25m1 stop
$1,769United Airlines
Find Deal
Mon, Jul 7 - Tue, Aug 5
United Airlines Logo
11:25 pm - 11:10 amSFO-CNS
18h 45m1 stop
United Airlines Logo
6:00 am - 8:10 amCNS-SFO
43h 10m2 stops
$1,884United Airlines
Find Deal
Fri, Jun 13 - Fri, Jun 20
Qantas Airways Logo
10:00 pm - 12:55 pmSFO-CNS
21h 55m1 stop
Qantas Airways Logo
7:00 pm - 5:45 pmCNS-SFO
39h 45m1 stop
$9,966Qantas Airways
Find Deal
Tue, Aug 19 - Sat, Aug 30
Useful Info

KAYAK's insights & trends for San Francisco to Cairns flights

Get data-powered insights and trends into flights from San Francisco to Cairns to help you find the cheapest flights, the best time to fly and much more.

Which airlines provide the cheapest flights from San Francisco to Cairns?

The cheapest round-trip price for the route for each airline clicked by KAYAK users in the last 72 hours.

In the past 3 days, the cheapest round-trip tickets from San Francisco to Cairns were found on Air New Zealand ($1,176) and Fiji Airways ($1,201).

Good to know

Low seasonJune
High seasonJuly
Cheapest flight$401
Best time to beat the crowds with an average 59% drop in price.
Most popular time to fly and prices are also 15% lower on average.
Flight from San Francisco to Cairns

When to book flights from San Francisco to Cairns

Are your dates flexible? Find out the best times to travel from San Francisco to Cairns based on our flight data from the last year. Discover the cheapest month and even day to fly.
Estimated round-trip price
KAYAK looks at all historical flight data for each date to provide a predicted price for one-way trips or round-trips with a duration up to 40 days. While we try to provide actual minimum prices for each date, some prices are predictions and actual prices may differ.

FAQs for booking flights from San Francisco to Cairns

  • What is the cheapest flight from San Francisco to Cairns?

    In the last 3 days, the lowest price for a flight from San Francisco to Cairns was $401 for a one-way ticket and $960 for a round-trip.

  • Do I need a passport to fly between San Francisco and Cairns?

    Yes, you'll most likely have to show a valid passport before boarding the plane in San Francisco and on arrival in Cairns.

  • Which aircraft models fly most regularly from San Francisco to Cairns?

    We unfortunately don’t have that data for this specific route.

  • Which airline alliances offer flights from San Francisco to Cairns?

    oneworld, and Star Alliance are the airline alliances operating flights between San Francisco and Cairns, with oneworld being the most commonly used for this route.

  • Which is the best airline for flights from San Francisco to Cairns, Fiji Airways or Air New Zealand?

    The two airlines most popular with KAYAK users for flights from San Francisco to Cairns are Fiji Airways and Air New Zealand. With an average price for the route of $749 and an overall rating of 8.1, Fiji Airways is the most popular choice. Air New Zealand is also a great choice for the route, with an average price of $1,540 and an overall rating of 8.0.

  • How does KAYAK find such low prices on flights from San Francisco to Cairns?

    KAYAK is a travel search engine. That means we look across the web to find the best prices we can find for our users. With over 2 billion flight queries processed yearly, we are able to display a variety of prices and options on flights from San Francisco to Cairns.

  • How does KAYAK's flight Price Forecast tool help me choose the right time to buy my flight ticket from San Francisco to Cairns?

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight to Cairns from San Francisco is likely to change within 7 days, so travelers know whether to wait or book now.

  • What is the Hacker Fare option on flights from San Francisco to Cairns?

    Hacker Fares allow you to combine one-way tickets in order to save you money over a traditional round-trip ticket. You could then fly to Cairns with an airline and back to San Francisco with another airline. Booking your flights between San Francisco and CNS can sometimes prove cheaper using this method.

  • What is KAYAK's "flexible dates" feature and why should I care when looking for a flight from San Francisco to Cairns?

    Sometimes travel dates aren't set in stone. If your preferred travel dates have some wiggle room, flexible dates will show you all the options when flying to Cairns from San Francisco up to 3 days before/after your preferred dates. You can then pick the flights that suit you best.

Top 3 airlines serving from San Francisco to Cairns

 
See real verified KAYAK customer reviews for airlines flying from San Francisco to Cairns. Airline scores are aggregated from all reviews left by passengers on KAYAK after flying with an airline. KAYAK doesn’t show reviews that are older than 5 years. Learn how KAYAK collects reviews.
Need help choosing which airline to fly with from San Francisco to Cairns? KAYAK airline reviews give an overall score for each airline based on loads of factors, including comfort, boarding, in-flight entertainment and more, to make your decision easier. See airline scores according to verified KAYAK customer reviews.
8.1
Fiji AirwaysOverall score based on 190 reviews
8.5Crew
8.1Comfort
8.2Boarding
7.5Entertainment
7.5Food
Airline reviews

In-flight entertainment options could use a refresh, Consider a tie-up with Spotify for more current music and with IMDB or other service for newer selections/movie ratings.

10.0 ExcellentAnonymous, Apr 2025NAN - SFO
Read more Fiji Airways reviews

In-flight entertainment options could use a refresh, Consider a tie-up with Spotify for more current music and with IMDB or other service for newer selections/movie ratings.

See previous comments. Didn’t take this flight because my other flight was so delayed. Ending up on two other flights as a result and was more than a day late.

6 hour delay and they didnt try to make up any time during an over 10 hour flight

Very good; seat made ready for bed after meal, a plus since one airline covered the seat at the start.

Entertainment was not good. Seems like liquor should’ve been advertised only beer and wine was even though I saw others getting liquor didn’t realize I could. And the food to me could’ve been a little bit.

Food choices perhaps not the best. Only offered beer and wine, when it appeared other liquor was available. Entertainment wasn’t so good.

They charged me over a $1000 dollars to bring two surfboard bags as check baggage. Inappropriate and I would avoid flying sgain

The experience on Fiji Airways was absolutely amazing. Streamlined. All staff was amazing. Pleasant. Friendly. Extremely helpful.

Business class Seats on the A350 from Nan to YVR were wonderful. The flight crew was okay but could do with better training. Toilets were clean but ran out of paper towels towards the end of the flight. The food/menu and the wine offered really needs considerable improvement. Dinner options were either Bolani, a beef sandwich (even this could be made much better), or paneer butter masala. Unfortunately, if you are not a fan of Fijian food, there isn’t much choice. Dessert was either turmeric ice cream or fruits but unfortunately, they were out of fruit! So the only option was turmeric ice cream. I’m not certain how many passengers like turmeric but I am not one of them. They need to cater to a more diverse group of people. Perhaps they need a new chef? The movies& tv shows were mostly older so I didn’t find that interesting either. It was however, fun to view the plane’s exterior cameras as we take off and land. The best thing about this flight are the business class seats.

Comfortable as one can get in Economy, food was very good, staff were super friendly & efficient.

I love the “boarding from the back” idea - it’s so much better than the “Zones” idea that many others use. Also, the inflight wifi was a first for me! Very nice to have on a 13-hour flight!

Again, Air New Zealand was great. They kept bathrooms clean, food was actually very good, New Zealand wines a big hit

The issue was with getting our boarding pases. There were issues with our arrangements that were made through Kayak. I am sorry to say that we will not use you again because of this. The flight itself was good and the flight attendants excellent.

Arriving at Coolangatta, rows 20 forward, took the airbridge across to the terminal. It was suggested to those from rows 21 back, that we take the rear stairs and to be careful crossing the tarmac. That was all well and good. However, when we got across to the terminal we then had to climb three large flights of stairs to meet up with those coming across the airbridge. No elevator! There were people carrying babies and elderly carrying hand luggage that needed assistance from others.. There was no option to turn back.

It was good for a short domestic flight. As no food ar entertainment provided, there should be a n/a rating available for those.

USB charging ports did not work on any of Air New Zealand flights

Economy was much nicer on the Air New Zealand planes.

At Coolangatta International it is difficult to hear voice boarding announcements when away from screen announcements.

Flew premium economy, well worth the extra. Much better seat size & space. Meals & snacks were lovely. Crew really pleasant. Internet is not great, not really useful for anything. Couldn't even send messages.

Everything was fine. Wish the wifi was free and included in the ticket price.

Everything is good except the dinner and breakfast. The sandwich is very delicious. Toilet is clean, I only use one of them. Flight attendants are very nice. 👍👍

Compared with other carriers business class for an overnight was not worth the extra expense.

Easy to board. Flight was super crowded though so I didn't sleep well on that cross country red-eye flight. The aisles seem ot have gotten narrower and the seat smaller whn luggage and people are getting bigger so it would be AWESOME to have more space and breathing room in general ;)

Pilot Erika DeLong made us feel safe and at ease in a frankly scary time to be flying. Her warm smile and greeting and excellent command of the aircraft in foggy bumpy weather helped us all to calm our nerves and get us home safely.

AWFUL. I have had the experience of traveling with many airlines across the world, and hands down United Airlines is the worst. Not one flight was on time, and I don’t think I met one crew member or staff member who wasn’t rude.

For an 8.5 hour flight the service on board lacked a bit. Service start was slow, the food was worse than usual and they skipped the snack they were supposed to deliver before landing.

Wish movie and music choices changed more often. Mostly same from a month or two ago when I last flew.

It was good. Just that the seats could not be reclined. The people behind were not ready to let the chairs be reclined

Checkin was painful and slow! Lady didn’t seem to know what was going on and couldn’t explain the delay. Seemed ahe couldnt see the computer scree and we couldn’t hear her talk through her mask.

Plane left & arrived early- 5 Crew great. Wi fi - paid for 2, only 1 worked - so so. Waste of $. Coolie was good

Everything you need to know for your flight from San Francisco to Cairns

Information on your arrival and departure airports

Not what you’re looking for? Find thousands of other hotels, flights, car rentals and package deals with KAYAK.