Easyjet. (easyJet)

Member Name: stuntpilotx

Product:	easyJet
Date:	07/01/09 (48 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap. Flight was fine.

Disadvantages: Check-in and boarding, a catastrophe!

Having watched programmes such as Airline, I was somewhat dubious about flying with Easyjet, however being a student on a tight budget I had very little choice for my flight to Amsterdam. However, maybe Ryanair would have been a better choice. Easyjet are the fastest growing budget airline in the UK, now flying across all of Europe and beyond.

I booked my flight using the Easyjet website, and this was a very easy process. The website is easy to use (albeit overly orange which hurt my eyes a little), and well laid out. The booking process was simple, allowing you to search for flights up to seven days before or after your selected date in order to find the cheapest deal. You simply enter your information, pay by credit/debit card and the booking confirmation arrives in your inbox. You're given the option of baggage, and priority boarding etc. You are also given the option of being sent a text reminder of when your flight is, the check in time etc which is useful when booking far in advance.

The airport:
The staff on the check in desk were barely fluent in English, despite England being the country I was flying from, and then decided that my passport was not me despite the photo only being a year old and me looking exactly the same except a hair colour change. I may have had a particularly incompetent member of check-in staff though as everybody else seemed to get through the process in half the time that I was able to check in.

Easyjet do not allocate specific seats for their flight, and the majority of people are allocated to boarding group B. When you go to board the flight, you either queue to be allowed onto the plane, or in the case of Amsterdam airport, you wait in cordoned off group areas. This feels somewhat like being cattle shepherded, and many people start getting impatient and barging through when they are finally allowed onto the flight. Not really the fault of Easyjet, but maybe seat allocation would reduce the rush for people to board as soon as their group is called.

Overall, the flight was fine, however the check-in and boarding procedures were stressful and irritating, which is the last thing that's needed with the extra stress of travelling. Easyjet could do with introducing seat allocation simply to avoid everybody rushing to board in order to sit together/get good seats. Also they should ensure that all staff work to the same procedures to avoid people being singled out for no reason.

Summary: Disorganised.