Hello and welcome back to part 2 of this set of flight reports!
This set of reports' routing:
12/23/15: VS10 JFK-LHR (http://flight-report.com/en/report-12619.html)
12/28/15: U28871 LGW-AMS (NO REPORT)
12/31/15: U28878 AMS-LGW (THIS REPORT)
1/3/16: VS3 LHR-JFK (http://flight-report.com/en/report-12761.html)
This flight was at a slightly awkward time, so we decided to arrive early to the airport, right around 13:00, for a visit to the observation deck.
We arrived by train, near departure area 3, but the entrance to the observation deck was between departure areas 1 and 2, so lots of walking entailed.
Schiphol is massive, but we found our way there eventually.
Views from the observation deck.
After a session at the observation deck and a quick bite to eat, we made our way back to departure area 2, where we were told we could access the H gates (used for easyJet and Ryanair. Once there, we scanned our boarding passes into the automated machine (no bags to check) and went straight up to security. Security was empty, beginning the line at 14:24.
The security process was much different than the one endured at JFK. Laptops, iPads, liquids, etc. had to come out of bags, shoes, coats, belts, etc. had to come off, and everyone went through the full body scanner. The whole process was very modernized and efficient, finishing in just 7 minutes.
Security was followed by passport control, and after that, we entered the main terminal building.
Embarking on the long walk over to the H gates, we passed by many many shops and a ton of wide open space. Having the walking times to each area posted was a great addition.
When the signs for the H gates finally ended, we found this sign.
We settled in next to some 747s and waited for our gate to be announced.
When our gate, H6, was announced at 15:12, they stressed the words immediate boarding, which was not helpful, as there was an 8-minute walk to the gate.
We hustled along another empty corridor…
…found another easyJet and a Ryanair…
…and were met with a long line waiting to board, joining the line at 15:20, 30 minutes before scheduled departure
We went down some stairs and into another line.
Finally, we boarded onto G-EZWT, only 1 year and 11 months old, equipped with sharklets, but no new livery, at 15:40.
The legroom and seat width, fine for me (I'm 5'10). However, due to the slimline seats, the legroom seemed almost the same as the VS 346.
Looking out the window, there were almost no other planes in sight. 14:00-16:00 seemed to be a very quiet time at Schiphol. The flight was about 3/4 full.
As we waited for the boarding to be completed, two very unhappy passengers started complaining. They supposedly had had to gate check their bags (no extra cost), but then saw more, supposedly larger bags being brought onto the plane. They erupted, and it took the crew about 10 minutes to settle them down, although they did complain for (literally) the entire flight about what an awful airline easyJet was. Crazy in my opinion.
We pushed back at 16:00, and began our taxi to runway 24 at 16:02. The taxi around was quick, I didn't see any other airplanes, and we didn't have to wait to depart. Smooth sailing!
We took off at 16:09, 19 minutes behind schedule. Our captain announced the flying time to be 50 minutes.
Although I knew I wouldn't be purchasing anything, I opened up my tray table to put my phone and camera down on, only to find that it was TINY (and my hands aren't huge either!).
easyJet's magazine (an extremely beat up copy) had tons of travel information about all of their destinations, as well as a few other seasonal articles.
A look at the some of the food and drink offerings. I was stunned at the number of people that bought not only drinks but full meal packages as well! The cart passed row 5 around 16:20
There's no IFE on easyJet, but a window serves almost the same purpose, especially on flights around sunset!
Soon enough, around 16:32, we had begun our descent into London Gatwick.
We landed on runway 26L at 15:51 local time, 9 minutes ahead of schedule.
The taxi to the north terminal was very quick, and we hooked up to the gate at 15:57, off the plane by 16:01 (perks of sitting up front).
Unfortunately, this very positive review had to be ruined by the immigration process. We joined a very long line at 16:04 and weren't through it until 16:45. There were only 7 workers processing non-EU passports, making this an extremely slow process. On top of that, Gatwick's (free!) wifi didn't work in that area, as you aren't supposed to use your phones. Oh well, something has to give.
Once through immigration, this sign made me laugh. Costa (European company similar to Starbucks for those who don't know) obviously needs a bigger sign than the bathroom. Priorities!
Overall, a pretty good experience with easyJet, great for the price (one way only cost about 45 USD!).
Thanks for reading this short report, and look out for the finale coming soon!
Comments are always welcome, I love reading and responding to them!
Thank you for sharing this FR!
Please add U2 to your flight number.
Schiphol is pretty user friendly airport despite its size. You were lucky not to have to take a bus to the plane.
Nice, new seats in row 5.
- Those look soooo thin. I guess this was a short hop, but I can't imagine those ironing boards would be comfortable for any >1 hour flight. If the tray table is so narrow, doesn't that mean the seat is really narrow too?
Crazy in my opinion.
- This sounds like a normal experience on a domestic flight in the US ;)
I was stunned at the number of people that bought not only drinks but full meal packages as well!
- I didn't think the prices looked very good, seemed on the high end, but maybe I'm just not in tune with European pricing.
For a LCC flight, I guess you can't ask for much more since you got everything you expected with this flight. I like how U2 doesn't have ads plastered over everything like FR.
Thanks for reading!
Fixed the flight number!
I actually enjoyed the seats. The seats on VS absolutely destroyed my back, as they were the wrong shape. Although no padding, these were the right shape for my back.
Haha, US domestics flights are the worst! Glad I don't have any coming up.
I thought the prices were pretty steep as well.
Really good report. easyJet is pretty standard as far as LCC's go. Nice pictures around AMS