Wizzair, A320-200 economy class

Published: 25/10/2011 - Filed under: Tried & Tested » Airlines » Tried & Tested » Tried & Tested » Airlines » Wizz Air »

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DESCRIPTION London Luton to Warsaw Chopin Airport. Wizzair flies the route direct three times a day – its entire fleet consists of single-class A320-200s, and its other direct destinations from London Luton include Prague, Budapest and Riga.

CHECK-IN Having arrived at Luton Airport Parkway train station by Thameslink’s service from London St Pancras, and I took a five-minute shuttle bus ride (£1.50, departing every ten minutes) and arrived at Luton’s single terminal at 1225. I headed to check-in desks 39-41, where all Wizzair flights were being checked in.

I queued for ten minutes – the service was efficient and competent, but was slowed by people trying to avoid the £26 charge Wizzair imposes for any bags checked in at the airport – some found that their hand luggage was too large and would need to be checked in, so attempted to re-pack it in order to shrink it to the required dimensions (55cm x 40cm x 20cm). It’s well worth paying the baggage fee in advance – if paid via the website, the fee is halved to £13 per bag for a journey of under two hours, and costs £17 per bag for a journey of over two hours.

After check in, I changed some money at the bureau de change opposite check-in and debated whether to make use of the shops – there was a Starbucks, two WHSmith and a Marks and Spencer food store. I decided to head through to security, which was a two-minute walk away and up an escalator. Security was busy but organised – I waited for 20 minutes altogether and was through to departures by 1320.

THE LOUNGE Departures was busy but not overly crowded. I browsed for a little while in WHSmith before heading to Est Caffe for some lunch – the restaurant had a departure screen which was handy. Other options included a Pret a Manger, Starbucks, the Real Food Company, and there was an Est Bar.

For some last minute shopping, there was a Boots, Accessorize, Monsoon, Dixons, Kurt Geiger and JD Sports. Since Luton airport is so small (one terminal and one runway), it doesn’t offer such a wide choice of duty-free shopping as other London airports, but still has all you could need.

BOARDING At 1350 I was called to board at gate 15. Despite a sign warning that the gate was a 15-minute walk away, it took me just five minutes to walk there. I then joined a long queue at the top of some stairs that lead down to the boarding area. Once our boarding passes were checked and we were down the stairs, we stood at the boarding area for quite some time, and boarding of the plane did not begin until 1420, when the plane was supposed to leave.

Unless passengers had paid for extra legroom, seats on the flight were not assigned. Priority boarders left the boarding area first, and then the rest of us began to board the plane from both the front and the back.

THE SEAT I went for a window seat in row 7 of the A320-200, seat 7A (for a seatplan click here). The plane was configured 3-3 (ABC DEF) and was very full – there were passengers in both seats to my right. The seat was upholstered in maroon leather and had a push button recline. There was a decent amount of legroom and a magazine rack integrated into the seat in front (free magazines were available at the boarding area including Stylist. The seat was comfortable enough for a short-haul journey.

WHICH SEAT TO CHOOSE Wizzair’s XXLong extra leg room fee (£4 when booked in advance, £8 at the airport) gets you a seat in one of the two emergency exit rows at the middle of the plane (rows 12 and 13). This option is not available to any passengers under 18 years old, those who are overweight, pregnant, travelling with children under 2 years old, who need assistance or who don’t speak basic English, as you’ll need to be briefed on how to open the exit door in an emergency.

The amount of extra legroom you get is arguably worth the charge – it would be worth booking ahead for half the price and a guaranteed seat, I believe they were all in use on this flight. Other than that, my window seat near the front of the plane was as good as any other. Passengers sitting near the front of the plane disembark first, but on arrival at Warsaw Chopin Airport, all passengers board a shuttle bus so it wouldn’t make a difference on this route.

THE FLIGHT I was in my seat by 1430 and take-off time announcements began soon afterwards. We didn’t actually take off until 1445, 25 minutes later than scheduled. There was no AVOD faciltities on the plane but this was a short-haul flight anyway. When the person in front of me reclined in their seat, I felt rather cramped and couldn’t cross my legs.

About half an hour into the flight, a food and drink trolley passed through the cabin, offering sandwiches, chocolates, crisps, soft drinks and tea or coffee. The cabin crew served the two people beside me but didn’t ask me if I wanted anything, which I did. I had to ring the overhead bell to ask them to return so that I could buy a bottle of water (£2). When the flight attendant came back they were pleasant, but I felt they should have been more attentive. However, this could have been a misunderstanding.

ARRIVAL We landed at Warsaw Chopin Airport at 1800, 20 minutes late. Passengers disembarked from the front of the plane, and we were transported by shuttle bus to arrivals, which took five minutes. Passport control was a few metres from the drop-off point and I was through in a couple of minute as it was efficient.

I walked for five minutes until I reached belt eight to collect my luggage. After ten minutes, luggage began to appear – often it was placed slightly precariously on the belt, and several bags fell off the belt and into the centre of the circuit, meaning people had to climb over the moving belt and grab their bag. I was thankful that this didn’t happen to me. Having collected my bag, I was in a taxi by 1830 – the taxi rank was directly outside the airport’s exit.

VERDICT A stress-free flight with a few minor delays. The in-flight product met my expectations and got me from A to B.

PRICE A mid-week return flight in mid-November costs from £65. Wizzair charges an additional £7 booking fee when paying by Visa or Mastercard, £5 with Maestro.

CONTACT wizzair.com

Rose Dykins

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