AIR SEYCHELLES Passenger Reviews and Passenger Trip Reports

AIR SEYCHELLES customer review :  21 December 2009 : by Stéphane Gallon   (France)

CDG-SEZ-CDG. Overall average airline that left me with mixed feelings. Outward flight delayed by 2 hours due to technical failure with chaotic (or no) information given (AF staff and Aeroport de Paris are responsible). Inward flight was on time. Smily and efficient crew on outward flight versus grumpy and unfriendly crew on inward flight. On both flights, business class seats show their age and very old concept (no lie flat, no electrical control). IFE is a joke (not on demand, personal screens show only two channels) but crew can provide on request some DVD like personal readers with a (limited) choice. 5 movies that are on demand. Aircraft are old, but food (choice of international and creole) and wines (1 champagne, 2 red and 2 white wines) were good with a nice service of cheese and desserts. Unfortunately absolutely no service between meals on inward day flight. Beverages had to be negotiated with crew in the galley. Lounges good (but AF at CDG). To sum up, decent aircraft with modern cabins are needed, and some cabin crew need to improve their attitude.

AIR SEYCHELLES customer review :  3 September 2009 : by Pascal Limoges  (France)

CDG-SEZ-CDG. Aircraft pretty clean and comfortable. IFE is very limited - 3 movies were screened all of them with a French soundtrack. Meals excellent, and we were served champagne for the aperitif. Crews nice and helpful.

AIR SEYCHELLES customer review :  18 July 2009 : by A Stewart  (UK)

London-Mauritius-London. Saved a lot of money choosing Air Seychelles but in retrospect I wish I'd paid more. We knew about the connection in the Seychelles but only discovered at the airport that we also had stops in Frankfurt (outbound) and Zurich (return). The aircraft were very tired looking 767s, with broken entertainment systems on all legs, and we had a breakdown in Frankfurt leaving us stranded for 2 hours in the middle of the night. Food mediocre, drink selection pretty good but only made 1 pass through the cabin. Worst experience was being stuck in the middle of about a dozen off duty staff who were shouting and shrieking at each other across the cabin non stop for 10 hours (joined at times by the crew who were on duty, so not much use complaining). Never again.

AIR SEYCHELLES customer review :  20 May 2009 : by M Micci  (South Africa)

JNB-SEZ Midnight departure. A drink after take off and nothing till breakfast. No crew coming round with water/juice. Cabin temp close to freezing - had sweater on and 2 blankets and still felt cold. Breakfast served in a plastic box. Roll, juice, omelette with sausage, lukewarm coffee with powdered creamer. No milk available. SEZ-JNB 09h00 dep. Breakfast served shortly after take off. No further service. Crew took turns at sleeping at back of plane. Flight duration only 5 hours, so dont see need to sleep midmorning. Only direct service from SA to Seychelles so monopoly on the route, leaving no choice.

AIR SEYCHELLES customer review :  18 May 2009 : by G Luyten  (Belgium)

Economy Seychelles - CDG. Definitely last flight with Air Seychelles. Had major delay of 17hrs. Luckily we got to stay in our resort where everything was paid by the airline, so no complaints about that. Flight itself was terrible: way too cold airconditioning blowing right on top of my head. Food: midnight snack was half a baguette in plastic bag (!) below all standards. Breakfast was ok. Entertainment is just not there. Video can only be viewed on big screens in the front of the aisles. This was a Air France flight operated by Air Seychelles, but absolutely not Air France worthy!

AIR SEYCHELLES customer review : 30 April 2009 : by J Dreyer

Customer Rating : 1/5

Flew business class and it is getting worse and worse. Planes are ancient, seats are narrow and don't fully recline, buttons for recline just about work. My TV was broken and you had to watch their choice of video at fixed times. No complimentary newspapers. Food is getting worse each flight - a year or so ago they would wheel a trolley with various curries on it and you choose from that and it was served up fresh. No menu on the way out (but oddly there is one on the way back). The food was just a step up on economy, but not worth paying such a large premium for. As someone else said - cheese or dessert, not offered. I asked (and got) both! Our cabin was full of travel reps that had been upgraded to business on one leg, and in the summer, when you have to transfer at Frankfurt from Heathrow, the leg to the Seychelles was full of Air Seychelles staff. I think we were the only fare paying customers in business. Next time, I will be trying Qatar Airways or Emirates from Heathrow - Air Seychelles really can't expect customers to pay so much for so little. On the plus side - their business lounge is very good in the seychelles.

AIR SEYCHELLES customer review : 7 April 2009 : by N Firman

Customer Rating : 1/5

What a shambles. Two flights with Air Seychelles, in two weeks, and twice delayed. The first flight (from Mahe) was delayed for 24 hours from Friday to Saturday, "due to a technical problem". Lucky I didn't have to be put up in a hotel for the night as all the passengers that were, complained of been put into a Hospital looking hotel and been bitten by insects all night. The second flight (from Johannesburg) was delayed by about 14 hours. Same story when I got to the airport. Flight delayed, "due to a technical problem". The plane was still stuck in Moscow. Next day I get to the airport and had to wait once again past the announced departure time. Sad part is, while we were sitting at the boarding gate we had to watch the flight crew go into the airport and to a bit of duty free shopping, and then have to enter a plane that was not even cleaned from the previous flight. The food was a disaster. Hot food was served cold. At least this was one of the few airlines that did come around to offer extra bread rolls with your meal. The passenger next to me could not watch the movie as his head set was not working. What was good about the experience? We landed safely both times.

AIR SEYCHELLES customer review : 16 March 2009 : by Hugues Taylor

Customer Rating : 2/5

Paris-Mahé-Paris in Business Class. The new Pearl Class is far below basic industry standards. Crew are nice, but all aspects of the product need huge improvements. No paper menu, very limited selection of drink, very average food, no choice for starters or main course, cheese OR dessert, no herbaL tea. No newpapers from Mahé. Very old aircraft and 80's style seats. How an airline may charge this price for probably the worst business class available in Indian Ocean. If you check the product description on the web site, you may laugh compare to realty on board.

AIR SEYCHELLES customer review : 21 November 2008 : by W Jennings

Customer Rating : 2/5

We had the unfortunate experience of flying Air Seychelles from Singapore return in November this year. Poor service from both cabin and ground staff. From Singapore to Mahe we were in seats that would not recline - cabin crew just said no they don't work. The aircraft was 20 years old and looked it. The audio and video system did not work. On the return leg they had a 50% load but did not have enough blankets for those passengers who wanted one. They had fixed the video - but no sound. Last but not least they do not refund. We had to cancel a trip back in March where we gave 2 months notice. They kept the money and I had to pay again.

AIR SEYCHELLES customer review : 31 October 2008 : by Brent Stevens

Customer Rating : 3/5

Mahe/LHR. Legroom was OK in economy but not the most comfortable of seats. Service adequate, food acceptable but a very long gap between the main "meal" and the sandwich (which was poor) which was served just before landing. Crew disappeared down the back far too often - easiest way to get a glass of water was to leave your seat and walk down to the crew at the back. Flight departed and arrived on time so no complaints here. Video service was poor with badly placed overhead small screens - no seat-back screens.

AIR SEYCHELLES customer review : 5 July 2008 : by Richard Nordström

Customer Rating : 3/5

CDG - Mahe return economy. Old plane but surprisingly ample legroom on the 767. Nice service and good food. The return flight was delayed 36 hours due to an airport vehicle smashing in to one of Air Seychelles planes. Because of this our delayed flight, for some reason, had to make a technical stop in Rome before landing in Paris 40 hours late. Air Seychelles is a small airline and as a customer you do take a small risk.

AIR SEYCHELLES customer review : 11 May 2008 : by P Thomas

Customer Rating : 2/5

CDG-SEZ-CDG J Class. In Paris the AF lounge very nice, good drinks and snacks. Onboard still very old style seat, many do not work, IFE with only 4 choices, very nice crew, but food below Business standard - not nice, limited choice, very cheap selection of wines. No newspapers, no magazines, just one kind of cheap tea, no printed menu. In SEZ a new excellent lounge. A very average airline, they just have nothing on board.

AIR SEYCHELLES customer review : 7 May 2008 : by M Ayme

Customer Rating : 5/5

HM007 in Business class. Aircraft a Boeing 767-300er. Seat is comfortable despite it is not electrical powered. Seat pitch large enough, inflight service was great - friendly and professional. Food excellent. Business class lounge in Paris is the Air France CDG terminal 2F one - drink and food selection is fine but is it is a bit too impersonal and crowded.

Air Seychelles review by John Billing

27 March 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Travellers should know that there is a new business class lounge in Mahe. This is an excellent facility and makes Pearl Class travel even more enjoyable.

Air Seychelles review by Marc Ayme

23 March 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Business class from Paris to Mahé and back. Flight on time. B767 cabin is old fashioned but seats are confortable. Food and FAs excellent.

Air Seychelles review by Michelle Tomkinson

25 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating : n/a

Last night we discovered the booking profile for Air Seychelles which is of great concern, and I feel absolutely compelled to inform travellers of this problem. Air Seychelles has a policy of overbooking all of their flights in the hope that some passengers will not turn up. I am not talking slightly overbooked - I am talking at least 15 passengers overbooked. As a result of this policy, my father and my son who booked their flight with Air Seychelles quite some months ago and were at the airport to check in 2 hours before the flight were unable to obtain a seat on the flight. Air Seychelles would only accept responsibility for their flight and refused to accept liability or responsibility for all of the missed connecting flights, the additional accommodation expenses etc. My advice if you chose to fly Air Seychelles, is to arrive at the check in counter four hours before your flight and make sure you confirm your seat at least a week before. Dont think that just because you booked and paid for your flight and you have your tickets in your hand that you are guaranteed a seat. I personally will never fly Air Seychelles again and I live in the Seychelles.

Air Seychelles review by Sheila Withe

26 January 2007

I found the flight comfortable and enjoyable, the aircraft although old is adequate for a long flight, the staff on out flight were second to none - every member of the crew in Air Seychelles were on the ball. Our holiday was special, made even more special by first class service from the moment we got on the plane.

Air Seychelles review by Sebastian Baxter

5 November 2006

LHR-SEZ-LHR; also flights to Praslin and Bird Island. Outbound flight in economy. Seats reasonably comfortable, friendly cabin crew. Very interesting film about the Seychelles shown shortly after take-off - really gets you in the mood. Food excellent. Return - managed to get upgraded to Pearl Class. Seats are very old in business, and not that comfortable. Food and drink excellent , but overall I would not say it is worth paying extra for business. Air Seychelles have 3-4 years before their new 787's are delivered - they really need to upgrade their Pearl Cabin on their current 767s in the meantime. Domestic flights - it is worth taking at least one domestic flight because the views are absolutely incredible, particularly if flying to Bird Island. Landings in the small Twin Otter aircraft are not for the faint hearted, though!

Air Seychelles review by R Ferley

22 October 2006

Flew Air Seychelles more than once on the LHR route. Generally comfortable seats, cabin crew welcoming. Food can be quite tasty but when you're asked to choose the best one's are frequently gone - drinks/alcohol are always on offer. I suggest you make frequent visits to the galley, because crew just disappears, especially on the late flights.

Air Seychelles review by Peter Castro

12 August 2006

Two recent flights on Air Seychelles (CDG to Mahe and back) were unexpectedly very pleasant. Food service excellent, apparently Air France service since this was a code-share flight. Inflight service and crew were excellent. Free French wine and abundant food, even if the flight was on economy. The Mahe airport was rather simple but more than adequate.

Air Seychelles review by Jim Steel

15 January 2006

November 05. Business class, Seychelles-Singapore. Unbelievable lounge at Mahe - five couches, table with cloth, locked refrigerator, and out-of-use kettle. On entry, passengers would burst out laughing and take memento photographs of the scene. Pressure on the gentle Creole attendant produced orange juice! Once at 37,000 feet, the aircraft had to turn back due to a fuel valve problem (reportedly previously-encountered at Mauritius and Joburg en route!). Seat could not be returned to landing position, despite a kicking by the steward, so had to change places. Aged plane. Poor airline.

Air Seychelles review by Joshua Brien

23 August 2005

LON-CDG-SEZ Return, business class. I was pleasantly surprised by the seating and service of Air Seychelles. The seats are old, but are leather and quite sumptuous. Although they provide only limited recline, I found the seats to be more comfortable than the older business class seats provided by Air France and Lufthansa. The food was catered by Air France and was very good. The inflight entertainment is adequate. The service on the return leg was particularly good owing presumably to the fact that the business class cabin was only half-full. I would also recommend flying during the day, which offers some spectacular views of the islands and parts of the middle east. The airport in Mahe is basic and be warned, the 'VIP' lounge is absurdly small and poorly maintained.

Air Seychelles review by Mike Jones

19 August 2005

Flew LHW and back Jul/Aug 2005 Economy. Decent legroom. Reasonable films. Flight was fine, though main meal was rather delayed, in which case they could have given us a drink serving to keep us happier. Staff helpful, friendly.

Air Seychelles review by Vladimir Kuzmin

17 August 2005

CDG-SEZ return in Economy class. Both flights on time . Was little surprized that inflight service , meals and IFE are Air France product - despite aircraft and crew from Air Seychelles. On departure from Paris was asked by cabin crew to change seat to row 18 (emerg exit row) due to two families with babies seated there - which is not allowed. Seats were comfortable and meals delicious. They serve Dinner after take-off in CDG and Breakfast 2 hours before arrival to Mahe. Drinks were ok. You can get even Champagne in Economy class ! IFE was okay. On the way back I asked for an upgrade at check-in but was told that flight is not full - thus no upgrade. During boarding I heard from gate staff that they need people to put up front to Business class as no seats in economy left. I asked once again and being Platinum Elite member from AF expected proper actions - but was told that they made all upgrades and I should have asked about it during check-in : but I did ! In any case it was too late. I recommend to fly HM to anyone.

Air Seychelles review by Anthony Spencer

4 July 2005

Travelled London to Mahe on 17th June. Problems started at check in where we turned up 3 hrs before the flight to find we could not have a dual window/ aisle seat as the flight was being shared with Air Mauritius and all seats were reserved The service during the flight was poor -staff were lazy and innattentive. I had pre ordered a vegetarian meal only to be offered a childs meal. After asking five times I got my vegetarian meal which was awful. On arrival at the Seychelles after a ten hour flight my case was missing. Ground staff at Mahe Airport were unhelpful and it was only due to the help of the local ground agent for the Hotel we stayed at that we discovered the case was never loaded at Heathrow and turned up in the Seychelles some 48 hours later. I got £30 compensation ! for what was a great inconvenience. The return flight was uneventful and the food and service were improved. However I would make the point that four people on the outbound flight had luggage that was not loaded. Therefore this points to a major security issue for Air Seychelles to resolve. Overall I rated the Airline as poor and I would not fly Air Seychelles again.

Air Seychelles review by Dave West

9 January 2005

Pearl Class Heathrow-Mahe. Visited British Midland lounge beforehand which was peaceful and deserted! Had to get on a bus to an outer stand at Heathrow, probably not airline's fault. Overnight flight in an old long-range Boeing 767. Cabin staff very friendly and attentive but individual seat lights did not work nor did the call buttons. Food and drink good and seat size and space absolutely superb. Return flight Pearl Class 23 Dec 2004. The 'VIP' lounge at Mahe is an elongated cupboard which can seat about 10 people and a girl who fetches a limited range of drinks from a battered old fridge - laughable really. Daylight flight, same plane, lights and call buttons still not working. Cabin staff OK, food OK but no food service or offer of tea coffee for about 5 hours. Constant stream of people going to the galley to fetch bottled water. Still worth it for the seats and space!

Air Seychelles review by Jenny Hooper

1 January 2005

Pearl Class : Dec 2004. Heathrow to Victoria with Air Seychelles overnight. Plane was comfortable, service and food good. Staff friendly. Good value all round. Returning Victoria to Heathrow the plane was old. Seats were narrow and not comfortable. Lunch was good but there was no service or offer of any refreshments between 2pm and 6pm. No facility to ring for cabin staff. We had to get up and go behind curtain to ask for drinks. Glasses were then not cleared away. No facility for individual lighting above seats. All lights were on or off. No tea or coffee was offered after 6pm "hot snack". Staff were polite but not very interested. Not very good value for money.

Air Seychelles review by Melvin Leeming

30 August 2004

I have flown Air Seychelles from London to Mahe - twice in economy and have found the service excellent. Food very good and the crew first rate - nothing was too much trouble and everything was presented to you with a warm smile. My previous experiences have been with BA and I would say there is nothing to choose between the two services - maybe I would lean toward Air Seychelles as they are a smaller airline trying to prove they can compete with the big operators.

Seychelles - by S Kane

14 February 2004

SIN-SEZ-SIN in November '03, and was on the whole quite impressed with Air Seychelles. It is a small airline, whose international fleet consists only of two 767-300s and a newer 737. Both flights were punctual, and were staffed by very pleasant and accommodating cabin crew. Food was exceptional - generous serves with local flavour (especially the fish on the flight from SEZ). Interestingly, their two 767s are quite different - one has elderly seats in Y class that, despite their footrests, were uncomfortable; the other (called the Vallee de Mai from memory) was much more spacious and pleasant. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them, although doing so is rather academic, as routes to the Seychelles aren't known for their competition!

Air Seychelles review by Peter Canonier

5 July 2003

I recently flew Air Seychelles return JNB/SEZ The flight from Johannesburg to Mahe Island was overbooked and my wife and I had to settle for economy class. The aircraft was a 737-700  and the flight was 5 hours nonstop. The aircraft is unsuitable (from a comfort viewpoint) and cramped for such a long flight and Air Seychelles have crammed in as many seats as possible-so much so- that the difference between business class and economy class is scarcely noticeable. The inflight service is adequate but not anything out of the ordinary and the inflight catering is satisfactory not exceptional. There is no inflight movie - or any PTVs The cabin TV's screen bits and snips of global TV. The most glaring flaw is the lengthy wait for meal service - nearly 2 hours into the flight. The flight crew is excellent and the cabin crew - Seychellois - are good. The seats are hampered by a distinct lack of legroom and comfort but it is the extraordinary beauty of the Seychelles which quickly makes up for any inflight unpleasantness.