Alitalia

✅ Trip Verified | Madrid to Rome. Boarding was on time and quite fast. The plane was very old, it can't even illuminate properly the "fasten seatbelt" sign. Service on short European flight consist in a drink and a little snack, I think Alitalia is one of the few European airlines to serve free food nowadays. Our flight was delayed for 1 hour in Madrid due to airport congestion, so we arrived late in Rome.

Not Verified | Chicago to Rome. My husband and I landed in Rome for our honeymoon three days ago and were informed our luggage was lost. We filled out the proper paperwork and left with our driver for our hotel. By the end of the night we were informed the luggage had been located at the airport and would arrive at our hotel by the following morning. Morning came and went with no luggage. We called the airline and the process of calling, being told to wait, and calling again began. For 72 hours this continued until our last day in Rome, today. We have spent hundreds in euro on clothes and hours trying to locate what we needed to enjoy our stay. Our options now are to take a taxi to and from the airport (40 minute drive) without receiving any reimbursement, or continue to wait for our luggage to magically reappear before we must leave for our final destination. We cannot afford the taxi since we have already spent so much on things we packed and have no access too, so we are left to wait. With no service on either of our american phones, the only option we have to get updates is to stay at the hotel where we can receive calls. Alitalia and their treatment of our case has ruined our stay in Rome. We only pray that our 3 days in Vienna might treat us with slightly more decency so that we may enjoy the honeymoon we have both worked so hard to experience.

✅ Trip Verified | Seoul to Milan via Rome. The flight has been a nice surprise: Korean and Italian staff was very nice and kind, food is the best I had on airplane. The wine that comes from a real glass bottle, leg space is better then standard.

✅ Trip Verified | Rome to Paris. We go to the ticketing area & they have someone standing at the entrances to confirm you are in the right area, so the man checked our paper & said go right here. We stand in a long line, only to be told that we were in the wrong line!! The lady told us to go 2 rows down. (be aware that even though it says Alitalia in really huge writing on the walls behind the desks, that there are different flight names displayed on the TV's above them in small writing up in the corner of the TV). I told the lady that the guy standing right there directed me here, and that it says Alitalia right there, then she pointed out that its what's on the TV. So we go in this long line & wait. We get to the counter, & the guy starts talking to another man (which seemed to be a supervisor). We thought that maybe he was being trained so they were talking him through it, but they kept talking and laughing. We waited for awhile before I asked if there was an issue w/ our tickets. Then, he calmly says, I can't find your tickets, you'll have to go to the help desk over there. I told him we didn't have a lot of time because we had already been directed to the wrong line & that our info was right there. He said I can't help you. So we go over there & there is about 8 people in front of us & only 1 person working at that desk. I'm starting to panic at this point because I didn't want to miss our flight, we had even came really early! I tell my bf to wait inline while I go back & see if someone else could help us because it seemed like this guy didn't know what he was doing at all. I ask a man standing up front to help because we are running out of time, he directs me to the same guy that we just dealt with - I tell him we are going to miss our flight, he says you have plenty of time. I couldn't believe how he was treating me. I was so frustrated, I had to walk away. I went back to my bf & told him, he went to the kiosk to see if he could print them while I waited inline. I get up to the lady tell her he couldn't find them, she calls over to him, writes something on the paper & says go back over there & they will take you right away. (Her attitude was not any better she was rude as well!!) So I turn & rush to get my bf from the kiosk & she starts yelling at me to go back to that desk & I told her that I have to get my bf, then she says ma'am you don't have time!!! (I know we don't have time!!) So we go back to the man to get our tickets & we cut the line like she said to. He refused to help us right away, so my bf says are you guaranteeing that we will not miss our flight? He says yes & then I think he worried so he stopped helping the other people & got us our tickets. We had to run to get to our gate. we barely made it. Then the boarding lady was taking bags because there was no room & gets into it with this elderly couple because they refused to give her their bags, because they lost their bags last time. She was not understanding at all, they ended up not letting them board, instead of letting them keep their bags. The whole experience was awful, customer service was very poor!

✅ Trip Verified | Palermo to Moscow via Rome and I was so unlucky that I left my laptop on board of the aircraft on our way to Moscow. When I realized that the laptop was left, I called to the support service in Russia and asked what should I do. I was told to send a request to the Alitalia lost and found office. The only e-mail address on the website was Italian , and after sending the request I was answered, that this Office has only responsibility for the things left on board of the airplanes going to Rome and was advised to contact Sheremetyevo airport. Sheremetyevo airport explained that they do not collect things from other Airlines, except Aeroflot. Things that are left on board of Alitalia Airlines are brought to the small Alitalia Office located at Sheremetyevo. After asking Alitalia main Office for the contact, I got the answer that they dont have it. So the only way to find something you left on board going to Moscow is to come every day to Sheremetyevo Alitalia Office and ask them personally. No e mail address, No telephone number, No permanent working hours. Basically you have to live in Sheremetyevo and wait if the lady in a green Alitalia T shirt will get returned your laptop. How come that the national airline company of Italy do not have the local number of their own representative in Russia and cannot answer the simple question who gets the forgotten on board luggage if it is found? I can surely say that it a clear sign of unrespectful attitude to the customers and was really choked of the unwilling of the Alitalia employees to help, they were just redirecting every time from call centre in Russia back to lost and found Office in Rome. Really poor quality service!

✅ Trip Verified | Los Angeles to Rome. On the return flight from Los Angeles we traveled in Premium Economy having requested and obtained a flight upgrade. Having had the upgrade we thought we would enjoy all the privileges of this class of flight including the possibility of embarking 2 bags of 23 kg, but at the airport of LAX we learned that this was not included in the upgrade. Now, if the company offers me an upgrade (through participation in an auction) it should also specify which services the customer has access to and which are not. Needless to say, at the airport to our grievances they shrugged and the conclusion was that we were able to take two extra bags as members of the Ulisse Club. Frankly it was so many years that I did not travel Alitalia and in this circumstance I remembered why. Another flaw that I found is the bad grace of the stewardess and the bad conditions in which the toilets are left, which after so many hours and so many people who frequent them become unrealistic. Finally my seat, but it was bad luck, did not remain reclined but moved continuously upright. IT: Sul volo di ritorno da Los Angeles abbiamo viaggiato in Premium Economy avendo chiesto ed ottenuto un upgrade della classe di volo. Avendo avuto l'upgrade noi pensavamo di godere di tutti i privilegi di questa classe di volo tra cui la possibilità di imbarcare 2 bagagli da 23 Kg, invece all'aeroporto di LA abbiamo appreso che questo non era compreso nell'upgrade. Ora, se la compagnia mi offre un upgrade ( attraverso la partecipazione ad un'asta) dovrebbe anche specificare quali sono i servizi a cui il cliente ha accesso e quali no. Inutile dire che in aeroporto alle nostre rimostranze hanno fatto spallucce e la conclusione è stata che siamo riuscite ad imbarcare due bagagli in più in quanto membri del Club Ulisse. Francamente erano tanti anni che non viaggiavo Alitalia ed in questa circostanza mi sono ricordata del perchè. Un'altra pecca che ho riscontrato è la malagrazia delle hostess e le cattive condizioni in cui vengono lasciate le toilette, che dopo tante ore e tanta gente che le frequenta diventano improponibili. Da ultimo il mio sedile, ma sarà stata la sfortuna, non rimaneva reclinato ma si spostava continuamente nella posizione eretta.

✅ Trip Verified | Bucharest to Chicago via Rome. I do not recommend Alitalia and will never fly with this airline again. First, our luggage didn’t make our connecting flight on our departing trip and we had to wait over 24 hours to get our baggage. We had to go buy clothes meanwhile, which was very inconvenient. Then, the return trip was a disaster. We flew from Bucarest to Rome, where we had a 2 hour layover. We were at the gate early and got in line with everyone else, when my husbands ticket was scanned it was refused by there system. They told us to go stand in another line and wait for the one guy helping with all the issues. After 10 minutes he said we were fine and to go back in the boarding line. They scanned his ticket again and it refused it. They said to go back to the other guy again. We proceeded to have to stand there for 20 minutes while everyone else was boarded and our plane was scheduled to leave and they couldn’t figure out why the error was occurring. Have in mind we have a 1 year old child with us and she was getting very antsy. Finally they told us just to board because we were last. Our seats were not what we requested. We were told we had bulk head seats to accommodate our little girl but our seats were all the way in the back with NO leg room. We asked to be moved if possible and the stewarts refused to even try to help us. They said we need to sit and nothing is guaranteed. Next, when the plane went to take off it was coming off the ground and then slammed to a halt scaring the heck out of everyone. There was an instrumental problem with the plane and we had to end up sitting for 1.5 hours while it was fixed. Making it a crazy long 12 hour flight. The food is worse than other airlines and they expect you to get up and get your own beverages and crackers throughout the flight while they sit and sleep in their curtained area once they are done serving the dinner. I can’t believe they are paid to sleep instead of help paying customers. Go around with drinks. Pick up trash throughout the flight. Anything. We were so disappointed with our experience with Alitalia. For a couple more hundred bucks, it is well worth flying with another airline. Especially if flying with children. Other airlines go out of their way to make everyone comfortable and content, especially on such a long flight. Alitalia employees could care less and many of their employees are super rude. If you choose to fly with them, I have tried warning you.

✅ Trip Verified | Some staff are rude and not kind to their customers and nice. Airplane is really old, you can’t even charge your phone. In 8 hours you eat only once full meal and you get some disgusting sweet after. I am angry and disappointed at this company. Worst experience ever!.

✅ Trip Verified | Athens to Amsterdam via Milan. How this airline can continue to operate is a mystery. Firstly, we had to pay 45€ per bag for our luggage without being notified when we booked. There are no meals on board. Even the quality of the snacks they serve is very poor. The most uncomfortable experience of flying Alitalia is that the seats are so small and there is no legroom at all. It is actually impossible to seat throughout the journey. I will never ever fly with Alitalia and I feel I didn't get value for my money.

✅ Trip Verified | I am not surprised that the company is failing: this is consistently, and without surprises, the worst airline I've flown with. First, I tried to upgrade. There were no seats left, but I still spent over 20 dollars to try and do so, because they're the only flagship airline I know that has a paid (and ridiculously expensive: 1 eur/min) customer service phone line. And it's obviously the only way you can upgrade, no option to do so from their website. The check-in was horrible, with a never ending line because it took them forever to check people in. In the end they had to ask help from the desks of another airline to cope with that. The flight experience was also horrible: the plane was old and filthy, the food was little and disgusting (I very rarely leave food on my plate, but some of that was inedible), the in-flight entertainment consisted of a screen just slightly bigger than my phone with a handful of movies that kept breaking for no apparent reason. The service on the plane was, guess what, horrible. Their stewards were borderline rude, throwing things on my tray when serving them, constantly hitting my head or shoulder because they didn't look where going. They were also arrogant and incompetent: when I asked for an immigration card, they told me I didn't need it anymore, and got annoyed as I insisted. In the end I didn't get one, and once I reached the immigration officer I had to go to the back of the queue because obviously I was right and they were wrong, and I did need an immigration card with my visa. I vowed in the past I wouldn't travel with Alitalia anymore. This time I couldn't avoid it, but they confirmed, once again if there was any need, that I made the right choice back then. I do hope they finally go out of business, as they absolutely deserve that.