China Airlines

Not Verified | Taipei to Frankfurt. I am really upset about China Airline customer service and the abuse of regulations. I book my tickets via Expedia, and Expedia asks their users to input the names as: Family name, Middle Name, First Name. I input as it asks and they arrange my name as Western Order by Family name First Name Middle Name. This is a common way, even western government department does this to Asian name order. When I booked my ticket, Expedia forwarded my info to China Airline and I got charged 100€ for changing my name on the tickets. I booked through Expedia all the time with other Airlines and there has been no problem. With the pressure in the airport, I had to pay. Later I contact China Airline with this complaint and they act like this is my fault. That is really ignorant attitude from China Airlines. I explained to them in details, and they were pushing the problems to their regulation and Expedia. I am sure this is a systematic problem between Expedia and China Airlines, however the customer is the one that is blamed and paid the money. They reject my claim and complaint and complaint but doesn’t do better than abusing their regulations towards customers. As my first time flying, I feel mistrusted towards this airline.

✅ Trip Verified | Bangkok to Taipei. I fail to understand why this flight and the return leg arrived at and departed from Terminal 2. The ticket specifies Terminal 1, Immigration and baggage delivery are at Terminal 1 and the return check-in is at Terminal 1. This is not the first time this has happened on a CI flight. So why does CI not have proper facilities in Terminal 2 or mark the ticket information as Terminal 2? As far as I am aware, on arrival at TPE there was no announcement on the aircraft and no printed announcement on the video monitors. Passengers were therefore left with a weakly written and seemingly unimportant sign on exiting the Gate ramp. But a China Airlines attendant stood right in front and in the middle of that sign rendering it impossible to read. And her main job seemed to be to direct passengers en route to a soon departing Fukuoka flight since the Bangkok flight had arrived late. The only sign exiting passengers can easily see is the bright illuminated sign above stating that for Immigration passengers should turn right. That, though, is for Terminal 2 Immigration and baggage claim. The handwritten sign that should be in very large thick clear lettering easily visible to all disembarking passengers pointed out that those going to Terminal 1 should actually turn left and then walk a very long way. A staff member giving instructions in Chinese is of little use to those not conversant in the language! Having been caught out by this once before and wasted almost an hour, after this flight I stopped and took time to check the sign carefully. This unthought-through action apart, the flight was smooth and the meal very tasty. My only other gripe about China Airlines is the headphones for the IFE. It makes available the ancient circular ones. I accept these fit nicely into the ears of a majority of passengers. But not all ears are the same and they just don’t fit mine at all. So even though this, with a weather delay, was only a 4-hour flight, watching anything on the IFE was out of the question.

✅ Trip Verified | This is first time I use China Airlines, also this is the last time. I never use again and will recommend other people don’t use this China Airlines. This aircraft is small and old. The F&B is not good, very bad. The staff is not helpful. They don’t support the passengers. I needed to change the middle seat to aisle seat, but they ask me for charging money. I didn’t request change to another higher class seat, just same economy. When I get aboard, I saw 4 empty seat around me.

✅ Trip Verified | Los Angeles to Denpasar via Taipei. Check-in at LAX was smooth. They gave us a transfer sleeve to store boarding passes for later segment, which was a nice touch. We had a remote gate far away and had to be shuttled by bus. That experience wasn't very pleasant as we had to wait inside the bus for a very long time. Despite having reservation for four seats (traveling as a family), there was no available overhead storage. All four of us had requested special meals, but the flight attendants started serving us regular meal. It was only after we showed them our boarding passes that they served our special meals. The overall ambiance, seating comfort, and IFE were excellent. Both B777-300ER and A330-300 were tastefully decorated. The service between Taipei and Bali segment was far superior to what we experience between LA and Taipei. The service on our final segment from TPE to LAX fell below the mark. The flight attendants serving us in economy didn't smile and were quite rude while interacting with us. So, while friendly service was absent in TPE-LAX segment, the WiFi worked well on B777-300ER. Overall, China Airlines offered an inconsistent experience where the positives outweighed the negatives, so we will still fly with them again.

✅ Trip Verified | Taipei to Sanya. Our plane was late getting into Taipei from Los Angeles and we had just enough time to disembark and walk to the gate of our connecting flight to be the last persons to board. I told my wife that I was sure our luggage wasn’t going to make the connection. I sat down at my window seat and watched the last of the luggage being loaded but did not see ours. The cabin door closed and I expected us to leave but we didn’t. I could see the baggage handlers impatiently waiting for something. Alas, 10 minutes later a buggy showed up with our luggage and was quickly loaded and we were then on our way. Our flight ended up late and although I felt a little guilty we really appreciated our luggage arriving with us. The food we just ok. The staff were friendly but busy.

✅ Trip Verified | Taipei to Vienna. I find the service in Business Class worth the money. The friendliness and readiness to serve you is very good. The seat is one of the most comfortable seats in business class. The food, especially the breakfast, is very good and tasty, champagne and wine was excellent as well. IFE offers you a large screen and is very responsive. The variety to choose from was also more than enough.

✅ Trip Verified | New York to Taipei. This is the worst flight I've ever been on in my life. I got a discount on this flight, and the stewardesses were nice. Everything else about was a nightmare. I called a week in advance and had to pay for the desired seat I wanted for $30 extra because this airline doesn't let you choose your seat. But they ended up giving me the wrong seat anyway, rather than 40E, which is larger. They could not fix the issue on the plane, so I was stuck with the tiny seat and wasted my $30. Some seats can lift the armrest, but the one I had to go to could not and was quite uncomfortable. I then learned that this was the first flight I've been on that doesn't offer free WiFi. I had to pay $50 (specifically $43.90) to use their very bad WiFi service. The "entertainment" tablet doesn't work, even if you rub it or clean it, and there's nothing on there you've ever heard of, anyway. The food looked inedible, but that's okay because I opted not to eat anyway. It just sucks you have to pay for water, since TSA obviously doesn't let you bring any liquids on. Guess I should've brought a bigger water bottle. Sixteen hours of this, and they don't even offer you WiFi or working power outlets (though I'm surprised we even had those). This airline just seems cheap, even if their actual prices aren't that cheap.

✅ Trip Verified | Tokyo to Taipei. Priority check-in at Narita was quick and easy. I was able to change my seat at the counter. Boeing 777 has a beautifully designed cabin and offers lots of choices on the inflight entertainment system. The cabin manager on this flight was kind and helpful. I was welcomed on board and addressed by name. The vegetarian special meal was of a good quality. There was a selection of drinks available, I tried Kumquat Lemonade and Formosa green tea. On arrival, my luggage was first off the belt as it was marked Priority. I am a SkyTeam Elite Plus member and I never experienced such attention to detail and personal service.

Not Verified | My wife and I flew to Brisbane from Auckland and return. A350 was roomy and comfortable in Economy Class. Crew were friendly. IFE with a good selection of movies, TV and music. Crew on return flight indifferent and sour. Meals were awful - spiced chicken and rice - worse than a microwavable meal from the supermarket. In summary crew need to lift their game. English is often poor and engagement nowhere near Singapore Airlines.

✅ Trip Verified | Bangkok to Honolulu via Taipei. I fly regularly between Honolulu and Bangkok, but I've never flown on China Airlines. However, it emerged as the least-expensive option for a recent trip and since the price and flight schedules were good I decided to give the airline a try, despite some hesitation. I was mostly pleasantly surprised by the airline: Though the staff seem to be unable to smile and service both on the ground and in the air is bare-bones, the A350 is a fabulous aircraft, the seats were mostly comfortable, and the entertainment system was alright. There were a few negative experiences: For instance, not one single flight arrived or departed on time; The airline's pillows and blankets are pitiful, and the catering is mostly inedible; China Airlines has the serving style favored by many Asian airlines, wherein a few drinks choices are offered on top of the meal service trolleys, and if a passenger requests anything not on top of the trolley, the flight attendants tend to lie and say they ran out. It's very, very tedious to constantly have to ask and remind them for something as simple as a can of Coke Zero, and for it to be brought with a scowl. I arrived at Taipei from Honolulu in the middle Typhoon Mitag; My onward flight to Bangkok that evening was cancelled and I was expecting a chaotic, uncomfortable evening in Taipei's airport. Much to my surprise, the situation had been rather expertly arranged before my arrival: An agent met our flight and informed all of us going to Bangkok that we had been rescheduled for a flight the following morning and that accommodation had been arranged for us for that evening. I was impressed by the efficiency of China Airlines and the Taipei airport authorities, and I commend them for their handling of a difficult situation. In all, I recommend China Airlines because of the very low cost paid for this set of flights. While China Airlines certainly pales in comparison to ANA, JAL, EVA Air, Thai Airways and Singapore Airlines, it is at least as good as Korean Air.