Jetstar business class review
Is the budget carrier’s premium offering worth it? Travel + Luxury boarded an eight-hour flight to Phuket, Thailand to find out.
Australia’s budget airline is perhaps best known as an inexpensive, no-frills carrier, so for Travel + Luxury’s Kendall Hill, the fact it even offers a business-class option is a bonus. Hill boarded a Jetstar Boeing 787-8 from Melbourne to Phuket, Thailand to see how the low-cost airline does high-end travel.
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What it’s really like to fly business class on Jetstar
Is the budget carrier’s premium offering worth it? Travel + Luxury boarded an eight-hour flight to Phuket, Thailand to find out.
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The seat
Jetstar business class has 21 seats in a 2-3-2 configuration, which means there’s a middleseat. This is not ideal when you’re paying a premium, especially if you’re in row one, where cabin walls cramp leg room. Seats are relatively spacious, with a 38-inch or 96cm pitch (compared to a squeezy 30-31-inch or 76-78cm in economy); they recline to a deep slouch, around a 45-degree angle. On the return overnight leg, I sleep solidly in this position for six hours. Results may vary among users. Amenities come in the form of a Chill Kit tote containing hand cream, lip balm, eye mask, ear plugs, socks, pen and inflatable pillow. I use it on the return leg and now understand why everyone travels with them. There’s also a black felt blanket that’s warm and comforting.
Tech talk
The Dreamliner has in-seat power (USB and universal plug point) and a 10.6-inch (27cm) screen. The Jetstar-branded headphones deliver quite clear dialogue and music. The cabin has large dimmable windows and LED lighting to keep things stimulating during daytime flights. There is no Wi-Fi.
On the menu
Menus are modest by business-class standards but the quality is good and the drinks service generous (the man beside me downs seven shirazes during the eight-hour flight). Orange juice, water and sparkling wine (Seppelt’s Salinger) are offered on boarding. Shortly after take-off I’m tucking into a supple lamb shank with runny mash, peas and shallots. The other meal options are shiitake salmon and vegetarian ravioli. All are served with a so-so salad and excellent orange and almond cake with vanilla cream-cheese icing, flaked with almonds and pistachio. The second meal is more a snack – quesadilla with chicken and cheese or a pumpkin, leek and feta pie – plus another good cake, this time carrot. Wines offered include Australian idols such as a 2019 Wynns Coonawarra The Gables cab sav and a 2021 Penfolds Koonunga Hill chardonnay that keeps its character even at 11,000m.
Entertainment
Seat-back or fold-up screens provide access to more than 50 films grouped into award-winners, new releases and foreign titles. There’s something for everyone, from the fabulous Good Luck to You, Leo Grande to Thor: Ragnarok. There are also 47 TV shows, 184 albums and 10 games available and a dedicated kids zone for underage content.
Service
At Tullamarine, there’s no dedicated business class check-in I can see; passengers must DIY everything via screen kiosks, with staff on hand to assist if needed. Ground service is not great. There’s a gate change that’s not announced until 2.57pm, by which time we should have boarded for our 3.20pm departure. At 3.16pm, four minutes before our scheduled take-off, staff announce a revised departure time of 3.50pm. Boarding doesn’t start till 3.52pm. The flight lifts off at 4.44pm precisely. Cabin crew are all Thai, from cabin manager Brian to my man Mountaindew, nicknamed by his father for reasons Mountaindew can no longer remember. All crew are accommodating and efficient.
Covid protocols
I keep my mask on when not eating or drinking, not least because one of my neighbours sounds consumptive. Aside from cabin staff, I’m the only person wearing one. A bonus is that if you pair a face mask with an eye mask, it’s like pyjamas for the face. Add some ear plugs and I’m out like a light. Mask-wearing is still widespread in Thailand.
The verdict
After we’re airborne, Captain Brook Armstrong apologises for the late departure which, he says, is due to “adverse weather” delaying the aircraft’s arrival from Sydney. He recovers ground en route and we arrive about 40 minutes late in Phuket. The food is fine, the limited-recline seats surprisingly comfortable and staff are great. But if you enjoy all the perks of business class, check the type of ticket you’re buying. Mine had no airport lounge access.
Kendall Hill was a guest of Jetstar.