TAP Air Portugal

Advantages: Full service and serves Heathrow and Gatwick
Disadvantages: No clue what to do when problems arrise

...return flight I booked with TAP for a short break in Porto. I headed out from London Heathrow and returned to London Gatwick. Incidentally, I booked the trip this way so as to have direct flights in both directions although, as you will read, it did not quite turn out this way. This is all relevant background to the following which might alternatively have been called 'A tale of two flights'. The airline TAP (Transportes Aéreos Portugueses) was ...
...by friendly staff at the TAP desk that the flight was cancelled due to a Fire Service strike in Porto. The fact was later displayed on a screen. I was given the option of re-booking for the next day (hopeless to me as it was a weekend break) or flying to Lisbon and having what I was told would be a "two hour" road transfer. We were not allowed to actually check in until some 90 minutes before departure which was a bit of a pain as we stood around ... Read review

Advantages: Got there in one piece
Disadvantages: Ohhh where to begin? Customer service, Cabin crew, food?

~Introduction~ Transportes Aereos Portugueses or TAP Portugal was formed in 1945. The first planes were converted C-47's (or Dakota's) as used by Allied forces to drop troops on D-day and ferry in supplies. Most of the original TAP pilots were trained in England by BOAC, whilst others completed training with Iberia the Spanish national airline. The early routes were local, the first was Lisbon to Madrid, then the major Portuguese cities were added ...
...we have the modern TAP Portugal with destinations to the major Portuguese cities, Europe, Africa and South America. In 2002 TAP carried over 5.5 million passengers on it's network, (Source: www.worldaviation.com). For this you get jet engine planes, grubby leather seats, sulky attendants, tasteless food and incompetent customer service staff. If this is the future of air travel then I am willing to take my chances in the C-47, but was it really that ... Read review

Advantages: Comfortable, Good Food, Excellent Service
Disadvantages: Planes Look Small

...first Tuesday flight provided by Tap Air Portugal. My husband and I were very excited so we checked our bags in at the TAP Air Portugal desk which was so easy, I would say less than 5 minutes we were walking away to have a cup of coffee and wait to be called through to departure. The Customer Service representitive asked the usual questions did you pack your bags yourself?, checked our passports, stuck the stickers on the suitcase, checked the ...
...protectors on, with the logo TAP imbossed in the leather. I am looking at my husband and he is looking at me, were both thinking have we boarded the right plane? Last time we went on holiday we went to Greece - A complete disaster! anyway that is another story, but we flew on AIR 2000 which was a pack everyseat with every cheap tourist, screaming child, people looking for a quick taste of sun....you can guess the picture I am creating here!? can't ... Read review

Advantages: Planes can get off the ground
Disadvantages: Rude staff, bad condition of plane, unpleasant journey

Unfortunately my experience with TAP are not very favourable. Taking a flight from Heathrow to Rio de Janeiro, we had a bad experience from before the check-in. Arriving at the standard 3 hours before the flight, we were astonished to have to wait an hour before the TAP check-in staff even started to get the desks ready for people to start checking in. By this point, there was already a crowd forming. It was certainly not a polite queue, but the ...
...very alarmed by this, as TAP had been advertising "new, modern fleet of planes, with comfort and style". *ahem* Sorry, but there was nothing comfortable or stylish about the flights we had. These monster televisions that were dangling above peoples heads looked dangerous. Everytime there was turbulence (which seemed to be about 9 hours of this 11 hour flight) the TV's wobbled and shook so much that one of them stopped working. And the other one ... Read review

Advantages: Good food!
Disadvantages: Not 100% sure about safety, planes a bit tatty

...Porto to go rowing. As TAP are the only airline on the London-Porto route apart from Ryanair, we have always flown with them. In 2007 we flew out on an Airbus A320 from Gatwick, and back on an A319 to Heathrow. This year, both flights were A319s, going from Gatwick. Last year, I noticed (as a bit of a plane nerd :-) ) that the cabin crew could not be bothered about the safety of their passengers. The safety videos stopped halfway through, there ...
...to set foot on a TAP plane again. However, I don't book the tickets for the flights to Porto, and as the only other airline on the London-Porto route is Ryanair (and airline I hate with a passion!), I reluctantly accepted my fate, and arrived at Gatwick for the lunchtime flight. When I arrived at the check in desk I was greeted by a cheerful lady, who was quick and efficient, and I had waved goodbye to my bags and received my boarding pass, and was ... Read review

Advantages: Good Shopping and Great Sun
Disadvantages: None

...A break in Portugal is full of good food, beautiful atmosphere and wonderful wine and beer. The Capital Lisbon is full off divertment for all kind of people. If you enjoy sun go to Algarve and stay in Tavira or Monte-Gordo, great sun the best beach in my life, and is easy because almost everybody speaks English. The prices are very good and because £1 is almost 330$00 you don't spend much in there and can do everything. I would definitely recommend this Country for you to visit. GO offer cheap flights from Stansted airport to Lisbon,Porto and Faro. I traveled with Tap Air Portugal and the service was great, very kind and they speak good English.... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful

Advantages: Bad Food, terrible Service, uncomfortable seating
Disadvantages: At least they are cheap.

..., although there are some decentralised routes within Poland and a dozen international flights from other Polish cities, including intercontinental flights from Krakow to New York and Tel Aviv. The fleet is built around Boeing's 737 workhorses, longhaul flights are operated with Boeing 767s. Short commuter flights are served with ATR turboprops, and more recently, Embraer Regional Jets have been introduced. In Spring 2000 the Swiss SAir Group acquired a 25% share in LOT Polish Airways subsequently joined the Qualiflyer Alliance of a dozen European airlines, including Swissair, Sabena and TAP Air Portugal. LOT has since been introducing a lot of new routes linking Warsaw with the other hubs of the Qualiflyer Group. There have also been a range of timetable adaptations to turn Warsaw into a hub itself, for connections to central and eastern... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Best mileage programme on Economy Class and short distance flights. Excellent promotions. Good service and frequent flyer benefits.
Disadvantages: Only average on Business & First Class and long distance flights. Alliance may eventually fall apart. Website likes to crash.

...members? Now let's see how the Qualiflyer Programme performs on these criteria. The Qualiflyer Group  Participating Airlines The Qualiflyer Group is built around the Swiss carrier Swissair. This alliance comprises nine European airlines, most of which the Swissair holding company SAir has stakes in. Only on these airlines can the full benefits of Qualiflyer membership be enjoyed, e.g. collecting club miles which count towards your frequent flyer status, or lounge access.  Swissair  Sabena  Crossair  TAP Air Portugal  Air Liberté  Air Littoral  LOT Polish Airlines  Volare Airlines  Air Europe Qualiflyer has teamed up with several other airlines around the globe which are not members of the alliance itself but on which nonetheless you can collect and spend... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful