There is a better way to fly
Written: Jan 04 '07 (Updated Jan 05 '07)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Efficient. Clean, modern equipment.
Cons: Very uncomfortable in coach. No personal IFE. Priced all over the place.
The Bottom Line: Lufthansa is all about German efficiency. While that's good for on-time departures, it's bad for service. It'll definitely get you from point A to B though.
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| belynch's Full Review: Lufthansa |
This review is based on several trans-atlantic and inter-European flights on Lufthansa, all taken for business reasons. This review is primarily about the economy class product, as I think that will have the highest relevance to the majority of the readers of this review.
Basics
Lufthansa is the German flag carrier and a leading member behind the international airline alliance, the Star Alliance. Operating out of international hubs in Frankfurt (main) and Munich, they have sizeable operations in all major German cities. Lufthansa operates a fleet of modern planes, consisting of a mix of both Boeing and Airbus aircraft.
From the US, Lufthansa operates direct flights to FRA from most major airports in key cities as well as cities with hub operations for Star Alliance carriers (United and USAirways, as well as Air Canada up north) for easy connections. Within Europe, pretty much every flight will pass through German, due to EU open sky agreements.
Given Germany’s geographic location, and the size of the Frankfurt hub, Lufthansa is also commonly used for travelers from the US to connect through to Eastern Europe and Western Asia.
Lufthansa operates international aircraft equipped in three cabins, first, business and economy. Although Lufthansa has many variations of their aircraft (as is common with large long-haul carriers) seatguru.com is an invaluable reference when it comes to picking a seat.
Lufthansa is also the parent company of one of the world’s largest caterer’s, LSG sky chefs as well as Lufthansa Technik a very large, and world renowned mechanical and technical operations unit.
Lufthansa flies directly to locations in North and South America, Africa, Europe, and Asia and through its Star Alliance partners offers connections to over 800 airports worldwide.
Booking
Lufthansa’s website, www.lufthansa.com and their American website www.lufthansa-usa.com (which redirects you to the US portal) is available in multiple languages. It will generally recognize your IP address and configure the language accordingly, but you can manually change it as well. The design is clean and functional and the booking process is easy. I’ve never had a problem adding alliance frequent flier numbers into this site. However, the site does not recognize if you’re a Star Alliance preferred member and open up preferred (exit row) seating.
For whatever reason, if you’re in the US and book directly through Lufthansa they’ll force you to buy a paper ticket, which is not only a pain, but they also charge you a paper ticket fee. This should all be going away as they upgrade their reservations system, but right now it seems like nothing more than an unfair tax on American residents. You can skirt this issue by booking directly through one of their partners, USAirways, United, or Air Canada on Lufthansa “metal” and they will issue you an e-ticket. Don’t ask why, it’s a little glitch in the matrix, that will save you money.
You can also book tickets through your usual online retailers, such as orbitz and expedia, or through your neighborhood travel agent. However, these methods generally incur fees.
Pricing on Lufthansa is all over the board. On some days you can get cheap sale flights between the US and Germany for $400 USD round trip (plus taxes, which are considerable in the EU) and the next day, for $2,000 USD. The whole thing seems illogical to me. But, keep an eye on it, be flexible with your dates and airports and you can always find a decent rate if you’re willing to spend a bit of time.
Lufthansa has this quirky rule where they claim that they will not assign exit rows in advance until they see you in person at the airport. That’s 100% bologna, but unfortunately, as is true with Lufthansa, they are a very “by the book” carrier.
Airport Experience
Checking-in with Lufthansa counters in the US is usually handled by contract employees (Swissport, etc.), unless it’s a big operation, like you have at JFK. Things are generally efficient and there are separate lines for each class of service.
If you are traveling in first or business, or traveling with a Star Alliance Gold card as an international passenger you will be given access to the Lufthansa lounge (or whoever they partner with in that particular airport). The Lufthansa lounges are very European, very modern, and very yellow. I actually find them to be pretty uncomfortable and sterile. However drinks and light food are served in many locations.
Boarding the aircraft will be done via two lines, one for premium passengers, and one for economy. This allows business and first passengers to board at their leisure and not have to deal with a tremendous line. They’ll board from the back of the plane front in economy although I’ve found the Europeans don’t like to stand in line so it’s generally just a mob-scene.
On board
On board you’ll be met with three thoughts in this order.
1. Wow, this is a clean, modern aircraft. Even on the older planes, Lufthansa does a very good job refreshing and updating its with grey and yellow, which is pleasing to most visual palates.
2. The second thought is “wow, that seat is tiny.” Lufthansa has what I call the “one cheek seat” so called because you can only really fit about half of your bum comfortably in the seat. Also, with seat pitches around 31” you’re sure to have a cramped flight. The good news here is that the seats are made by Recaro so they generally always work properly and are ergonomically correct. They’re also usually leather. And have adjustable headrests.
3. The third thought is “damn”. Why? Because there’s no personalized entertainment. Even on the newest planes such as the a340, you do not have individual screens and there’s only main screens in the main cabins (different in business and coach). It’s such a disappointment.
As you take off you’ll begin to think that the flight attendants are former synchronized swimmers, because everything is done with military precision. It’s almost scary. But, that’s the stereotypical German efficiency for you. It’s good, to a point, but it’s also a pain. I once asked for a glass of water and was literally yelled at “now is not the time for the water service, can you not see that now we are not serving water!” I wasn’t demanding it now, I was just trying to politely ask that the next time they were walking through I would appreciate a glass of water.
Food in economy is generally absolutely miserable. But they do feed you on almost all flights and on trans-atlantic you’ll get a little meal before you land too.
Beer and wine is complimentary in coach, as are headsets. So at least they don’t nickel and dime you.
Movies are always offered in English and German. Entertainment generally features one full movie, several short subjects, and the map showing where you are. I personally hate the one central screen set-up as it makes it very hard to sleep with the flickering lights. But then again I really can’t sleep on planes anyway.
In coach there is no amenity kit and no hot towel service.
Lufthansa used to offer on-board wi-fi (for a fee) internet, but the company that hosted it (subsidiary of Boeing) has since cancelled the program and the Connexion service is now being phased out. There is hopes that someone else will pick this service up.
As a quick contrast, Lufthansa business class is far superior to economy class. The meals and service are excellent. The seats are still pretty narrow, but not nearly as bad as coach, and the newer seats fully recline (but not 180 degrees) making sleep a little easier. You also have personal TV’s. Where Lufthansa’s economy class offerings are generally at the lower end, the business class offerings are at the upper echelon.
Arrivals
Arriving in Frankfurt, as it is now, is horrible. The airport is undergoing an extensive renovation and it’s utterly and hopelessly confusing. Again, if you’re businesses or first or Star Alliance Gold you can enter into an arrivals lounge (some have showers). One good thing about the Frankfurt airport is that there are many Lufthansa employees walking around and they will help you if you need direction. If you have a choice, Munich is a much better airport in my opinion.
Baggage claim is generally fairly efficient and priority bags generally do come out first. If your bag doesn’t make it, you’re covered under generous EU baggage rules (75 Euros cash upon claim) and they give you a nice amenity kit.
Bottom-line
I really don’t like Lufthansa in economy class. The seats are cramped and the service is nothing to write home about. They’re generally very efficient and very punctual, and I do place a value in that, but there’s nicer ways to get over the Atlantic, and generally at a cheaper price. And when Lufthansa has problems they’re so strict with their by the book attitude that it’s hard to get them to help you out – even when they created the problem. When you travel, especially internationally, you do need a degree of flexibility.
Lufthansa has a stellar safety record which is something to take into consideration.
Flying from NYC to FRA I have a ton of options when it comes to who I can fly. I do end up on Lufthansa every once in a while, but my favorite is Singapore, which also offers a non-stop.
Other
Between key markets Lufthansa also offers an all business class service called PrivatJet. I’ve never experienced this, but if you see a reference to this, that’s what it is. I have heard good things about it.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
belynch
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Location: Nyack, NY
Reviews written: 64
Trusted by: 17 members
About Me:
A full-time consultant, a part-time writer, and a volunteer EMT.
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