XL Airways France

Customer Reviews

No Skytrax Rating
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Seat Comfort 12345
Staff Service 12345
Value for Money 12345
Customer rating from 78 reviews
5/10
No Skytrax Rating
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9/10

"surprised how good this airline was"

(Switzerland)

Trip Verified | Paris to San Francisco. I was super surprised how good this airline was after reading all the bad reviews. I flew only with hand luggage so I could do the online check-in and didn't have to go to the counter! During boarding nobody was checking the size or the weight of my luggage! The flight left on time and the staff on the plane were professional, helpful and nice! The plane was normal and I didn't have the feeling the seats were smaller. After 1 hour in the plane we got dinner. It was pasta with chicken, very average but okay we could eat it. Later we got a hot sandwich. There is no screen on the seats but there is a wifi you can log in with your phone and watch some movies. 4 are for free the rest you have to pay for. I slept the most of the time! I would definitely fly with XL Airways again!
Type Of TravellerCouple Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteParis to San Francisco
Date FlownAugust 2019
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
yes
8/10

"same as all the other airlines"

(United States)

Trip Verified | Paris to San Francisco. Read the reviews after purchasing my ticket and was quite worried. I’ve flown to Europe multiple times on multiple airlines and this flight was just the same as all the other airlines. Economy seats are the same size as United/Delta. Our flight was several hundred dollars cheaper per person than any other alternative. Yes, boarding is a bit chaotic and unorganized (but that was not that big of a deal to me). Yes, there are no screens on the seats, however, they offer free WiFi with access to their entertainment (on your own device) that includes movies, tv shows, games, and music. They do not have charging in seat so bring your own portable charger if necessary. Food was delicious and they had good options for purchase throughout the flight. Flight attendants were very friendly and provided great service. We sat in the back of the plane with 2 seats together and that was great because the aisles were a bit roomier back there.
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteParis to San Francisco
Date FlownAugust 2019
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
yes
1/10

"will not fly with them again"

(United States)

Not Verified | My family and I traveled this summer from Austin to Miami, two cities in Colombia, Madrid, France, and New York. We used multiple airlines and took carry-on bags on all of them. We are a family of four, and each of us took a carry-on suitcase. The bags qualified for carrying on in all of the airlines that we used, except for this one. Ridiculous enough, the trip that we used XL airways was an international trip from Paris to New York. At the airport, XL airways had a small compartment to measure the bags that they said the bag needed to fit in, including the wheels. It seems like they were doing this scam often enough because when we were boarding there were three guys ready to take "the bags that people couldn't take as carry-ons" in the plane. The representative told us that it was going to be $100 euros per bag and they took our passports and put us aside with many other people who were going through the same thing we were going through. They pretty much kept us until everyone boarded and told us that if we were going to take the flight, we needed to pay 65 euros per bag and he acted like he was doing us a favor. This was our flight to come home from a long trip, it was really late at night, and we had our six and nine year old exhausted kids with us, so we didn't see any other option than to pay them for the four bags. This is what they have on their website to pay for checked in bags. Also, during boarding time I have never seen an airline as disorganized as this one. There were no lines and they just called everyone at once. Inside the plane, there was no entertainment and the plane inside was very uncomfortable for a trans-atlantic trip. The only bright spot was that the crew was really nice to us, and they served one hot meal during the flight. Do not fly with this airline, they are not worth it, and if it is a family trip, even worse. Here are the measurements that most airlines advertise as carry on: 22 x 14 x 9 in And here is theirs: 21.7 in high X 13.8 in wide X 9.8 in deep. They are not really that much different. We had measured them before we left for the airport, as well as had carried them on several flights previously. I think what they do with the carry-ons is a scam, I will not recommend this airline to any of my colleagues, family or friends who travel quite often. I will not fly with them again!
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteParis to New York
Date FlownAugust 2019
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"Never again for me"

(United States)

Not Verified | Newark to Paris. Worst Airline experience ever. Not worth the small cost savings. We flew from Newark to Paris and back. On both legs of the trip, the boarding process was as disorganized as I've ever seen. On the outgoing trip my seat was broken, as were 3 of the bathrooms. the seats space is unacceptably small. there is no TV entertainment, you must watch a small selection of few movies we've already seen on our phone. The suggested TV shows are even more pitiful than the movies. They charge you for every little thing, like blankets, any drink other than water, they serve one meal per flight, which can only be described as disgusting. The flying times are atrocious because we left Newark at midnight and ended up leaving 2 hours late from Paris because the plane needed maintenance, so we arrived in Newark at mid-night. When i booked this trip, there were a few other airline options that were a little more expensive. Knowing what i know now, i should have picked any other airline. Never again for me. Stay away.
Type Of TravellerCouple Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteNewark to Paris
Date FlownJuly 2019
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"They lost my luggage"

(United States)

Trip Verified | New York to Paris. They lost my luggage and didnt return it for 3 days. Try being in Paris without all your meds and clothes! There isnt a worse customer service on the planet. Rude and unhelpful. The most they will reimburse is 22 Euro per day but be prepared to be put through the ringer for it. So far 14 emails and no money. I have sent them more receipts and evidence than you can imagine. I cannot recommend nor will I ever fly them again. Horrible company.
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteNew York to Paris
Date FlownJune 2019
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
2/10

"Worst experience ever"

(United States)

Not Verified | Los Angeles to Paris. We decided to try them for our 13 years old and bought a UM (Unaccompanied Minor ) ticket. Worst experience ever. They do not inform you that they need both parent to fill a release form in order for your kid to travel but they then ask you for it when checking in and refuse to check you in unless you have that form which should have been provided by them for you to fill in in the first place. They do not guarantee that your kid will not be seating next to an adult which is a requirement for UM. They do not provide the parent with a gate pass to safely see his kid get inside the plane. Supposedly against their policy. You get no update from them until your kid lands and himself provide you with updates. So, to all parents, do not use this airline for your kids.
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteLos Angeles to Paris
Date FlownJune 2019
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"never fly this airline again"

(United States)

Trip Verified | Paris to New York. The absolute worst airline I’ve ever flown! If you are looking for a stressful experience book your flight with this airline! To begin with when leaving NY for a much anticipated trip we accidentally brought an expired passport. I know horrible mistake! Since we arrived well ahead of time I thought I’d call a friend to get my current passport and bring it to the airport for me which would take less than 1 hour. The agent at the desk said we must have the passport an hour before take off. He gave me a phone number to call to see what would happen if I didn’t get the passport in time. I called and nobody answered. I told the agent then he said yes well they don’t reopen until 9am so that didn’t help much. My friend got my passport to me about 55 minutes prior to the flight departure time and they refused to let us check in. I was told the check in was closed because the check in staff needed to leave the counter to go downstairs to start boarding. If they had enough employees I would have been in that flight. It gets worse! So we missed the flight then called 9am when customer service reopened and I was told they couldn’t do anything to help me. If I wanted they would sell me new tickets for the same price for the following day. I had non refundable hotel reservations and already lost one night. Was so upset with this airline that I decided to just book a different airline for less money to get to Pairs. In the return trip my experience wasn’t much better! We got to the airport with plenty of time To spare and found XL Airways counter but no employees were there. A sign said they were closed? No further information given! We walked around to find out they were set up in a different spot. Not sure why they couldn’t have put up a sign telling us where to go. Other passengers were walking around just as confused and annoyed as us. After checking in our luggage and weighing our carry on luggage we went to the boarding area. When boarding the plane we got stopped and were told our carry on was too big. I explained that the lady at check-in weighed it for us and said it was under the allowable weight. Then the woman at boarding said no actually your daughters tote is too large. It was a fabric shopping bag with a neck pillow, some snacks and a sweater. I showed her that if you squeeze it, it scrunches up so small and it would have no problem fitting under a seat. She wasn’t allowing it at all. She said if we didn’t pay $100 for the extra bag that we couldn’t get on the plane. $100 for a shopping bag! We flew throughout Europe on several airlines with the same luggage and never encountered this issue! Not even with airlines that have a lower weight limit. This woman stopped another lady at the boarding gate. We couldn’t get on the plane unless we paid the $100! What could we do? We were now minutes before departure and needed to get home. I will never fly this airline again and will not recommend this airline.
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteParis to New York
Date FlownJune 2019
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"just not recommended"

(Netherlands)

Trip Verified | Paris to Point a Pitre. My sister and I flex with XL Airways to get to Guadeloupe and then board a cruise ship. The flight was okay, but when we arrived in Guadeloupe our suitcases where not there. A long way of bad communication followed and eventually we did not get our suitcases for the whole trip. Eventually the suitcases arrived in Brussels, while we live in the Netherlands and they refused to bring then to us. We had to get them ourself. We are still trying to get a compensation for the fact we did not have our suitcases for the whole trip (over two weeks) and then waiting months to get them after the trip. They do not respond, offer just a couple off bucks, while airlines have fixed compensations they should pay in these cases. Awful company, bad communication and just not recommended.
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteParis to Point a Pitre
Date FlownApril 2018
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"not consider processing my complaint"

(United States)

Not Verified | Hold onto your boarding pass if you want a refund. They cancel flights. The excuse given was the plane hit the gangplank and damaged a wing so a smaller plane was sent. Having 150 passengers in JFK. They knew at 5pm there was an issue yet let us stand in line from 9pm to midnight allowing passengers to board with criteria. It appeared it was who yelled the loudest. They in fact paid three days hotel which is how long it took to get the next flight. And in line many not involved in our error were also carried over from other flights. According to the hotel staff the airline knew at 5pm there was an issue. Yet we were made to stand for three hours. So now they have my confirmation. They paid my hotel, yet I have to prove I went on the rescheduled flight by giving them my boarding pass. A e-ticket from my original ticket is not enough. They know the flight had issues, they paid my hotel, they flew me on another flight. But will not consider processing my complaint without the boarding pass for the new replacement flight.
Type Of TravellerSolo Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteJFK to CDG
Date FlownSeptember 2018
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"very low cost airline"

(United States)

Not Verified | Paris to New York. This is a very low cost airline and believe me it shows. The cabin luggage weight is 5KG, my was 8 kg and the agent was so rude and insisted that it had to be checked. I offered to pay excess baggage and he said check it or leave. I finally got to my seat and there were 2 overhead bins completely empty! I am Global Entry so when I landed I was through customs and immigration within 15 min. I then had to wait 90 min to get my 18" carry on. The aircraft is all coach 400+ passengers almost no empty seats. My bag was one of the very last to come off.
AircraftA330
Type Of TravellerBusiness
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteParis to New York
Date FlownSeptember 2018
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
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