I've been researching domestic air rates in Australia and have found that Jetstar seems to have the lowest rates. How reliable are they? Why are their rates so low in comparison to Virgin and Qantas?
Thanks
Sue

Jetstar is a budget airline roughly comparable to Southwest in the US. Flew them three times (DRW-DPS, DPS-DRW, CHC-AKL) recently and had no complaints whatsoever. If fact, they were a little better than our previous experience 5 years ago when they were extremely strict about weight. Just remember that there are no frills. They do have online sales and if you have the time to wait for a good one the savings can be substantial.

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Vic's travels: http://my.flightmemory.com/vogilvie

Jetstar is just fine - it is the budget offspring of Qantas. Watch the luggage restrictions and follow the guidelines, and don't expect assigned seats on most flights, it's a bus in the air and it gets you there, no muss no fuss.

I flew them Melbourne to Hobart RT and Christchurch to Queenstown RT in NZ and had no problems.

Be aware that you have to pay to check bags. I just brought hand luggage. Travel light and you will be OK.

Also be aware there is NO leeway for late check-in, irrespective of when you arrive at the end of the queue, so make sure you are checked in prior to the cut-off time for your flight.

I've flown Jetstar a few times within Australia...had no problems with them at the airport or in the air, but dealing with their call center in Malaysia to sort out a minor problem was a nightmare.

They have three tiers of ticket pricing, the cheapest doesn't include luggage, the second highest includes 20 kg of luggage and the most expensive includes luggage and has a flexible cancellation/change policy.

If you are connecting from an international flight to a domestic Jetstar flight, be aware that Jetstar will not transfer your luggage. You must collect it and re-check with Jetstar. A bit of a pain if you have a long layover as their gates don't open until a couple of hours before the flight.

Read the fine print and leave plenty of time to check in.

They are budget. Yuu have to pay for anything extra - including checked luggage, ,eals on palnces etc. they are fine most of the time but tyhry sre less flexible about changing tickets and there seem to be more delayed/cancelled flights.

Thank you everyone. I'll need to think on this.

Someone told me that airlines tend to offer sales about 4 months prior to travel (in my case, March). Would this be true of Qantas and Virgin?
Thanks
Sue

Can't say that I have seen that sort of pattern, I think pricing fluctuations follow much more complex trends than that simplistic formula.
Get yourself subscribed to email alerts from airlines and from consolidators and keep an eye on developments - when you get a sense of what is a good fare and what is not, you pounce when you see an advantage.

No Sue, that's not a formula I would be relying upon.
One of the big influences is school holidays, so if your 4-months-out date fell then, you'd find prices higher than normal, not lower.

Internal flights in Australia are generally pretty cheap, school & public holidays and special events (Melbourne racing carnival in November, Australian Open in January etc., ) excepted. My advice, FWIW, is as Dalai Lama says - sign up for the 3 domestic carriers' newsletters and if you see a price that you think is reasonable, take it. You can drive yourself crazy nickle & diming $20 on a Sydney-Brisbane fare.

Just don't fly Tiger, unless you're prepared for cancellations, delays & end prices that probably aren't any cheaper than the other 3.

We flew with them to Hawaii and had no probles with them last year.