Domestic Airlines of Australia
I find it cool that Australia has 4 airlines to choose from for domestic flights. During the planning of our 2018 trip I wanted to try all 4, however based on schedule, price and preference we flew three of them. To help provide background on each of the airlines, enjoy this post.
Australian domestic flight plan
We had 5 domestic flights during our trip. Three flights were booked with Jetstar, and then one each with Qantas and Virgin Australia. We didn’t book any with Tigerair as their advertised seat pitch of 29″ already made my knees & legs scream out in pain.
Jetstar
This is the discount airline of Qantas. It operates like European low cost carriers (such as easyjet), where the lowest price is for a seat and carry-on. Checked luggage, advance seat selection, meals, and drinks on board are all optional paid extras.
Online, the airline offer several options that will package these components together. We used one of these options as there was a modest savings versus purchasing the items separately. Oneworld frequent flyer points are possible, however you have to select a more expensive fare.
Qantas
This is the national carrier of Australia that has the iconic kangaroo logo on their aircraft. They advertise as a full service domestic airline. Snacks and beverages are complimentary, one piece of checked luggage, and free standard seat selection are included in every airfare. As part of the oneworld alliance you can earn points through theirs and many other programs. We flew with them as no other airline offers a non-stop Cairns-Ayers Rock flight.
Virgin Australia
They are similar to Qantas in terms of service, standard seat selection, and 1 piece of checked luggage are included. Their website and interior of the plane though try to provide a hip or more contemporary look than Qantas. For frequent flyers beyond their own program it is possible to have miles credited to other programs. I selected them to compare how they match up against Qantas.
Tigerair
This is a second low cost carrier in the country. Supposedly they sacrifice legroom to squeeze as many people as possible onto their planes. I ran out of flight options to try them. Overall I’m okay with missing out on experiencing their product as they strictly enforce carry-on as we overhead the announcements where we were in Brisbane airport.
Which of the domestic airlines of Australia, would I recommend? Read more about our trip, and flights reports on all 5 domestic flights by clicking here.