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Flight Review: easyJet A321-200 Salzburg to London Gatwick

RouteW.A Mozart Salzburg Airport Terminal 2- London Gatwick North Terminal
Flight NumberEZY 8560
Seat Number40A (Note. Row 40 has no windows)
Flight Time2 Hours 5 Minutes
Baggage Allowance23KG Hold luggage (Paid for) + 15KG Under Seat Cabin Bag
Price£430/€487.69 (Return Ticket)
Honest Rating2/5
Basic flight info (N.B Prices for this flight review will be in GBP and EUR)

Introduction


I had arrived the previous week on board easyJet’s A319 from London Gatwick at Salzburg’s WA Mozart Airport, and I was very happy with the flight. Unfortunately, this time things would go a little differently, starting off with the airport experience.

Tips for flying with easyJet

  1. easyJet has an online app that can be downloaded on the App Store (iOS) and the Google Play Store (Android). The app makes traveling with them a lot easier as you can download boarding passes (for up to 4 people on one device) and save time with online check-in.
  2. As easyJet is a low-cost airline, complimentary food, and beverages are not offered unless you purchase a voucher online. I would recommend you buy outside food and beverages from an airport supermarket or bring some from home just to save money simply.
  3. If you’re thirsty on board, you are allowed a cup of water if you ask the cabin crew. It should be free of charge (as of April 2023).
  4. easyJet policy states that the gate will close 30 minutes before departure time, as a few passengers learned, exceptions would not be made.

Airport Experience

On February 18th, I made my way to the airport via public transport. Since my flight was landing in London, it would depart from Salzburg’s Terminal 2, otherwise known as the Amadeus Terminal. Terminal 2 at Salzburg was quite obviously a former aircraft hangar that had been converted into an airport terminal due to rising demand. It was furnished with temporary walls, furniture, and barriers, making it look like a Costco warehouse. As I had already completed my check-in online, all I had to do was get my visa checked at the desk, go through security, and get on the plane, which was easier said than done.

The line at the check-in desk was non-existent, so my visa and passport were checked in no time. I then moved over to the security area, where I discovered that an orderly line and that a low waiting time were also non-existent. I was blown away by the length of the line at security, which snaked around the length of the terminal three times. There are 2 security areas located in the Amadeus Terminal, a larger one and a smaller one. The larger one was not operating at maximum capacity (2 zones were closed off), which seemed like a questionable decision considering the circumstances.

After waiting over an hour in the security line, I got through to the small but well-arranged duty-free section. However, there was a café selling Evian water for €4.90/£4.34, which was a complete rip-off.

Boarding

Approximately ten minutes after I had entered the gate area, gate agents called passengers to start boarding at Gates 22 and 21. Technically boarding had already started, but 20 minutes in, and nobody had even left the terminal building yet. Finally, after a further 15 minutes of waiting, passengers crossed the apron and boarded the glistening A321-200 via air stairs.

On first impressions, the cabin looked stylish and clean. The cabin crew was quite friendly and greeted passengers on arrival. The seats looked new, and the cabin mood lighting along the overhead locker made the cabin seem modern. To my dismay, the row I was seated in, row 40, did not have windows. This was not mentioned in the seat map provided by SeatGuru.

Seat Review

As aforementioned, my seat 40A did not have a window. Although the seat appeared visually appealing, as the black leather gave it a sleek and stylish look, the legroom & knee room wasn’t too ample, but the seat was clean. The tray table folded out and had the convenient function of being able to slide out and in. A sick bag, a safety card & a magazine were present in the seat pocket. Despite the knee and legroom being quite restricted, the seat was still comfortable and perfectly suited its purpose for the 2-hour flight.

Like most low-cost carriers in the European region, the seat could not recline. Although the tray table could slide in and out, it was much smaller than other aircraft in the Airbus A320 family. On the plus side, the tray table had a slot for electronic devices.

Take-Off

28 minutes behind the scheduled departure time, the cabin crew finally closed the doors, and at 17:10, we pushed back and taxied towards the runway. The cabin crew went through the important but monotonous safety demonstration, and within a matter of minutes, the A321 had thundered down the runway, and we were up in the air at 17:20. While climbing the window of the row in front of me provided excellent scenic views of the Alps.

Catering Service

After a bumpy take-off and climb toward cruising altitude, one of the five cabin crew members announced that their catering service was about to commence. Unfortunately, we were also told that there would be no hot foods or beverages on this flight as there was no time in Salzburg to re-stock the plane’s catering supply. Cold drinks and snacks were still available to be purchased. The cabin crew also stated that due to a technical problem, there was no running water on board. Brilliant.

As I had a meal voucher that I had purchased during the online check-in process, I had no choice but to spend it on snacks, seeing as there was nothing else to buy. I resorted to a bag of Haribos, a blueberry muffin, a bag of Cadbury’s Chocolate Fingers, and a bottle of fruit juice (J2O).

Cabin Cleanliness & Lavatory Review

The cabin had been cleaned very quickly due to the extremely short turnaround time that the flight crew had. I found that there were several stains on the tray table which could have been wiped off with a cloth. There were also several sweet wrappers scattered across the cabin.

easyJet’s A321-200 holds three lavatories, one at the front and two at the rear. I was pleasantly surprised by how clean the toilets were and that there was mood lighting in the toilets! As mentioned earlier, there was no running water on the plane, so the taps weren’t working. The cabin crew had substituted this with bottles of hand sanitizer.

Photo Gallery & Flight In General

The majority of the flight was smooth and uneventful, I managed to capture several photos of the beautiful sunset, so I’ll share them above.

Descent & Landing

Around 1 hour and 45 minutes into the flight, the seatbelt lights flashed on again, and we started our descent into London Gatwick Airport’s North Terminal. Around 40 minutes behind schedule, the A321-200 touched down at Gatwick Airport, where we taxied to our stand and de-boarded via air stairs.

Gatwick Airport North Terminal

After entering the airport terminal building, I followed signs to passport control. I noticed that around 80% of the immigration desks were not manned by Border Force officers but by British Army Soldiers. This was a result of recent strikes in which the UK Home Office had soldiers step in to temporarily replace Border Force officers. As expected, this made the waiting times shorter than usual. I then proceeded towards Baggage claim, where after waiting for 20 minutes, my bags arrived.

To my dismay, I discovered that one of my bags had been broken. There were multiple dents in the bag and the zip had been broken. Naturally, I reported the damaged bag at the airport with their online reporting system, where I had to submit a claim with photos of the bag as proof. As of April 2023, I still have not heard back from easyJet despite chasing them up three times.

Conclusion

Overall, the flight could’ve been a lot better. I started with the long and messy queues at Salzburg Airport (not easyJet’s fault); not only was the flight delayed, but there was no running water on board, there were no hot food and beverage options, and my bag was broken. In addition to that, the cabin hadn’t been cleaned properly, and although the seat and cabin were modern and looked appealing, the legroom wasn’t great. To make up for this, the cabin crew was quite friendly.

Service3/5
Catering2/5
Cleanliness2/5
Check-in3/5
Seat Comfort3/5
Recommended?No- Not worth the hassle on this flight

Read also the Outbound flight’s review: Flight Review: easyJet Airbus A319- London Gatwick to Salzburg Airport

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