Good airline but not great.
Written: Jan 02 '02
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Reasonable fares, easy availability of seats and a good fleet.
Cons: Food not as good as other airlines, few flights.
The Bottom Line: Seats are easily available and fares are very reasonable. Add good on-board service and a modern fleet, this airlines offers a good value
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| dellbhai's Full Review: Austrian Airlines |
I flew Austrian Airlines last month as I was flying to South Asia and all the other flights were either too expensive or booked. My travel agent suggested that I try Austrian Airlines and it was a pleasant experience. I won't say I had the time of my life, but they were fairly good. (I traveled coach class)
About Austrian Air
Austrian Air is a member of the Star Alliance and partners with Lauda Air and Lufthansa. In fact, in most of the airports, we would see Lufthansa crew handling the work of Austrian Airlines. The crew is distinguished by their deep red costumes, which stand out quite prominently. It flies mainly out of Vienna and now connects to JFK and Washington Dulles in America. They earlier had flights to Chicago and Miami as well, but they have been cancelled since 9/11.
Ticketing and pre-flight issues
I bought my tickets through an agent and she got me a very good deal. You could also get the tickets online or from any other agent. The pre-flight reconfirmation process was very smooth and staff at the airport were quite friendly.
Frequent Flyer Program
As I had said, Austrian Air comes under the Star Alliance, which gives you lot more options to use your miles. It actually comes as part of the Lufthansa Miles and More program which Lufthansa shares with Austrian Air and Lauda Airlines. I was able to get the miles for all the flights immediately and now have the option merge it with any of the 15 Star Alliance members.
The aircraft experience
The aircraft was truly modern. All the seats had individual television sets and had an interactive menu. Besides 5 movie and 12 audio channels they also had several games, which was something new for me. They claim to have 99 aircrafts with an average age of 5 years, which makes it a very young fleet. Most International airlines have a 3-4-3 seating, but this airline had a 2-4-2 seating, which actually gives you a lot more privacy. I really liked this feature. The overhead cabins were a little smaller though and the aircraft was a little smaller than the giant 767's that we see.
The food was decent but not excellent. After being spoilt by some succulent cuisine aboard British Airways, this was a little disappointing. Though the food tasted good, I felt the choice was limited. I must however add that their deserts were awesome. Austrian deserts are new to me and they were really good.
The seats were comfortable and leg space sufficient for most people. The staff was warm and friendly and make the experience very pleasant.
The one disappointment was the Vienna airport. I was connecting to another destination and had a 6 hour wait in Vienna. Compared to some of the other European airports, Vienna airport was a let-down. There was only 1 duty-free shop in my terminal and a couple of restaurants. The rest-rooms were smaller and limited. Not the best place when you have 6 hours to spend. I didn't have any problems with the luggage and received all of them.
Summary
All in all, I was pretty satisfied with the airline. May not have been the best airline but was definitely not bad. I would recommend it to others as I feel it has good value for money.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
dellbhai
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Location: Northern NJ
Reviews written: 14
Trusted by: 3 members
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Strong believer in customer's rights to choose. Love using Epinions and writing for it.
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