Air China

✅ Trip Verified | Overall very pleasant surprise. Longhaul sectors (BUD-PEK) new aircraft, enough space, pleasant crew, 2 hot meals, constant service of drinks throughout the flight Shorthaul (3hours) quite old A330, hot meal, great crew. Generally the food is pretty great when from outstation and not good out of China (I ordered special meal, always received it) Also, entertainment options are quite poor - I would be so happy to watch some Chinese/Asian movies but there's no subtitles. Also, some sectors they make you switch off everything and even not use IFE 30 mins before landing. Confusing Had access to lounge on first sector which I didnt use, and free hotel on the way back (over 10 hours layover). You spend lots of time at immigration and getting to the hotel but those 5 hours at the hotel were priceless! Given the amazing price they usually offer I recommend.

✅ Trip Verified | Have flown Air China from Italy to Japan twice (August 2023 and May 2024) with 3 layovers in Beijing and 1 in Hangzhou; a total of 8 individual flights. Overall, I would say it is a lower than average experience and quality that, generally, a traveller can rationalise away due to a good cost advantage, though this is not always the case and other airlines should be considered if not. I would draw a distinction between, 1) the flight itself, and 2) everything else around it like their website and booking system, online check-in and app experiences. The latter driving the overall experience way down due to what I believe is narrow browser compatibility (causing all sorts of problems in activating fields or multiple-selection drop-downs or even just page loading), cumbersome user interface, excessive 'prove you are not a robot' checks (some of which are actually broken and it is impossible to match in the way required, so you cannot proceed) and inexplicable, generic errors that stop you progressing. The check-in process is particularly frustrating and will require multiple attempts with different devices and browsers. The app simply did not work. Flight Experience: I would say average. Good points are that staff are generally helpful and pass frequently in the cabin to check things, also passing frequently with water. The aircraft I have flown on are an A350-9, B787-9 and 777 300-ER, the first 2 being new and the 777 being quite old and well-worn. Negative points are that the food is a little below average - generally chicken of beef with rice or noodles, but we did get a pork option on 1 flight. To my taste, the food is bland and uninspired. All meals come with a little salad/vegetable side, some bread product and a small sweet or fruit. The drinks cart passes about 10-20 minutes before the food, so don't drink everything before your food comes, though I did notice on my last 2 flights that they came with both drinks and food carts in tandem on the dinner service only. Interestingly, I felt the food on our short-hauls from Japan to China (both flights) were better that the long-haul from China to Italy. There are also no snacks offered whatsoever, so bring something with you if you get hungry easily. During the booking process and also later, it is 'possible' to select a non-standard meal like vegetarian or lactose-free. I selected lactose free on all flights, but this was only satisfied on a single leg of 1 journey (so 2 flights). Thankfully, there isn't much cream/milk in Chinese cuisine, so I had no problem. In the cabin, none of our flights had individual air control at the seat, so you are at the mercy of the overall cabin temperature - I found a couple of flights to be very warm and uncomfortable. I found this the worst aspect of the flight. Trim and materials on all aircraft are basic. The IFE on the 350 and 787 were decent, but the 777 is old with small screens that are often very washed-out and have a very poor touch experience - I always reverted to using the physical controller. Content library is 80% Chinese to 20% western and not very large in any case. No real Wifi on board. English can be a bit hit-or-miss and oftentimes the English PA announcements were completely incomprehensible - thankfully, nothing really important is ever said on any flight PA - but speaking face-to-face is better.

Not Verified |   My flight was delayed due to bad weather and it was already clear that I will miss my connective flight (the same for many other passengers). I know that the weather is not the airline's fault, but the unprofessional handling is. Although CAN is an international airport, nobody at Air China CAN speaks English. And even after passengers arranged their own translator, they were not willing to talk to us. Instead of organizing a rebooking and give passengers certainty about how the trip will continue, they did nothing and kept us uninformed until we reached the next stop in the middle of the night. It was barely impossible to plan ahead and inform people waiting for us. Writing a complaint is pointless. The customer service only referred to the weather, but did not address the actual reason for my complaint (staff not willing to talk to passengers and help them rebooking). But this was not the only issue on my trip. My flight should have included Wi-Fi, which was a major criterion for my choice. But it was broken and the airline refuses to compensate for it. After a complaint, they only "confirm that it was broken" (yeah, I know that, this is why I contacted them), but "they cannot compensate, thanks for understanding". No, I do not understand that you find it natural to charge the full price although you confirm that part of the service was not provided.

✅ Trip Verified | Air China won’t replace my damaged bag as it is old (2016 only used 4 times). Air China should replace the luggage even if it is old. In addition, the stress and hassle you provided to your passenger.

Not Verified | I recently embarked on a return trip from Beijing to Madrid with Air China, and to say it was a nightmare would be an understatement. My experience with this airline was nothing short of appalling, and I feel compelled to share my grievances to warn fellow travelers. Firstly, let's talk about the lack of Wi-Fi on both legs of the journey. In this day and age, Wi-Fi has become a standard amenity, especially for long-haul flights. However, Air China seems to be living in the stone age, as they offered no Wi-Fi whatsoever. This made my 12-hour flight an excruciating exercise in boredom, as I couldn't even use the internet for work or entertainment. The drink selection was another major letdown. Despite their menu promising a variety of alcoholic beverages, including vodka, none were available. I specifically requested vodka, only to be told they were out of stock. And don't get me started on the wine - it ran out after just two glasses! From then on, it was water and juice for the duration of the flight, with no snacks to tide me over between meals. Speaking of meals, the quality was abysmal, with not a single vegetarian option in sight. To add insult to injury, they ran out of one of the dishes, leaving me with nothing but fish and rice, which I don't even eat. The timing of the drinks and food service was also a joke - by the time my meal arrived, I had already finished my drink! As if all of this wasn't bad enough, the crew seemed completely disinterested in providing even basic levels of service. They were unapproachable and seemed to go out of their way to avoid interacting with passengers. It was clear that customer comfort and satisfaction were not priorities for Air China. Considering the exorbitant cost of the ticket, I expected far better from China's national airline. Instead, I was met with incompetence, indifference, and discomfort throughout the journey. I believe some form of compensation is warranted for the sheer inconvenience and disappointment caused. In conclusion, if you value your time, money, and sanity, steer clear of Air China for long-haul flights. There are plenty of other airlines out there that actually care about their passengers' experience. Don't make the same mistake I did. Avoid Air China at all costs.

✅ Trip Verified | This is not a business class for a 5 hours night flight. Very uncomfortable, you can’t sleep no space for your feet. Never again, if I have to pay let me get the device I deserve. The service on board was okay, but the rest was very upsetting avoid

Not Verified | They are a bit cheaper than the rest, but not worth the appalling service and attitude of Air China. Everything was bad from the seat not secured to the plane properly, rude staff, terrible food, app unworkable, wrecking your luggage, etc. etc. When I returned home I contacted customer services and they are the worst I have ever encountered. Every reply I got was a lie, asked to be contacted by a manager at least a dozen times, ignored. Don't fly with them, in the long run it will be more expensive!

✅ Trip Verified | Air China rather surprised me and left good impression in overall after my journey. Might be due to reduced expectations before the trip based on their experience as rather budget airline, but I enjoyed the flight. The ticket price was surprisingly low, twice lower than alternative flight to Taiwan. But check-in luggage was included and the airline was very transparent about their fees. The website seams outdated and fails to load sometimes. Online check-in requires patience, as it might take multiple attempts to complete it. Airport check-in is on contrary fast. Due to operational requirements Air China flights in MXP are parked on remote stands, so boarding is done using stairways. The aircraft to Beijing was Airbus A350-900 - airline's most modern aircraft. The seat was comfortable, pleasant material, comfortable headrest, legroom was a bit small (I am 193cm), but would be rather sufficient for most travelers. IFE had a bit limited choices, but collection was rather up to date. There is a big choice of Chinese films and music and few games. After departure meals were served quite fast. The quality was "okay". The food felt as if it was stored frozen (which was the cause for both segments), but portions were decent size. Snacks were available on demand for the entire flight. The next flight was on A330-300, which is mostly used on regional routes (China and close international destinations), so cabin was a bit outdated, didn't feature an IFE and seats were rather hard with smaller legroom than A350. Headrest didn't regulate but for 3 hours flight to Taipei it was fine. As it was a morning flight, they offered breakfast. Every aircraft had a universal 110V power outlet, supporting European, US, Chinese and British plugs. On A350 USB outlet is also available. In general I was satisfied with the trip.

✅ Trip Verified | Customer service was awful in flight, at the airport and online. The food was average at best and cheap quality drinks. To make matters worse I was unexpectedly moved from extra legroom seat to one with less space. The entertainment screen and USB charging port didn't work on 3/4 of the flights. I encountered issues with the website after I booked my flight. Lastly, the service in the airport lounge was awful, with poor English communication throughout my experience. Overall appalling experience. I would not recommend this airline due to these numerous disappointments.

✅ Trip Verified | Flight on time from Beijing to Frankfurt. Seat range is great even footrest provided in economy. Service quick and had enough to drink. Open bar during night. Two meals in a 10 hours flight. At night they serve a sandwich and yogurt which was pretty dry but okay. For breakfast eggs or Chinese congee with Chinese egg. I liked it. Everything was fine.