JQ baggage fees

[Justinf]

My wife, daughter and I are going to fly down to Launceston in a few weeks for a family visit. We don't care which airline (with one exception, Tiger) and I want to book the return leg with JQ as it is convenient timewise. As we will be travelling light, we only want to take one bag with us. DJ on the way down is fine as I am a silver member and I am entitled to one piece of luggage free of charge. Regardless, DJ let you choose how many pieces of luggage you want to prepay for.
But with JQ, if you opt to pre-pay for a bag for one person, it seems you have no choice but to prepay for a bag for all three passengers. I don't want to pay an extra $20 for two bags we won't have and the JQ web booking doesn't allow you the option of only taking one bag between three passengers.
Am I the only one who has found this and does anyone have a way around it?
Looks like it's either QF or DJ on the return leg as I refuse to pay for something I don't want or require.

 

[Must...Fly!]

The easy solution would be book 1 PAX with a bag on a jetsaver, and then book others on another booking on jetsaver light, and assign seats when booking to ensure you sit together.

 

[kpc]

But with JQ, if you opt to pre-pay for a bag for one person, it seems you have no choice but to prepay for a bag for all three passengers. I don't want to pay an extra $20 for two bags we won't have and the JQ web booking doesn't allow you the option of only taking one bag between three passengers.

Easy. Book 2 separate bookings, one for yourself with lugagge, and another for your wife and daughter without lugagge. As J* allows you to select seats at time of booking, then simply choose to sit next to your family, if you want too

 

[anat0l]

Do note, IIRC, that $2 charge will be levied if you want to select a seat on a JetSaver Light fare.

Apart from that, I'd be doing the same strategy as everyone else has said here. You can try and jockey for seats together once you get to the airport.

 

[Justinf]

Thanks for the answers. Very helpful.
One more question. What if my wife can't go? Or for any future travel with my young un.
I therefore am legally bound to book myself and my 10-year-old daughter on the same ticket and would have to pay for baggage for her when one bag is ample.
Doesn't seem right.

 

[ozbeachbabe]

Thanks for the answers. Very helpful.
One more question. What if my wife can't go? Or for any future travel with my young un.
I therefore am legally bound to book myself and my 10-year-old daughter on the same ticket and would have to pay for baggage for her when one bag is ample.
Doesn't seem right.

If you are talking about having to book yourself and your daughter "on the same ticket" meaning the same booking - why not both of you travel on a JQ Lite fare and just take a carry on wheelie bag each which can weigh up to 10 kilos.

If you wear your heaviest items of clothing such as jacket or coat plus walking boots this will free up your carry on for lighter items of clothing like skivvies etc.

If you must have one piece of checked baggage why can't you book yourself on a Jetsaver fare (20 kilos of checked luggage) & your daughter on a separate booking on a "Lite" fare with no checked allowance.

You may have a problem if you try and book your daughter by herself if you select "child" as the passenger type because JQ won't accept children unless there is an adult in the same booking it would assume that you are trying to book an unaccompanied minor unless you choose "adult" as the pax type.

I seem to remember reading somewhere that all children on JQ must be in the same booking as adults.

A contradiction to the above paragraph is when parents have made bookings for children who are not yet at high school (a no go for JQ), find out the grim news at the airport then find a willing adult pax who agrees to be their guardian for the flight who is obviously going to be on a separate booking.

 

[Justinf]

Thanks Oz.
Wife couldn't make it in the end, so I did what you suggested the first time. Booked with DJ on the way to LCN so we could use the Lounge, and booked Jetsaver light on the way back for $59 each. As we are only going for a short trip (get in late Fri night and leve Sun early arvo), I will get by with a backpack that I can take as carryon and my daughter can use a wheelie that can also be used as carryon...that way she feels a bit more important to have 'real luggage'.

 

[ozbeachbabe]

Thanks Oz.
Wife couldn't make it in the end, so I did what you suggested the first time. Booked with DJ on the way to LCN so we could use the Lounge, and booked Jetsaver light on the way back for $59 each. As we are only going for a short trip (get in late Fri night and leve Sun early arvo), I will get by with a backpack that I can take as carryon and my daughter can use a wheelie that can also be used as carryon...that way she feels a bit more important to have 'real luggage'.

Kids seem to love taking their own carry on wheelie bags & that way you can encourage (train) them from an early age that if it doesn't fit in the carry on, it doesn't go.

Also solves any potential dramas if, heaven forbid the baggage didn't arrive when you did - a potentially devastating thing to happen if you're a kid.

If you have printed out your boarding passes when you OLCI & only have carry on luggage it really makes life so much easier to breeze into the airport terminal straight to security bypassing checkin - almost self service VIP treatment!

 

[Must...Fly!]

If you have printed out your boarding passes when you OLCI & only have carry on luggage it really makes life so much easier to breeze into the airport terminal straight to security bypassing checkin - almost self service VIP treatment!

That is very true.

Recently went with Mum and just carried on, and had done OLCI.

Walked into the airport, and I made a beeline for security, and she couldn't believe we could just walk through and get on the plane! She felt quite important! (even if it was JQ:mrgreen