Wizz Air, along with major competitor Ryanair, is often overlooked as being the cheapest of cheap. If you look at other reviews, they tend to focus mainly on the quality of the product and rarely take into account the price at which the seat was bought. Join me as I review Wizz Air UK’s product whilst flying between Poprad-Tatsky airport and London Luton.

Before the flight

Wizz Air’s prices are often deals that can be viewed as on an insane scale. As long as you’re willing to take a small carry-on bag (or not so small if you’re lucky enough to get it past airport staff) you can often see fairs on the airline’s website for prices under £20. For this flight, I already had leftover WIZZ vouchers from a missed flight back from Ukraine in 2021 due to the UK’s COVID-19 requirements. This meant that I didn’t have to pay a single penny for two return tickets to Slovakia. However, even if I didn’t have the vouchers, I could see that it would be a good deal nonetheless. Having watched the prices on Skyscanner, I could see that they dropped every day until it was just under £40 for a return ticket, a price which I consider to be extraordinary. 

On the ground

Perhaps the most beautiful airport in the world, Poprad-Tatsky lies just south of the Higher Tatris mountains on Slovakia’s border with Poland. It’s absolutely miniscule, serving only two scheduled destinations per week: London Luton with WIZZ, and London Stansted with Ryanair. Due to its limited size, baggage check-in was fairly simple, having already completed most of the check-in online. One thing I have to credit WIZZ with is their automatic check-in feature on the app, which automatically remembers my details from the outward journey. Security was a breeze, and boarding was a free-for-all to get out of the terminal, meaning no order in which passengers were supposed to board. I have to say that this is a method I tend to enjoy, as it means less waiting around on the ground. 

Onboard the aircraft

WIZZ, like most airlines now, charges a hefty fee for seat selection, and so I was randomly assigned seat 4D. My flight for today used, A 2018-built Airbus A321ceo.  As soon as you step into the cabin, you can see that WIZZ has done something most low-cost carriers (LCC) do: strip the aircraft to the bare minimum. This means no headrests, the seats don’t recline, and limited leg space, all for cost-related reasons. This is the point where I feel that a lot of people would complain, but considering the price point, it’s a decent product.

As you might have guessed, no onboard entertainment was provided on the two-and-a-half-hour flight, meaning that it would be advised to download something on a phone or laptop. One thing that the crew could have definitely managed better was the cleanliness of the aircraft, particularly the bathrooms. A tight turn-around at Poprad-Tatry had led to a lack of care for the front bathroom, which was in quite a state. 

In conclusion, I have to say that when considering the price point at which the tickets were sold, I was pleasantly surprised at my experience on board WIZZ. Could they be compared to the likes of legacy carriers? Absolutely not, but they definitely beat their only competitor on the route, Ryanair. WIZZ definitely does have some improvements to make, ensuring a high standard of cleanliness on return legs being the first. I would, however, consider flying with WIZZ in the future on flights like this, mostly due to their decent value for money.

Cover photo by Sam Jakobi/Aviation for Aviators