Miles & More (Lufthansa, Austrian, Swiss, and other partners) - How good is Germanwings?

Hi there,

Lufthansa has tranferred their STR-MAN and STR-LHR flights to their low-cost subsidairy Germanwings. I suspect they have tranferred STR flights to other destinations aswell.

However what is Germanwings like to fly with? I know they are a low-cost carrier but are they extreme low-cost like Ryanair or a more comfortable LCC like Easyjet?

With LH transferring flights over to this airline I am nervous about booking with them.

What is to be expected?

That would depend on your needs and expectations.

If you're a regular, casual Y pax with no significant status, and therefore unconcerned with lounge access etc., you'll find 4U equally as good as LH. They are low-cost in the sense that you pay extra for luggage, snacks and pre-reserved seats, but they have it all neatly available as a separate "tariff", so to speak, so it doesn't feel like they're milking you for every individual thing, which places them head-and-shoulders over the usual European LCCs. As for the inflight experience, I actually find the first ten rows on 4U more comfortable than NEK, although the differences are subtle anyway.

If you're a very frequent flyer with SEN status, however, I'm sure that following posts by similar users will express the drawbacks much more vividly than I could ever hope to.

They are low-cost in the sense that you pay extra for luggage, snacks and pre-reserved seats, but they have it all neatly available as a separate "tariff", so to speak, so it doesn't feel like they're milking you for every individual thing, which places them head-and-shoulders over the usual European LCCs.
Just a short note to add: If you book a ticket only involving Germanwings and book that one on germanwings.com, you can choose the cheapest tariff which basically contains no baggage and no snacks. If you book them in an AMADEUS booking system (e.g. as connection to/from LH), you get the "best tariff" which means that you also have a baggage allowance and a snack on-board. So as a Y-pax, there is no big difference.

However what is Germanwings like to fly with? I know they are a low-cost carrier but are they extreme low-cost like Ryanair or a more comfortable LCC like Easyjet?

What is to be expected?

The seats are more comfortable than the NEK seats in LH cabins. Seat pitch is decent and the cabin interiors modern and clean.

Thanks for the replies, they seem pretty good and I hope to try them out.

Germanwings compares more with easyjet than with ryanair.

I use them frequently on their CGN-ZRH route, and think that they are OK. Definitely better than Ryanair.

I actually prefer my Lufthansa European flights to those of germanwings. In my experience, I found the Lufthansa crews much more friendly and the germanwings ones somewhat offhand. The germanwings experience tends too leave me cold, wishing I had flown with another carrier. Now, despite all the constant negative commentary against Lufthansa in this forum, that is how I feel.

You want to watch out on germanwings if you have purchased the Best tarif: if you are looking through the onboard menu in the seat pocket and start ordering this and that, then you will have to pay for it. They won't warn you that the Best tarif only gives you a small sandwich and a soft drink (small tin of soda) or coffee. Give me Lufthansa catering any day.

I use them frequently on their CGN-ZRH route, and think that they are OK. Definitely better than Ryanair.

I think I read somewhere that the ZRH route is going to be discontinued as from the Winter timetable. Am I right in thinking this?

I flew with them recently and thought they were just fine. I bought the cheapest fare, pre-paid for a bag and bought a sandwich on board. All were fine and the flight crews were friendly to me. Somehow I ended up in the front section which has headrests that say "best seats" but I am not sure how this happened or what made the seats "best."

It was not comparable at all to my most recent Ryanair flight where I was constantly harassed to buy lottery tickets and other junk, and many of the people on the plane were drunk and obnoxious. Also, Ryanair does not assign seats at all without a separate charge, where I was able to select my seats on Germanwings for free when I checked in.

Somehow I ended up in the front section which has headrests that say "best seats" but I am not sure how this happened or what made the seats "best."

The first ten rows on 4U flights have extra legroom.