I was attracted to Qantas $700 - $150 AmEx deal and went to Qantas website. The price there is "amazing". When Jetstar.com.au sells $198, Qantas.com.au sells the exact same tickets $487. Same plane, same date and time and same level (Starter).
With such a difference, why would any sane person buy from Qantas.com.au? Here are the screenshots I took at the same moment to show the difference.
Qantas:
http://pasteboard.co/1a9boGtUG.png
Jetstar:
http://pasteboard.co/bDuc3rH7s.png
Jetstar one doesn't include checked baggage, meals, drinks and qantas points and status credits. Add those to the Jetstar booking and come back here with the actual difference.
This!
Jetstar flights booked through qantas include baggage, meals and drinks.
The baggage allowance is also a lot more.
You also earn points and credits without needing to pay extra fee (u do on Jetstar)
My workplace will regardless of the price. We have a business account, so it's just easier to secure tickets using Qantas and use all the benefits.
This.
On a related note, I have noticed that luxury sedans from Europe with lots of accessories are significantly more expensive than economical sedans from Asia with not many accessories, even though they are the same size. Why would anyone buy the luxury car?
he's comparing 2 JQ flights. there are no QF flights in the equation
OK, so same analogy, one car with lots of options, one with none.
You're not crazy and no, its not only got to do with the extras (in any case, the extras shouldn't cost you more than the seat).
Really, part of it is actually just human nature - people tend to have an 'inertia' to learning and getting information just as with anything else.
I remember reading this somewhere about how years ago it was predicted that the easy access to information brought about by the internet will destroy any arbitrage opportunity or price differences. Yet people find that examples exist of situations where a 'sane' person should choose the cheaper option but they don't.
It could be as simple as the above example but also something like ebay vs amazon. Sometimes, a simple 1 minute check on one vs the other would tell you which is the cheaper one but people find that a significant proportion of people do not take that extra step.
Crazy but perfectly legal
Yup, Jetstar flights are always a lot more expensive on Qantas website.
I have booked on Qantas website before (but definitely not all the time) for a few reasons:
- same price (and rarely, cheaper)
- triple points offers
- if it is only a little more (~$50) on an international airfare where the other alternatives are to buy through an online site that doesn't issue tickets automatically
and thats why you shop around. Do you even ozbargain?
When i flew to england last year we booked through the qantas website as it was cheaper than everywhere else
I bought my ticket through Qantas using that $150 cashback. It was the cheapest compared to other airlines, and it is direct flight ;)
As sds98928392839 pointed out, there's no baggage, food and other extras included in the Jetstar price.
I would've expected that Qantas would have their own flight code for this (similar to when they codeshare with other airlines) - but it doesn't seem to be the case.
It makes me wonder - when things go belly-up with the flight, for example long delays and cancellations - does everyone get the same "benefits"? Or do passengers booked through Qantas get the nicer treatment given it's a full-fledged airline? (Lets face it, we all know that budget airlines tend to treat their customers like poo when things don't go according to schedule).
My ticket has always included a QF # on domestic even though it's a JQ flight.
Issues with the flight are dealt with as a qantas customer so u get their garauntee not the Jetstar one.
Different airlines worldwide codeshare with qantas, the price may change depending where you book from and who thru.
Corporates often just book qantas.
The conditions are different status credits points etc
I agree that it might in your case be crazy to use qf but plenty of valid reasons for qantas to sell them.
I agree with the op but what I did notice was that Qantas was a little better when it came to booking cruises compared to other sites. Slightly cheaper and we got some on board credit. And not forgetting we got the points. Who knew?
I have not flown jetstar for ages. Does one get Points and Status on a QF booked ticket flying Jetstar? If so that could be why