EL AL ISRAEL AIRLINES   Passenger Reviews and Customer Trip Reports

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EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  28 January 2010 by Jan Kaye   (Australia)

Johannesburg to Tel Aviv on Boeing 767. Old aircraft, narrow seats, small food portions and tasteless. No beer or wine served. A budget airline with expensive airfares - never again.

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  26 January 2010 by C Amouyal   (USA)

I have been flying El Al since 1968 but the last trip was the worst. The seats are smaller than most airlines and my seat was next to the galley, the noise and smells were horrible. Instead of the advertised dinner meal- they have switched it to just a sandwich - either egg or chicken smothered in peppers. Flight attendents were actually very rude and sarcastic and informed me Israelis eat their meal at lunch - assuming no one else flies this airline - and they said breakfast was better - horrible also. After 40 years of flying El Al I was so surprised - they always had great food and extra if you requested it. I did send a complaint letter and they called me and said they are trying this now because they do cater to Israelis and they like egg sandwiches for dinner. They said maybe they will "Sell" food - well after paying about $1300 they will give you a sandwich and hope you buy the better food?

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  24 January 2010 by L Ramirez   (USA)

TLV-LAX-TLV. Extremely poor service for unaccompanied minors. Despite having paid the 75 USD unaccompanied minor fee (150 USD roundtrip) at the point of origin, the agent at the check-in counter at LAX forced my children to pay it again on the return trip. This, despite the fact that the airline record which I later obtained, clearly showed the fee was paid round trip. The refund procedure has been another nightmare. Upon arrival at TLV, the employee who was supposed to escort my children to the arrivals area released them without asking to see my ID, and without requiring a signature. Very sloppy indeed.

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  23 January 2010 by K Bird   (USA)

Los Angeles to Tel Aviv direct flight business class on a 777. The seats do not recline to 180 degrees, friendly staff and personal tvs. I agree the security is invasive during the check in process but in today's world I welcome it!

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  21 January 2010 by J Chan   (New Zealand)

Bangkok to Tel Aviv. After the friendly attentive Thai service from Melbourne to Bangkok, El Al was a stark contrast. The security at Bangkok was excessive. I appreciate the need for tight security but only non-Jewish/Israelis were cross-examined. The guy doing the questioning was rude. I was made to wait for about half an hour then taken to a downstairs room - with no explanation of what was happening. My bags and shoes were taken into a separate room for inspection. I felt the entire time that I was a criminal. Onboard the flight was totally packed and the FA's did the bare minimum. I didn't get my vegetarian meal - but luckily the breakfast meal was vegetarian (kosher) and quite tasty. I will avoid flying EL AL at all costs in the future.

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  14 January 2010 by A Parker   (Germany)

The check-in security procedure is far too invasive, including asking to see photographs on my camera, itinerary on my laptop, receipts, etc. I understand the need for security, but looking at personal photographs and items on my laptop is beyond ridiculous. The onboard service is mediocre, food below mediocre, and the quality of aircraft is below average - on two 6+ hour international flights, we were subject to viewing in-flight entertainment on projection screens at the front of each section of the aircraft. My luggage was left in Tel Aviv, even though there was a 5 hour layover.

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  13 January 2010 by V Berman   (Australia)

AMS-TLV-AMS. The security procedures were not too tedious or invasive, security people were friendly. We flew Melbourne to Amsterdam by a separate booking, and one of my suitcases was lost before the El Al flight. Schiphol staff filed the complaint and told us to follow it up in Tel Aviv. The plane was an old 737, the food was not so good, neither was the quality of the service. In Tel Aviv the lost and found department not only helped handle the luggage problem, but gave me and my wife free toiletry kits with T-shirts, underwear and all the basics, not just a cheap disposable type. The luggage arrived to the place where we stayed safe and not tampered with. The flight back was still with 737, but better service and food. El Al FAs might appear rude, not paying enough attention but you do need to know how to talk to them. Overall, I'd rather fly a European or Asian airline, but El Al is acceptable when required to go direct to Israel.

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  7 January 2010 by David Rose   (UK)

LHR-TLV return. The flights were busy but check in and security both ways quick and efficient. The staff questions were y, polite and professional, as were flight staff. The planes - ageing 767s - had no proper entertainment system, but a better leg room pitch than usual in economy these days. Food quite poor. Overall: a much better experience than I had feared.

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  8 November 2009 : by Alan McQuillan   (UK)

LHR to Tel Aviv return. Outbound on B777-200ER. Seats excellent, PTV but I didn't bother with it. Economy over 80% full but staff attentive. After take off, served drinks and nibbles followed by meal. Tel Aviv to LHR was a venerable 747 - dated but everything worked. Aircraft was full and cabin crew working flat out. The bargain was the seat upgrade - economy seats are fine but if there are seats free on board you can buy what's really a premium seat with about 48" legroom at bulkhead or exit rows - just $39.

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  5 October 2009 : by Linda Notelovitz   (South Africa)

International seats as small as domestic SAA. No drinks served, understaffed, food disgusting. Flying EL AL has been the worst experience of my life. Now I know what it means when they say you get what you pay for. I will gladly pay an extra few thousand rand next time to go another airline - but will never again fly EL AL. They are so concerned about their security issues they forget all about their customers. They make you feel like a criminal and treat you like a dog during flight.

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  8 September 2009 : by L Schuman   (US)

EWR-TLV-EWR. First trip on new 777, almost full but we had the center seat empty. Food was good and hot. Comfy seats and minimal noise. Return delayed by an hour due to a broken lavatory door. No empty center seat this time and a "would not shut up" passenger next to me made this flight a lot less comfortable. Dinner good although served at 2-30 am! Used frequent flyer miles and the cost for two tickets was $155.00 US round trip.

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  27 August 2009 : by G Wilson   (UK)

LHR to Tel Aviv Economy. Not a particularly memorable flight; long interrogation if you are non-Israeli, pretty old 747 quite dirty. Safety announcements etc. hit and miss, food rubbish. I would rate this as a third world airline to be avoided at all costs.

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  27 August 2009 : by A Smith   (Australia)

TLV-BOM, first experience with ELAL. We were told to get to the airport 4-6 hours before departure. The nightmare started when I was checking in. Asked why I am on a one-way ticket on all legs (I flew Air Canada into TLV and was flying to BOM, connecting on Qantas to SYD), and despite being an Australian citizen I was questioned over and over again by a plain-clothed person. When I asked for ID, he flatly refused to show any and I was led to an interrogation room. Apparently they cannot understand the fact that I am an Australian travelling back home to SYD, what is the need for me to have a return ticket?! I am not returning to Israel or Canada, finally after 2 hours I was allowed to check in. I was told my bags would be searched without my presence. After arriving back home, when I went through my bags, found that items that had been gift-wrapped were torn and searched, important documents were thrown about randomly and my bag was just a mess. I understand the security situation etc. but this is just ridiculous. Terrible first (and last) experience. The cabin crew also need to learn some manners - they are extremely rude. This has to be a no-star airline, it is a wonder how it is still classified as a 3-star one.

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  21 August 2009 : by Philip Schmidt   (Denmark)

TLV-VIE Boeing 737-800. The cabin was clean and seats comfortable. The food was tasty, although I find it odd they served the drinks 3/4 hour before the food was served. FA's were friendly.

EL AL Israel Airlines customer review :  31 July 2009 : by Steve Felder   (South Africa)

LHR-TLV First Class. Seats reasonably good, equivalent to Business Class on South African Airways. Food OK, but cabin crew lost interest in service halfway through the flight, and were conspicuous in their absence. Usually fly Business Class, and will not pay the extra for First Class again.