Help with a decision
 

I have a choice to fly TLV-NYC and have never flown ElAl.
To those of you with experience can you give some advice on the following:
LX/LH Econ vs LY Econ
I have miles to upgrade on both alliances so the same Q -
LX/LH Biz vs LY Biz
I know LY gets rid of a connection but comfort/value is more important than convenience/miles earned on which alliance.

Thanks....

LY biz is very good now.
It is good to take a night flight and arrive in NYC at 5AM after 12 hours flight
Much better then changing plains with LH/LX
LX/LH food is better .The service and the seats are almost the same


I was lucky not to fly Y in the past 11 years
so I can't help with Y
I think that God loves me when I fly and he wants me to feel
good when I am closer to him in the sky:cool::):)

LiorM

If you have the points/miles to upgrade, do it.

There really isn't much of a difference between them all in Y, definitely nothing worth taking the longer connection route for.

I would say if you are going C they are all good, but again LX/LH are not worth the extra time and hassle connecting so I would say go LY and enjoy.

I would go for LY

As a heavy Y-er who likes to make as many stops as possible, my answer would go - go LX. I personally like to stretch my legs every now and then, and the ZRH connections are really good (most of the time).

In any case:
If you take LH/LX C, make sure it is a real C on the way to europe. You might get the 3-3 configuration which has the middle seat blocked in C, and a bit of extra space.

If you take LH/LX, remember - you'll pass European security as well (say goodbye to your liquids).

If you take LY - you bet on the service. Usually, long haul Y on LY is good, while medium is so-so (my experience over the last years, the longer the flight is, the more chance the flight service will be good). However, you may get surprises (after all, this is not an airline - this is Israel!).

And recall that flying LY will prevent you from returning on Saturday morning from NY (if this is an issue). Even though you can take AA to europe, and continue with LY from there (but that sounds even less fun than connecting with LX/LH, especially in Y).

As a Lufthansa Senator, I would still go with El Al. You will find that the evening non-stops from Tel Aviv to Newark are delightful. The aircraft is quiet, the service is impeccable and I like the South American themed meals in Y. C is even better and you will be refreshed upon landing. I am not a fan of Lufthansa to Tel Aviv (unlike everyone else in the forum). When it comes to my Israel travel, I prefer El Al for the good and friendly service on board. If the miles are such a big deal, just give them an American Airlines, South African Airways, Qantas or AeroMexico frequent flyer account. I am sure that you can find something to do with one of those (like the AA awards from TLV to the Far East...)

That doesn’t count; you would go LY if they were the worst airline in the world... ;)

There really isn't more room to stretch out on when it comes to Y.
And why on earth would you want to make as many stops as possible?

None of these flights are schedules to operate with European configured aircraft anymore.
They can change the plane in the last minute (Something LX seem to do too often) but then you probably wouldn't know until you are actually at the airport.


Nonsense.

What mkilmo meant is that because they fly in Y they prefer to have shorter flights with stops in order to be able to get our of the plane and stretch their legs. So mkilmo would prefer say one 7 hour flight followed by one 5 hour flight rather than one 11 hour flight. This was they can stretch their legs after 7 hours rather than after 11 hours.

I prefer to have one long flight because I can pretty much sleep solid from takeoff to landing assuming a Y window seat.

you just won the job of being my spokesman :D

In any case, I do fly LY, on routes to europe you sometimes have to deal with FAs (actually mostly the senior ones) who think more on selling duty free and such rather than offer a minimal service. I tend to get thirsty quickly (I drink more than 3 litters of tea and water a day on the ground), and when I fly I tend to drink 200 ml every hour or so (the air is dry). When I fly with LX/LH, all I have to do, is to go to the galley, and ask for another cup of water. I will get it with a smile (even in the middle of the FAs meal, not that I try to do so on purpose). In LY I sometimes get looks that could freeze hell (or solve global warming).

I found out that the probability of this happening depends on the length of the flight (longer flights = nicer crew, or less chance to meet the annoying FAs), and the time of flight (evening flights back from Europe tend to be less nice than other times).

...but there is no global warming - it's a myth!

I hope the job pays in Points & Miles! ^ (SPG and *A preferred:D)