I travelled to Berlin over the last August bank holiday by Lufthansa and was dismayed by the way I was treated on the journey there.
In City airport I was fine I had no problems checking in and boarding and was surprised that the plane actually left on time which is very rare for me when flying.
To Berlin
Firstly the air steward went through the safety procedure in German then English. The English version seemed a lot shorter which alarmed me as I managed only to catch a few words but clearly remember being told to read the instruction in the front pocket of the seat. I was a bit shocked at this and read what to do in an emergency with a bit more caution than usual.
Secondly I ordered a special meal, as I am allergic to seafood and nuts. So imagine my surprise when the food arrived it consisted of over cooked vegetables, with salmon wrapped in ham and a roll with sesame seeds on top. I informed the air steward that I could not eat this meal and was told that the airline had no order for me. I was so insulted that I insisted in my best none threatening voice that she take it way. She must of thought that I was going to cause a scene as she came back later with a spare vegetarian meal (bland and tasteless), and gave me a look of death like it was out of her way.
I found the staff rather rude and unhelpful during the short flight and made the decision then never to fly with Lufthansa again. All I wanted to do was arrive in Berlin and get something to eat that was edible.
Return journey
The return journey was a bit better; there was a lot of waiting around in the airport. When I arrived I was told that the checking desk was not open half an hour later I saw German people checking in. I don’t know if it was because of the German/English history but I am Caribbean so am not interested in their disagreements so there was no need to lie to me.
The safety procedure was as before and this time the English version was a bit more audible but I was so tired by now all I wanted to do was get home.
The meal had improved on the return journey, thankfully I was sitting on the isle as I had a cheese and salad sandwich. The person sitting by the window had a salmon bagel with sesame seeds, which could have been me.
I have no plans to use Lufthansa ever again in future if I want to travel to Berlin I will go by British Midland or British Airways, which were my first options, but due to prices at the time I had no choice but to book Lufthansa.
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Hmm I flew Lufthansa to Brasil in January and they got my order (veggie) fine! Although having swapped seats with a Bolivian women, it was very confusing for all of us involved, so I just let her have her food and asked for a spare veggie meal (nut roast, yum!). I was also told that booking wasn't open yet (this was in Heathrow) but I saw people queuing up so waited for a while and went back in, but unfortunatley I didn't get the same girl before (she was purdy! :D). Hope you have better luck next time, be it British, German, Dutch or Brasilian :P - CW666
SimonJB 23.02.2004 23:59
Sorry to hear that you had a bad time with them. I flew on 4 of their planes this year to Budapest and to Munich and back to Heathrow. For me they were faultless, and service was better than ever recieved by English counterparts. The food I particulary enjoyed too. I really could not rate them high enough. By the way what was the plane like, was it clean and the check in staff etc like? Guess I was just lucky, or you were very unlucky. Take care and better luck next time.
carale1979 04.09.2001 20:03
I can't say that I have ever used them before, and after reading your opinion, i am not sure i want to! Thank you for the information. British is best after all! Carol x
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