I found a secret mini cabin on a Jetstar flight, it’s a game-changer
On an overnight flight home from Tokyo, this traveller defied her usual savvy seat-selection habit and gambled on a little-known economy section. Here’s what she found in seat 12D.
Most people prefer sitting toward the back of the plane. However, when it comes to air travel, I tend to be a bit more strategic.
While the rear of the aircraft might not be the top choice for impatient passengers or those looking to beat the customs queues, or perhaps those <a t at full capacity, I always select a seat in the rear to improve my odds of having a row to myself or at least an empty seat beside me.
There is no better feeling when flying economy than realizing you can stretch out horizontally without paying for a business-class ticket. That was my strategy until I flew Jetstar’s Boeing 787 Dreamliner from Sydney to Tokyo.
Jetstar’s 787 Dreamliner operates long-haul international routes, including the service from Cairns to Tokyo.
The budget airline, unfortunately, no longer uses this aircraft for the Sydney to Bali route, a trip I take frequently. Instead, they have been replaced by the less destinations like Japan or <a t. Located between business class and the main economy section, this mini cabin is partitioned off and contains approximately 27 economy seats spanning rows 10 to 13.
On my return flight from Tokyo to Cairns, I decided to take a chance and abandon my usual back-row comfort for seat 12D in the mini cabin. Online reviews suggested it could be noisy due to its proximity to the lavatories and the galley. Since this aisle seat is positioned directly in front of the galley bulkhead, my primary concern was that it would have restricted recline, or perhaps no recline at all. Further “research” on Google indicated this was a possibility.
“Surely Jetstar would not sell tickets for seats that did not recline,” I think to myself. But stranger things have happened. The first thing I do upon getting bum on seat is to crank the chair into low ride. There is no apparent limitation other than that the seat creeps back into its original upright position throughout the flight. However, this seems to be a common issue that I’ve encountered, even on premium airlines.