Jetstar review: Sydney-Melbourne

I cashed in on those return-for-free flights and this is how my journey went.

Kismet hit during Jetstar's last return-for-free sale with dirt cheap fares to Melbourne over my partner's birthday weekend.

With a final cost of $167 to get both of us there and back, it was a deal I literally couldn't resist. So how did the flight pan out? Here's the goss.

What did I like?

• On-time flights: Our outbound flight left like clockwork; however, our return flight was delayed by 15 minutes. Fortunately, there was a quick transition between passengers, and we arrived back in Sydney on-time. No dramas here.
• Wide variety of flight times: Being one of the busiest routes in the world (Sydney-Melbourne), our flight options both ways were plentiful with departures almost every hour during peak times.
• Flies into both Avalon and Melbourne Tullamarine airports: We flew into Avalon as we were road tripping the Great Ocean Road, and this is the preferred airport for that journey as it sits to the city's west. Melbourne Tullamarine is much closer to Melbourne CBD and is the ideal option for anyone heading straight to the city.
• Easy check-in: You can check in online up to 48-hours in advance with Jetstar. We did the day before, and when that happened, it also checked us into our return flight, which was four-days away. This made for some worry-free travelling as we didn't have to use data or find Wi-Fi to check-in while on holiday.
• Ample legroom: There was more than enough room to stretch out a little on the plane.

What didn't I like?

• Disorganised boarding: When boarding our outbound flight, our queue stopped because the flight attendant had to fix a ticket. Then she had to fix more. This halted our line leaving frustrated customers in its wake as they watched the other line shorten before their eyes. The other attendant eventually got wind of the frustration and popped over to our queue to even it out, which was appreciated. However, there was a third attendant who was busy weighing luggage who could have easily popped in to deal with these ticketing issues and assist with the boarding process.
• Strict carry-on luggage limits: Being Jetstar, there is a 7kg carry-on luggage limit, which if you go over, requires you to pay an extra weight fee. One gentleman got caught out for being 600 grams over, which I feel is quite minor in the scheme of things and caused that third attendant to be elsewhere during boarding.
• Full flight: It could have been the fact that everyone had purchased return-for-free fares on my flights or it could have been the fact that the route is busy in general, but both flights were packed. Nothing you can do about it really, but if you're not keen on flying like a sardine, it could be worth considering a different airline or avoiding those sales.

Bonus tip:

We flew back on the very last flight out of Melbourne Avalon (8:30pm), and as a bonus, they were offering all perishable foods at 50% off. This brought sandwiches down under $5 each, which is pretty decent in my opinion. If you're debating between eating at the airport or on the plane, this could be your chance to eat-in-the-air for cheap.