TAP Portugal review by Tomás Alves

14 June 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Lisbon - Terceira - Lisbon (economy). Overall, nothing to complain about. Food was adequate. Small portions, but tasty. The cabin crew on both times were courteous and did their job well. Both aircraft were clean. Seats ok, with good legroom in economy (A310).

TAP Portugal review by M Kirschstein

5 June 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

LGWFortaleza to Lisbon was delayed by 24 hours due to engine failure. All passengers were ferried to a hotel, no information was available from anybody. The next day we were collected and brought back to the airport where we took off with 24 hrs delay. In the meantime, TAP updated their computer with information that the flight had taken off and somebody in TAP arr & dep centre gave my wife the same information. This caused major confusion and cost us a lot of money but TAP as usual did not even give an apology. They offer very poor service on and off route.

TAP Portugal review by Paul Caston

5 June 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Lisbon to Heathrow. What can I say, lovely aircraft, almost two hours late. When boarding we were told no food would be served on the plane, but that drinks would be supplied. When we were in the air we were told that we would have to go to the galley to get our drinks. When I went down to get a drink the stewardesses were sitting down reading magazines. General impression of TAP is very negative, on the flight from Heathrow the fact that the plane needed to get into the air seemed secondary to the crew talking.

TAP Portugal review by Brian Hill

24 May 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

LGW to FNC and return; outbound an A321, inbound an A320. Both planes featured the most uncomfortable seats I've ever sat in, especially the A320 which had a hard bar at the back of the seat cushion making the 3.25 hour flight nearly unbearable. Food was awful, impossible to guess what meat it was on the return leg. TAP now offer various brands of spirits in 'Sachet Systems' instead of bottles - not on these flights, no spirits at all, just wine, beer or soft drinks. At least the flights were on time.

TAP Portugal review by S Bothma

17 May 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Johannesburg to Lisbon and then from Lisbon to Stockholm and then the same way back again. It was unfortunately the only flight available in that week. First of all the flight departed three hours late from Johannesburg. There were spoons lying on the floor, which means they didn't even cleaned up the plane properly. The TV screen had a magnetic interference, and the sound did not work. The cabin crew do not understand English. I asked for apple juice and she gave me water. When I landed in Lisbon, I missed my link flight with 5 minutes. I had to wait for 3 hours in a queue (because the ladies helping are not really in the mood). Eventually I flew to Frankfurt and then Stockholm. When I arrived at Stockholm my luggage unfortunately did not find it's way to Stockholm as well. It only arrived the Friday morning, because the Portugal Airport had only one person to sort out the luggage and we cannot to expect from him to take care of all the luggage in one day (the story told to me by Star Alliance). My flight back from Stockholm was better. But the magnetic interference in the TV display and the lack of English communication skills were still present. I spoke eventually Afrikaans (my home language) and then got a reaction from them. TAP stands for Take Another Plane. Believe me, that is what I will do next time.

TAP Portugal review by Jean-Louis Vergaert

17 May 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

London Heathrow to Lisbon, Business class: the secret for a good flight in this A320 plane is to book seat 3 D/E/F (right side of the plane), as you have space between the seat and the wall - contrary to other airlines who squeeze as many seats as possible and give to the poor first row business class passenger only enough space to insert their knees. For the other business class seats however, TAP has decided to give exactly the same space between seats as to the economy class passengers, however as the cabin was deserted, and as you can lift the armrests, you could easily lay down over the 3 seats of your row. Food was very average, but the scrambled eggs were nice and foamy - the rolls and croissants however have collapsed over themselves. Service was most attentive and courteous. No delay, good information, so a good decent flight at the end. That would be a nightmare however if the business class cabin would have been full.

TAP Portugal review by S Koenig

13 May 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Economy class Fortaleza-Lisbon, Lisbon-Budapest, Brussels-Lisbon and Lisbon-Fortaleza. Food, especially dessert, was actually pretty good for airline food. Except for glitches with the audio system, planes were fine and not as cavernous as some wide-bodied jets. No headsets on Lisbon-Budapest flight seemed strange, especially as they still showed a film, but same thing occured on Brussels-Lisbon flight (they wisely included a silent Charlie Chaprlin film on that leg). No one sat in the front section of the flight to Budapest (business class, I think but still 3 seats on each side), so they shut the curtain to make sure no one moved up there to get more space. On Lisbon-Fortaleza flight, one entire side section of economy class was shut off by a curtain (I gather to reduce the areas they had to clean). Worse was the intoxicated passenger (he smelled of beer when he boarded, so may well have drunk all of his alcohol beforehand), who managed to put out of commission 2 of 4 economy class toilets through vomiting and errant urination. At one point this passenger tried to sleep on the floor behind a row on the side, stretching his legs across the aisle. Not sure why he was allowed to board (I was once on a United flight when a passenger with a really bad hangover was forced to leave the plane, since, the flight attendant said, she was in no shape to fly, especially in case of an emergency). This was a 7-hour flight over the Atlantic so it was good he did not become ill. Fortunately, flight was not full, so passengers managed to use the 2 remaining toilets without too long of lines. I did submit a complaint form.

TAP Portugal review by Graham Chilvers

1 May 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Rio to London. 17.30 flight from Rio to Lisbon was cancelled. After much hanging around we were transfered to a Hotel. Told we had a 6am flight. Picked up at 4am. Flight wasn't until 8.30am - 4.5 hrs in a shut airport! Arrived in Lisbon at 10pm. One person on duty. Took 2.5 hrs to get a bus to an hotel on the airport. Left Lisbon for London 8.30am next day. We left our hotel in Rio at 5pm Sat (UK time) arrived home 6.30 Monday. It's not the cancelled plane I object to - it happens! It is the total lack of forward planning. TAP knew the plane was cancelled yet nothing was organised. Never again with TAP.

TAP Portugal review by Ella Autiero

24 April 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

I've flown TAP last week; I chose them because they are the only european airline flying directly to Fortaleza (I try to avoid Sao Paulo as a transit airport). The whole experience was poor: they send prehistoric Airbus 310's to South America with a non-existant entertainment system.The service was slow and the food inedible. I had a business class ticket (they call it Executive class), and the business class was half empty, but after two hours inflight people from Economy would just come to the front and sit down and stay! What's the point in paying 2500euros if their so-called Executive class is open to everyone? Last but not least, the crew was lazy and inefficient. They offer DVD players in business; after the service I asked one flight attendant who walked by if it was possible to get one: he replied to me that he was working in Economy and that I should get up, go to the Galley and ask on of the Business class flight attendant! Unimaginable on a Swiss, British Airways or Lufthansa flight!

TAP Portugal review by Jan Keller

15 April 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

The second time I've flown with TAP from Europe through Lisbon to Brazil, the second time they lost our baggage on the return flight. GIG-LIS-LHR: Flight 1 hour late in Rio, thus check in tells us we cannot reach connection in LIS to LHR anymore. The only option we are given for an onward connection is at 1pm to Gatwick. With the prospect of a 6 hours stop in Lisbon we board the plane. Flew in business - seats ok, food terrible, drinks good, crew very unfriendly. In London about 7 passengers don't get their luggage. Filling in forms went quickly, you are given a telephone number to check the status of lost baggage. However this is only an answering machine and they never call you back (text on answering machine is telling: We are sorry that we are unable to answer your call due to the very high number of lost luggage). Conclusion: unless there is an emergency, avoid this airline under all circumstances.

TAP Portugal review by Jorge Zwiep

10 April 2007   Customer Trip Rating : n/a

I’m a frequent traveller from LIS to Brazil. As TAP offers the highest frequency of flights to Brazilian destinations. That's was the best part of my story. Quality of performance and service is terrible. This organisation is one of the worst I know in Civil Aviation. I returned from Brazil march 31. The plane was delayed 17hrs due to seems technical problems in LIS. TAP offered a nice hotel, no problems with that. Most of the passengers had an onward connexion in LIS, these passengers were threatened badly. Part of the connexions could not be rebooked. During the flight no apologies were given about the delay. Short before arrival the cabin supervisor mentioned that upon arrival ground staff are waiting to assist transferring passengers. After arrival at 00.30 local time, a single ground staff member advised the passengers to go to the departure hall service desk for more information. (transfer-area was closed at that time) At the service desk only one service employee was available to assist approx. 100 transfer passengers. Passengers got almost all chairs from a nearby coffee-corner due to the extensive waiting time. This at night-hours! No hotel was offered in LIS. It was sad to see that a numerous passengers were on their first (Intercontinal) flight. It was nice to see that fellow passengers gave them a helping hand. Warning: TAP is an old fashioned airline, with a general attitude that passengers should be pleased that they can fly with them. A new uniform needs also a new attitude.

TAP Portugal review by Matt Hadley

10 April 2007   Customer Trip Rating : n/a

ZRH-LIS and MUN-LIS. All flights departed late (approximately one hour). The crew will always try to blame "air traffic control" or "late arrival of the inbound aircraft" but TAP needs to face the real issue here. The ground service and boarding procedures in Lisbon are the worst. This invariably causes the flight to miss the alloted slot granted by air traffic control, thus causing a further delay. So the inbound aircraft (TAP into Munich and Zurich) was an hour late. The turn around in Munich and Zurich works with quite well but the plane is then late back to Lisbon. Lufthansa and Swiss do not tell you that your leg from ZHR or MUN is TAP, so they are culpable as well. The Star Alliance needs to send in a group of consultants to kick TAP into shape on the ground in Lisbon. Other complaints, on business class MUN to LIS the food was so bad I had to send it back for another option. Wine was good, even excellent. Aircraft old and tired but the crew is generally pretty decent but I agree with unattentive. Baggage on the ground in Lisbon is also very poor, 50 minutes to receive my bag. I will try to avoid TAP in the future if I can.

TAP Portugal review by D Vetter

10 April 2007   Customer Trip Rating : n/a

FRA-LIS-RIO-REC return. First of all and most important we reached all flights. That's worth a comment, because all flights were late. TAP is OK for inner-european flights and short-distance-flights but they're out of the question for long-distance-flights. The aircraft from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro was quite new but no inflight-entertainment- systems were installed. Most of the displays (installed every 3 or 4 rows) were "out of service" or showed a very diffuse picture of whatever. Food was poor. Far the worst was service onboard. The attendants were pretty unkind. Best of all was, that the aircraft was not fully occupied. I don't wonder why. TAP ... take another plane.

TAP Portugal review by Marko Pajunen

24 March 2007

BRU-LIS-AMS in economy in March 2007. Not the best experience, I have to say. The flight BRU-LIS on A320 was on time, but the lack of legroom made it an unpleasant experience, and the plane look old and cramped. The return flight LIS-AMS was 45min late and I missed my connection flight at AMS.The TAP people at LIS were not very helpful, I was only told "they help you in Amsterdam"... the crew on A319 showed better attitude and I got the needed information. The A319 was a lot more comfortable plane, with better legroom and rather nice fake leather seats. The meals, warm sandwich on both flights, were small but tasty. The crews were friendly but didn't give the most professional impression. I will avoid TAP in future, especially if I have connection flights.

TAP Air Portugal - by T Freitas

24 March 2007

LIS-BRU-LIS C class. Lounge in LIS is acceptable, although the one in BRU was a deception. A319 for the outbound leg and A320 for the inbound one, with new livery. Leather seats in good condition (despite being 5 and not 4 each row) and IFE. C class filled up in both flights (10 and 8 pax, respectively). Meals served, even though both were 3PM flights. Food tasty (typical Portuguese) and varied; the wine was good too. Crew was very nice and attentive.

TAP Air Portugal - by Henrique Abreu

20 March 2007

I Fly an average of 2 times a month with Tap mainly Lisbon - Zurich. The main issue is the fact that an average 8 out of 10 flights are delayed, 2 flights were short term cancelled without notification of the passengers (I am Victoria frequent flyer ). Food is lousy, service onboard is getting worse and complaints via the Official TAP web address do not got any answer. When I have an alternative I am booking flights with other airlines.

TAP Air Portugal - by Pedro Gil

26 February 2007

LIS-ZHR C Class. Service in TAP has still a long way to go to keep up with other airlines. 9 out of 10 flights delayed. They do not guarantee that middle seat (in the right side) is empty in business class. Crew members are always resting and talking to each other in the galley instead of checking passengers. Food is terrible. In a 3 hour flight business class passengers were given a lousy snack. I had connecting flights in Zurich with THAI (also a star alliance airline) but TAP didn't allow me to check-in from Lisbon to final destination. What's the point of an airline alliance?

TAP Air Portugal - by James Stevens

5 February 2007

I travelled Economy to Rio De Janeiro via Porto. This without has to be the worst airline I have ever travelled . I agree with another comment made by a customer that staff were very rude and unhelpful. I had asked for a meal that did not contain beef. So when they came around with the meals guess what they gave me? Beef. I asked them four times to make sure it was chicken. When I complained they said they had no chicken left. I ended up eating bread all they way to Rio de Janeiro. What a way to start your holiday. If I thought it couldn't get any worse, it happened again on the way back. I complained on the plane but was told that they were busy and could not speak to me. An absolute disgrace. I will never fly Tap again. I complained to the head office and they said that they will get back to me but it might take over two months!! I will stick to British Airways.

TAP Air Portugal - by Louise Bryant

19 January 2007

Business Class return from Heathrow to Porto and we would not use this airline again. We will now fly British Airways to Lisbon. On the return flight when we queried the amount of seating space we were told that they had had to charter a different plane which was not configured for business class. In spite of paying 5 full business class fares we were not offered any compensation. The food was inedible, the plane was boiling hot for a long period of time, the staff were unhelpful and part of the ceiling fell on my lap. Check-in staff were deliberately slow and unhelpful to prevent us switching to an earlier British Airways flight. A truly horribly experience. We sent a long list of complaints to head office but did not receive any compensation or a refund of the difference between business class and economy. They said that that the seating space was a business class configuration, I dread to think what economy is like. Take Another Plane!

TAP Air Portugal - by J Morrison

19 January 2007

If you are vegetarian don't fly with TAP. They have no clue. I flew TAP economy from Gatwick to Faro on December 30, 2006, have pre-booked a vegetarian meal/snack. It wasn't available on the flight, nor on the return flight January 7th, 2007, even although I re-requested on check- in both times. Cabin staff where unhelpful both times, just shrugged their shoulders as if I'd asked for something really weird and unexpected. Absolute no substitute was offered, not even a piece of bread or fruit. Cabin temperature was way too hot, despite passengers asking for increase in air-con. We had a very scary landing at Gatwick, with no information at all given by captain or crew. Flight delayed by an hour, little info. One woman opposite me was feeling very ill and when she requested assistance from air crew was told quite bluntly that nothing was available - not even a glass of water - and was told to take deep breaths but a rather unhelpful and blunt FA. Needless to say, I won't be using this airline again.

TAP Portugal review by M Carre

12 January 2007

LHR-LIS-REC. I was really disappointed with TAP. When I booked my tickets I requested a bassinet as I was travelling with a baby, and veggie food. When I checked in I was told to speak to the staff at the boarding gate about the cot - when I did, they denied all knowledge of a cot on order and said that there was no veggie food. I was seated in the middle of the four middle seats for the long haul part of my flight which was totally inappropriate with a baby. The staff were surly and rude. The whole experience cost me a princely £2180. I will not be flying with TAP again to Brazil.

TAP Portugal review by P Herman

1 January 2007

Madrid-Lisbon, economy return. Happy with the service provided on this short A319 flight. Outbound on time, seating comfortable but legroom minimal for a tall person. Served a light meal : sandwich, small cake, mars bar and a glass of wine or soft drink, then coffee. Same meal served on the inbound flight, only this time I was seated directly behind business class in a slightly wider, extra-legroom seat which I suppose they normally reserve for full-fare economy paying customers, which I wasn't. Staff were friendly, multi-lingual and efficient, managing to serve a full cabin in under an hour.

TAP Portugal review by E Taylor

2 November 2006

Porto-London, back to school with extra luggage which you used to be able to sneak on board as handbag full of weighty school books - ground staff absolutely adamant, unmoveable, no smiles, you pay or you get your luggage off our flight. We decided to send the offending bag by DHL which is cheaper. Ground staff will ruin this airline. This is the second time I have had the problem with the same woman at check-in whose supervisor, a tiny snappy little man could not even be bothered to talk about it, he just snapped, you have to pay - Victoria miles winner card is only that unless you fly business. I nearly lost my nerves but the check-in assistant got her revenge and simply delayed the bag so it didn't get to its destination. I use TAP so much and bring all my relatives and friends over on this line as I live in Spain - I will definitely not use it again even if I have to walk!! Porto ground staff are arrogant and unhelpful and have been trained to be like this, it is a definite art which they have mastered. Many of us feel that TAP will be paying for the new airport with monies coming in from Excess baggage and this is the only place on earth, I have ever had to pay such a penalty.

TAP Portugal review by Andrey Gerasenkov

5 October 2006

Newark to Venice (changed planes in Lisbon) and Rome to Newark. The outbound flight was half empty and smooth, with the first leg serviced by a brand-new looking A330 and the second leg an A319 (also half empty). FA's were nice and accomodating and the food was not bad. The flight from Lisbon to Newark was serviced by an old A310 with old main screens for inflight entertainment (the one in our section wouldn't lower, and the FA's had to demonstrate the safety procedures). Overall, this is a 3-star airline.

TAP Portugal review by Robert Ashford

5 October 2006

LHR-LIS-LHR for the weekend. Although they don't have online check in like some airlines, they did have a phone check in where they allowed pre-flight seat allocation. Although offered in both locations, The London side was much better than the Lisbon side. Check in was effortless -staff adequately attentive, flight out was on time and fine. Had a bit of a delay in prelude to flight back - felt like we were kept in a holding cell at Lisbon airport while the crew cleaned the plane, but they could have had the decency to let passengers know of delay, and have a coffee or drink at one of the cafe's outside the passenger holding area. Flight was good with snacky kind of food - so no complaints. All in all better than expected,

TAP Portugal review by T Freitas

13 September 2006

LIS-FNC-LIS Y class. Both flights on time and boarding was smooth. Crew friendly and efficient. A319s with new livery and impeccable inside, with leather seats and IFE. Load-factor was around 80%. A sandwich, fruit salad and drinks served; good quality and enough quantity for a 1h40m flight. A very pleasant flight. I hadn't flown TAP in medium-haul for a while, but I think I'll come back.

TAP Portugal review by Nuno Paixão

11 September 2006