Why Air Serbia was better than the rest!

Don’t they say it’s the little things that matter as they’re what we remember…? Well it was a whole bunch of those little things that made my flight out of Serbia via Air Serbia the best flight I’ve ever had.

I accept that’s quite a statement and don’t get me wrong – I didn’t get a free massage nor were there offers to join the mile high club but still, as far as typical mundane flights go, this bettered them all and you’ll see how there’s a stark contrast in quality and service that a whole host of other airlines can seriously learn from.

But first do you remember that final picture on festival night back in Belgrade? If not, click HERE to have a quick refresh. See two of the three Italians positioned at the top left hand corner? Well I bumped into them on a flight out of Serbia today! Small world and all that…

Anyway, back to my positive experience with Air Serbia…
1)
Let’s start with no online check-in and no boarding pass. Yep, you read the correctly. The bane of our lives. Probably not something you mind doing too much back home but when you’re backpacking and taking frequent flights not from a fixed abode, this sort of stuff easily becomes a pain in the backside. With Air Serbia you turn up and show your passport and that is that, So, so easy! Finally…

2)
I didn’t have to walk to a separate designated area for oversized or non-typical hold luggage. I learned that straight from Gatwick those weeks ago that after visiting the check-in area, backpackers then have to walk to a completely separate area because backpacks come under one of the above. This has happened at every airline/airport so yesterday I instinctively asked the check-in lady where I should go with my backpack and she looked at me slightly confused. ‘Ok, nevermind’ I quickly said. So there you have it, they do not send you off elsewhere! Your luggage just goes where everyone else’s does.

3)
Now we’re on the plane. The seats are leather and didn’t look worn at all. Further to that, the seats were of a pleasant mid-tone blue – a nice colour. That might not sound like much but do a quick comparison to the likes of Ryanair and Easyjet. Easyjet’s distinctive ‘orange’ is so bright you require sunglasses or you might get a headache and as for Ryanair’s ghastly colour-combo, well I need not say any more but I will comment on their seats which some of you will have experienced. It beggers belief but aren’t they like hard and plastic!? I shudder at the memory from only a few weeks ago but can’t remember the specifics as I’ve intentionally tried to purge this experience from my memory. They even play a tune of some sort once they’ve landed. Are they really that surprised that they’ve made it on to land!? That’s worrying…

4)
You know how on long haul flights you often get given a couple of things to make the ordeal slightly more tolerable. I say ‘given’ but of course you’ll have paid a sh!t lot for the ticket so the freebie is bundled in of course. Maybe you’ll also get a drink and traditional plane food. Well, when was the last time you got any free from Easyjet or Ryanair? Infact, when was the last time you got anything free on a seriously short flight. As in, 1.5 hours. Never? Nor me until now. I couldn’t quite believe my eyes when the air hostess handed out a goodie bag.

‘Pour Moi’?

This is how it came and these are the contents unpacked.

That’s water, a mini ham & salad baguette and a cookie.

Result! But you’re handing this out on this super-short flight for free!? Then consider I paid summit like £30 for the flight in the first place.

5)
Can you believe there’s more. I have one more thing to add and like all the above, this too deserved its own bullet point. Within 15 minutes of ploughing down those lovely snacks from above, they came down the isle again with that familiar trolley – as they do. Except with one big difference – they weren’t selling anything! No, really. You know how we are forced to listen to someone over the blasted microphone trying to sell us over-priced goods, well there was none of this whatsoever. * Have you noticed they all sound the same too? No matter what plane you’re on! Weird that.

Next thing I know I was being offered either more water, an orange juice, a coffee or tea or even a glass of wine!

This was all too much for my tiny mind. To clarify, this was cattle class, not business.

There you have it folks, a rather unexpected review on Air Serbia – something I never thought I’d be writing about in a million years but seriously, credit where credit is due. Oh, they were super punctual at taking off too as I remember clocking us taking off to the minute.

Now Air Serbia are you sure you don’t offer massages? I have a feeling they’d be the best in the world if you did 🙂

Anyhow, before I sign off, here are some stunning pics from up in the clouds. Quite an apt expression to sum up the journey today.