Any experience flying Norwegian Air, Air Berlin, or Aer Lingus? Planning on flying from Orlando to Rome in May 2015 and saw much cheaper tickets with Norwegian Air ($400 "low fare"), Air Berlin ($752) and Aer Lingus ($865) as opposed to $1800+ on other carriers. Wondering if it's too good to be true. Don't know much about these airline carriers so any feedback would be appreciated!!
Posted by
Folsom, California, USA
322 posts
We often fly San Francisco to Europe on Air Berlin because of their good prices. They usually have a nice packet waiting on your seat with eye mask, warm socks, and ear plugs. Food is fine (airline quality). Seatback entertainment. Pretty standard stuff. I have no problems with them. They cut costs by only flying certain routes on certain days (Tuesdays and Fridays from SFO). They also use smaller airports (Dusseldorf instead of Frankfort for example). They are my go-to airline for Northern and Western Europe.
Good luck,
Kaye
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
388 posts
In my experience, all of these airlines are reputable. I've flown on Norwegian and Aer Lingus and they were about as good as any other airline. All three of these airlines have been know for offering really good deals in Europe. I haven't looked for transcontinental flights but It wouldn't surprise me if you found good deals like that from the east coast. Just make sure you read the fine print.
Posted by
PA
2858 posts
Look up reviews of Norwegian on Skytrax (airlinequality.com) There are a lot of reports of problems with their long haul flights, -major delays and cancellations.
Posted by
Green Bay
21153 posts
Air Berlin's seat pitch of 30" is a bit tighter than the more standard 31"-32" used by the others.
Posted by
Colorado
82 posts
While I have not flown Air Berlin, I have flown on both Norwegian and Aer Lingus. My Norwegian experience was in Europe and I found the airline to be similar to those low cost carriers we have in the United States. Not much to brag about in the form of inflight service as Norwegian charges for those types of extras, but the rest of the experience was very good. Aer Lingus provided more of a main line experience which included an in-flight meal in Economy. They use Airbus A330 planes primarily in the United States and offer two cabin service (business/economy). I like Aer Lingus and also like transitioning through Dublin. A bonus feature for Dublin Airport is that you can clear U.S. customs at Dublin Airport (on the way home) which is a nice thing when you arrive back in a crowded airport state side and you have already completed the process.