Swiss review - by J Walton

10 April 2007   Customer Trip Rating : n/a

HKG to ZRH economy class. Clean and comfortable Airbus A340, FA's polite and efficient. Personal Tv's with larger than normal screen, excellent choice of movies and games on demand. Both my wife and I are vegetarian and the food was average at best, although the swiss chocolate and ice cream were nice touches. The seat pitch is decent, but I didnt find the seats as comfortable as the prior Cathay flight. Flight was on time and found Zurich airport to be clean and smooth to transit. Overall I would fly this route again with Swiss as their pricing is good and the product stands up well against other airlines on this route

Swiss review - by B Kukutz

10 April 2007   Customer Trip Rating : n/a

TXL-ZRH-IST and back. Have never flown them before and was rather disappointed. Food portion on 2.5 hr flight to IST was a small Pizza/ Sandwich type of thing filled with cheese. Drinks round provided x 1 on entire flight. IFE was very poor with no headsets provided. General appearance of medium aged A320 was a little bit scruffy. Some planes needed a bit of a clean up operation. Overall, Swiss seem to have scaled down their level of service and resemble much of a No-Frills carrier, rather then a Star Alliance one.

Swiss review - by Luke Smith
4 April 2007

BCN to FRA, and FRA to ZRH, business class. ZRH to JFK, first class. Excellent seat comfort and service. The first class lounge in Zurich offers rides to the departure gate, with expedited security. Zurich was an easy and uncrowded airport to transit. The first class seat on the two-aisle plane to JFK was comfortable and 180-degree lie-flat. The flight crew provided exceptional service. All flights on time, and baggage arrived promptly.

Swiss review - by Stefan Maier
29 March 2007

ZRH-ORD in business class. I was very disappointed to learn that they are using "old" business class seats and not lie-flat, as it is european standard these days. I had used Swiss to Israel before and on this much shorter route they were using lie-flats. I can not understand this policy. Zurich to Chicago must be one of their premium routes. Also the IFE needs some overhaul, a setup where you have to wait for all movies to finish before you can see the next one is outdated. Yes, one has to appreciate that Swiss has gone through a lot, but if they want to establish themselves as premium carriers across the Atlantic, they must do more. I will certainly not use them to the USA anymore.

Swiss review - by James Qurashi
20 March 2007

GVA -LCY at 6:40 in the morning, flew Y class and the plane was about 3/4s full. Nothing really to complain about apart from GVA airport. How can you have 4 lanes for proceeding through the X-rays and security checks when you have 6 planes boarding all within about 10 mins of each other. Not to mention that they thought it even more clever to reduce it to 2 lanes soon after! Ridiculous, not to mention that people started panicking after waiting about 10mins in the queue and seeing their flights (including mine) flashing : Boarding or Last Call! Of course they scrambled to the front asking to pass other pax. The ground staff for Swiss at GVA has always been courteous to me, I have never had to complain. Onboard I managed to sleep in the seats, OK I am only 1.76m. Also the stewardesses made very little noise whilst coming down the aisles. So in general a good service. The price however was a bit steep considering that there were still seats available and I did purchase them last min so I was hoping for the special offers that Swiss are know to have on their website as of the Wednesday at noon every week. Glad also to see that there is light looming at the end of the tunnel for Swiss.

Swiss review - by S Labanich
9 March 2007

ORD—ZRH business. A330 with 2+2+2 configuration, 1J/K bulkhead. At 6’4” I had no problem with legroom, clean plane. Seats on this route are recliner, not lie flat, but are far superior to AA and UA. Only issue with bulkhead was proximity to galley. Crew friendly and attentive, but appeared a bit clumsy and noticeably loud when stowing the used dishes. IFE and food service fine, again far superior to any domestic carrier. Lounge at ORD is more than adequate, with extremely helpful personnel, but tends to get cramped as flight time nears. Business check-in at O’Hare quick and efficient, and Zurich airport is the easiest airport in Europe to make connections. If you have a long layover in Zurich, the day rooms offer a nice respite. I would like to see sleeper seats installed on this route, but otherwise a very pleasant experience.

Swiss review - by Stefan Straubhaar
9 March 2007

ZRH to BCN booked in Y class, but then got promotional email about upgrade to Business for Sfr.99. Only did it because I had a lot of extra luggage. Check in in ZRH complicated as usual, I had 6 extra kilos, and even given the reason that I live in the States or being a Frequent Flier with an other Star Alliance member helped me to avoid to pay for extra charges. Flight to Barcelona was nothing special. Pre-Boarding drinks was a bottle of water and a refreshing towel. Once airborne, we got a little breakfast. Service was not consistent, crew was friendly but disinterested, no magazine on board just newspapers, had flown with Lufthansa the day before and they gave out much more reading material. I was not impressed with the service, flew with them last year and was disappointed and now gave them an other chance (also because of price). there is nothing like the good old Swissair. I just don't know why people pay this kind of money to fly Business when all you get is a little more food and maybe a glass of Champagne.

Swiss review - by J Iwan
3 March 2007

Zurich-Bangkok and Hong-Kong-Zurich in economy on A340 on both ways. The aircraft on both ways was relatively new and clean. Boarding was fast and efficient. FA friendly. Food standard but the selection of beverages above average. IFE/AVOD is a big plus, 16 movies on demand and a wide selection of music. Overall, I would fly them again on long distance and I hope that they will introduce more flights to Asia soon.

Swiss review - by Erich Koller
3 March 2007

CPH to ZRH in Y-class on business trip. Check-in at CPH for LX a disgrace as only 1 counter open for Y and another for C, with 40 minutes waiting time at Y-counter. Once at the counter, system failure and another 10 minutes waiting. Inflight service then was okay with sandwiches, chocolate and drinks - good for a 1.5 hour flight. Overall another mixed experience as ground-service and service in the air just do not fit together and really make such a short trip rather uncomfortable.

Swiss review - by Chris Herden
28 February 2007

Coach ORD-NBO on the Swiss A-330. Overall I was very impressed with Swiss. The food proved quite good. I found the flight attendants to be friendly and hard working; they must have done a beverage service about once an hour. Zurich is a great airport to connect through and on par with Schiphol, but not as busy. Zurich is like heaven compared to Heathrow. The only negative on Swiss was the entertainment system. The removable system control is awkwardly placed in the vertical part of the hand rest and even though I am fairly thin I was constantly bumping it and changing functions accidentally. There was a decent selection of movies and games but the games were very dated looking. Not bad but not up to BA and KLM.

Swiss review - by Ron Merritt
26 February 2007

Don't expect anything special in terms of customer service with reservations, lost luggage, etc on LX if you are gold on United or other Star Alliance carriers. I recently flew from SEA on SK to CPH, then LX with overnight stop at ZRH on to JED. The SK flight biz class was fine. The LX plane from CPH to ZRH was a joke to consider selling two front rows of C seating. Midgets would do better flying LX on that plane. I had to fly Y from ZHR to JEd as C class was overbooked by six seats. One suitcase did not arrive at ZRH and it took five days for LX to locate the bag and deliver to JED (via Dubai on SV?). I requested LX JED upon arrival to give my bag to my local travel agency for delivery. Instead, they sent it to the Yanbu Industrial Airport without informing me the SV tag number, etc. I learned that LX in Saudi Arabia does not have any European staff, everything at JED is by a local handling agent. I sent several emails to LX customer service in Basel, never got a response. Also no response to emails sent to LX in Riyadh or Jeddah. All in all, I think the post-bankruptcy Swiss Air is really lousy. I suggest anyone thinking of biz class travel on LX to the Middle East fly on Lufthansa instead.

Swiss review - by Andy Schaefer
26 February 2007

BSL-BCN-BSL. Outbound on the refurbished Avro 100 with new and comforable leather seats. Due to the slim seatback the leg room increased compared to the older seats which we had on the return flight. On both flights, snacks, drinks and small chocolates were served. I was able to check-in for the BSL-BCN flight on the internet. The only negative aspect is that you can't choose your seats - you are simply assigned one.

Swiss review - by Jonathan van Pommel
7 February 2007

Economy Zurich-Warsaw return. Intra-Europe service isn't that bad. On the outbound, crew were very serious but provided a good service. We were on an Avro RJ 100 with quite comfortable seats. For the flight (which lasted more than 2 hrs), we were served a sandwich with two drink rounds and a (small) Swiss chocolate just before we began our descent. Overall a good flight; only gripe: the crew disappeared after meal and drinks service and could be seen simply chatting in the galley. I think at least they could have done another drink round or at least be in the cabin. On the return, was disappointed to see that the flight was served by helvetic.com, a Swiss low-fares airline operating for Swiss. Our plane was a rather uncomfortable Fokker 100, but otherwise the flight was all right. Crew excellent (provided by helvetic), present in cabin throughout the flight, same meal service as we would have had on Swiss (sandwich and drinks, chocolate).

Swiss - by Alexander Stare
5 February 2007

ZRH-MIA-ZRH Business Class on A330-200. The C Class Seats on LX need an upgrade, the lie flat seats haven t been installed yet. Friendly and efficient staff, good food, good wines. The movie system was ok, they showed 4-5 movies at the time. However they all start at the same time, means to watch the 2nd movie, you got to wait all the others are finished. During the flight there is light snacks and plenty of water available, on the ZRH-MIA flight they served ice-cream after a couple hours of flight time. Red-Wine choice was a Swiss Pinot Noir, French Bordeaux and an Argentine Malbec. Good and clear PA's from the flight deck and the flight attendants. A wide choice of newspapers. Toilets clean and equipped with moisture creams, lip balms and face refresher sprays. The amenity kits were small but did the job.

Swiss - by David Worcester
5 February 2007

London City to Zurich and on to Athens, returning a day later, Business class both ways. I was impressed with lounges at Zurich and Athens and onboard service was professional and friendly. The meals served on all flights were enjoyable and drinks freely available. Apart from on the Avro flights out of and into LCY, the middle seat was kept free so there was sufficient space and the legroom was more than adequate. Overall, a pleasant experience.

Swiss - by Pierre Leblache
1 February 2007

A Web search for a Business Class round trip cheap fare between New York and London produced an offer by Swiss (JFK to London City via Geneva) at 651 USD (you read well), which the airline later claimed was a computer glitch, but which I mistook in good faith for a promotion and bought, taking the precaution of printing each and every computer screen and the email confirmation by Swiss. It took nothing short of a certified letter threatening a lawsuit to have them honor their confirmed sale. If you come across such an offer (they happen), do print and keep everything. When I checked in, as the connection in Geneva was very tight, I offered to go via Zurich which afforded an easier connection, with seats available on both flights. This was denied. Swiss lounge at JFK is spacious and well catered, but shared with many airlines. It can get very crowded and not particularly clean. Pre-boarding dinner is available, but not attractive. Swiss Business class seats on the A330 must be among the worst in this day and age. Hard upholstery, poor recline, short leg extension, impractical controls, faulty IFE controls. The food is unremarkable, tasteless and bland, with drinks a notch above mediocre. Cabin crew-members are mostly above average, courteous and helpful, a legacy from the old Swissair. They did send a message to request a gate agent for my short connection and gave me a printed copy. On arrival, the agent never materialized, but a race to the connecting gate brought me just in time to have the door slammed in my face as the last passenger boarded. A sermon followed that the agent was not working for Swiss, but Swissport and that I had arrived too late. Swiss made no difficulty to rebook me in Business class on the next British Airways flight to London Heathrow leaving almost immediately, at no cost to me, but obviously at a substantial expense to them. The return trip was uneventful with no delays, a functional connection and courteous staff, though obviously the food and the seat were just as sub-standard. Considering the price I paid, I I got a good deal, but I find it a strange way to run an airline and believe that Lufthansa, the owner, has a lot of work on its shoulders. Under no circumstance would I consider paying a regular Business class fare for that kind of service.

Swiss - by Margaret Nell
29 January 2007

Swiss is getting worse where customer care is concerned. When booking an upgrade, our secretary was not informed that e-vouchers were outstanding, instead miles were taken off. When she wanted to change this, she was informed that it was not possible, as the "seat would be lost" - her remark, that one seat (miles) would be freed up for the e- voucher upgrade was discounted. And a change in the miles account, e- voucher taken, miles re-credited, is also not possible. Preferences for seat is never taken into account, and this for a person who flies every week and is "SWIP" Swiss very importent person. Staff unfriendly, the planes are old, no footrests in economy, cramped, cheese or ham sandwiches vile. The miles-and-more system applied by SWISS now does no longer allow you to book a miles ticket on short notice, but only 48 hours in advance. Also you get far less miles than you used to, while every booking takes far more miles than before. Excuse: "We offer more" - but what are they offering??

Swiss - by Theo Valich
21 January 2007

LAX-ZRH in economy. Rebooked from original United flight (their Premium Economy is probably best room for people avg. 190cm or above) in regular Economy. Could not get Business upgrade. Airplane was A340-300, two years old at worst. Looks fairly impressive inside, everything is clean to the SWISS standard. Seating is however very cramped. My knees were touching the seat infront all the time, meaning no sleep this night. Luckily, PTV is big, and my lack of sleep was compensated by excellent choice of IFE. For trips to US and from Asia from Europe, Swiss is a good choice.

Swiss - by Dee Janes
19 January 2007

Have done two return flights with Swiss from Muscat to Zurich, one in Economy and one in Business. In Business I found the crew to be cold and unfriendly, obviously Business Class does not buy you nicer treatment from the crew! In Economy the seats are crammed in and almost unbearable, I will never fly with them again.

Swiss - by David O'Keeffe
19 January 2007

BKK to SIN. Excellent product. The main reason we used Swiss was the price for this sector of our holiday through SE Asia. Apart from a very slow check in at BKK the flight was of a very high standard. Hot towel and drink on departure. Very good IFE system, wide range of current and classic movies and TV programs on offer. Nice meal with choice of drinks and a bar of Swiss chocolate towards the end of the flight. Would not hesitate to recommend this airline to others.

Swiss - by Vincent Barreto
12 January 2007

London Heathrow to Zurich, Zurich to Vienna in Economy. Short queue at check in, allocated seats for Vienna leg so no need to rush to transfer desk in Zurich. Clean plane with lots of leg room. Cold cheese sandwich with drink was OK. No complaints for such a short flight. Interesting inflight magazine. Nice of cabin crew to inform us of correct gate for Vienna. Chocolate was a nice touch and flight crew friendly and helpful. Baggage out very quickly at Vienna. All in all a nice couple of flights. Vienna to Zurich & Zurich to London Heathrow in Business. Quick check in at Vienna. Didn't matter that there was a Business class check in as all the queues were empty. 3+3 seating on A319. Very comfortable. Food was cold roast beef with salad and warm roll with dessert and cold and hot drinks. Delicious. Swiss lounge at Zurich was very comfortable with nice choice of drinks and food. Quite empty and nice and relaxing. Flight to Heathrow was A320 with 3+3 seating. All the middle row seats in Business were empty even though it was a full flight otherwise. Food was salmon salad & warm bread roll. Planes clean, cabin crew friendly and flights on time. Went out of their way to make flight a pleasant experience. A complete bargain for £130 each including taxes. Retun at Heathrow was a 1 hour wait for baggage.

Swiss - by Jeanne Lecomte
9 January 2007

Such a disappointment. I thought that this airline was a great and professional one. We have been from Geneva to New York. The seats are small, television did not work for us. So we asked for help twice and nobody came after telling us "we are coming back in two minutes to see what is going on". In general, Swiss employees are not smiling or helping. The only positive thing is maybe the food, good I think. I will never recommend this airline.

Swiss - by Francesco Cattaneo
9 January 2007

Swiss will apparently present good results for the last year, the turnaround has been successful. The quality of the product, however, shows too obviously the economy measures taken, in particular to the disadvantage of C-Class passengers. This might be a dangerous policy when other airlines improve continuously their product for their premium clients (BA, Singapore, Cathay, etc.). On European routes the new cabin layout looks good at first view but in fact it's a change for the worse in terms of space and comfort. It's like being sitting on board of a low-cost airline, and this in business class! Forget the glass of Champagne before take-off because what you get is a minuscule plastic bottle of water. The food is mediocre. Swiss should be careful not to loose one of its main assets given by its brand: the image of a high quality standard.

Swiss - by Chris Joynes
4 January 2007

In response to D Theodorou's comments .... about 2 years ago, SWISS began a refit of their A320 fleet. The new seats are much thinner than the old seats, which enabled 18 more seats to fit in the cabin. A couple of months ago, they started to refit their A319's and A321's with the same seats, allowing for and extra 12 & 14 seats respectively. This might give the impression that the aircraft are new but they are in fact around 9 years old. To my knowledge, the only "new" aircraft SWISS have ever purchased are their A340's. The general opinion seems to be that the old seats were more comfortable, especially in C class. Business Class travellers may be interested to know that the old seats converted into a 2 + 3 cabin, with all 5 seats being wider than the 3 + 3 configuration in Y class. The new seats are static and are identical to the Y class configuration. In their publicity, SWISS claim that the middle seats in C class are left empty and that sliding tables cover these seats. As a Senator (Gold) card holder, I must say that I have personally never seen any tables! Moreover, it appears that the promise to leave middle seats empty is not always adhered to as these seats have also been known to have been sold. Any complaints from pax are apparently answered with accept it of be off-loaded. Although I have been fortunate enough to have never been in this situation on a SWISS flight (and so, I might add, are they!) conversations with fellow passengers and also reports on sites such as this one, led me to write to SWISS in order to try and clarify their policy. To my surprise, not only did I not receive confirmation that their promise of 50% more space in C class was always true but they also stated that if the demand was there then they would sell the middle seats! So, Business Class travellers beware.

Swiss - by Marti Bugatelli
4 January 2007

ZRH-FCO-ZRH, Y out, C in, booked on internet for CHF 6.50 (yes, 6.50) out and CHF 127 in (C being the only available class at the moment of booking). Double this to have the price including taxes. Airbus 320, clean, crew ok, on time both ways. Food on Y was a cold cheese sandwich with a drink, but what do you expect for 6.50. Inwards, a cold salad with meat and a nice mousse, choice of champagne, wine, non-alcoholic drinks and coffee and tea with various offers for refills. Italian and swiss newspapers provided. No announcement about gate-changing in FCO, but rather the fault of the airport staff. Priority check-in for C class, if one was bold enough to overpass the queue. Good value and recommendable.

Swiss - by D Theodorou
3 January 2007

TXL-ZRH-SKG, Economy class. The snack was delicious although the chocolate was a bad promotion of the famous Swiss Chocolat! Flight attendants polite and pleasant. Both aircraft clean and new.

Swiss - by Ralf Szwed
27 December 2006

TXL-ZRH-WAW in Y. Swiss has been a disappointment in the past, and the streak continued. The cabins on the Airbus was clean – the Avro hasn’t been cleaned in weeks or months - and the airport in ZRH easy to transfer through, but the food/drinks and the couldn't care less attitude of Swiss staff are appalling. There is no choice of juices in Y (only OJ) and the star shaped cookie for lunch was an insult. Service is poor and delays at ZRH don't get proper announcements. While the C- class lounge in ZRH (accessible on C ticket or with Star Alliance Gold card) is pleasant, the staff could not care less. If you want a Ryanair experience at legacy airline prices, fly Swiss!

Swiss - by Glenn White
10 December 2006

SIN-BKK-SIN. Booked it because the 'price was right'. Had been burnt previously on same route and cheap flight with SAS, but there was no comparison. Staff friendly, IFE very good and no problem with drinks and food. Only disappointment was the check in at BKK was banked up over two hours before flight departed, although it did move fairly quickly. Would not hesitate flying Swiss again

Swiss - by A Orichel
7 December 2006

ZHR-JNB. I upgraded from Y to C but was a bit disappointed with the business class seats. If they are in a sleep position the angle is almost 30 degrees. Service was nice and flight almost on time. IFE had a good choice and worked well. JNB-ZHR in Y class. Seats are OK but after 8 hours it is difficult to find an acceptable position. I am wondering how all these people can sleep in a seat like this. Food was OK for Y class. Service was a little bit depending who was in charge in your row. One lady (FA) had the definitely the old LH sergeant attitude and was giving you the impression that you are not welcome. However, this a singularity. IFE with new movies since I left Europe. Plane arrived late in JNB and so it was also late in ZRH. Arrived at the E gates and was sent to the transfer desk (A gate) as the original connector to DUS has already left. Arrived at Transfer desk I was sent back to E-gates to board the next flight to DUS.

Swiss - by Jeff Michel
7 December 2006

ZRH-CPH-ZRH in Economy. Check-in very efficient at ZRH, took less than a minute to drop off the hold baggage (checked-in online). Zurich airport very nice and efficient. Full plane RJ100, but left on time and the staff pleasant. Sandwich snack, chocolate and a couple of drinks which is fine for a 1hr 30min flight. Comfortable seats and leg room. Return flight again full, same leg room but harder seats for some reason (apparently an ex Lufthansa RJ100!). Snack, chocolate and drinks served. Bag not loaded at CPH but SWISS got it delivered the next day. Approx £100 return so great value too. All in all, cannot complain and enjoyed the experience.

Swiss - by Richard Sterchi
7 December 2006

ZRH-LHR and LCY-ZRH Booked online Swiss CHF204 incl Taxes. Delayed LHR due to traffic, otherwise no frills. Return flight from LCY on time - no complaints. Booked two days in advance. Much cheaper than EasyJet.

Swiss - by Rohan Suvarna
3 December 2006

JFK-ZRH-BOM and back. Got a great bargain price for the flight. Service by FAs was efficient and prompt. IFE had about 4 movie options and audio channels + games. Food was nothing much to say but for the price of the ticket it was okay and swiss chocolates always helped.

Swiss - by Dilip Hiralal
27 November 2006

Mumbai to Geneva via Zurich C Class. Lounge in Mumbai is a joke - how I envied BA travellers who have a private lounge for themselves. was surprised to find old business class seats especially since there is no first class. They don't recline well and are hard and tatty. Lets not talk about the food. FAs were polite and friendly. I still wonder why Swiss docks at terminal E in Zurich and then makes us run to terminals A/B for our transfer to Geneva. I will not mention the flight from Zurich to Geneva .Anyone who uses the "pedulair" knows what to expect.

Swiss - by Stephen Lloyd
25 November 2006

LHR-ZUR-LHR Economy. My first use of the "reborn" Swiss was an overall disappointment. Airbus 321 in each direction was comfortable with leatherette seats and enough space for the sub two hour flight. However food in each direction is considered "snack" only - I missed the morning offer so cannot comment (red eye and sleeping) but the evening return was a finger roll with dying cucumber and cheese. Not even an index finger is size, definitely a "pinky". Drink was a choice of water, orange, coke, a beer, or a wine. For a £400 + return this was exceptionally poor. I'm Star Alliance Gold level so had used the good lounges in London (Luthansa) and Zurich which helped, otherwise I would have been extremely disappointed.

Swiss - by R Craik
15 November 2006

Zurich-Johannesburg Business class. Service was poor, indifferent food served by dour cabin staff. Seat turned into bed was incredibly hard and uncomfortable and does not approach anything like flat. Even more disappointing on this flight that it was delayed two hours for some delayed economy class passengers and arrived in Joburg 40 minutes late. I missed my connection. I then waited an hour and a half at transfer desk. Unbelievably bad service. Ill never travel Swiss again.

Swiss - by Sam Eini
12 November 2006

Geneva to New York in economy. The seats on the A330 are hard. The food is not good (however on Continental on same route it's even worse). The best part on Swiss is the cheese which saves one from hunger. From Geneva to Barcelona on an A319 it was OK. We got a muffin which was fine. Crew were OK. Just flew on Air France from GVA to New York and it was great.

Swiss - by Erich Koller
9 November 2006

ZRH-BRU-ZRH. Using this service very regularly and the service level differs quite. ZRH-BRU on A321 - fully booked - departure delay due to missing pax baggage had to be offloaded. Took 15 minutes and not 8 as calculated by LX. Service was very rushed and no typical chocolate availabe for Y-class pax. Way back same day with A319 - also fully packed and not a single seat free - service rushed in 35 minutes and quite okay. As there was no time for chocolate as well, they handed it out when leaving the aircraft, I found it a nice touch, together with a smile and a "see you again".

Swiss - by Bette Meyer
5 November 2006

MIA-ZRH Business class on A330. Older seats with handsets placed inconveniently in arms, too short leg extenders and poor entertainment selection. Seats did not fully recline, so sleep was difficult. Small amenity bag. FA's friendly and helpful and food selection was good. Bathrooms not clean, and fixtures worn and stained. Next morning breakfast of hot croissants and fruit was tasty. ZRH-NBO Business class on A300-600. Some confusion as this was a plane leased by Hapag Lloyd so some seat assignments were changed. Seats were of older style, but wider and much more comfortable than previous flight from MIA-ZRH. Amenity bag was huge, canvas, and filled with cosmetics and varied items of high quality. Food was excellent and thoughtfully prepared. FA's very helpful and pleasant. Flight information was often announced. Personal DVD players with satisfactory selections.

Swiss - by Colin Klemp
5 November 2006

JNB to BRU via ZRH return Y class end August early September. Outbound flight no breakfast for last few rows (incorrect number of breakfasts delivered.) Gate information provided before landing. Transit in Zurich good despite long queues at security. Return flight no choice for dinner "Pasta" only. Otherwise good for economy.

Swiss - by Erich Koller
4 November 2006

ZRH-AMS-ZRH on LX in Y-class. On to way to AMS on AVRO-Jet (Jumbolino) clearly showing its age and with limited comfort. On the way back on an A320 quite a different level of comfort. Standard Y- class service on European routes on LX with muffin and coffee for breakfast and sandwiches for dinner. Really nothing special, but what does one expect more those days in Europe? Cabin Crew both ways okay, no smiles though but this would surprise me those days anyway. Both ways cabin was clean.

Swiss - by Franz Koepernik
27 October 2006

MUC-ZRH-ATH-ZRH-MUC in Business. MUC-ZRH codeshare flight operated by LH-Cityline Avro . Nothing special. ZRH-ATH Airbus A320 Business class section half full. Service ok (choice of two hot meals- one vegetarian) but not too friendly. On the way back to ZRH all sections full, excellent crew, very friendly and attentive. ZRH-MUC Avro 100 (with just 5 seats in 1 row). Completely full. Despite this fact very efficient service for just 35 minutes flying time. Everyone in Business and Y-cl got a drink and something to eat (tasty sandwiches in C-cl, the famous chocolates both in Y-cl and C-cl. Although the business class section was quite large with 25 seats and there were only 2 cabin crew staff on board! I believe, the Swiss crews are in general more personally than the LH crews at least in C-Cl! And don t forget, LX offers very special business class rates. For these flight dates the C-cl fare of LX was approx 400 Euro cheaper as the available cheapest Y-fare on LH direct flights to ATH.

Swiss - by Johan Vranken
17 October 2006

BKK to ZRH in C-class. Service efficient but extremely cold and without speaking or smiling. No welcome, enjoy your meal or goodbye. All of the crew looked tired. Food both for dinner and breakfast a joke (Thai serves better meals and with more choice in economy than Swiss in business). Seats not comfortable because of the steep angle. No priority boarding when leaving BKK. Not worth the money !

Swiss - by Gerald Chapman
15 October 2006

London city to Athens via Zurich, returning via Geneva. Apart from a slight delay arriving in Athens we were very impressed with our journeys. Any time we lost by the intermediate stop was more than retrieved by the shorter time to get to London City and shorter check- in/security times. Flight attendants were courteous and professional but criticisms of the food posted elsewhere are fully justified - a pizza in a paper bag is hardly lunch. Knowing what to expect from the outward journey, we ate at Athens Airport on our return.

Swiss - by Ron Miller
10 October 2006

ORD-LUG C Class. The "lounge" in Chicago is a joke; better described as a small closet. The seats on the A330 are not very comfortable, they don't fold flat nor are they very wide and the ventilation system does not allow a passenger any control over the airflow in the cabin - a very bad choice. The headsets are not noise reducing nor are they very comfortable. The food was good but the service cold and functional rather than friendly. The "Welcome Lounge" at Zurich a nice touch. A short flight from ZRH - LUG with excellent service - even managed to serve a sandwich on a 30 minute flight. The return trip was about the same however, the lounge facilities at Zurich are very comfortable. The flight back in those most uncomfortable seats was VERY long. Again, good food but cold, indifferent service. Why bother to put PRIORITY tags on luggage when it doesn't mean anything to the people unloading the bags? It's a sorry sight to see what was once a great air carrier become Lufthansa's subsidiary and a second class one at that.

Swiss - by Al Kouvch
10 October 2006

Cairo to Zurich economy, A320. Cabin clean and tidy. Seat pitch shorter than on Austrian Airlines A319 flying between Vienna and Cairo. It's probably just an inch or two, but over four hours in the air it makes some very real difference. Service very good - a round of complimentary cocktails followed by a tasty meal (a pleasant surprise) accompanied by free wine and beverages and a tea/coffee service with an offer of a cognac. Cabin staff competent and attentive. The purser extremely competent in defusing and resolving a verbal scuffle between two passengers.

Swiss - by Xuess Wee
10 October 2006

Athens-Zurich return Economy. Both sectors used A320 planes. Clean, bright, and airy planes with friendly service. The journey is about 3.5 hours. Food were tasty (and piece of chocolate served towards the end of the journey a nice touch) and seats were comfortable. Swiss has web- check in services which allows me to pick my own seats and shorten down the time I need for boarding my flights as well. Efficient and immaculate.

Swiss - by Karl Sun
7 October 2006

Chicago to ZRH on Swiss. The flight was on time. The seats were too firm and the space in the economy class was a little cramped. The cabin was not cleaned very well and some of the seats were still covered with food. The onboard entertaining system which included audio, video and games was great. The service was professional but fairly average, the staff did not provide outstanding service if you compare to some of the Asian airlines. The food was also just ok. Baggage at the destination was delivered promptly.

Swiss - by Sacha Hofer
2 October 2006

I'm currently using Swiss mostly on the ZRH-JNB-ZRH leg with the A340. Until now I never had a bad experience with Swiss on this flight, mostly on time, clean & friendly service. Flights are almost always full, but crew handles service in a professional way. Food in economy better on the flight to JNB. Food & service in Business is good, may improve on choices. Seats in economy are not comfortable, but depends where you sit. Seats in Business are average - in First are perfect, with duvet and extra pillow. Best way to travel is to book C class and upgrade to F From Y to C almost impossible.

Swiss - by Jean Dupont
27 September 2006

Zurich to BKK night flight; A 340; Economy. Seat not comfortable: seats are definitely too firm, no room for your feet. On one seat out of 3 there is a large electronic box (probably video) under the seat in front of yours. The new seats with slim back were supposed to provide additional free space - we didn't notice that. Meals very poor in term of quality and choice. Crew / Cabin service : average, seems to lack motivation.

Swiss - by Patrick Meier
24 September 2006

BKK-ZRH nightflight in Economy. Ground service efficient. Plane was not totally full but crew members seemed to be very stressed and everything was very hectic. Passenger welcome was poor and inpersonal. No welcome drink was served onboard but straight dinner was served. No menu card, but 2 dishes was on choice: of course one was already finished and just "pasta with tomato sauce" was left. Dinner was very poor. No drinks served at night: just once some plain water served from a plastic bottle. Breakfast was even poorer: 1 butter, 1 Jam, 1 Joghurt, 1 Orange juice and one green banana, some bread, that's it! General impression: lack of professionalism, motivation and friendliness, poor service. On Swiss flights you get what you want, but you have to ask for it. On other Star Alliance Partners (for example, Thai, Lufthansa) you get what you want because it is offered to you by the cabin staff. One point in favour of Swiss: seat comfort (a lot of legroom).

Swiss - by Nicholas Hinnen
9 September 2006

Flew over the weekend with SWISS to LHR from ZRH. Outbound flight to LHR was on-time with nice service from crew. Was served a Mövenpick ice- cream and a drink for this short flight. Arrival into Heathrow with a small wait as usual but got bags quickly. Return flight was not up to SWISS standard. Altough check-in was quick we weren't informed about our gate untill 10 min before departure time and after boarding we had to wait over 1 hour in the plane due to some problem with fueling and the fact that 32 planes were departing before us. Cabin of A321 was very old not with the new revamped SWISS Europe seats and looked worn out. Crew kind of rude and absolutely no smiles except from the purser. Were served a sandwich and a drink from the unfriendly crew and landed over 1 hour late in Zurich were many passengers lost their connection. All in all a good flight to LHR but a bad flight back to ZRH. Somehow I have often encountered good service from ZRH but bad service to ZRH.

Swiss - by Wiktor Karpowicz
6 September 2006

WAW-ZRH-GVA and return in Economy. All flights on time, however recent costcutting was remarkable. Catering on board very disappointing - only a small muffin with something to drink, and on domestic flights even less - no beverages. For 30 minute flight it would be OK, but when you have to survive 4 hours without a meal it's worse. Seats in Y were generally comfortable, apart from my last leg, operated by one of the six second-hand Avro 100s that SWISS had bought in spring - 3-3 (sic!) seat configuration in Jumbolino is a real stupidity, especially in the narrower part in the rear. Definitely the least comfortable flight ever in my life, it's a shame on SWISS - the carrier pretending to be a 4-star, de luxe airline. Even EasyJet offers you better legroom. On the other hand, the crew is very friendly, multilingual and efficient and SWISS's prices beat all its competitors. I would fly with them again, hoping to avoid those Avros.

Swiss - by Marybeth Richards
26 August 2006

I needed to book London-BUD at fairly short notice, and Swiss had a reasonable fare - flew LCY-ZRH-BUD then BUD-ZRH-LHR. Pax had to be driven by coach from the plane to the terminal building at ZRH outbound, and it took about 15 minutes for the coaches to arrive after the plane landed, but that was the only real flaw in the journey. On board service was acceptable for Economy, with seat pitch and comfort about as I'd expect for a flight within Europe. Food decent on all sectors, with chocolate footballs offered a couple of times (the World Cup was still in progress during my trip), but the best treat of all was Movenpick ice cream. Overall a fairly painless experience, and one I'd undertake again.

Swiss - by Andreas Albrecht
26 August 2006

RT to Menorca with Spanair, but two segments (Zürich-Madrid and Barcelona - Zürich) were operated by Swiss. Pleasant experience on both Swiss segments. FA were calm and friendly. 1 hour delay on the BCN-ZRH delay. Information policy by the ground staff could have been a little bit more professional. No information about the delay were given to waiting passenger at the gate (no plane was a the gate at the time of scheduled departure).

Swiss - by Jared Ryan
22 August 2006

HKG - ZRH Swiss Business. I know Swiss are still struggling, but they are probably going to struggle more unless they do something about their really horrible Business seats. These are the cheapest Airbus standard- issue seats. Although there is generous seat pitch, the poor design means the seat is too short for anyone @ 183cm as I am. The angle is too steep, and the surface extremely hard. The crew suggest a more “S” shape rather than completely flat as being the most comfortable, but in that position the back is quite steeply raked and you are effectively almost sitting up. Compared to the Qantas Sky Bed, it has a much much steeper angle, and therefore is much higher - as a consequence you really struggle to get out of a window seat and over your sleeping companion. You have to put your seat in an upright position with the leg rest right down to be able to get enough space to struggle out. The armrests do not go down [as in QF or SQ] making the bed incredibly narrow. I am quite slim and I barely fitted, so I don’t know how beefier people will find it. Another design flaw doesn’t allow any recline when the tray table is out. So you have to sit bolt upright if you are using the table - again contrast the Qantas seat which allows a small tilt, so you can enjoy a meal and movie in comfort. And there is nowhere to store your bits and pieces - just a seat pocket [unreachable when slightly reclined] that is already stuffed full with Swiss material. Overall I would rate the seat as 1/10, and I think I’m being generous. This is the first time I have flown Swiss since the Lufthansa takeover, and sadly the best way to describe the rest of the service is “not generous”. Meals were tiny, and not very tasty. Horrid peanuts in a cupcake with the drinks. Business was half full and service was ok, but best described as “brisk”. Amenity kit had virtually nothing in it. I was looking for lip balm, so went to the bathroom where there was a tray with a pile of small identical white tubes, with microscopic writing - unreadable in the dim bathroom. At Zurich airport, Business baggage was not given priority, and came out well after about half the economy passengers had gone. I would love to see Swiss succeed. They have some very good crew, and having gotten over the fact that Swiss International is not Swissair, there is a certain style there that I like. However in my view it is barely making first world standards at the moment on its long haul sectors.

Swiss - by Jochen Iwan
22 August 2006

Zurich-Malaga-Zurich in economy. Outbound flight in Zurich was on time, service okay with two rounds of drinks offered and a small hot Calzoneas meal. A321 in good shape although the seats have seen better times . FAs could be a bit more friendly. Check in at Malaga for the return flight was a pain. They opened the counters only 2 hrs before take off which results in endless queues in front the 2 Y class check-in counters. Ground staff at check- in in Malaga unfriendly. They just put you somewhere in the plane, did not ask about seat preference. The flight had 30 min delay, but no information given by the ground staff. Also no indication about the start of the boarding.

Swiss - by Michelle Sturzebeche
12 August 2006

Business Class. In the air, service brilliant. But due to some flight delays and postponements we were amazed at how badly business class passengers were treated when trying to cope with these inconveniences on ground. Staff were unhelpful and very rude, meal vouchers were given out to supposedly compensate us but which only allowed us the value of a cup of coffee. Communications all round in relation to contacting passengers was extremely poor. We lost a day of our Hong Kong time due to having a connecting flight postponed and then to have another plane missed to delays. We had to ring through to try and save our hotel room which cost us a fortune. Compensation for these inconveniences was minimal if not non-existent. Shame on you Swiss International for treating your business class passengers in such a disorganised manner. You make us fly into Zurich 3 times on route and collect your taxes from us (3 times)? Something must be done to accommodate passengers to have to endure these frustrating and unacceptable situations. We were to you, just a number. All rather sad really.

Swiss - by Chris Joynes
12 August 2006

GVA-ZRH-LHR C class. Geneva to Zurich, flight was over 30 minutes late. Service good, F&B good for a 30-minute flight. Lounge in ZRH very basic, no real food, only peanuts etc., skeleton drinks selection. Security no queue. Only 4 minutes' walk from lounge to gate. FA attentive, efficient, friendly. Despite advertisements to the contrary, food in C class has not really improved on short-haul flights. I've only seen 2 hot meals in over 4 years. Tasteless cold cuts, again, on this flight. Good point is that real Champagne is back to replace the Pro Secco. Plastic cutlery is back though but I was told this is to conform to UK law. Acceptable 10 minute wait for luggage. Return LCY-GVA BAe146. Speedy check in, as usual. No lounge, only £4 voucher, which doesn't even buy a sandwich in the airport café. Full flight. Boarding was the usual crush. Waiting area at gate not large enough for this type of aircraft, pax standing on staircase and in corridor above. Ground staff made everyone crowd into the actual waiting room before opening the door for boarding. In short – a complete mess. Service : FA over-attentive to the point of annoyance. Wanted to take the tray away after about 8 minutes! Food identical to previous flight. Old aircraft looking very worn indeed, seats have seen better days, seat bottoms bent/warped, okay for an 80 minute flight but not much more. Overall, the product is better than it has been and is far better than some other European carriers. SWISS haven't got the money to replace ageing aircraft with new ones, in fact they have just bought some more golden oldies from BA and other companies. Nevertheless, there is no excuse for not serving a decent hot food selection on international flights at main meal times - where else is the extra C class money going?

Swiss - by Andrew Sprancs
12 August 2006

BHX -ZRH -DUS in economy. Ended up on this flight because of an Expedia offer. Decided that an indirect flight was worthwhile because of the saving. FA's very attentive, seats comfortable on first flight and gave gate info for transfer. Good service. Worried about the luggage transfer because we were running late but this was successful. Second flight was also good, with the same level of service shown by FA's. Not used to anything other than hectic penny pinching on European flights so this was a welcome change.

Swiss - by Andreas Albrecht
24 July 2006

After reading mainly negative comments about SWISS, I have to buck the trend. Round-Trip to Istanbul on a Swiss A321. Although the plane was fully booked the crew was very friendly. Snack (Calzone) and Drinks were served shortly after take-off. Second round of Drinks and Chocolate later in the flight. The good old Swissair Days are long gone but so are the high European fares. Did quite a few Short-Haul in the US the last year and Swiss still offers the far better service. Anyway back to the topic, the flights were on time and cabin clean. Lots of information (Landmarks, Citys) were given by the cockpit crew. Overall a very satisfied with Swiss. Looking forward to my next Swiss flight later this week.

Swiss - by Bill Turner
24 July 2006

LAX-ZUR-JNB and return in First: A340 on all legs though very long layover in Zurich. Lie flat seats are similar to those used in Thai first and very comfortable. A bonus is that FA's make bed for you and use a pad on the seat. This makes it one of the most comfortable sleeper seats around. Food is very good if you stick with the steak or fish. Some of the other dishes seem experimental and did not taste good. Interesting selection of wines but disappointing that they were not top shelf. Expected better quality. IFE actually worked flawlessly on all legs but selection of movies seemed limited in number and latest Hollywood trash. FA's were very professional and remembered your name and were fluent in a minimum of 3 languages. The FA's were professional even when a twit with a very smelly dog was arguing about flight safety procedures. First was a very comfortable way for over 30 hours of travel and would do it again.

Swiss - by Erich Koller
14 July 2006

ZRH to CPH on Y-class in LX aircraft A319. A/C well maintained, clean and seats okay (not too comfortable though). Slight delay on departure - but well explained by captain and thanks to good winds made up until arrival at CPH. Overall a satisfactory experience as usual on Swiss economy. A typical short-haul flight, nothing special but some good chocolate at the end of the flight. One does not expect more those days.

Swiss - by Daniel Ribarovski
14 July 2006

SIN-BKK In economy on an A340. My first flight on the big Airbus and I liked the 2-4-2 seating arrangements. No lines at checkin and staff were efficient however weren't going out of their way to be friendly. Security agent at the gate was totally the opposite and was very polite and helpful (I don't know if Changi or Swissports employ these people). Legroom was generous and seats comfortable (although the brown colour scheme looks very sterile). PTV's with on demand which offered a good selection of movies and music. Mine crashed halfway through the flight and I had to restart - I observed a few others having the same problem. Food service was good, drinks offered with dinner and a second offering made afterwards. As we began descent into BKK I asked a member of crew about Thai immigration cards which hadn't been issued and was simply told "none were loaded". This was a bit of a problem as those passengers disembarking in BKK (flight continued onto Zurich) were questioned by Thai officials about why we didn't have them. Surely Swiss could have had someone waiting at the gate with them. Crew overall weren't particually friendly. They did their job quickly and efficiently, however didn't go out of their way to be pleasant and a few were close to rude. Overall LX have a good economy product. They just need to work on improving the staff who deliver it.

Swiss - by Ramon Fretz
11 July 2006

CDG-PAR with Swiss' latest addition to the fleet, the ex BA Jumbolinos. In Economy, 6 abreast seating with passengers squeezed into very narrow and uncomfortable seats. Crew showing signs of fatigue, not attentive. Check-in process at 2B slow due to system failure, boarding tiresome. Swiss loves having its passengers wait in CDG at the gate first , then in the bus before leaving the gate and, finally, at the aircraft. The service level is deteriorating and more and more reaching the level of a low-cost carrier. A boring sandwich (and it seems as if they had to offer cheese only, as ham could be too expensive) or an ice cream inflight simply can't compete with what other big carriers in Europe offer in Eco today.

Swiss - by Francois Aubert
8 July 2006

GVA-ZRH, on my way to SKP, Economy class. The flight was as bad as usual, but with a new trick. I asked for a glass of water and was answered they could not give it to me since they had no glass in Economy! I had to ask the FA to repeat as I could not believe it. ZRH airport is still one of the worse transit points in Europe with that silly and useless new terminal and its train inherited from the Swissair delusions of grandeur. Swiss will furthermore never make it if they don't understand what servicing the client means. It is the only airline I flew where the staff is getting the best seats (first rows and exit seats) even in business.