This is the first trip report I have written it comes from a student perspective. It comes from the perspective of someone who last year took over 10 flights with low cost airlines (Ryanair, easyJet, and Wizz Air), and from the start, I must admit, there is no big difference on short haul flights between Lufthansa or easyJet for example. The most significant difference is the price of the tickets, the additional difference is that on Lufthansa flights I got a small bottle of 0,33l water and one coffee cookie, even the legroom is similar.
I took this flight on the 15th of March from Malpensa Terminal 1. From Milan, there are two ways to get there, either by train or shuttle bus, due to the airport being some 50km from the city centre. My flight from Milan to Munich was at 13.10, operated by Air Dolomiti’s Embraer 195 and then from Munich to Belgrade at 15.05 operated by Lufthansa Cityline CRJ900. The flight between Milan and Munich takes 1 hour and 10 min. I was anxious about whether I would be on time for the flight to Belgrade. It was the first time that I was flying via Munich and I didn't know what to expect.
I arrived a bit less than 2h before the flight. I had a bag to check in. There were 8 check-in desks for Lufthansa Group airlines (Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Air Dolomiti) out of which 4 were open. After I checked-in, I was directed to security control which works perfectly at Malpensa. I must admit, I have never waited more than 15min even during the peak of the summer season, but this time I waited some 5min. One of the reasons why it works so well, in my opinion, is that there are automated doors to let you inside of security and there is no need to take electric devices and liquids out of the bag. Furthermore, it is possible to pass security control with a bottled drink.
Our plane was connected to the airbridge and boarding started some 20min before the scheduled departure. The flight was full, and there are around 10 flights per day to Munich from two of Milan’s airports - Linate and Malpensa. We were 20mins late on takeoff.
On board, the Wi-Fi was working and you could surf on the Air Dolomiti website which provides a variety of newspapers, magazines and playlists. Some 20min after take off, we were offered a small bottle of water and a tea cookie. We landed with a 5 min delay.
Upon disembarking a person was waiting for me, as well as another person who was also traveling to Belgrade. The airport employee took us by car, first to passport control in a small room with one policeman, and then to the plane. We arrived at the plane at 15.00 and it was empty. Soon after, the pilot came up to us and told us that there was a problem with the emergency system and that they were waiting for a decision on whether they would change the aircraft. In the end, we were forced to disembark.
About 40 min later, boarding started by bus which took us to the same plane as the previous one. The cabin was full at more or less 80% of capacity. Wi-Fi was not working, and during the flight, the flight attendants provided us with a bottle of water. An interesting fact for me is that prices on the menu on both flights were more economical than those at airports especially in comparison with those at Munich airport.
My personal opinion about the airport in Belgrade is that there are too many stairs. If I recall, I think that I took 3 or 4 flights of stair, I felt a bit claustrophobic because of the lower ceiling and its black colour.
On my way back from Belgrade to Milan via Munich, due to a small delay from Belgrade I missed my connecting flight, even though we landed some 15 min before departure time for Milan but this time there was no one waiting for me. When I asked customer assistance why she said to me there were a lot of intercontinental flights at the time and that they provide this kind of service to those who need to catch international flights. She gave me a new boarding card and a €10 food voucher. I needed to wait for 2.55h at Munich airport for the next flight to Milan even though there was a flight which was leaving for Milano Linate after 1.30h but they didn't put me on it because my original ticket was to Malpensa.
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5 star airline service... I used to like Lufthansa but now it is a shadow of its former glory.
ReplyDeleteExactly
DeleteEven Skytrax dropped the 5* charade a couple of years back.
DeleteOut of curiosity, how come you didn't fly on JU nonstop from MXP?
ReplyDeleteGood question.
DeleteIt just proves that direct flights are good and easy, but people may choose connected flights instead for time and price reasons.
DeleteI wrote a report and I was not buying tickets. They were bought by organisation which I was visiting. I checked the prices when they asked me is this rout fine. Lufthansa costed 230€ with luggage and air Serbia without was 310€
DeleteCompletely unnecessary worry and nervousness, and so many direct flights from Belgrade. Good lesson.
ReplyDeleteSo many direct flights?
Delete+1
DeleteFlying directly on JU causes just as much worry and nervousness. 3 out of the last 4 times on JU my flight was delayed over 2 hours in either direction, and you don't typically find out until you arrive at the airport. Also, the passport control at MXP is terribly slow, and the JU flight often lands after flights from Albania and Tunisia, which guarantees a 45-60 minute wait at immigration. At the end of the day, connecting through ZRH or MUC is cheaper and takes maybe an hour longer on average.
DeleteTraveling half way around Europe to reach Milan is quite mind-boggling.
ReplyDeleteWould be almost as fast by car.
JU is expensive on this route. Good luck finding a ticket for less than 25.000 RSD. Luckily we are getting Wizz soon so flying will become affordable.
DeleteDepends on the situation. As someone who is SA’s frequent flyer I can say I did these things in the past. Reasons were various: trip booked using miles, chasing next years status (missing segments), ROI, etc.
DeleteIs that expensive for you for 4 hours flying?
DeleteAnd how much was Lufthansa, free?
Yes that is indeed very expensive for a flight that is a bit more than one hour. Air Serbia can be very greedy. Prices easily go over 30.000.
DeleteLufthansa is usually very, very affordable wen you fly in Europe.
You can find return ticket on BEG-MXP-BEG for as little as 150€.
DeleteNow, but at the time of booking maybe the person in the report could not. Besides it mention that another person was flying with the same itinerary so it obviously isn't so uncommon.
DeleteWhy on Earth do we have this "mind-boggling" comment. No need for the author to explain the reasoning. And just to remind us, we had several other reports where authors were literally flying "half way around Europe" and were praised for that in the comments, like https://www.exyuaviation.com/2023/03/trip-report-lotair-serbia-olsztyn.html
DeleteA return car trip from Milan to Belgrade would take a whole day in each direction and cost around €450 in tolls and petrol. Nonsense comparison.
DeleteAnon 21:59 good example of a trip report ;)
DeleteNice.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your report, very nice!
ReplyDeleteRegarding Lufthansa in general, I think their service is fair and very standardized - you always know what you can expect. In case of delay and missing the next flight (which is quite possible as they book transfers from 35 or 40 minutes in between) they will put you on the first available, and usually there is plenty of options. In worse case, they will give you a room in airport’s hotel. If you miss a flight with smaller airline, the experience is far less nice, they lack options and curtesy, and additional problem is if there are no airport’s hotels.
Additionally, I booked once (euro)business class with Lufthansa as it was just 110 eur more than regular economy and I had two 2:30h flights. What was interesting - when I had two following flights with Lufthansa in economy, the flights were full and both time they upgraded me for free to business - that was a very nice touch and it shows that they have a system working in the background.
All in all, there are always complaints about Lufthansa, but I never heard what was specifically promised by them while not delivered.
Bag. Bag was not delivered. It happens to all airlines. All airlines provide poor customer service in this scenario. With Lufthansa it was much more brutal.
DeleteThanks for the report. Like it.
ReplyDeleteNice trip report! A couple of comments:
ReplyDelete- LH CRJ900 don't have wifi, so it couldn't have been working :)
- You could have requested to be rebooked on the flight to LIN without any issues even if your ticket was to MXP; in case of a missed flight you can always be rebooked to another airport within 200 miles as long as it doesn't change the destination country. Also, I hope you applied for EU261 compensation, as LH owes you €250 for the delayed arrival.
Great report - I love Air Dolomiti :)
ReplyDeleteI work in the aviation in Frankfurt and can only recommend NOT to book LH. They are always, always late and many missed connections and lost bags here. The service is zero. Sorry for brutal honesty.
ReplyDelete