Qantas PE to Honolulu?

[birder]

I have to fly PE or higher on flights of 4 hours or more due to a medical condition. I’m going to Honolulu in March and would love to take Qantas, or if not, then a one world airline. But I want to avoid business because I have to pay out of pocket on anything more than $3k. I’m not looking for specific routing assistance right not but just wondering what airlines if any might offer options for me? Thanks!

 

[levelnine]

Jetstar business class is the equivalent of premium economy on most airlines. Have a look into that.

 

[birder]

That’s great! Do I get any status credits/points? I’ve never flown Jetstar before.

Jetstar business class is the equivalent of premium economy on most airlines. Have a look into that.

at!

 

[AustraliaPoochie]

Must buy a bundle, to get any QFpoints and QF SC with any JQ fare though.
JQ fares on their own don't come with any benefits except your seat.

 

[AustraliaPoochie]

Give it a few days leeway before having to do anything in HNL or Hawaii.
JQ also have a habit of cancelling flights.
Buying a comfort seat deal on QF might work out cheaper than premY.
Have to phone up QF telephone sales tho for it.

 

[birder]

JQ also have a habit of cancelling flights.
Buying a comfort seat deal on QF might work out cheaper than premY.
Have to phone up QF telephone sales tho for it.

This is for a set of critical meetings, so thanks for the warning re: JQ!

Comfort seat - what is that?! An open seat next to me? I would love that as my issue is not leg room but shoulder space. How much does it usually cost? Thanks!

 

[opusman]

Comfort seat is the usual fare minus any taxes.

 

[Squirrel.Monkey]

I'd use Jetstar Business as a last resort, I had a trip to Thailand earlier in the year and seats were broken, room is minimal and service just OK. I'd rather not go direct that use them again.

 

[jpp42]

Here's an example of some fares out of interest, for dates well in the future (I used March 2020) and using Sydney as origin:
QF saver - $625 outbound, $555 return (total)
Of the $1,179 total, $960 is the base fare and the rest taxes/fees, so the total return cost for a booking with comfort seat would be $2139 .
Note that QF3 & QF4 only run four times a week.

Jetstar "business" is around $2,628 for similar dates, plus $220 if you want lounge access and Qantas SCs/points, so $2848
Frequency varies by season from 3 times a week up to daily

The final option is Hawaiian, their "extra comfort" seats would not be suitable as it's just extra legroom, no width advantage - like many US airlines they don't have a proper PE and try to claim this "economy plus" (or similarly named) is equivalent when it's definitely not - so be wary of this. Business class is around $6k return. Economy fares are comparable to Qantas, and they do offer the ability to purchase an additional adjacent seat for a second economy fare (I couldn't establish if the taxes are waived, but certain fees certainly should be since it's only one passenger).

Both Qantas and Hawaiian require you to book through their contact centre if you want to use the extra seat - the web site doesn't handle these. Note that Hawaiian is a Virgin Australia partner, so you can get VA points and SC's on there if that helps (be sure to book a VA codeshare through Virgin directly).

 

[Mattg]

While I agree with the warnings about Jetstar, their HNL flights are probably the most reliable in their network. In these circumstances, they probably aren't a bad option.

Otherwise, Air New Zealand would offer Premium Economy via Auckland.

 

[Saab34]

The issue with JQ and HNL is if they have an
Aircraft down, they always cancel a HNL run as it gives them 24hrs up their sleeve, and usually disturbs the least amount of pax in a given timeframe. They have cancelled multiple HNL this week as they two broken 787s down at the moment.

There has been some cheap J deals of late to HNL keep an eye out

 

[trooper]

.

The final option is Hawaiian, their "extra comfort" seats would not be suitable as it's just extra legroom, no width advantage - like many US airlines they don't have a proper PE and try to claim this "economy plus" (or similarly named) is equivalent when it's definitely not - so be wary of this. Business class is around $6k return. Economy fares are comparable to Qantas, and they do offer the ability to purchase an additional adjacent seat for a second economy fare (I couldn't establish if the taxes are waived, but certain fees certainly should be since it's only one passenger).

.

That's not my experience at all with US based airlines... I am aware of prospective PASSENGERS who got that wrong, thinking "Comfort +" or "Economy Plus" or whatever WERE Premium Economy- suffering the obvious disappointment and then whining........ but I never saw UA (for instance) advertise E+ as anything more than extra legroom.... never saw ads along the lines of NZ's PE promotions.... (and now that DL, UA and AA ARE all offering real PE - and yes, advertising it as such, the point is probably moot anyway) And in any case.....just as with "Business Class" there is no Internationally agreed, formalised definition OF "Premium Economy".... (When it comes to "Business Class" that is ALWAYS a fun discussion!)

 

[jpp42]

That's not my experience at all with US based airlines... I am aware of prospective PASSENGERS who got that wrong, thinking "Comfort +" or "Economy Plus" or whatever WERE Premium Economy- suffering the obvious disappointment and then whining........ but I never saw UA (for instance) advertise E+ as anything more than extra legroom.... (and now that DL, UA and AA ARE all offering real PE the point is probably moot anyway)

Sorry, I realise my wording wasn't quite clear, but I was referring to Hawaiian Airlines in particular which advertises their "Extra Comfort" as a "premium product." I do notice they are careful not to use the precise words "Premium Economy," which I guess does absolve them of any "false advertising" claims compared to "real" PE with wider seats. However, most of the reviewers and travel bloggers etc are not being so careful and do refer to HA's Extra Comfort as premium economy, so I can see how the average passenger could get confused unless they really study a seat map.

If we could just go back to First, Second, and Third class, we could eliminate this confusion. It's all mainly "class inflation" - what was first class decades ago is now Business, what was business is now Premium Economy, etc. A bit silly.