P_M

Has anyone flown with Finnair lately? I have an award ticket on hold and now I'm getting nervous about it. I read about 20 pages of horrible reviews on tripadvisor. I don't pay much attention to one hitters on tripadvisor, but many of those reviews were from frequent posters.

Thanks.

janisj

I never (ever) pay attention to airline reviews on TA. If I have a question about an airline -- I'll look at FlyerTalk. Finnair is part of OneWorld so a full partner of AA, BA, JAL and lots of others. IME they usually are rated above many better known companies. Per SkyTrax Finnair in 2023 was rated #24 of the top 100 airlines world wide. Well above AC, UA, AS, WN, Jet Blue etc etc.

P_M

I will check out Flyer Talk, thanks Janis.

P_M

Update: I checked Flyer Talk and most of the info for economy was about the food. I never expect good food on an airplane so I always bring snacks. Of course I looked at the website, and I called Finnair to make sure my understanding is as clear as possible.

I discovered the carry-on allowance is very stingy. The combined weight of your personal item and your carry-on can only be 8 kilos. I always pack a full carry-on as I've had delayed luggage 11 times. Maybe I will wear a few layers of clothing and underwear, and put a lot of stuff into my pockets.

Another quirky thing is they charge you for a carry-on. I told them I'm an Emerald member of One World and they said in that case the carry-on is free, but weight restrictions still apply. They also charge for seat selection, but it's 50% off for status members.

Since this will be an award ticket, I'm going to roll the dice and fly Finnair. If I incur any unexpected expenses or hassles, I'll remind myself that I paid almost nothing for the ticket.

Wish me luck!!

Gardyloo

If you have Oneworld Emerald status, enjoy the lounges at HEL; some of the best around. It's a very pleasant airport.

In numerous flights on Finnair (none terribly recently) I've never had an issue. What's your route?

P_M

Hi Gardy. Because it's a freebie and I'm booking only 6 weeks in advance, it isn't a great schedule but here goes:

I'll be flying to Frankfurt on AA, then to Helsinki on FA, then Bergen, also FA. Coming home I'm going from Tromso to Helsinki, then LAX on FA, then home on AA.

Gardyloo

Finnair's symbol is AY. I think you'll be fine. Here's a video report on a HEL-JFK flight from a year ago.

P_M

Thanks for the video Gardy. It looks like a pretty standard economy flight. I live in TX and I would have much preferred the shorter flight to JFK instead of LAX, but when it's a last minute freebie, you take what you get.

P_M

UPDATE:

I'm home from my trip and overall, Finnair was a good experience. There was a schedule change so I didn't fly Finnair to Europe, and I only flew Finnair for part of the way home.

There were a couple of glitches, but both were minor. Glitch #1: The flight from Tromso to Helsinki left late so when we landed in HEL, I literally had to run from one end of the airport to the other to catch my flight to London. When I arrived at my gate they were just starting to board, so there was no time for the lounge. The flight from Helsinki to London was fine and we arrived on time. So this delay was a glitch, but as all travelers know, it happens on every airline. I'm sorry to have missed the lounge, but I'm glad I could run fast enough to make my flight to London.

The other glitch hardly matters at all, but I will mention it anyway for informational purposes. Finnair is a little cheap with drinks and snacks so I was surprised when they charged me 35 NOK for a cup of coffee, that's roughly $3.25 US. No biggie to me, just something I didn't expect. The blueberry juice was free and it was really good.

That's my review on Finnair. I would have no hesitation to fly Finnair again.