MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES customer review : 20 May 2009 : by Pete Crowman

Customer Rating : 4/5

BUD-CDG Business. Checkin was quick. I was continuing to New York JFK on AA and then to Lima on LAN. I was able to get my boarding pass for the first connection, but not the 2nd. Not sure why not, they were all One World Airlines. Checkin nice, but I was not directed to a lounge, and my boarding pass did not list the gate, even though it was just two hours to departure. After going to the wrong lounge, I arrived at one of the right ones. Malev seems to operate two lounges across from each other. I was the only Biz passenger on the Boeing 737-800. Not a huge fan of the European style business class (economy class seats with a curtain separating from coach). Service was really good. I was invited to sit anywhere I wanted to because I was the only J passenger. Pre-departure beverage offered, hot towel service before takeoff and before landing. Hot breakfast of good quality, with a second pass on the bread tray. Several beverage runs. Very attentive, decent food, lots of smiles.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES customer review : 20 April 2009 : by B Kovacs

Customer Rating : 3/5

CDG-BUD in Economy of a B737-700. Fair service, however without a single smile. One passenger called a FA and it took almost 5 minutes that she arrived. In addition, it was on Easter's Friday, perhaps the only day of the year when it is awaited that they are at least well- supplied with meat-free food. It was not the case, half of the plane had to eat salami sandwich, as they ran out of the cheese one. At least they were on time, and was cheaper than with AF.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES customer review : 6 April 2009 : by J Hansen

Customer Rating : 2/5

CPH-BUD-CPH economy. Planes (737 and 738) fairly new with good legroom and IFE. Both flights a little delayed. Inflight service is rather poor, an ok sandwich but no alcohol - not even for purchase! No coke, only juice and water. From A to B fine but definitely nothing special.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES customer review : 30 March 2009 : by Konstantinos Roumeliotis

Customer Rating : 4/5

ATH-BUD return in Y. Flights on time, plane not full, staff fairly attentive, food (sandwich) not tried. Seat pitch average for Y class. Good deals on fares as well. MA product is very descent and the effort its people make is well appreciated. Ferihegy airport staff could be just a little bit more smiling, and less strict with weight limits (fortunately I did not have to pay extra so far). Airport departure gates and facilities (Ferihegy) are just not up to anticipated standards for a modern European airport, though. A recommended product overall.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES review : 26 March 2009 : by T Fulop

Customer Rating : 3/5

I travel a lot with Malev from Budapest to Moscow and back. In Budapest there is no problem with checking-in, but Moscow is very slow. The staff are polite and always apologise for slow checking.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES review : 14 January 2009 : by E Wilson

Customer Rating : 1/5

Malev flight delayed Jan 11th due to four passengers arriving 30 mins after scheduled take off. The crew made it very clear that we were waiting for them. When they finally got on board, the traffic controller would not let us take off for an other 20 mins. Most of us missed our connections. There were a lot of angry folks at the Amsterdam airport. Especially when it became clear that Malev was not taking any responsibility for the delay. If MALEV makes a decision of waiting for passengers way passed scheduled time, they at least should take responsibility for the consequences.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES review : 26 November 2008 : by Gergely Rung

Customer Rating : 4/5

BUD-CPH BUD economy. Online check in was great and fast, but only available from BUD. Both flights on 737-600 wich were clean and comfortable. FAs made polite service. Legroom ok. A sandwich and chocolate and free beverages served during this 1,5 hour flight. Overall a good experience.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES review : 24 November 2008 : by H Theodore

Customer Rating : 5/5

LGW to BUD in Business class. Gatwick,staff direct you to the Aviance Lounge, but as Malev is part of Oneworld, the BA lounge upstairs (with showers and superior facilities) is also accessible if you don't mind not having info displays about when the flight is boarding. The flight boarded business class passengers first and offered refreshment along with a selection of magazines and newspapers. Once in the air, food service, service courteous and professional.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES review : 7 November 2008 : by Andrew Monks

Customer Rating : 5/5

Dublin - Budapest return. Check in at both ends was quick, baggage claim also quick. Inflight service excellent - a warm breakfast served on the flight to Budapest with a stream of drinks - return evening flight we were served a sandwich which was OKy.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES review : 31 October 2008 : by A Hijmans

Customer Rating : 3/5

AMS-BUD-AMS on Boeing 737, economy. Fairly bland meal service, choice of two sandwich varieties. Inbound flight again delayed, this time by 40 minutes. Inflight service again basic foodwise but attendance very good, it is nice to see in flight attendants near pension age still delivering excellent service, in fact one of the stewards, who was probably in his late fifties, lended a certain authoritative flair to the whole experience. A whole lot better than young, inexperienced staff employed by certain low-budget airlines.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES review : 9 October 2008 : by Janne Petersson

Customer Rating : 5/5

Gothenburg-Budapest return. Outbound on Fokker 70, return on B737-700. Seat pitch OK, attentive service, sandwich and drinks (including good beer and plenty of tasty Hungarian wine) served for free. Both flights almost on time. Very pleasant and very, very good value for money. Would use Malév again.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES review : 4 October 2008 : by D Benson

Customer Rating : 4/5

LGW-BUD-LGW. Economy. Great value, comfortable seats and attentive service on new B737-700. Good, Hungarian-style hot food served on both legs and considering I could have paid more to travel by EasyJet – this was a wise choice. Would travel with again.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES review : 12 September 2008 : by L Reinstein

Customer Rating : 3/5

ARN-BUD-ATH. Business class. Check-in and lounge at ARN handled by Finnair (Oneworld Partner). I was only C class passenger which meant attentive service. Abysmal breakfast of cold, unidentifiable meat. Food on second flight was warm, but only slightly better. Aircraft new - Malev try hard, but clearly still a small airline that needs work.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES review : 15 August 2008 : by Emo Hristov

Customer Rating : 4/5

Recently flew with Malev Geneva-Budapest-Athens-Budapest-Geneva. Flights on time. Simple but tasty sandwich, wafer and drinks. Friendly staff. On top of that - always good deals.

MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES review : 3 August 2008 : by Christopher Adam

Customer Rating : 4/5

Budapest-Istanbul return. On the two hour-long Budapest to Istanbul route, flight attendants served a choice of cheese or poultry meat sandwiches, while apologetically explaining to passengers that the airline had undergone austerity measures. We received a choice of drinks and a chocolate wafer along with the light meal. Boeing 737-600 plane was relatively comfortable, flight attendants were both pleasant and professional.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by K Pellberg

22 July 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

ARN-BUD-ZAG return. ARN-BUD-ARN legs clean 737 aircraft with polite and nice crew both ways. Got a sandwich and free drink (soft drink, wine or beer) and coffee/tea. BUD-ZAG leg a very small aircraft. One flight a little delayed and the crew apologised for that at least 3 or 4 times. Would fly Malev again, at least within Europe.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by Tommy Desmet

31 March 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

BRU-BUD return. The outbound flight in economy was on time, return in business a one-hour delay due to fog. Both legs with quite new B737-700's which offer comfortable leather seats. I was astonished about the large seat pitch in business in the B737! Meals in economy were good, those in business excellent! The cabin crew provided an outstanding service in business.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by Dave Silverstone

10 March 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

AMS-BUD return on 737-800 and 737-600, respectively. Very comfortable seats for coach, with better recline and seat width than most budget carriers. Decent food and beverage service for a short-haul flight. Cabin crew nothing special, but did their jobs. Had been originally ticketed by KLM (malev as a partner airline) but found my reservation for the return flight "disappeared" when I went to check in. Fortunately, when I arrived at the ticket counter at BUD, it was almost deserted, and the clerk was able to help me immediately, and corrected the problem very quickly and politely.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by K Roland

28 February 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

BUD-BKK-BUD Business class on Malev 767-300ER. Better if you dont waste your money on Malev business class. They still use VHS system for the entertaining and its a bit old to function. So on a 10 hour flight get no entertainment at all. No place to plug your laptop. Sit back and relax - but not all buttons working on the seats, so you cannot enjoy that you paid for business class. Better fly with anybody else. Food okay, staff not too friendly.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by Antony Davies

7 December 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

LGW-BUD in Economy class on B737-600. Cabin crew on a whole pleasant and providing a drinks service on the ground during the delay, then inflight a hot breakfast. No in-flight entertainment apart from moving map plus airline/oneworld promotions shown. The aircraft was new, clean and presentable. English spoken in addition to Hungarian by flight and cabin crew. Baggage reclaim quick at BUD.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by P Cotsapas

12 November 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

LCA-GVA via BUD economy class return. Larnaca-Budapest leg (B737-800) was in the early hours of the morning, but despite the dreadful time of day the journey was quite enjoyable - FAs polite and well- presented and some quite friendly. A hot breakfast was served. Budapest-Geneva leg (B737-600) was great, because the flight was only half full, so lots of space on board. Budapest-Larnaca (B737-800) was half-empty, so again there was lots of space to sleep comfortably.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by Craig Adams

9 November 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

LGW-BUD-LGW Business Class. The small business class section was quiet on both the outward and return trip meaning we had plenty of space to stretch out. Flight Attendant service courteous and friendly. The meal was tasty accompanied by champagne. We used the British Airways Terraces Lounge at Gatwick before boarding and the Duma Lounge at Budapest, which you could also access with a Priority Pass membership. Overall a very pleasant and relaxed trip.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by James Dabbs

29 October 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Budapest to Toronto business class in seat 1a & 1b. These seats were in deplorable condition, neither seat had a footrest. A very helpful purser supplied us with make-shift footrest which relieved the situation somewhat. The audio and video systems in seat 1a were not working neither was the overhead light, which meant no Tv, radio or reading. All these problems did not make for a very pleasant flight. The airline should never have charged business class rates for these seats.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by Jens Reinke

19 October 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Budapest-Tirana in business. This was my second flight on Malev and a big disappointment. At the Malev terminal in Budapest, the security check is done in a hot, stuffy and overcrowded passage and takes forever, without a fast track option. The business lounge is a throw back to communist times in terms of product choice, decor and service attitude. The flight was operated on a CRJ aircraft. Business class seating was four abreast, the same as economy, and very crowded. They served a hot lunch, which was okay, but there was hardly the ellbow room to eat it.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by R Oaten

9 October 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

BUD-TGM return. The aircraft was clean and comfortable. There was a 2 hour delay taking off from TGM on the return flight but I connected with a BA flight to LHR without any problem. The flights were ok but the cabin crew need to take lessons in how to smile! The fare was not cheap but I would fly Malev again if no alternative could be found.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by Moustafa Khalil

27 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

CAI-BUD-JFK and back Business Class. For the very cheap price paid (almost the same as an economy ticket on other carriers), it was a very satisfying deal. Seats were comfortable on both B737 (CAI-BUD-CAI) and on B767 (BUD-JFK-BUD). Food on long haul was good and plenty. Crew offering drinks frequently. Malev moved to the bran new T9 at JFK with good shopping and eating options. I know I can get a personal screen in my seat and a flat bed seat on business class of Lufthansa, BA or Air France, which are nice options, but I would rather invest more in my holiday (accommodation, dining and entertainment) rather than paying a higher air fare.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by M Dardoufas

31 May 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

ATH-BUD-ATH Good flights both ways. Malev still do warm food in Economy. The drinks selection is abundant and they make more than one round. Service is very attentive. The legroom on the flight back to Athens was quite restricted (it was a 737-800 configured for 180 pax).

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by T Kurics

10 April 2007   Customer Trip Rating : n/a

CPH-BUD-CPH economy. Although Sterling and SkyEurope also operate this route, surprisingly the regular airline was way cheaper for this period (booked on malev.com, 1400 DKK = 190 EUR approx for a return ticket), probably because of the school and university holiday before Easter. Onward flight on a Boeing 737-700, which was full. Boarding and departure on time in Copenhagen, only the gate was announced a bit late. I can repeat the previous opinions about the flight attendants: polite, effective but not overly friendly. Sandwich and a small chocolate, two rounds of free drinks: soft drinks, tea, coffee, beer and wine. The return was an early morning flight on a B737-600, 10 minutes delay at the beginning which remained at the end, caused by the constant headwind. Hot scrambled eggs and fresh bread were served, great selection of free drinks as usual. Both planes clean, tidy and newish. Plenty of legrooms, on my way back to CPH, I sat in the 8th row, next to the emergency exit, and the distance between my seat and the 7th row was much larger, I was even able to stretch my legs. Overall, a very pleasant experience and would fly with them again at any time.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by Dean Bailey

4 April 2007

LGW-BUD-LGW. Both flights on 737-600 which were clean and in excellent condition. FAs attentive and polite, not overly friendly. Food is the now standard snack pack - good but can get monotonous for those who take the trip regularly. Good beverage service - two runs, sometimes three if you are lucky. Malev now part of the OneWorld alliance. Booking this return on BA's website opting for the Malev flights would have cost me £168. Booking on Malev.com for the same flights gave me change (just a bit) from £100.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by E Teh

13 February 2007

LGW-BUD-LGW in Feb in economy class. On outbound B737 morning flight, breakfast was served promptly. Soft drinks, wine & beer and hot beverages were offered on a couple of occasions. Both sets of crew were friendly and professional. Cabin clean and tidy, with leather seats. Overall, a pleasant experience and would fly them again short haul.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by F Kaprotz

19 January 2007

BUD-DAM. Outward leg on a nearly empty 737-800. Clean modern planes, the cabin crew seem to have the 'smile' option switched off permanently. Service efficient but unsmiling, therefore quite cold. Good food onboard. DAM-BUD. Fast boarding, 737-700 a good plane, try and get in the first 6 rows as the first few rows in economy on right of the plane only have 2 seats instead of 3, so you get more space. Unsmiling service as usual. Good flight nonetheless.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by Andras Deak

27 November 2006

LGW to BUD Business class. The flight was 3/4 full, C class was half full. FAs were kind and professional. Boeing 737-700 with 2:3 seats business class layout - quite comfy. Hungarian and English newspapers offered after boarding. Food was offered on porcelain and presented well. Malev has a better drink selection in the recent past month in my opinion, especially the wines are getting better. BUD to LGW Business class. Check in at Ferihegy Airport quick and smooth. Malev Duna Lounge is the dedicated business lounge for MA and average European standard. Boarding with priority to business passengers, the aircraft was the same type like the inbound flight. F/As again did well, hot breakfast was served - quality and quantity were fine. Malev improved well in the recent few months.

Malev Hungarian Airlines review - by B Harrison

17 November 2006

LGW-BUD-LGW Business Class. We had priority boarding, large business class seats, not economy seats with central seat reduced. Pre-flight drink, newspapers and magazines offered. Tablecloth laid out before drinks service. Meal served on porcelain. Staff were courteous and helpful. New 737-800, clean and tidy.