BULGARIA AIR  Passenger Reviews and Passenger Trip Reports

Customer Rating : 1/5

Vienna to Sofia . Absolutely unacceptable. Old plane - probably 20 years. Seats falling apart. No any space between seats. Plane dirty. Poor service - no newspaper. The worst sandwich ever seen. Shame for Bulgaria. By the way the plane was not even showing the Bulgaria air logo.

Customer Rating : 3/5

Sofia LHR, A320 not even showing the Bulgaria air logo. Flight attendants very good, food only a sandwich and small cake, choice of wine, beer and non alcoholic drinks. Flight on time. Seats cramped. Cheaper then low cost flight.

BULGARIA AIR customer review :   4 November 2008 : by Eric Kubisch

BULGARIA AIR customer review :   30 September 2008 : by C Francis

BULGARIA AIR customer review :   29 September 2008 : by Martin Hack

BULGARIA AIR customer review :   26 September 2008 : by Peter Bedson

BULGARIA AIR customer review :   23 September 2008 : by E Dennison

BULGARIA AIR customer review :  13 September 2008 : by Peter Shaw

BULGARIA AIR customer review :  19 August 2008 : by Werner Bartsch

Bulgaria Air - by W McStay

15 August 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

LGW-Varna. Worst flight of my life. Check in was painfully slow. Aircraft an old B737, really showing its age, some safety lights not working, quick fixes everywhere; not what you want to be flying in. Legroom was an absolute joke, budget carriers such as flybe and easyjet are made to look roomy in comparison. Air hostesses arent rude; but never smile and talk only broken english. Some of the cabin announcements were not repeated in english, leaving me to wonder what on earth was going on. Horrible ham and cheese sandwich provided as an in flight meal, and selection of drinks limited to orange or apple juice. VAR-LGW : slightly newer plane this time, legroom marginally better but nowhere near good enough. Flight was a generally better experience, same ham and cheese sandwich but a better selection of drinks and marginally more pleasant air hostesses. Check in was again slow and baggage reclaim took forever. Bulgaria Air does a great job of making you feel completely insecure and uncomfortable for over 3 hours. If the country is to shake its communist image and become the modern european country it aspires to be and is in so many places it must improve its national carrier.

Bulgaria Air - by Lawrie Hall

5 April 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

SOF-LHR . Get what you pay for. On this occasion very lucky as the BA flight would have gone to T5! Check-in smooth, plane on time. Ham and cheese sandwich (Bulgarian speciality - try going to a Bulgarian railway station) followed by cake - a bit mean on a three and a quarter hour flight, especially as SOF airport restaurant closed. Glass of wine and then a beer, then coffee dished out. FAs efficient if not exactly friendly. Seat pitch not wonderful, but then my short fat torso does not ask much. So, on time, reasonable comfort, bags on carousel within 20 minutes of arrival. Cost about the same as a 'no-frills' but service better. But how lovely to have a pre-allocated seat, and get on and off the plane through a proper air-bridge.

Bulgaria Air - by B Milner

10 January 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

LGW-Varna return. Outbound check-in at LGW a breeze, and very helpful staff sorted out adjacent seating for group of 10 going to a wedding even though only the first 2 passengers had arrived. Leg room great, though inflight food and drink horrendous. Return flight technical delay of a couple of hours, but the aircraft had at least 3 inches less legroom than outbound. Hot, cramped, horrid flight. If I knew I was on the aircraft with decent legroom I'd be willing to put up with the poor catering for the comfort, but the return aircraft made a 3 hour flight intolerable. The flight costing £75 compared to BAs £180 made it worth it though.

Bulgaria Air - by T Roux

7 December 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

LGW-SOF-LGW business class. Would have been comical if not quite so painful. At checkin were allocated economy class seats. Eventually received 1D and 1F. On the plane 1D and 1F were occupied by a drinks cooler and newspapers so we were told to sit where we wanted. I took 2A (as 1A missing I had plenty of legroom). Colleague took 1B and got walked on by all of the other passengers coming on board as the bulk head was removed. Food was terrible. On return we were given 1A and 1C. A disaster as this plane had a bulkhead and seat pitch of maybe 24 inches. I am 6'6" and could not sit down. My colleague moved to a different row of seats and I sat across 1A to 1C for the whole trip. I travel regularly to Sofia with work and prefer LGW for the connections. I will not use Bulgaria Air again, the planes are just too bad.

Bulgaria Air - by B Jarouj

17 October 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

FRA-SOF-FRA. Flight delayed by two hours with no explanation. Just before take-off, it was announced we were to land in Plovdiv which is 150km from Sofia (since Sofia airport closed its new runway for night time tests and we would not arrive in time due to the delay) and not as scheduled in Sofia. No prior notice of this was given and people could not plan for such a major change. From Plovdiv which is short of just a landing strip, we were driven by bus for another two hours to Sofia arriving 4 hours later than scheduled. I can't believe how they managed to turn a 2hour flight in to 6 hours. Return was bearable although my table try was broken. Crew is unprofessional and there is a lack of communication between airline and passengers. The low price of the ticket is not worth what you have to go through, avoid them at all cost.

Bulgaria Air - by D Bright

21 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

LGW-VARNA-LGW. Outbound flight on time and check in swift. 737-500 was extremely dated and legroom ridiculous. I am barely 6ft and was sitting with my knees in my chest for the whole flight. Cabin crew miserable and inattentive, no inflight entertainment and the meal was limited - a stale ham and cheese roll or nothing. The return flight was no better. Same run-down plane, same food and my seat and at least 2 others didn't lock in the upright position. This was an inconvenience for the person behind me and I didn't feel particularly safe. Had no confidence in Bulgaria Air and will never use them again.

Bulgaria Air - by F van Hoorn

21 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Amsterdam Sofia return. Very simple basic airline, planes are old, leg space was good enough. Food was a simple sandwich, muffin, and 2 drinks. Cabin crew did what they had to do, but no extras, nice in flight magazine.

Bulgaria Air - by Sean Gibbons

7 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Dubai to Sofia with Bulgaria/Hemus Air. Aircraft is old, very old - approximately 30 years old! The seating is terrible - maybe ok for a very short charter flight but unbearable for a 5 plus hours scheduled flight. Inflight catering stale bread and cheese roll, one small cup of water and one small cup of coffee or tea all of which is served within 30 minutes of taking off. No offer of refills, no alcohol, no more food of any description! Once their job is complete cabin crew disappear to the relative comfort of their Business Class seating and thats the last any passenger sees of them until landing. Business Class section occupied by ground and change over crew and entry to the toilet at the front of the aircraft is prohibited for passengers! Ground and change over crew spend the entire flight consuming their duty free alcohol. There is no inflight entertainment of any sort. The flight stops for refueling in Beirut during which time passengers are not allowed to leave the aircraft. All in all, an unpleasant experience and I would urge anyone contemplating flying such a trip to contemplate again!

Bulgaria Air - by James Little

13 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

LGW-SOF-LGW Economy. First, the good points: speedy check-in and prompt boarding both ends, both flights more or less on time, charming enough flight attendants and OK inflight snack and drinks service, and a much cheaper ticket price than the only competitor (British Airways) on this route, as well as cheaper than other European airlines offering connecting service. Bad points: the 737 each way seemed very old and tired, and the seat pitch is the worst I've ever encountered. Might be 30 or even 29 inch. Tip: ask for a seat in rows 12 or 13, particularly 13A or 13F for max. legroom as they are the emergency exit rows and for anyone over 4 ft 11, this will make a difference. I noticed that business class seat pitch was no better. Still, at the price, many would find this acceptable.

Bulgaria Air - by Y Wilkinson

1 May 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

LGW - Sofia in economy. LGW to Sofia - unforgettable experience! The most uncomfortable seats ever! Absolutely no leg room, one gets bruised just getting into the seat and then 3hrs + with knees firmly pressed against the seat in front. Business class seats (behind a drab curtain) appeared equally cramped. Worse than the worst charter flight in terms of comfort. Food and service ok but did not really compensate for lack of leg room. Never again.

Bulgaria Air - by R Mazzano

20 April 2007   Customer Trip Rating : n/a

Having been delayed on inbound flight from JFK and missing my connection to SOF with BA, I ended up travelling with Bulgaria Air from London to Sofia. Flight was not that good - the plane was an old 737 and the pitch between the seats was almost illegal if there is a legal minimum. I am 1.88cm tall and for 3 hours my knees were on top of my head. The crew were apologetic and do not blame them, but it was a joke. As not that much competition on this route out of London, I can understand the high prices but surely should be given something for it - if not a proper meal (cold croissant!) at least some space for your legs.

Bulgaria Air - by Peter Sykes
20 December 2006

Sofia-Manchester. The flight was delayed for eight hours due to "bad weather conditions" at Sofia (a light mist in fact). It was noticeable that nearly all flights were unaffected except for Bulgaria Air, whose entire timetable was running between 5 and 9 hours late. Local staff cou;ld give no credible explanation for this. Despite the fact that we received information from the UK (from consulting Manchester Airport's website) that the flight had been put back until 21.30, local staff still insisted it would depart at 19.40 . The revised time only appeared 40 minutes after they were informed. Passengers were only allowed to check in at the last moment, by which time all duty-free shops and catering places were closed. It did not help that Bulgaria Air staff were less than honest in the information they gave out, indicative of a general contempt for passengers. This is an attitude that we hoped had disappeared with communism. This airline has a long way to go before it can stand shoulder to shoulder with other companies.

Bulgaria Air - by Fiona Baxter
7 December 2006

London-Sofia. Quick check-in at Gatwick (once I had located the desk)! Long queue at security so I was straight onto the bus and to the aircraft. I was given a whole row of 3 seats to myself, not too roomy but as I'm not tall was OK for me. Food is not worth bothering about, stale cheese/ham roll (or cheese only for veggies like me) but the crew were very generous with the wine served free. Excellent value duty-free cigs (12Euro for cartoon UK cigs). Return 2 days later, same cheese roll, although not stale this time. For a short stay business trip Bulgaria Air are fine - expect no frills and both flights were on time. Couldn't fault them for the money paid and will use them again.

Bulgaria Air - by John Saville
27 October 2006

SOF-LGW-SOF Several times a year. The problem with Bulgaria Air is that Customer Service is an alien concept. This summer several flights were cancelled or delayed due to aircraft shortages without warning or explanation. Direct flights SOF-LGW were sent via Burgas (an additional 2 hour leg), with no explanation. On 3 September nearly half of all the passengers' baggage was not put on the flight SOF-LGW, for reasons that were never made clear. The queue at LGW Lost Luggage was long with Bulgaria Air passengers. It took two days to be delivered to LGW. Carrying passengers' baggage on the same flight seemed an optional extra. The ground staff at SOF are surly, and often claim that flights are fuller than they turn out to be, forcing you to accept a seat near the toilets, but when the flight takes off it often has several Economy rows near the front vacant - for what is not clarified (their friends?). However, Bulgaria Air Cabin Crew are pleasant and professional, generally trying hard to meet international standards, although when the aircraft is diverted from SOF to Plovdiv (100 miles away) due to any problem at SOF, they tend to keep it secret for as long as possible (just before they open the doors and you see you are in the wrong place). And lastly, in the winter at SOF, avoid getting on the bus out to the aircraft until the last minute - the drivers keep the doors open even at -20C, and the engine running, so you get gassed and frozen. As I say, Bulgaria Air expects its customers to put up routinely with things that most airlines would not consider doing. But it is still the only way to travel direct from SOF to LGW, because other airlines use Heathrow.

Bulgaria Air - by Gill Dransfield
18 July 2006

Why do Bulgaria Air still use the old Tupelov 154 to carry passengers to and from England on behalf of Balkan Holidays. No signage overhead no lights for escapes. Looks like the plane is held together with the carpet. I couldn't get on the plane this May after travelling home by it last year. Surely it doesn't meet any criteria for entry into UK but as Bulgaria not in EU yet that may be why it can. Won't use them again.

Bulgaria Air - by Vladimir Shapovalov
18 July 2006

SVO-SOF. That was my first flight with Bulgaria Air and I think the last one. The take off was first delayed to 9:50PM Moscow time, than to 10:30PM, further to 11:30PM and finally to 0:30AM. No explanation offered, nor any representatives of the airline present or available. The transit desk in the departure hall offered a meal coupon, but I had some trouble locating any descent place to use it in Sheremetievo 2 departures hall. All news about the delays were supplied by fellow passengers who were calling friends in Sofia airport for updates. Obviously, the incoming flight from Sofia was very late as it arrived at 11PM Moscow time (instead of 7PM). We were boarded and the flight attended acted as if nothing happened - no apologies except a lame excuse for the delay caused by "the delayed arrival of the incoming flight" (as if we didn't see it ourselves that it was late to arrive - the real reason behind the delay was concealed). The service was more or less decent, food - barely adequate (few slices of cucumbers with a dressing, a slice of yellow and feta chese and 2 small slices of something like ham + cake). The airplane was okay - 10 minutes before landing we were given the usual message to buckle our seatbelts, prepare for landing in Plovdiv airport, temperature in Plovdiv, etc all with usual tone of voice as if we were flying to Plovdiv, not Sofia. After some discontent among the passengers one flight attendant explained that we would be given further instructions after the plane stops. A promise not kept. We walked from the plane to the airport building (a pathetic one if at all possible to call an airport) almost at the same time as the passengers of another plane (again a diverted plane, but from London). Four huge lines formed at passport control and they moved pretty slow. No representatives of Bulgaria Air to be found anywhere. After claiming the luggage the passengers went to a bus outside the airport building and at 4AM the bus set off. We finally arrived in Sofia at about 6AM. As far as I understood from fellow passengers the reason we landed in Plovdiv is scheduled repair works carried out in Sofia airport during night time. Obviously, Bulgaria Air and their staff knew about this but preferred to spare us this information until landing (I guess if they could they would prefer not to tell us at all where we are landing). Unacceptable treatment, horrible organization, and nothing close to punctuality. I would not recommend flying with Bulgaria Air (if you are flying to Moscow, Aeroflot is probably a better choice).