stimpy

Thanks. I don't care about PTV, but I do care about being able to sleep from REC to FRA. Are those the same as LH's old biz seats?

And does one earn all the normal miles? Creditable to any Star partner?

It's about €300 cheaper than taking TAP it seems.

oliver2002

No they are 170° recliners: http://www.condor.com/eu/fileadmin/d...ent_130408.pdf

Miles can only be credited to M&M, not *A partners.

jarino

Not all Condor planes have these new Business/Comfort class seats yet, and the old Comfort class seats are really poor, more like Premium Economy elsewhere.

AVSA

That was a year ago. If I read this correctly they announced that that were going to fit their aircraft with 170° recliners.

Any news on the status? How many aircraft are now fitted?

oliver2002

5 767 were reportedly done in February, all 12 will be done this summer:
http://www.zim-flugsitz.de/zim-flugs...ews/Condor.pdf

Concerto

I have my first Condor flight coming up this Tuesday, from Hannover to Lanzarote (Arrecife). I have no idea what to expect and I have read quite a few negative reviews on various sites (such as Skytrax). It appears there is no business class, just premium economy. I managed to buy an upgrade for 90 Euros, which I thought was quite a good deal for a flight which lasts 4h40.

Do I get any FTL benefits, such as lounge access or fast track through security, even without the premium economy upgrade? Is the onboard service BOB or is a meal served? My return will be in economy class, but I will take the opportunity to find out what it will be like once on the outbound flight this Tuesday.

Does the Condor brand still exist, which I think is quite good looking, or has it been amalgamated under the Thomas Cook brand?

Just for info, I got the trip as a mileage bargain, 10,000 miles (instead of the usual 40,000 miles) with about 112 Euros tax on top.

tropikey

We flew with Condor twice this year. Once on long haul, FRA-CUN in Premium Economy, which was great, even though the plane didn't have refurbished interior (as far as I know, at present all of Condor's long haul planes are refurbished) and therefore, we didn't have PTV. The legroom was really big, seating comfort excellent, food and beverages tasty and plentiful. We were very satisfied.
The second one was medium haul, SXF-FUE in Economy (but in XL Seats) and this one was not as enjoyable as previous one, mainly due to very old plane and unkind crew. We chose XL Seats (next to emergency exits) instead of Premium Economy because they offer extra legroom while Premium Economy class on medium and short haul flights gives only free middle seat (there're 2 passengers in 3 seats row) but the legroom is standard (i.e. quite small). However, you get better food and drinks in Premium Economy (during max. 4,5 hours long flight it's not as important as on long haul flights). XL Seats are significantly cheaper than seats in Premium Economy.
To sum up, if the price is right, Condor is good alternative, particularly that it offers direct connection to several holiday destinations not available in other airlines. From this point of view, Condor's main competitor seems to be Air Berlin. According to my own experiences, both airlines offer product of similar quality.

Best regards, Bartek

Concerto

Well, I completed my Condor trip to Lanzarote and back (HAJ-ACE and vv) and I have to say that it is a traditional airline turned low cost. The flights consisted of a single cabin with premium economy comprising only the first row with the middle seat kept free. Free headphones and a small amenity kit was offered, with blue stripes reminiscent of a Baltic Sea bathing hut, which was pleasant. A very decent premium meal tray was offered, with prawn cocktail, hot meal and dessert, and drinks were on the house and regularly offered. The seat was not great but at least there was enough legroom.

Coming back, in normal economy, I was separated from my partner as the flight as full and we only checked in at the airport (internet was pretty bad in Lanzarote). My seat was assigned in the middle of a row, between a mother and her daughter. How can they be stupid as to even allow that, an unknown male sat in the middle of a family? We arranged ourselves on the flight, and the father was able to come from another row and join his family. But we should not have to do that, they should never separate passengers traveling on the same PNR (as we were anyway). So that is the punishment you will get for not paying for advance seat reservations.

The seat is truly utterly awful, like those NEK Recaro things. I never have back problems, a good thing being a musician, but I certainly had a few after sitting 4+ hours in one of those. The catering is utterly cheapskate, a choice of small salami roll or cheese sandwich, and tea, coffee and water were the only free drinks. The rest is pay pay pay. Sorry, but I HATE this low cost trash on a longish flight like this, and ticket prices aren't exactly low (it would have cost EUR579 if I hadn't paid with 10,000 miles plus EUR112 tax).

In fairness, Condor felt a very safe airline with highly competent crew, the cabin crew doing the trolley runs and safety demos were friendly and had a kind word for everyone they interacted with, and the cabin was pleasantly clean and airy despite being full. Lastly, the passengers were a broad cross-section of German society, a lot of very nice older people and some families with children whose behaviour was excellent considering the late nature of the return flight to Hannover. Flights were punctual and there were no baggage problems (keep in mind the max weight is 20kg, not 23kg).

Can I recommend them? To be honest, yes, just go with low expectations and there will always be a pleasant surprise on your travels somewhere. And be prepared to shell out a bit more money for seat reservations etc. Hot meals can be ordered in advance, with a significant reduction if ordered more than 30 days before.

dljuna

Never flown on Condor. May purchase ticket because its so cheap. What are your experiences? Any tips?

Concerto

So cheap? What city pair? I find their prices to Lanzarote (ACE) in October ridiculously dear, considering that baggage, seat selection and catering is not included. It could be worth upgrading to premium economy if it is a European route, like I did last year, if it's not stupidly expensive. Otherwise, it is a perfectly safe German holiday airline with decent cockpit and cabin crew, which has become crap like everything else. Last year, I travelled on a Miles & More special offer of 10,000 miles RT, which was pretty decent.

Germanfflyer

It is a holiday airline nothing to expect....they are a low low cost operation they will tease you wherever they can - beware that they actually put your hand-luggage on a scale at the gate and charge you extra if it is too heavy...so no duty free shopping unless you want to pay extra for the weight....

warakorn

Isnt LH/Eurowings/Sun Express starting their own holiday longhaul flights?
Why is LH still cooperating with DE?

oliver2002

The meals on DE longhaul in C/PE/Y are reviewed here: http://www.faz.net/aktuell/stil/esse...ue#pageIndex_2