Friday Fare Frenzy: how to actually win Jetstar’s weekly sale (and when to skip it)
Jetstar runs Friday Fare Frenzy most Fridays from 12:00–20:00 AEDT. Sale routes change every week and can include domestic and short-haul international (e.g., DPS, HKT, CHC). Watch the clock; the best seats go in the first hour.
Where the deals drop
Jetstar’s Friday Fare Frenzy page, plus the general Deals page for other promos during the week.
Booking tips
Be flexible on dates; use the monthly view to scan the whole sale window fast.
Most fares are Economy Starter (carry-on only). Adding bags/seat selection can erase the saving — do the math before checkout. (See the fine print in the sale page each week.)
If you see the same flight cheaper at an eligible competitor, Jetstar’s Price Beat Guarantee can undercut it — useful when the weekly sale doesn’t cover your exact date.
What’s normal / what’s great (ballpark)
East-coast domestic sale lows often start from the $39–$69 range one way.
Trans-Tasman and Bali/Phuket pop up regularly; jump if you see a non-red-eye with bags under your target price.
Bottom line: set a weekly reminder for Friday noon AEDT, decide your bag needs up front, and checkout quickly — you usually have minutes, not hours on good seats.
If you’ve ever opened Jetstar’s Friday Fare Frenzy, blinked, and the good stuff was gone… same. The sale is short, the seats are limited, and the upsells are everywhere. But with a bit of prep you can win this thing more often than not — and, importantly, know when to sit on your hands and skip it.
The gist (so you’re not mucking around)
Most Fridays Jetstar posts a batch of sale fares for a tiny booking window in the afternoon/evening (Australia time). Routes rotate each week. Sometimes it’s domestic hops, sometimes it’s Bali/Phuket/Christchurch, sometimes a weird little gem like Townsville or Launceston that makes a perfect long weekend. The catch: the best seats go in the first hour, and by the second hour the good dates have thinned out or vanished.
That means two things:
you need a plan before the sale starts, and
you need to checkout quickly — like, “no, you can’t ask the group chat first” quickly.
Build your “buy price” before Friday
The single biggest advantage is knowing your buy price — the number where you hit “purchase” without overthinking it. You set this by watching the route for a couple of weeks and logging the typical low.
Quick sanity anchors (return or return-equivalent, carry-on only, outside school holidays):
East-coast domestic (SYD/MEL/BNE triangles): often dips into $39–$69 one way on sale; anything sub-$120 return is a pounce for quick trips.
Trans-Tasman (SYD/MEL ↔ AKL/CHC/WLG): $199–$299 return is decent; sub-$199 is rare and worth moving on fast.
Short-haul Asia (Bali/Phuket/Singapore from east coast): $250–$450 return is the “hmm, maybe” zone; under $399 is where most readers are happy. Perth to Asia is usually cheaper; set your buy price lower accordingly.
They’re not hard rules — just targets so you don’t freeze. If the sale comes in at or below your number, you’re not hunting for “perfect”, you’re booking an actual holiday.
Kit your browser like a pro
Before the sale, do five boring things that save you minutes when the clock’s ticking:
Create/sign in to a Jetstar account and save passenger details.
Save a card (or use a low-fee payment option) so you’re not fumbling at checkout.
Open the monthly view of your shortlist routes in another tab; it’s the quickest way to see which days are genuinely cheap.
Decide bags now. Economy Starter is carry-on only. If you know you’ll need checked luggage, price it in before you get emotionally attached to that $99 fare.
Have a backup date. Your first pick might be gone; moving one day either side can keep the saving alive.
How to shop the page (without getting stitched up)
When the sale drops, go straight to your route, open the month grid, and scan for sale-coloured dates. Click through, but avoid death by add-on. Here’s the honest bit:
Bags & seats: adding a standard bag + seat selection can nuke the saving. Be ruthless: if carry-on will do, keep it lean. If you need a bag, add one bag to share across a couple so you still come out ahead.
Times: early morning and late night flights discount harder. Decide what pain you can tolerate. A 6am departure is annoying; a 1am red-eye might wreck your first day.
Refunds/changes: sale fares are usually strict. If you’re even slightly wobbly on dates, the cheapest fare can become the most expensive once you pay to change it.
Payment fees: tiny in the scheme of things, but factor them in so you’re not surprised on the last screen.
Checkout quickly. If the site throws a wobble, don’t refresh five times in the same tab — open a clean tab and try again. Seats in cart aren’t “held” until you pay.
The Price Beat trick (when the sale misses your dates)
One handy move: if an online travel agent shows a cheaper identical flight than Jetstar’s own price, Jetstar’s price beat can undercut it slightly. It’s not an “every day, every flight” thing, and you’ll have to follow the airline’s price beat rules, but when it lines up it’s a tidy save — especially during weeks where Friday doesn’t hit your exact dates. Have a second device open to cross-check, and be ready to move fast.
When to skip the sale (yes, really)
Not every Friday is a winner, and you don’t have to buy something just because it’s cheap. Skip it if:
the only cheap options are brutal red-eyes and you’ll end up paying for a hotel you arrive too early to use;
adding a checked bag + seat selection wipes out the discount and you care about both;
the sale window lines up with school holidays and the “from” price only applies to one awkward mid-week flight;
you’re booking a trip that really shouldn’t be on a bare-bones ticket (wedding, tight connection to a cruise, etc.). Pay the extra for flexibility and sleep at night.
A 10-minute, step-by-step playbook
Wednesday/Thursday: set your buy price for 1–3 routes; decide “bag or no bag”.
Friday, 11:55am (ish): log in, open the sale page + your route tabs, grab a glass of water, silence notifications.
T+0 min: scan the month, click your first viable dates, confirm the total including bags.
T+3 min: if a better time/price is one day over, switch. Don’t spend longer than two minutes deciding — the seats won’t wait.
T+5 min: pay. If payment hiccups, new tab, same dates, go again.
After booking: screenshot your confirmation screen, check names/dates immediately. If you need extras (bags/seat), add them later once the dust settles — you’ll see a cooler head price comparison.
What “good” looks like (so you don’t second-guess)
You nailed it if:
you booked within your buy price (or close) without blowing it on add-ons;
the flight times work for you (no heroic 1am dep unless you chose it);
you didn’t spend an hour “researching” while the sale vanished.
You’ll skip with confidence if:
bags and seat selection turn a bargain into meh;
the only cheap seats are painful times or awkward midweeks you can’t swing.
Either way, you’re playing the long game. There’s always another Friday.
A quick note on points
On ultra-cheap sale tickets, earning is often minimal — and that’s fine. If you’re chasing status or want lounge access, match the fare against a full-service airline sale instead. Pay a bit more, earn decent points/status credits, and enjoy a cuppa before your flight. There’s no one right answer; it’s “value for you”.
Final word
The Friday sale isn’t about finding a unicorn; it’s about grabbing a real trip at a fair price and not letting indecision tax you out of it. Set your buy price, prep your browser, know your non-negotiables, and hit purchase when it feels right. If this week’s routes don’t sing, cool — go have lunch. There’s another Friday coming.
