Check-in I arrived at Rotterdam airport at 1815 for the 2015 flight to London Luton. There was a queue at check-in desks six and seven (you can check in online when flying from the Netherlands back to Luton but not the other way around). I asked about facilities on the other side and was told the restaurant landside was a bit better than the offerings airside. However, I wanted to relax once through security so I headed straight over there. I was stopped at security as I had bought some herbs in a jar (to make bruschetta with) and this caused the security guards some concern even though the jar was sealed. The café airside had everything you could need (at a price – bottled water was €2.50) and there was an outdoor decking area to watch the planes.
Boarding I went through to the gate early at about 1930 (all gates face the runway and have toilets and a vending machine) and waited to be called. We boarded at about 2000.
The flight The B737-700 has a 3-3 configuration and 26 rows. The upholstery is green and blue, like the Transavia.com logo. I had seat 20B, towards the back of the plane on the left. Row 12 has more legroom than other rows as it is by the emergency exit. Seat 13F is the best seat if you have long legs it’s the only one with no seat in front of it. The aircraft has 24 rows on the left (A-B-C) and 26 rows on the right (D-E-F), so seat 26D was right opposite the toilet and seats 24 A-B-C and 26 D-E-F did not recline. The flight was a little busier than on the way out (it was a Friday evening so there were both business and leisure travellers on board). The businessmen behind me were talking about the traffic around Luton airport and devising ways to beat the security queues.
Arrival We landed at 2005 and as I only had hand luggage, I was on the bus to the train station by 2020, and on my train into London by 2045.
Verdict On time, efficient and friendly. Arriving at Luton is easy, especially if you only have hand luggage.
Price Return economy class flights in September from London to Rotterdam started from €111 online.
Contact transavia.com
Felicity Cousins
