Vietnam Airlines

We fly to Saigon twice a year on average for family visits. Things are a lot better with the direct flights from Gatwick. Things are a bit hit and miss - some crews are really good others can be like prison wardens. This crew was good and the drinks and food kept coming. Seats in economy in the Boeing 777s are starting to show their age and the inflight entertainment jammed which meant 12 hours of Emma Thompson and Tom Hanks in the film about Disney being shown three times back to back with it proving impossible to switch the seatback screen off. It was on time. On these flights what you don't need is a crew that serves dinner at top speed misses pre dinner drinks then vanishes to the crew rest area for10 hours which is what happened on the return flight. Best thing is to book the upgrade option to Premium Economy through OptionTown.com. we did that in the past and it's brilliant. Unfortunately we were too late this time.

I travelled from Melbourne to Ho Chi Minh city and connected with the flight to Gatwick. The cost on this airline was several hundred less than others and I boarded in Melbourne as I could not get the same deal in Adelaide where I live. I have been on several carriers and Vietnam Airlines did a splendid job on the both flights. My only concern was the clarity of the announcements on board and the same at Ho Chi Minh airport. I would travel with them again without hesitation - don't take any notice of negative reviews. I had doubts before leaving Australia but was pleasantly surprised.

SIN-LGW via SGN. I booked my trip back to UK on Vietnam Airlines because it was around 250GBP cheaper than any other airline expect Jet Airways which had poor layover times. Overall the experience on Vietnam Airlines is average not poor nor great. A lot of people on here have given awful reviews of the airline and some of it is valid. The aircraft are unclean the inflight entertainment is poor and dated the seat is rock solid however this is in context when comparing to 5&4 star airlines which command much higher prices. Given the fact that I was saving 250GBP (30%) I was more than happy to except a slightly lower quality service. Personally rated the food actually above that of a recent Emirates long haul flight I took. The flights were on time and the crew acted in a safe and polite manner. I would recommend this airline if its prices are greater than 20% below others for long haul if they are the same its clear that a more mainstream 4-5 star airline would be the better choice.

Always a pleasant experience on Vietnam Airlines. My son and I have flown them from Bangkok to Hanoi and on to Hong Kong. Then from Vientiane to Phnom Penh and on to Ho Chi Minh City. Last year from HCMC to Nha Trang and return. Then this last July from HCMC to Da Nang return and on to Taipei. They even upgraded us on that one for whatever reason. All these flights were reasonably on time courteous staff in flight and on the ground no lost luggage and very clean. Not only would I fly them again I would give them a preference. It's easy to book on- line on their website with lots of pricing choices. One of our favorites.

Return leg Hanoi to LGW 1 Aug 14. Dreading this flight due to the seats on the outward flight so I will deal with this first what a difference this seat was 56A (VNA149) much better support and a foot rest so the gamble is the plane you are flying on. IFE worked but dated and limited due to films on the outward leg (feedback from children). Crew were again very good and attentive and food (why do you get offered a meal at 2 am how about a snack and a decent breakfast) was good although ran out of my choice but the alternative Viet breakfast was excellent. A passenger emergency was handled very well on the flight. All in all I feel for VN they have been let down hugely by the late delivery of the new Boeing 787 and we the customer have suffered. I will gladly look forward to flying them again and if all is well on a new plane with a service that I feel will be up with the likes of SAA and Emirates.

SGN-DAD return both legs with well maintained A321. Plane has good legroom but monitors only for safety video after that disappear. For over one hour domestic flight it's still bearable. Only one bottle of mineral water provided I thought I would have received snack refreshment as this is full service carrier and flight is over 1 hour. VN needs to work it out to achieve 4 star level and catch up with its ASEAN peers.

Gatwick to HCM. The seats were old and most of the individual lights were missing as was ours. My seat's footrest would not raise fully my wife's would not fully retract so sleep was not a serious option. The entertainment system did not work so we were given ipads. The earphones were not compatible with these so the sound was inaudible. The Business class toilets did not work from the outset so these had been barred from use. My overhead reading light and the hostess call button part of the entertainment system controls did not work as the cord was fractured. Obtaining the hostess was only by walking into the cabin between business and economy. So for 12 hours: No sleep no video with sound no light for reading and no hostess to assist me attending the economy toilet during a period of severe turbulence. Oh and water regularly dripped from the ceiling. The staff were grumpy and never got one food order right. We chose Business Class because we felt that our age we needed some comfort. Big mistake.

We travelled from London Gatwick to Ho Chi Minh and find that our apprehensions after reading some negative reviews were groundless. We were in economy but the food and beverages kept flowing through the night. The crews may not be eloquent in English but the service can be compared to that of Singapore and Emirates Airlines! They were able to keep our two boys entertained helping them to behave and were very helpful with the bassinet. Looking forward to another great time on our way back to London on August 1!

Had read these reviews beforehand and was incredibly worried about taking a 12 hour journey with this airline but as all multi stop options took 30 hours plus we decided to bite the bullet. Completely exceeded expectations really attentive crew meals were wonderful free instant noodles and sandwiches were a nice amenity toilets were fine planes were fairly modern and entertainment kept us thoroughly entertained. It's obviously not Emirates but I don't know what a lot of the reviewers on this we're expecting. If you have a bit of a delicate derrière I would advise bringing a cushion (I was fine on the way there but after a few days of long bus journeys the way back was a bit of a long sit).

LGW to SGN VN50 16/7 flight an hour late leaving due to a security alert looking at what happened on the same routing the next day fine by me. Back to the flight IFE worked at every other seat apart from mine unbelievable they tried to fix it without any luck so back to tablet I had with me. Meals were all fine hot and all the selections were available inflight snacks nice treats soft drinks were offered several times and drinks where available throughout. Apart from the worst seat in flying history 13 hours in the next best thing to a park bench is beyond a joke after ramming pillows and blankets at the back of the seat so as to be close to the overhead locker I really say no more I am not looking forward to the return leg. I would like to think this is work in progress and the only reason I couldn't recommend the airline is the cost to health services round the world who will have to pick the bill for damaged backs.