XL Airways France

This is a no frills operation but they do it right. The on board staff was friendly and courteous and the plane was clean. We traveled from JFK to Paris and returned after 10 days. It was difficult to hear and see the movies they played but for those who read this is not a problem. The seats seemed small and not well padded. The planes took off and arrived on time - a big plus and we did not have to wait long for our luggage. The woman who checked us in in Paris was exceptionally nice. No complaints and I would use this airline again.

14 June 2014 flight 60 CDG-JFK. Absolutely hands down the worst airline in business. They charge for everything from choosing your seat after booking to a cup of coffee onboard. The seats are small and hard and there is very limited inflight entertainment. Food is limited and tasteless. This airline runs only in the summer and it's obvious. Save your time and sanity! Book on a regular airline. FYI New York JFK only adds to the misery.

Flight SE0056 and SE0077: What an exciting experience. If you are into Buddhism and things such as just sitting there and letting the time pass a XL Airways France flight will just be the very experience you have been waiting for all your life. There was a 3.5 hour delay on my flight from Paris to Cancun which could only be topped by a 4 hour delay on the way back. I have been offered a 15 USD meal voucher on the way back but not on the way out. My seat was broken. On the way out the plane could not depart because of a technical problems and an ongoing inspection which built up my confidence in the French authorities but not in the airline. The staff were friendly and made considerable efforts to make the trip pleasant. However for what is was the price was completely exaggerated. I have chosen XL Airways France because they offered a direct flight to my destination which I thought would safe me time. I could have had a one stop flight with higher comfort and at lower price operated by Air France. Eventually this would have been the better decision.

JFK to CDG return on XL Airways last week. Was a little nervous after the reviews I had read but it was a very good experience. Got to JFK 2.5 hrs early just to be safe and had about a 15 minute wait at check-in. The staff was very courteous and the check-in process was very easy. The plane was a new A330 which was quite nice. The seats were narrow but nicely appointed with blue leather. My wife and I managed to get 3 seats to ourselves which made the red-eye a more pleasant experience. Attendants were very nice and the plane took off right on time. They showed 2 movies in French with English subtitles. It made the cabin quite bright so I would have brought an eye mask to help me sleep. We were fed a breakfast an hour before landing and arrived right on time. Luggage came out quickly. On the way back the plane was not as full and at check-in we were able to get and aisle and window seat with the middle blocked out. Which made for another comfortable flight. All in all it was a very good experience. It definitely is a step below most carriers in terms of amenities but the plane was clean new and the staff very helpful. And we saved $500 per ticket for a direct flight.

My trip from CDG to JFK was a disaster. After an 8.5 hr flight we sat on the runway for 1 hour because there was nowhere to park according to the pilot. After getting through customs it took nearly 30 minutes for the bag carousel to start. So about an hour and 45 minutes after landing I finally get my bag. My girlfriends bag wasn't in the first round of bags. We had to wait another half an hour before the carousel started up again. I can only assume they have one cart and a small group of bag handlers. In short we landed at 10pm and left the airport at 12.40. I will pay for a real airline in the future - it's worth the extra few hundred bucks. On top of that the seats are very small and have zero leg room the inflight entertainment was poor and they charged me for a half a cup of soda.

Yes XL seats are average size and yes there is little in-flight entertainment. Actually I found the flight far better than many I've had recently and XL far exceeded my experience flying from Europe on American Airlines several months prior. The staff are quite congenial and helpful. The plane is clean and the service quite acceptable. Airline travel these days is not fun and unless you are flying first class few airlines meet the acceptable experience we had on XL. So if you want to get to Paris with some money in your wallet enjoy reading napping or other means of self-entertainment and are not obese then I highly recommend this airlines. The comments complaining about XL's service are clearly from customers who like to complain. Flying XL is just fine so do it.

JFK-CDG. Once at the airport you will take your luggage to the shadiest check-in counter then navigate your way to the most isolated gate at your terminal. Your interaction with staff will be brief and to the point. XL does not win any medals for hospitality. But the planes are all throw-aways from second-tier airlines. You may find that you're travelling in say a Garuda Airlines plane from the 80's. The seating arrangement on XL is probably in violation of at least a dozen FAA regulations and if not it should be. Where seats are normally arranged in rows of 2-4-2 this airline opted for a novel 3-3-3 set-up. This adds an extra seat to each row but unfortunately the back of each seat is practically glued to the back of the adjacent seat and as a result the armrests between seats have nowhere to lift. You will be squeezed in so tightly that if you're even moderately overweight forget it: you won't fit. If you're taller than 6 feet you will probably hurt your knees back and/or neck staying in a contorted position for 7 hours. The seats don't really recline with the exception of a few broken ones that recline too much. The rows are so close to each other that a laptop won't open with sufficient clearance to let you type on it. The food will be nothing short of revolting but you should expect that. Bring your own water: the one you can purchase on board costs $3 for a 16-oz bottle. Want coffee? That will be another $3. They say you get what you pay for. Sometimes however the bargain is just not worth it.

We were booked on a flight from CDG to JFK on Sep 23 2013 at 07.30 pm. Before heading to the airport I called to find out what terminal and was told terminal 4 by an XL representative. When we arrived at CDG there was no terminal 4 and know one knew where to find their counter. I tried calling again but was disconnected several times. When we finally made it to 2A and there wasn't anyone there to help since it was 40 minutes before the scheduled departure. I called and was informed that terminal 4 was wrong but that it was 1A which she later corrected to 2A. I'm certain that the representative didn't purposefully give us wrong information but that information caused us to miss our flight. I requested for customer service to put us on the next available flight but was told "After considering your request we are sorry to inform you that we will not be able to give you a positive answer." As it turns out terminal 4 is where they fly in to JFK.

I had booked a flight Catania to Paris non stop months ago. I booked the flight because it was a non stop. A week before the flight I received an email telling me that the flight had been changed and would now stop in Palermo before going to Paris and would therefore arrive Paris at 02.10 in the morning and would take twice as long! I called them to try to cancel the flight. It cost me close to 10 dollars because they have a phone number which charges you for waiting on the line. They then told me that the flight was still technically a non stop flight as the stop in Palermo was merely "technical" (whatever that means) and that as the arrival was less than 2 hours later than originally planned they did not have to reimburse me. I will never use this company again.

Just returned after a trip with family to Paris from JFK. Check-in with e-ticket was no hassle. No pre-selection available but they were good in making sure that family was seated together. Be aware of size and weight limits on baggage but we didn't have problems. Seats no different than other carriers. The crew was professional and accommodating. The flights left and arrived on time. The food was typical airline stuff. All considered wouldn't hesitate to travel with XL again. Saved nearly $2500 by using them.