Jet2 Airlines flight review: Bristol to Salou – Costa Dorada

After our holiday to the Costa Dorada with Jet2 Holidays (you can read about out PortAventura experience here), this is our review of our flight experience with their airline Jet2.

We had flights from Bristol airport to Reus, and overall, we were really impressed with the flight.  Jet2 also fly from another 10 regional airports across the UK – Liverpool is their latest base and I’m really hoping Jet2 continue their expansion into Wales, so we can fly from our local airport, Cardiff.

Check-in and luggage allowance

You can check-in online or via the Jet2 app for your flight up to 28 days before departure and seats can be pre-booked for a fee if you want to guarantee that you will be sitting together.  We checked in online a few days before our departure and downloaded our boarding passes to our Apple wallet from the Jet2 app, so no printed boarding passes are necessary.

We used the Jet2 twilight check-in service at Bristol Airport on this trip for the first time, which was so convenient.  Jet2 have a dedicated check-in area in Bristol and you can’t miss it with its bright red colour scheme.

What I really like about flying with Jet2 is that you always deal with Jet2 staff throughout your airport journey from check-in staff to baggage reclaim and not airport handling agents that most airlines typically use these days, it makes a huge difference and adds that real sense of customer service.

With our flight departing at 6:45, we used the twilight check-in service to check-in our hold luggage the night before our flight.

When you book package holidays to Spain through Jet2 holidays each passenger has a generous 22kg luggage allowance and a 10kg cabin bag allowance, so there was no need to worry about paying for hold or cabin luggage like you now often have to do with budget carriers.

Knowing that our bags were taken care of, it meant that we could leave our hotel at the airport a little later, bypass any queues at check-in and head straight through security and into the departure lounge.  The Jet2 staff at the twilight check-in were friendly, helpful and the whole process was quick and hassle-free.  I would highly recommend it if you have an early morning flight and are staying at the on-site airport hotel or live nearby.

Boarding

The boarding process for our flights to Reus with Jet was really efficient.  At the gate, we were pleased to see that Jet2 had a clear and well-organised boarding process, instead of a hectic scramble to get on-board. Boarding took place by boarding group A or B dependent on your seat row number which was shown on our boarding pass. This made it easy for us to know when it was our turn to board and prevented any confusion or congestion in the aircraft cabin.

One downside of flying from Bristol is that there are very few jet bridges and you have to board via the open-stairs.  This isn’t the most pleasant experience especially when the weather is wet or cold but we were lucky it was dry and warm when we left for Reus.

Seats and Cabin

The Jet2 planes are modern and bright, we flew out on one of their Boeing Next Generation 737-800 aircraft, with the seats in a 3-3 configuration which is similar to what you would expect on most short haul routes. I liked the red and grey colour scheme to the seating which added some personality to the cabin environment along with the destinations that Jet2 fly to listed across the overhead bins.

There is no business class cabin on Jet2 but we had the next best thing as we booked the front row seats on the outbound flight to Reus, providing us with so much space to stretch out.

On our return leg back to the UK, we were in their standard seats in row 4 and there was still more than enough legroom for my husband who is 6ft 1.  The slimline Recaro seats were comfortable and designed to provide more space for passengers.  Because of this clever design, the 30” of legroom in their standard seats seemed far more spacious than it actually is, providing better than average legroom for our short haul flight.

We felt that the legroom on the Jet2 flights was more generous than what we have experienced with other airlines on short haul routes.  Another feature I liked with these seats was the fact that they don’t recline, it’s a shame that airlines don’t introduce this in their economy cabins on long-haul flights.

Onboard Service

The flight itself was on-time and a pleasant two-hour journey to Reus, and the in-flight service provided by Jet2 was excellent. Staff were friendly and attentive and made sure we were well taken care of and comfortable throughout the flight.  The flight deck also provided regular updates on the flight status and weather conditions, keeping us informed throughout the journey.

There are no in-flight entertainment options to keep you entertained during the flight but this is standard across all short haul airlines. Instead, we brought devices pre-filled with downloaded films and TV series from our favourite streaming sites to watch during the flight.  Jet2 did provide a complimentary in-flight magazine ’Jet Away’, which was an informative read with a range of articles on travel, lifestyle, and more.

A welcome addition to the onboard service would be the introduction of in-seat power sockets to charge devices and wifi similar to what is now standard on trains in the UK – this would further enhance to the in-flight experience.

There was also an inflight duty free service selling the usual range of perfumes, gifts etc – they even had vouchers in the magazine offering 20% off trying to tempt you into purchasing, but we managed to resist.

Food and Drink

Jet2 offered a range of food and drink options on board, including hot and cold meals that can either be pre-ordered online before your flight or you could purchase a range of light meals, snacks, and beverages onboard.

We typically skip food on short haul flights but we did have drinks and snacks and I really liked the design touch of a cup holder on the back of the seat.  If you are in the front row or bulkhead seats after take off the cabin crew affix your tray to the armrest of your seat.

Arrival into Reus

We arrived into Reus on time and were impressed by the efficiency of the airport.  It’s a really small airport so it was only a short walk to the baggage reclaim area after passport control, and we were able to collect our luggage quickly. We then headed to the Jet2 Holidays transfer desk, where we were greeted by Jet2 staff who directed us to our coach transfer to Hotel Gold River – PortAventura World with Jet2 Holidays, where we were staying for the next few days.

It was the little touches I felt that really made the difference, as soon as the plane has landed and I turned my phone off airplane mode I had a text message from Jet2, providing us with important details such as the contact number of our representative, information about the welcome meeting, and the schedule of our return flight. This level of communication and organization from Jet2 holidays was truly impressive.

Overall

Overall, our in-flight experience with Jet2 was enjoyable and comfortable. What makes jet2 stand out is the excellent customer service you receive from their staff from the check-in desk to picking up your bags at the destination airport.

Would we recommend flying with Jet2?  From our most recent experience we most definitely would, in fact we are already looking at other family holidays on the Jet2 Holidays website for later in the year.

*Disclosure: This was a press trip organised by Jet2 Holidays but all opinions are entirely my own.