carstenS

Thought I had seen the worst after 28 years in the aviation industry .. but IBERIA beat all bad experiences...


Madrid to Copenhagen is a 3:30 hour flight. IB 3730/07OCT


Check-in via app... tried 4 times - after 3 minutes everytime - the app timed out with an errormessage


Check-in via webbrowser - gave another errormessage but being persistent I managed. Choose option to send boarding pass to phone - which gave me an image that did not go into wallet of an iPhone.


Once checked in using webbrower the app suddenly worked and this app issues a standard wallet type boardingpass.


Arrive at airport 30 min delay annonced. Went to lounge. Suddenly the flight is boarding - at departure time which had changed. Arrived at gate which was chaos of PRIORITY and regular passengers.

Took 40 minutes to board an A320.


Onboard 28" pitch cramped one really feels the 3" missing compared to Swiss.


No food onboard for a 3:30h flight. No free water and despite answering in English 3 times the cabin crew insisted in addressing me in spanish.


Announcements were not understandable and the whole inflight experince was chaotic. They barely managed to serve all 30 rows before the end of the flight.


This is by far (2500+ flights) my worst customer experience ever.


One positive... bag delivery in Copenhagen was quick - 13 minutes.


Fare, service ... value for money - no - I will never fly IBERIA again !

asimegusta

Yes. I have had similar trouble with Iberia app and website. As for no food/water seats it's all written somewhere on the website. It's a pain for sure. As for language, they are pretty much monolingual with some attendants have nominal "english" capabilities. Iberia is a low cost airline owned by BA. The only reason to choose them over Ryannair, in my opinion, is seat choice and airports location.

craigthemif

Hopefully the OP discovers that Flyertalk is a good way to find out information from frequent travelers (as opposed to the Tripadvisor once-a-year holiday types) about what airlines, hotels, etc. to both avoid and to actively seek out. But I suspect it might be a one-post rant and that's the last we'll see of him.

Iberia has its flaws. Vueling is probably worse. Spain and southern Europe in general can have customer service issues that Northern Europeans or North Americans find shocking. But most European airlines are the same - there simply isn't a big market for a premium product at premium prices for 2-3 hour long flights. So, never again... until one needs to fly to MAD and IB offers the cheapest fare and the more convenient schedule...

closeyes

I am Spanish and I know very well Iberia. No doubt, it is one of the worst companies in the world. Even with Ryanair I am more confortable (space for the legs) than Iberia.

Iberia become in a new low cost company. And the FFP is the most unfair the world. Try to avoid: expensive and bad.

more4less

Hi,

I agree that IB is bad but being One World Gold or Plat(also Silver in some of the FFP) you have some nice perks like booking for free emergency exist seats, the odd op-up, lounge, a few days free parking if flying medium/long haul for IB+ Gold or Plat,...in Barcelona, when flying Vueling, we do not even have that!

spanishflyer

I usually fly with Iberia and I think it is nonsense to compare it with Ryanair. I agree they have things to improve and I do not like they do not offer free food or even water but they treat me much better than other airlines do. I do not fly Vueling because I do not fit between seats and I think Iberia gives more legroom, at least in the first rows. I really enjoy Iberia Dali lounge at T4 MAD and I doubt Ryanair or Vueling offer similar lounges. And I do not consider Iberia as a low cost airline.

miamiflyer8

I'd choose Iberia over RyanAir any day because at least you get Fast Track and lounge access with them and earn some FF miles too. Their longhaul J product is pretty good and so are their lounges at MAD, but their intra-Europe product is a joke.

As far as it goes for boarding an A320 in 40 mins, Spanish and Latin American people aren't the best at waiting in line/orderly boarding so that might have caused it.

Iberia does provide complimentary meals intra-Europe on flights over 4h but since CPH-MAD is 3:30 they have an excuse to cheap out.

I can agree their app and website is very buggy.

zrs70

I think I'm missing the part that makes this the worst ever.

Sorry to not have much empathy, but this experience is a relatively minor inconvenience compared to much of what happens in travel.

Finkface

".... or I might, but only because it is $10 cheaper than anyone else."

If I had a dollar for everytime I have read these words from a first-time poster, I would be a rich woman.

miamiflyer8

+1.

I've heard and been thru way worse experiences. The above was just another day in the travel industry.

aksai oiler

http://www.theolivepress.es/spain-ne...-in-the-world/

Seems both VY and IB sit firmly in the bottom for customer experience, not surprising.

DELLAS

Never had a bad flight with IB/IBX. They never let me down and I like the product.

OK they lost my bag last year for 24 hours but thats life. They kept me up to date with SMS alerts which impressed me.

Sometimes things go wrong it happens on BA/AF/LH etc...

Greenpen

In J I think they are excellent, good seats, food and wine. Coupled with the excellent MAD lounges it is an experience to look forward to.

Most Y in intra-Europe is now the same, they have all become LCCs.

Tilto007

I agree with most comments here.I swore of Spirit airlines due to "terrible" experience until I needed to go from FLL to BWI and they were 150 bucks cheaper than AA and Delta ........
Transatlantic Iberia in J is great,new planes and great hard product.Good availability with Avios also.Most flights have J available for next summer with Avios.