Airline reviews - no fakes!

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Gemini

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#235976 12-May-2018 07:15

Planning to book a return flight to Rome in August

Qatar and Emirates prices seem good, also threw Cathay in the mix

Decided to check reviews. The Cathay ones were bad! I was surprised and sowas thnking Qatar. Their reviews were even worse.

Given the amount of paid human or bot fake reviews I'm not sure I can trust them.

Anyone have comparative experience of Economy Cathay v Qatar v Emirates to Europe or know of a reliable review website?

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#2014479 12-May-2018 07:15

Allow me to introduce you folks to our new travel community: TravelTalk NZ.

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amiga500

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#2014531 12-May-2018 10:32

flyertalk.com.au has lots of trip reports. Youtube trip reports are quite good too.

Linux

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#2014535 12-May-2018 10:37

I flew Qantas AKL - LHR via DXB and back and fantastic service even in economy, I also got upper deck on the way back at no extra cost

Have done AKL - LHR via DXB on Emirates and this was good as well but would pick Qantas again

John

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#2014537 12-May-2018 10:42

In my single dealing with Qatar they cancelled my return flight with no notification or refund. It's subsequently been sorted out through travel insurance, but obviously I'm not likely to use Qatar again!

I've used Emirates a handful of times with no issues. I've never used Cathay.

sbiddle

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#2014538 12-May-2018 10:42

I would not expect any major difference in the economy class hard or soft product between those three airlines apart from looking at minor things such as seating (CX for example will still have some 777's with 3-3-3 seating). Likewise it's not going to differ significantly from any other major airline. It's really in business class or first class that you start to see differences between airlines - economy class is just a seat at the back of the bus.

Gemini

429 posts

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#2015048 13-May-2018 10:48

good info thanks, will take a closer look at flyertalk
qantas must entail a stop in AU so probably not a realistic option
good to know Cathay might be equal to qatar/emirates for economy class

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#2015049 13-May-2018 10:55

@Gemini The Stop in SYD was nothing enough time to disembark the 738 and get to next gate to board the A380 then onto DXB stop in DXB was 1 hour 30 minutes then onto LHR

John

Handle9

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#2015058 13-May-2018 11:26

I flew Qatar to Europe in March. The 777-200 from Auckland - Doha is 3-3-3 and wasn't near full in both directions. Since the blockade Qatars loadings have been down so there is more space on the planes. The service was very good. The only thing wrong really was that the armrests in economy don't go all the way up. You can wriggle around to get more comfortable though. If you have any sort of status with them they treat you exceptionally well - I was silver and got a personal welcome on each leg and priority meals etc.

On the other legs (Doha - Frankfurt and Heathrow - Doha) It was on the newer planes with nicer seats and newer entertainment screens. Same selection but a better picture and more responsive UI.

Doha Airport is really nice and very efficient. I'd fly them again.

Gemini

429 posts

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#2015382 13-May-2018 21:44

Related question
Which is easier 2x12h flights OR 1x17.5h+1x6.5h ???
Struggling with the idea of 17.5h in one hit!

Handle9

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#2015385 13-May-2018 21:47

For me once it gets past about 10 hours it makes no difference. I'll watch a few movies then just doze for a few hours, rinse and repeat. I can sleep on planes though.

I'm not looking forward to finding out about this with the kids through. They were fine for 12 hours, not sure how they're going to go for 16....

DaveB

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#2015419 13-May-2018 23:08

If you prefer to fly right through, my preference is the 17 hour flight followed by the shorter flight. Emirates have the better economy class product IF the flight has only light bookings. More room to stretch out on an empty A380 than a Qatar 777. IF the flights are full, the Qatar 777 (3-3-3) compares with the larger 3-4-3 Emirates A380. Service is comparable.

I will add here, Qatar is very cost competitive. IF you can be tempted to look at their mixed economy / business class airfares (much cheaper than Emirates), then it really is worth considering. Depending of course on the number of people travelling, the business class experience on long haul is well worth the additional cost on this split fare structure.

I've not flown Cathay for a number of years now, but a friend of mine got good Premium Economy seats to Europe for about NZ$4,000 return I believe. He said their service, food and seating was very good.

Depending on which way you choose to fly, just remember that most reviews will focus on reviews from people who have chosen the cheapest tickets and will not necessarily reflect the actual service that is provided for people that purchase normal tickets. But at the most budget conscious level, you can't go too far wrong with Qatar or Emirates. People just love to complain, expecting the earth for nothing. So don't take too much notice of the online reviews. The M3 airlines are very good for the fares charged.

Flying is certainly cheap nowadays. Hell, we used to pay NZ$3,000 economy return 40 years ago. Enjoy your trip!

DaveB

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#2015447 13-May-2018 23:18

Gemini:

Decided to check reviews. The Cathay ones were bad! I was surprised and sowas thnking Qatar. Their reviews were even worse.

Given the amount of paid human or bot fake reviews I'm not sure I can trust them.

Really interested now. In what ways were the Cathay reviews bad and the Qatar reviews worse?

jarledb

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#2015455 14-May-2018 00:28

I do the nonstop flight with Emirates Auckland to Dubai all the time. Would pick that every time over having a 2 hour stop over somewhere in Australia for refueling. Besides the A380 is a lot more comfortable than a 777ER (in cattle class).

Usually fly with my SO, so being able to sit in the 4 row means we only ever disturb or get disturbed by each other. Would not want to sit in the window seat or the isle seat in a 3-row when we are only 2 for those kinds of travels.

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Shoes2468

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#2015477 14-May-2018 07:48

Currently in Nice France and flew Qatar, on the way there chc-syd-doh-nce. Qatar was good the A380 syd-doh was really nice to fly on and wasn’t quite full so we got 3 seats to ourselves. Which was nice. However the leg from doh to nice 6 hours was on a 787-8 (3-3-3) and was cramped (I’m a tall guy) it was comparable to air nz a320 for leg room and seat width, for me that is knees against the seat in front. Service was also a little slow on this one. Economy all the way. On the way home we are going nce-doh-akl-chc so will be interesting to see how that goes, I know we are in the cramped 787-8 again. But will be interesting to see the how the 777 compares to the A380 seating wise.

allan

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#2015589 14-May-2018 10:35

We have just returned from London last Wednesday with Cathay. Was originally supposed to be Virgin Atlantic to Hong Kong and the Air NZ from HK to Auckland, but 787 and Rolls Royce engine issues intervened and we were rebooked on Cathay (AirNZ codeshare from HK). Was a 777 from Heathrow to Hong Kong and because of the last minute change ended up in the 2nd to last row in the centre section at the rear of the aircraft, which is a 3-3-3 configuration at that point. Not my ideal spot to travel, but very handy to the bathrooms. I found the seating quite cramped, but hey it is the back of the plane. From Hong Kong to Auckland it was an A350, where it appeared we had more leg room and were in a window and centre seat in a 3-3-3 configuration.

Had no complaints about the food. The economy dinner options were three different choices on both legs. Evening/late afternoon departures from both locations and Cathay are very dictatorial about the window shades being closed and not being opened until they declare it is morning, so don't try for an early glimpse of sunshine

However, I would be quite okay flying with them again.

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