Aer Lingus is the national carrier of Ireland and second most popular in the country after Ryan Air. I can only comment on the airline's continental services as I've used it to fly between Paris, Cork, Dublin and Nice. Didn't get off to a flying start with them on my maiden flight as snowfall delayed our flight by 12 hours and ground staff was clueless on expected time of departure and showed great inability to handle agitated passengers.
What's going for the airline :
1. Website is very user friendly and if you book tickets at least 3 months in advance, you can avail of very low fares which could go up by 5-6 times as you approach your travel date.
2. In flight crew is friendly and smiling.
3. Overhead baggage space is decent on planes servicing continental Europe.
4. Continental connectivity is very good and they typically offer quite a few options per sector.
5. Let me shout this from the rooftop : Fares, fares, fares - they are the best I've seen on any carrier in Europe and can be lower than Easy Jet and Ryan Air for a lot of European destinations.
What can do with some help :
1. Our flight from Paris to Cork was delayed due to heavy snowfall (yes - having to spend 12 hours at CDG is a nightmare by itself!) and all Aer Lingus could offer during the period was a Eur 10 voucher for food! Passengers were not allowed to check into nearby hotels at their own cost also. Reason provided was 'security concerns.' Some empathy from airline management will do wonders for EI.
2. Inexperienced ground staff which is ill equipped to handle irate passenger crowds in exceptional situations.
3. Seats are very narrow and uncomfortable. There is very little leg space and if you recline your chair, the person behind you is going to have a very tough time eating and sleeping.
4. No personal inflight entertainment system on Continental flights.
5. Food and beverage choices on board are limited and expensive.
6. Airline is not part of any of the global frequent flyer networks - One World or Star Alliance which means no mileage accrual for your EI flights.
Overall rating : 4/10. More suited for holiday crowd than business folk as the on-time performance record seems to be an issue. Fly Aer Lingus if you don't have connecting flights / trains to take and have the luxury to book tickets well in advance. Atleast the low fares will compensate to some extent for any inconvenience one might face at time of travel. And frankly, their fares should be the only reason you fly aboard the Shamrock.
What's going for the airline :
1. Website is very user friendly and if you book tickets at least 3 months in advance, you can avail of very low fares which could go up by 5-6 times as you approach your travel date.
2. In flight crew is friendly and smiling.
3. Overhead baggage space is decent on planes servicing continental Europe.
4. Continental connectivity is very good and they typically offer quite a few options per sector.
5. Let me shout this from the rooftop : Fares, fares, fares - they are the best I've seen on any carrier in Europe and can be lower than Easy Jet and Ryan Air for a lot of European destinations.
What can do with some help :
1. Our flight from Paris to Cork was delayed due to heavy snowfall (yes - having to spend 12 hours at CDG is a nightmare by itself!) and all Aer Lingus could offer during the period was a Eur 10 voucher for food! Passengers were not allowed to check into nearby hotels at their own cost also. Reason provided was 'security concerns.' Some empathy from airline management will do wonders for EI.
2. Inexperienced ground staff which is ill equipped to handle irate passenger crowds in exceptional situations.
3. Seats are very narrow and uncomfortable. There is very little leg space and if you recline your chair, the person behind you is going to have a very tough time eating and sleeping.
4. No personal inflight entertainment system on Continental flights.
5. Food and beverage choices on board are limited and expensive.
6. Airline is not part of any of the global frequent flyer networks - One World or Star Alliance which means no mileage accrual for your EI flights.
Overall rating : 4/10. More suited for holiday crowd than business folk as the on-time performance record seems to be an issue. Fly Aer Lingus if you don't have connecting flights / trains to take and have the luxury to book tickets well in advance. Atleast the low fares will compensate to some extent for any inconvenience one might face at time of travel. And frankly, their fares should be the only reason you fly aboard the Shamrock.
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