Review #55
| Departure planned (actual) | 05.10. 22:35 (23:05) |
| Arrival planned (actual) | 06.10. 05:25 (05:05) |
| Flighttime planned (actual) | 12:50 (12:00) |
| Delay | 30 minutes at departure 20 minutes early at arrival |
| Aircraft type (call sign) | A330-900 neo (D-ANRC) |
| Class | Business |
| Seat | 6 A |
Content
Arrival
Suvarnabhumi Bangkok Airport (BKK) is well served by the Bangkok Airport Rail Link, which runs directly from the city centre. Of course, you can also take a taxi or grab. If you are arriving by car, you will be dropped off at the departures level of the airport and just cross one of the bridges to get to the ticket hall. The train station is also on the ground floor of the terminal.
We had just returned from our short tour of Thailand, landed here after a short domestic flight from Krabi and continued our journey straight away. So the journey from our last hotel, TreeHouse Villas on Koh Yao Noi, was a bit long and uncomfortable.
Departure Airport
Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport is by far the largest airport in Thailand and home base of Thai Airways. There are flights to the Thai capital from almost every capital in the world.
However, the airport should not be confused with the city’s old and now second airport – Don Mueang. Don Mueang is also within the city limits of Bangkok and is mainly used for domestic flights and by budget airlines. Always check which airport you are departing from before you fly.
BKK for Suvarnabhumi in the east of the city and DMK for Don Mueang in the north.
Check-in
We arrived by taxi and were dropped off at Gate 2 of the airport. From here you can go straight into the departure hall and find the Condor counters in area B, where you can check in your luggage and pick up your boarding pass.
Area B is normally used by Thai Airways, but today this seems to have changed. In our experience, Condor’s flights to Frankfurt are handled in section N, so always check the display board for the current status. The counters are divided into Business, Economy and Premium Economy, with Business and Premium Economy passengers having one counter each and Economy passengers having 3 counters.
As we were travelling without checked baggage, as usual, we did not have to check-in at the counter. We had already checked in online and received our boarding passes digitally.
By the way, we highly recommend travelling with just hand luggage. If you can manage to travel with just one small suitcase, there are really three main advantages. First, you always have everything with you, second, you don’t have to wait long at the check-in counter and third, you woun´t be annoyed if your luggage doesn’t arrive at your destination. So if you’re not travelling for a longer period time, or simply don’t need that much clothing during your trip – go for it. Actually, it’s quite easy to break the habit of carrying a lot of luggage. I speak from experience!
How do you manage? Let us know in the comments how much luggage you usually take and if you’ve managed to switch from a large suitcase to a carry-on.
Security check
As a Condor Business Class passenger, you can use the Fast Lane at Bangkok´s Suvanabhumi Airport. This is located at the very end of the terminal behind the check-in counters in Row A. You have to show your boarding pass to get in and then you have a few options to have yourself and your hand luggage checked. In our case, there was really nothing going on and we were checked straight away. That’s really a great benefit as at this airport for all the other passengers it’s more like wishful thinking.
Lounge
Condor gives you free access to the Coral Lounge with a business class ticket. This one is not a very nice on though, so well simply skip it.
With our American Express Platinum Card however, we also received one Priority Pass per person as an additional benefit. If you also have such a pass, you can use these 11 lounges here at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport.
Boarding
Our Condor flight DE 2363 was handled at gate 119, which is located in the brand new satellite terminal at Bangkok Suvanabhumi Airport.
To get there, go through passport control and take the escalators down directing you to gates S101 – S128, just behind the large dragon statue. From there, it’s a few minutes’ ride in a kind of underground train carrying you to the satellite building and then back up the escalators to the gates. Once in the gate area, you will be greeted by two iconic elephants. Pretty cool, aren’t they?
By the way, the Business Class and Status lounges here in the satellite are still under construction, so it will be a while before they are accessible.
So let’s make our way to our gate, S119.
Welcome
We were greeted warmly at the door and shown to our seats. Within moments of stowing our hand luggage, sitting down and getting comfortable in our seats, we were served a refreshing hot towel at our seats.
Start & Routing
We took off from Bangkok’s Suvanabhumi airport about 30 minutes late and flew over the southern tip of Myanmar and the Bay of Bengal, on through India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Turkmenistan, but past Iran and over the Caspian Sea. Then via Azerbaijan and Georgia, and along the Black Sea, across southern Europe to Germany, where we landed in Frankfurt 20 minutes before our scheduled arrival time.
Interestingly, our departure time was actually delayed as planned, otherwise we would have arrived in Frankfurt well before the permitted landing time. Frankfurt Airport opens the runway for arrivals at 5:00 local time. Only emergency landings are allowed before that time.
Quelle: flightradar24
Cabin & Seat
On its new aircraft, Condor offers three classes. Economy and Premium Economy share the same seat, the only difference being the seat pitch. Both cabins are laid out in a 2 – 4 – 2 configuration, and towards the back, where the fuselage narrows, Economy Class switches to 2 – 3 – 2 rows.
Business Class, with its eight rows, is a completely different story. Row one is home to what Condor calls the Prime Suite. It is essentially the same seat as the rest of the cabin, but with a bit more space and a proper ottoman that spans the full width of the seat. These seats always come at an extra charge.
In Business Class, Condor uses a 1 – 2 – 1 layout in which the seats alternate: some sit closer to the aisle, others closer to the window. The centre section alternates as well, between pairs of seats next to each other and seats right by the aisle. If you know Thai Airways Business Class on their 777-300 ER, you already have a good idea of the concept.
Then let’s board the plane and in the very front row you will see the so-called Condor Prime Seat with even more space for you, which you can only reserve for an additional charge. In other words, you’ll have to pay at least another 200 euros, or even more depending on the route.
Quelle: aeroLOPA
Seat
For this flight I’m in seat 6A, a single seat right by the window, with the stowage area acting as a divider to the aisle. When you board, a blanket, pillow, mattress topper and slippers are already waiting for you, the slippers even in Condor’s signature stripes.
The table is tucked away at an angle below the screen and folds down at the push of a button. The button is a bit stiff, but the mechanism is really clever: you can slide the table right up to you and push it away again just as easily.
Six buttons in the side console control the seat. Three of them are presets, while the other three let you fine-tune the seat into exactly the position you want.
At your seat you’ll also find a reading light, noise-cancelling headphones, a bottle of water and the amenity kit. Like many other airlines in Business Class, Condor fits its A330-900 neo with a three-point seat belt, which has to be fully fastened during take-off and landing. Once you’re cruising, you can unhook the shoulder strap and just keep the lap belt on.
The footrest sits beneath the shelf of the seat in front, with a storage compartment underneath that’s handy for shoes and the like. There’s a little more stowage space in the side console at head height, and the side of the storage area offers several ways to charge your devices.
Bed
This aircraft is the first in Condor Business Class where the seat turns into a fully flat bed with a single button. The older aircraft only offered an angled lie-flat surface, so this is a real first for Condor, and it delivers. To make up your bed, just lay the mattress topper on the seat. The crew will surely help if you ask, but it wasn’t offered to me without asking.
Entertainment
I was really happy with the in-flight entertainment on this flight. The touchscreen is intuitive, and the selection of films, series, moving map and so on covered everything you need. The only thing I missed was a few videos about Condor itself, the kind you’ll find on Lufthansa, Thai or Turkish. You can also operate the screen with a small handheld controller stored in the side console next to the storage area.
A quick side note: Condor’s safety video just didn’t work for me. Have a look at the clips in our YouTube review, it comes across as rather childish. That might fit Condor’s old image as a family holiday airline, but it doesn’t match the new product at all.
Amenities
As a Business Class passenger, you receive one of four different gifts from a small collection, which I think is a lovely touch. Mine was a very handy thermal bag! When it comes to the amenity kit itself, though, I have mixed feelings.
The contents are perfectly fine, but the paper packaging takes away some of the premium feel. From an environmental perspective that makes total sense, please don’t get me wrong, but in Business Class I’d still expect something a bit more upmarket.
Food, Drinks & Snacks
Dinner
Roughly an hour after take-off, the service kicked off with warm nuts and the cocktail service, followed by the starter. It arrived on a tray together with all the sides and even the cheese course, which struck me as odd and not very practical. Cheese is really part of dessert, and if you want to save it for after the main course, it’s hard to find room for everything on the table.
The starter, salad and bread alone were so generous that they would have filled me up completely. Yes, that’s complaining on a high level, but there’s honestly no need for that much food.
For the main course you can pick from three options, while dessert comes without an alternative. Both were delicious, and somehow everything still found its way onto the plate and off it again 😉
Breakfast
Breakfast was served 90 minutes before landing. According to the menu, the only hot options were waffles and a hard-boiled egg. The egg was fine, but the waffles were sadly a total letdown and had turned completely soggy. Alongside the usual croissant there were a few bread rolls. There was no real choice, though: everyone simply got the full tray, whether or not they wanted every part of it.
Washrooms
In Business Class on this A330-900 you have three lavatories to choose from: one at the front near the cockpit and two at the back of the cabin, one on each side. They were pleasantly spacious and stocked with face cream and moisturiser, which has become pretty much standard in Business Class lavatories.
Want to see the lavatories up close? Then head over to our YouTube video.
Condor Service
Honestly, the service left me a little disappointed. The crew wasn’t unfriendly, but they weren’t exactly warm either. On top of that, things moved rather slowly, which noticeably cut into my sleep. Funnily enough, the smiles got bigger once the crew noticed I was taking photos and videos.
Arrival Airport
Frankfurt International Airport is the largest airport in Germany and one of the largest in Europe. The airport can be reached by car and bus, but it is also very well connected by train, with a long-distance train station right next to the terminal.
Everything is well signposted and easy to find. However, the distances are often quite long and you should take this into account when planning your trip.
Points
Our verdict for Condor flight DE 2363 from Bangkok to Frankfurt: 7 out of a possible 10 points.
One point comes off for the armrest that can’t be lowered, which can feel really restrictive if you’re on the taller side. Another point goes for the rather lacklustre service, and one more for the inconsistent food quality. Other than that, Condor Business Class is a really strong product, and the aircraft itself is new, very quiet and much more fuel-efficient. That may not make a huge difference for us as passengers, but it does for the environment, and if Condor ever passes those fuel savings on through lower fares, even better!
Recommendation
Our recommendation: Condor Business Class is definitely worth it. Which seat suits you best, though, depends on how and with whom you travel.
Travelling as a couple? Then go for the middle seats so you can sit side by side. For solo or business travellers, we’d suggest the aisle seats or the window-side seats closer to the aisle rather than the ones right by the window, as they give you more space.
Airline Homepage
Conclusion
Let’s start with the hard product, the seat. It’s really good, but it has one big drawback if, like me, you’re sitting right by the window: unlike on the Lufthansa A350, the left armrest can’t be lowered, which can feel a bit confining. On the plus side, the table is wonderfully flexible and the main course was genuinely good. There was definitely room for improvement in the service, even though it was already a little better than on the outbound flight.
Our stay at Phang Nga Bay
For this trip we picked Phang Nga Bay and stayed on Koh Yao Yai and Koh Yao Noi. I flew both legs with Condor, and you can read the review of the outbound flight here. Our hotels were the Anantara Koh Yao Yai Resorts & Villas, Cape Kudu on Koh Yao Noi and the TreeHouse Villas, also on Koh Yao Noi. On top of that, we spent some nights at the Hyatt Regency Phuket.
There’s more to come, so be sure to check back soon!
YouTube Review
There’s also a YouTube video for this review, with plenty more footage than we could fit into the text 😉
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