[Anonymous]

[CesarACasas]

4.5 million people get on a plane every day. Of those 4.5 million people, I don’t know how many are so called travel experts. I’m regular passenger who travels 4 or 5 times a year, mainly to the United States. I’m writing this review of Air Europa for the regular 4.5 million passengers that board an airplane every day.

My trip began at Caracas (CCS), to catch a flight to Madrid (MAD) on Air Europa (UX) 72, on a business class ticket. Connecting trough Simón Bolívar Airport was not a nightmare, like everybody had told me. From arrival at the airport to sitting down at the Premier Lounge, 30 minutes passed.

Arrival at the counter.
There was a long line at the Air Europa counter, but I was greeted by an agent that took us to the Business Class (Club Premier) Counter. They were very nice and professional; the whole process took less than five minutes. Along with the boarding passes and luggage tickets I was given to passes the Premier Lounge. The bags were tagged with priority stickers.

The Premier Lounge.
The lounge is small and it was crowded upon arrival, we had to wait for five minutes until we found a couple of chairs, people in charge were very nice and announced every flight for the passengers inside. It was also well stock.

Boarding.
As we had business class tickets, we were the first to board; again flight attendants were very nice and helpful. The plane was very clean. The seats were angled lie-flat, kind of old but comfortable and in perfect working condition. Seat controls were very intuitive, but the remote control for the entertainment system was complicated, even after the flight attendants explained there operation.

The Flight.
We were late for departure, not because of the airline but airport restrictions, the Captain keep us well informed.

An hour into the flight dinner was served, and it was above average. Wine, cava and spirits were also offered. Before departure I searched the weather and there were some storms along the route. For a while I keep track of the flight and noticed changes on the flight path, obviously to avoid the bad weather, as the whole flight was very smooth. Two hours before arrival, breakfast was served, also above average. ½ hour before landing the cabin crew, practically cleaned the plane, there were no pillows, blankets, newspapers, bags or anything else on the cabin floor.

Deplaning.
We were second or third to deplane, passed immigration in less the five minutes, the luggage took longer to arrive, almost ½ hour, but our bags were among the first ones.

The Madrid-Barcelona-Madrid Flight.
Also on Air Europa in Business Class. The Barcelona bound trip was on an Embraer 195. There is no difference from the business class to coach seat, although, the flight attendants were very courteous and friendly. We were served a light breakfast. The Madrid bound trip was a Boeing 737 800. Again there was no difference between business and coach seat, but the business class seats (3 seats), had a table attached in the middle seat, which was attached to the armrests, which were tilted inwards, giving the window and the aisle seat, somewhat more space. I had never seen this configuration in any US Carrier B737. We were only given a soft drink and chips.

A Word on Madrid Barajas (MAD) and Barcelona El Prat (BCN).
Madrid Barajas is comprised by four terminals: T1, T2, T3 and T4. T1, T2, and T3 are old and the T4 and T4S are relatively new. Even though T1, T2 and T3 are old, they don’t have to envy anything to any airport in the United States, new or old.
The T4 is simply spectacular.

As for Barcelona El Prat, this is a mall that happens to have an airport inside. It is simply beautiful and easy to transit.

The Madrid-Caracas Flight.

The Premier Lounge.
The lounge is huge and comfortable. It was well stock with wines, spirits, soft drinks, coffee, sandwiches, and nuts.

Boarding.
Again we were among the first to board and again flight attendants were very nice and helpful. The plane again was very clean. I have to comment that aisle seat next to mine was not operational, and the passenger was moved to another one. This time a video was shown explaining how to work the remote control for the entertainment system.

The Flight.
Again we were late for departure, not because of the airline but airport restrictions, something to do with the slots, the Captain keep us well informed. An hour into the flight dinner was served, and it was very good, better than the flight Caracas-Madrid. Wine, cava and spirits were offered. There was a lot of turbulence for the first couple of hours; the rest of the flight was very smooth. At mid flight snacks were offered, consistent of sandwich, nuts and whatever you wanted to drink.

Two hours before arrival, a light dinner was served, which was simply OK. ½ hour before landing the cabin crew, again practically cleaned the plane, there were no pillows, blankets, newspapers, bags or anything else on the cabin floor.

Deplaning.
We were second or third to deplane, passed immigration in less the five minutes. This time the luggage took a while to arrive, and our bags were not among the first ones, despite of the priority tags attached.

I have flown on KLM, Air France, Alitalia and Iberia in the past, not to mention the EEUU legacy carriers, specially American, and Air Europa is no different than the others, I would said that is better, because is smaller. I strongly recommend flying on Air Europa.

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