Astraeus Passenger Reviews and Astraeus Customer Trip Reports     No Ranking Awarded       Add your Astraeus Review here   Airline Reviews : A-Z Index   Airport Reviews : A-Z Index   Customer Review scoring : Astraeus   5.6 out of 10 114 reviews

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Airline Reviews

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	Astraeus Customer review :  30 March 2012 by C Gordon    (UK)
	Rating : 1/10 Cabin Flown Economy Value for Money Seat Comfort Staff Service Catering Entertainment Recommended	Booked a holiday to Ibiza, only bad thing about the entire holiday was the flights. Seats were cramped, not enough leg room, no temperature control so was freezing on both flights. Although the seating was fairly clean the seats were shabby and outdated.

	Astraeus Customer review :  18 November 2011 by A Hutchinson    (UK)
	Rating : 3/10 Cabin Flown Economy Value for Money Seat Comfort Staff Service Catering Entertainment Recommended	Newcastle to Fuerteventura return. Overall very poor and would support a lot of other reviews about how cheap and dirty the airline is. Flight was crewed by Thomas Cook staff who were okay but kept asking each other what Astraeus policy was on a lot of things. Flight was on time but like most of the other reviews I have to say dirty plane with no entertainment available. I sat on a seat which was broken going out and wouldn't stay. Would I fly Astraeus again - no.

	Astraeus Customer review :  17 October 2011 by Robert Henderson    (UK)
	Rating : 1/10 Cabin Flown Economy Value for Money Seat Comfort Staff Service Catering Entertainment Recommended	Edinburgh to Tenerife & back although we booked with Thomson. Filthy, cramped, broken seats, velcro for no-existent head covers covered in hair etc. Air conditioning non operative, staff with a "take it or leave it" attitude. Poor quality meals, no soft drinks or wine on the return journey - because the passengers on the previous flight had used them all up! I have used Thomson for 20+ years but if they are going to use sub-contractors who only have old planes then I will be looking elsewhere for flights. I urge all prospective passengers to read the quality of the reviews on this excellent site, I'm confident they also will try to find another airline.

ASTRAEUS customer review :  14 October 2011 by P Robertson   (UK)

Absolutely awful flight to Gran Canaria. very cramped, uncomfortable, old aircraft. No entertainment on 5 hour flight. Cabin crew rude. Flights late in both directions. Would never fly with them again.

ASTRAEUS customer review :  16 September 2011 by E Monkhouse   (UK)

Larnaca to Gatwick. We booked through Thomas Cook and were originally meant to fly home at 7pm on Wednesday. We were told that due to a technical problem we were delayed and had to be booked into a hotel overnight. We were told our flight was due to leave at 4.40pm Thursday afternoon. At 5.00 we boarded, first thing we noticed was how old the plane was, it was dirty had not been cleaned properly, the seat next to me was broken at the base, the tray that I pulled down fell off in my hands, there were tea stains and wrappers and rubbish from the previous flight. There were only 3 flight attendants available. After sitting on the ground for an hour we were told that the plane had been overloaded and there was not enough fuel to take us directly to Gatwick, we had to stop off in Venice to re-fuel which would take an hour making our trip 6 hours instead of just over 4. When after another hour we had not moved people started to complain and became upset, the flight attendants could not give any information and all doors had been shut already and the plane was stifling hot. No water was offered, we saw our bags being taken off without being told. After another 30 mins they opened the door but we were told we could not get off the plane, I at this point walked off of the flight into the tunnel with the rest of the passengers and waited for the doors to the airport to open. Once back in the terminal the captain came to speak with us, he informed us our bags had been unloaded and we could now go straight to Gatwick and our bags would follow on another flight. I did not re-board this flight choosing to find an alternative flight home.

ASTRAEUS customer review :  12 September 2011 by G Small   (UK)

Newcastle to Menorca on an awful aircraft. The aircraft was on contract to Thomas Cook, even the cabin staff were embarrassed by it, telling us that they are always getting complaints from passengers. Cabin was not clean, carpets/seats dirty and frayed. Fold down trays broken, some seats didn't even have trays. Minimal room from seat in front, so much so that I couldn't get my tray down. Moved to seats with slightly more room and tray broke off whilst I was having my meal and I ended up with food and red wine all over my trousers. Head covers were not on the seats so velcro strips were covered in hair.

ASTRAEUS customer review :  6 September 2011 by M Merifield   (UK)

Newcastle to Mahon on 757. Seats cramped (seat pitch supposed to be 30in - very much doubt it). Bar on pocket of seat in front broken and sticking out 25mm, making for an uncomfortable flight out, and to add more misery, we had the same plane on the return flight and same seat - 3E/F.

ASTRAEUS customer review :  28 July 2011 by R Todd   (UK)

Edinburgh to Tenerife return. Combination of very cramped seating arrangement, broken seating and poor air conditioning. The seating was so cramped not enough room to take down the tray table. Asked staff politely to be moved but was more or less ignored. This was a Boeing 757 Aircraft that looked tatty inside and out.

ASTRAEUS customer review :  19 July 2011 by L Smith   (UK)

Return flights to Tenerife on behalf of Thompson. Padding was coming away from seats which were not comfortable although I've yet to be on a plane that has comfy seats. On the return journey the woman in front of my husband had issued with a broken seat and almost ended up in my husbands lap. Thankfully for both of them no one was sitting in the third seat so she could move along one. Food was basic. Staff were ok. No offer of coffee with my meal on the way to Tenerife.

ASTRAEUS review : 30 August 2009 : by Christopher Roberts

Customer Rating : 4/5

Very nice airline. Flown with them twice (both times to Tenerife), and haven't been disappointed. Meals are good quality, the staff are friendly. Seats average, there are premium cabins available on some flights. The meals were free on our flights, but they now charge for meals, you can only buy them onboard the aircraft, but are reasonably priced.

ASTRAEUS review : 10 March 2009 : by Peter Rapley

Customer Rating : 3/5

Gatwick to Atlanya in Turkey. Flights on time both ways. Seats were a little uncomfortable and rather cramped. Food was okay.

ASTRAEUS review : 23 November 2008 : by Jackie Jefferies

Customer Rating : 4/5

Have travelled with Astraeus know on 3 occasions from LGW to Kefalonia. Found the staff to be friendly & helpful - one of the few airlines to provide an in flight meal at no extra charge! Found leg room better than with other companies.

ASTRAEUS review : 6 October 2008 : by G Robinson

Customer Rating : 1/5

Gatwick to Venice charter flight - ghastly. Take off scheduled for 17:30 but didn't get off the ground until about 21:15. Badly organised boarding with many passengers (some very elderly) standing up to 20 minutes in the connection tube. Some seats arranged at check-in double booked with consequent confusion. Worst of all the seat pitch - uncomfortable for even medium height passengers. In common with many others I suffered from recurrent cramp and had to periodically stand up. So far as I could ascertain only four cabin crew for around 250 passengers. They did their best but say service very limited. The most uncomfortable flight in my experience and I doubt that Astraeus even deserve one star.

ASTRAEUS review : 1 August 2008 : by S Morris

Customer Rating : 3/5

Gatwick to Arrecife. All seemed to be go pretty well. The seats were quite big, but the service seemed pretty slow. the staff uniform seemed to be made of trendy denim! I can't remember the food; airline food is never great. It would seem that Astraeus have ceased scheduled operations at the moment as their website is closed. I've no idea what's going on there as the site just says it's closed "to reflect a change in company strategy" (whatever that means). As there aren't many scheduled or chartered carriers flying between LGW and ACE, the current situation would not seem to favour the passenger as choice is now limited.

ASTRAEUS review : 7 June 2008 : by Paul Jackson

Customer Rating : 1/5

LGW-Calvi return. 5 hour outbound delay, 4 hour inbound delay. Outbound delay due to 'technical problem'. Captain informed passengers that actually the plane was running late due to a rugby fan charter delay from the previous evening. Inbound delay due to 'plane unavailable'. 2 replacement planes needed. Shocking shoddy service, dirty outbound plane, poor food, will not fly again under any circumstances!

ASTRAEUS review : 30 April 2008 : by Tony Bagnall

Customer Rating : 1/5

Manchester to Taba. When we booked our holiday we tried to upgrade seats as two of our party are well over 6", but our travel agent told us we had to arrive at the airport early and book them on check in. This we did paying £60 for two extra legroom seats. After squeezing into my allocated upgraded seat, I made a comment to the flight staff, who informed me, to my suprise, that there were no extra legroom seats available on the plane and after consulting the ground crew she apologised and said my money would be refunded. The flight was also let down by the fact that on a 5 hour flight there was no onboard entertainment. On writing this comment 28th April 2008 still haven't received my £60 and can't get anybody at Astraeus customer services to answer the phone.

Astraeus review by Robert Johnson

30 April 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

We were booked to fly with Astraeus from Norwich to Funchal. In fact the flights were handled by Thomson.fly and all went well - except that the oven for the 'snack' meal on the return flight was faulty and we were offered badly reheated chicken - which we did not eat!

Astraeus review by Roger Middleton

28 March 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Astraeus Input Gatwick to Kuusamo (Finland) direct for £198 each - only airline to offer direct service and only alternative is Finnair via Helsinki for £450. No inflight entertainment but not an issue on a 3.5 hr flight. Complimentary snack adequate (barely) so you may want to take some additional snacks. Complimentary tea/coffee but alcohol extra - again not an issue. Delayed 90 mins at Gatwick because the food had been loaded on to the wrong aircraft and by the time it had been reloaded on to the right aircraft we had missed our slot. Given that it was only a ham/cheese panini I would have preferred to fly on time without the food. Budget airline and you get what you pay for, which is not a lot - but as we saved nearly £500 between the two of us compared to the alternative, I'd prefer to have basic travel and keep the £500 in my pocket any day.

Astraeus review by Clive Boyes

16 March 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Astraeus Input Cramped seating, no entertainment, low budget dirty planes on a five hour flight to Taba, Egypt. We could not believe it - spoilt what was a perfect holiday. Worst of all, no feedback from My Travel who chartered this service.

Astraeus review by Tim Pearce

10 March 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Manchester to Banjul. Seats with extra leg room requested at check in because standard pitch was only 29 inches. Check in staff promised extra leg room seats, then sat us in row 26, right at the back with seats that can't recline, even though aircraft flew with 40 seats empty, including Row 13 which has extra leg room. Stewardesses were helpful and allowed us to move there in flight.

Astraeus review by S Connelly

7 February 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Travelled to Hurghada Egypt. Have Son 6'4", told flight full SO paid for four extra seats £120 - flight half empty. Miserable staff, old plane. Coming back told flight full again - paid for 2 extra seats £72 and flight less than half full. We could have our pick where to sit. One thing WAS nice meals. But had for an extra £180. What a rip off.

Astraeus review by Peter Wakeham

7 February 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

After numerous bad experiences with Monarch we flew Astraeus scheduled 757 from Gatwick to Banjul. Legroom acceptable for me as a six footer, meals good and most important of all we were on time for both legs of the journey. Would choose them again.

Astraeus review by L Sweetman

5 February 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Barcelona to Gatwick British Airways flight operated by Astraeus. Flight was 2.75hrs late departing. Boarding passes gave us seats in row 36, there were only 35 rows on the plane. Managed to get a seat but arm rest was broken. Sarcastic and unhelpful crew. Landing had to be aborted due to workers & their vehicles being in the runway. Arrived at LGW at 00.50 hrs. 3 hours late. Never again!

Astraeus review by K Clark

8 January 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Gatwick to Chambery 22 Dec. Delayed for nearly 6 hours with no information from Astraeus staff, various excuses given by pilot once boarded, cabin staff quite good and plane was clean offered one free drink for delay. Return flight delayed by 4 hours with no information at all, told it was a problem with ATC by pilot but nearly all other airlines were leaving on time, hot snack provided on flight. Will not be flying with Astraeus again.

Astraeus review by S Walton

8 January 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

We have now flown with Astraeus four times (LGW-Kephalonia, LGW-Chambery) and will not be flying with them again. On average we have been delayed 5 hours per flight and on the last flight our destination was even changed from Chambery to Grenoble (AEU 281)! Surely such routine delays are not the product of unfortunate coincidences but of high level incompetence. Each time there was a chronic lack of information regarding why we were delayed and staff on the ground were very poorly informed. When holidays are so precious it is extremely galling to have to spend so much of them confined to airports. Think twice before booking!

Astraeus review by Alex Zak

2 January 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Manchester to Banjul return in December. Aircraft both ways a B737-700 with cramped 29" legroom and not a 757 with extra legroom as assured by the tour operator. There are often surprises when booking with the Gambia Experience so be warned as Astraeus staff told us that the 757's never do this route so they often have unhappy passengers. Other than the unsuitability of this aircraft on a 6.5 hr route in my opinion, the service, food and stewardess friendliness were above average for a charter operator. Aircraft fairly clean, just the usual dirty trays, pockets and ashtrays. No entertainment. Also there are only 2 "extra legroom" seats. These are the window seat on each side of the wing exit behind the row with 2 seats, consequently the seat in front is missing. Check in staff sell the 2 seat row seats as "extra legroom." These are in fact even worse seats as they have the same poor legroom with NO seat recline.

Astraeus review by J Hughes

27 December 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Travelled on LGW-Krakow which they operate for BA at present - so they may have been trying extra hard. Meals both ways were hot and non-veg was good. Service a bit rushed but incentive provided by turbulence to be sure they could deliver on hot stuff.

Astraeus review by Marion Christmas

16 December 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Gatwick/Banjul. Flew out on a 757 and in general a good flight with good service although legroom really limited. Due to aircraft availability problems, the return flight on 11th December was on a 737. No problems with the staff or service and we were informed as to why we were on a 737 but the 737 is simply not suitable for a flight of this length - nearly 6 hours. The seats are far too cramped for any flight over 2.5 hours. Only two toilets were available for use by the majority of people on the plane and there was no in flight entertainment. Please Astraeus consider the comfort of you passengers and only use the 737 on short haul. We were a party of 12 on charity work and we are all agreed on the above.

Astraeus review by Michael Fadjar

9 December 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

LGW - HMD (Hassi Messaoud - Algeria): on this particular route all passengers are oil / gas employees, the service is good, my only gripe is that the Boeing 757 always arrives somewhat late from LGW to HMD, and at one time it caused me to stay overnight at LGW due to missed connection. I should add however that Astraeus is subcontracted / "wet leased" by Jet Air (i.e. Jet Air agents handle everything that takes place outside the aircraft / ground handling) and so far the handling of Jet Air has been very professional. With this type of passengers (no family / kids obviously) the service from the onboard Astreus crew has been quite good actually, and the plane has been clean.

Astraeus review by C Donnelly

19 November 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Gatwick-Marsa Alam. All in all not a bad experience, although as someone else has said first eight rows have great legroom, row seven outbound, inbound row 25 not pleasant, very squashed. Crew on both sectors friendly, weren't constantly trying to push sales, meal fine, although don't understand why airlines are now serving meals in a box. B757 was very tatty and showing its age. Would use again, just remember to try and get a seat at the front of the aircraft.

Astraeus review by S Bartlett

14 November 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Bristol - Banjul. The 6-hour journey was a disaster on an old 737. Plane too heavy, all Bristol passengers bags were offloaded - approx 50. No in-flight entertainment. Crew surly and unhelpful. For a week's holiday luggage arrived on 4th day pm. Banjul - Bristol same old 737. Sat in Row 11. Could not recline seat. We boarded the plane which was an hour late in arriving to find that there was a problem with fuel. Not enough this time. Sat on tarmac for 2.75 hours before taking off. Again crew members surly. We were on plane for 9 hours. Offered 1 free drink - wow!! Will never fly with Astraeus again.

Astraeus review by A Rains

3 November 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

To and from Paphos Boeing 757. Overall a good experience tidy and clean cabin, leg space reasonable, meals fine, onboard entertainment not brilliant - so take a book, cabin staff courteous and pleasant. Would fly again with them, though slightly concerned if it were to be one of the aged 737's other respondents have mentioned.

Astraeus review by Kaye Harrington

19 October 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Have always used Astraeus when visiting Taba and think for what we pay it is excellent value. The cabin staff are 100%, food good and planes old, but comfortable and clean. For those folk who cannot live without a screen try a good book or just close your eyes and think about your trip.

Astraeus review by A Goodrum

17 October 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Gatwick to Bergamo in Boeing 757. Excellent flights in a clean aircraft. Flight deck informative. Simple but appropriate meals and piping hot. No frills but more than adequate. Newspaper for each passenger on return flight was a nice touch. Cabin crew well organised. Comfortable leather seats, 3 by 3, good knee space, giving plenty of room to stretch out legs. We would certainly use Astraeus again.

Astraeus review by M Long

23 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Gatwick to Calvi (Corsica) on B757. Excellent inflight service with hot meal served. Meal on return was roast beef for a 0900 (local time) departure, which was rather strange for breakfast. However, quality was good and the meal welcome as we had missed breakfast to get to the airport on time. Flights on-time for both legs. Seated in front section of aircraft, originally Business Class with previous owner, at no extra cost, despite offer to upgrade on website at a cost. Aircraft getting old and cabin a bit tatty.

Astraeus review by G Frost

2 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Gatwick to Faro return. Service food and extras excellent. I would certainly fly again.

Astraeus review by G Parry

15 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Flight to Sardinia (Olbia). Flight out on 737-700 from Manchester. The plane was clean and tidy and appeared to have leather clad seats. Leg room minimal, no entertainment, food ok. Both flights on time and no problems - staff pleasant and efficient. It was an okay experience.

Astraeus review by Dennis Milllward

19 June 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Boeing 757 charter from Gatwick to Preveza (Greece).   We paid a little extra for the Star Class upgrade, and were seated in what looked like ex-BA Club Europe seats. Very comfortable, plenty of leg room. The cabin service started with champagne and juice and savoury snacks. A cooked breakfast and more drinks from the bar followed. Flight attendants were attentive, polite and cheerful. Inflight entertainment was music on some channels, plus Casino Royale on video. The 757's don't have video screens in seat backrests - monitors in the ceiling above the aisle. On our return, flight attendants were first class - more champagne and a hot lunch. The standard of catering was far better than we had expected and stainless steel cutlery. No IFE for the return trip. We were impressed with Astraeus and hope they can maintain their current high standards of service.

Astraeus review by M Thomas

31 May 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

LGW to Kefalonia and return. Outbound on a 737, managed to get additional leg room for £20 each which was a bonus. Staff and service very slick and attentive. Return on a 757. It was a pleasure to fly on it as they have been one of my favourite aircraft since they were introduced a long time ago. Plenty of legroom and comfortable seats. This was my first time with this airline. I have always flown scheduled in the past and was to be honest apprehensive about flying the dreaded charter. I was very pleasantly surprised. The service reminded me of BA in the good old days. The cabin crew were friendly, polite and very fast, no waiting for ages for the service. There was even the unexpected bonus of a hot meal on both trips, very passable. All in all a pleasure to fly with. May they continue to maintain their high standards, I hope they do not go the same way as so many airlines over the last few years! I would certainly fly with them again.

Astraeus review by Mike Houlden

24 May 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Excellent service for a disabled passenger (me). Good legroom and service, food, etc really very nice. Staff attentive and kind. I would recommend this airline. Same crew on the way back from the Gambia, recognised me and treated me extremely well.

Astraeus review by R Herbert

1 May 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Leeds Bradford to Chambery return. On time both ways and uneventful. My main gripe was the lack of a drinks service on either sector on the grounds that the flight (2 hours) was too short. I have travelled this route many times with other operators and never had this problem. The only drinks were tea/coffee with the meal. As we had been held on a transit bus for 20 minutes in the sun at Chambery before boarding we would have appreciated a drinks service which after all would have generated more income for the airline.

Astraeus review by J Wilson

27 April 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Gatwick to Chambery on B757. Trip got off to a great start as we looked at our boarding passes and saw we were in row 2. Rows 1-8 have extra legroom and appear to be sold as standard seats on short-haul flights. Even the main cabin on the way back wasn't as bad for legroom as some other Charters. Hot food supplied free both ways with friendly, efficient FA's. All in all, a cut above your average charter airline.

Astraeus review by Melanie Baldwin

24 April 2007   Customer Trip Rating : n/a

LGW-TFS-LGW Checked in no problems at Gatwick, when we boarded the plane pleasantly surprised that the seats we were in were Star which I believe must be the premier seats, plenty of legroom, we had not paid for or requested these. After settling down into the flight I started to look around the interior of the plane - Astraeus really do need to refurbish some of their planes, ripped seats with stains on, table tops stuck together with black tape and the leather on some seats coming away and the wood underneath clearly visible. I always think if the interior of the planes are like this what must the rest of the plane be like. Anyway this airline do provide food inclusive of the price so that is a bonus, albeit usual standard. All in all would fly with Astraeus again as pretty competitive price compared to other low cost airlines.

Astraeus review by J Wilkinson
27 February 2007

Gatwick to Sal Cape Verde. Service not bad, crew worked very hard - glad we upgraded only extra £89 p/person. My only real problem is no entertainment in the seat backs which on a 5 to 6 hour flight I think is necessary. Flight delayed around one and a half hours on both the outbound and the inbound, so glad we paid for the extra legroom.

Astraeus review by Jean Tooth
7 December 2006

Manchester - Banjul. Found the service superb, FA's friendly and they worked the whole time - better organised than some of the larger airlines we have travelled. The food was good and aircraft clean and comfortable. No inflight entertainment but they tell you this in advance and it did not worry us - take a book. We managed to book and pay for extra legroom seats going out as we are both 6' tall this was an advantage, but on the return we were told in Banjul that they had all been pre-booked - which was a surprise as they advertise these seats are only available at check-in. But for the 6 hr flight it was not uncomfortable and we have been more cramped on other airlines.

Astraeus review by Hayley Stephenson
1 November 2006

Just come back yesterday from Larnaca, Cyprus (departing Leeds Bradford on the way there). The flights both ways were fine. But some inflight entertainment would of been nice! we travelled on a boeing 737-700. on the way there it took 4 hours 20 mins and on the way back 5 hours 25 mins. Food was nice, better than many others. The plane was clean and not old looking. I would fly with them again.

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