A lot of the info in this thread is out dated so here's my review based on my more recent experiences.
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When I first learned that the best available flight from Incheon to Bangkok was on Jin Air, my reaction was no doubt the same as many other foreigners in Korea: "What the hell is Jin Air?"
"I've never heard of them, they must not be making a lot of money, what short cuts must they be taking to save a few bucks here and there?"
"Are parts of the plane going to break off somewhere along the way?"

Well, now I'm here to answer some of those questions.

What is Jin Air?

Jin Air is Korea's "Budget Airline" that is a subsidiary of Korean Air. They have quite a few counters at Incheon International airport, and primary fly to Southeast Asia (Thailand, Laos, Philippines), Japan (Sapporo, Nagasaki, Okinawa), Oceania (Guam), and China (Currently Hong Kong, and Macao, but I've heard they are adding more destinations at the end of 2013).

How much cheaper is Jin Air?

Both times I booked flights on Jin Air, I was looking for a last minute vacation. As a student studying at a Korean university I didn't have so much extra money and Thailand seemed to be the best value in terms of how far I could stretch my limited resources over a several week block of time.

In any case, for both bookings, the available Jin Air fares were on average $200-$400 USD less than their competitors that also had direct flights for these locations (namely Korean Air, Asiana Airlines, and Thai Airlines).

How to Book Tickets

For the most part, Jin Air flights do not appear on American travel websites such as Priceline, Expedia, and Travelocity. They do appear on the Korean equivalents to these sites, however the most efficient way to buy tickets is via their web site jinair.com.

Quality of Service - In Flight

Jin Air is the most casual airline I've ever flown on. The staff all wear Jin Air baseball caps, and matching yellow polo style shirts as their uniforms (see above). Some customers have said this makes them seem inexperienced, personally I thought it set the tone for getting ready to relax and leave work (or school) behind.

All of the staff are Korean, and in my experience, all of the flight attendants, desk agents, and customer service representatives have been able to speak enough English to conduct business. Sometimes it was necessary, sometimes not (I can speak a little Korean). I've heard some customers say that they had flights were none of the flight attendants could speak English, however this has never been the case for me.

The flights to and from Bangkok were clean, we were provided snacks, meals (Korean style), and drinks during the flight. All of the staff seemed to have a good attitude, I really have no complaints.

That said, There was no in flight entertainment for the 5 hour flight, but that didn't bother me. I guess they have hand held game systems you can rent, but I didn't bother with it. For the most part I just listened to audio books or slept.

Quality of Service - At the Airport

When you finally manage to talk to someone at the airport, the representatives have always been very friendly, that said I canceled my most recent reservation with Jin Air because they currently have no online check in system, and will not check you in at the airport until 2 hours before the scheduled departure time even if the counters are open.

If for example, you are flying into Incheon at 8 AM, and your international Jin Air flight is at 5 PM, this could make for a VERY uncomfortable day at the airport as all of the airport lounges and abundant stores are past security and you are stuck with spending that block of time on one of only a few benches or lurking at the hand full of restaurants that are available positioned outside of security. Unfortunately, Incheon airport is positioned such that it is not very practical to skip over to Seoul for a few hours and come back - it's 45 minutes to an hour and a half each way (depending on your mode of transportation).

If it was not for the lack of online check in, I would have kept my Jin Air reservation, passed security, and sat in the HUB lounge until I was ready to board.

Fees, Changes, and Cancellations

I was pleasantly surprised by Jin Air's tolerant ticket change and cancellation policy. The fee is the same for both options - 10,000 KRW if you bought your ticket in Won, or $10 USD if you were billed in US dollars. If you are a no show, the fee goes up to 20,000 KRW or $20 USD.

I haven't traveled with enough baggage to have to deal with luggage fees, but I believe the economy class baggage allowance is 20kg, but don't hold me to that since I haven't needed to research it.

Website and Telephone Customer Service

Customer Service Number: 1600-6200 (in Korea - I don't know about International)
Web Site Address (English): http://www.jinair.com/Language/ENG/


The web site is pretty straight forward once you click on the language button to change to English (or one of the other languages). When booking you enter the origin and destination along with the travel dates, and they give you a list of fares and how many seats are available on each flight for each fare.

I've never had a problem with the telephone customer service, although I will say that there's something wonky with cancelling on the web site while using a non-Korean credit card, and you may well have to cancel my making a phone call.

There are a couple places where the English grammar isn't 100% correct, but it's good enough that you can understand the meaning.

The prices are about the same on the Korean and English web sites. There may be $1-2 difference depending on the exchange rate.

Can I earn Skypass Miles on Jin Air, or redeem Korean Air for Jin Air Flights?

No. Jin air actually doesn't even have a frequent flier program. This is likely a trade off for the year round low fares.

I've now had two experienced with Jin Air, each about a year apart, and I am pleased to say that both have been good experiences in spite of the fact that I cancelled my 2nd reservation.

Special Note

Jin Air gets bonus points for having what is in my opinion the coolest airline logo I have seen anywhere. It's a butterfly with an airplane shape used for the body!