The ticket is economy, the experience is business. Review flight from Melbourne to Sydney on a 737 by Qantas

There are flights that I do not plan to tell with a video on YT, as many that I don't even think about reviewing in written form because I anticipate there won't be anything to review, but then things suddenly change and fortunately I always, and still, take pictures.

Specifications

Aircraft:

B737/800

Class:

Economy

Treat:

MEL - SYD

Price:

153€

Book

This is one of those cases, I had no expectations and thought there was nothing to tell, but then I realized that flying short-haul, away from Europe is still a pleasure and not just a stress between scales, centimeters and stress.

Reservation

On our vacation to Australia we had to fly roundtrip from Melbourne to Sydney. Among various options, we finally opted to do it with Qantas. The reason we chose this was basically to take advantage of oneworld status and not worry about weights, suitcases, and limitations.

I am Emerald, which is the top step, while Marika and Bete are Bronze, so we all get the basic benefits (baggage and check-in) and, thanks to my card, we also get lounge doors and zone 1 at boarding.

The price of three one-way tickets was €461, which Marika bought on the Amex travel portal, discounting her €150 voucher.

Basic economy tickets, so much because of status everything else was free. This alone saved us about 200 euros between suitcases and choice of seats, whereas with other companies the prices were even higher.

Check-in

We arrived in the late morning at the airport and stood in the line dedicated to business or status passengers.

Embarking on our yellow trunk of the Level8 (which, if you want, using TFC10 you can buy discounted), we picked up our boarding passes and went through security.

Five minutes later we were in the lounge, in the more beautiful of the two lounges available to Qantas passengers at Melbourne's T1.

At the airport

After spending a couple of hours in the lounge, we headed to the gate. All was quiet here, despite a slight delay.

Boarding which was triggered 15 minutes later than scheduled and we, thanks to the zone 1 printed on the boarding pass, boarded almost first.

That you are not in Europe you can tell by the little things, such as the headphone dispenser to carry on board, things unknown to us citizens of the Old Continent.

On board

Qantas' fleet is diverse and is now also receiving many of the A220s ordered. The backbone of QantasLink, however, are the B737/800s, the same as Ryanair to be clear, and the Dash-8s, the small turboprops it uses for smaller routes.

The 737 is configured with a true 2-2 business class, it's only 3 rows, while everything else on the plane is classic 737 with very little legroom -- say maybe even less than some European low-costs.

The chair

The chair is the classic economy seat, narrow and uncomfortable. The headrest is adjustable both in height and with flaps.

There are air vents, personal light and two traditional USB ports for the two passengers.

Service

Here you realize that you are in a different galaxy, not just in another hemisphere. Staff smiling and kind even to us poor tourist-class peons.

As soon as we took off, on a flight that lasts just over 60 minutes, the service kicked in. Everything is on the trolley, and it's all free: snacks, wine, beer or soft drinks, and if you want, you can even have seconds.

IFE

There is no real IFE, but in the armrest there is the ability to hook up with headphones and listen to one of the music channels there.

The wi-fi is free for all, with no need to register or enter data. You search the net and zac, you are connected. And in case you don't want to surf, you can simply read an article from the NYT Or browse a magazine, all for free. Or chat via WhatsApp or use any other app.

In conclusion

A world different from what we are used to, at a price similar to what we are used to paying. A full plane on a route where, every day, Qantas alone has more than 20 flights, because the train to connect the same two cities takes 12 hours. Sure, the plane is less scenic, but it is faster and cheaper.

The verdict

The more I travel around the world, the more I wonder why we Europeans have taken the worst of the worst, even here there are low-cost carriers, but the traditional carriers haven't stooped to that level, while here flying from Rome to London doesn't have much difference doing it with FR or BA

7.5

Service

7.5

IFE

7

F&B

7.5

Cabin and Armchair

6

Pro

• Price
• Service
• Lounge

Against

• Nothing to report