Review of Transavia flight from Innsbruck to Rotterdam in Economy

introduction

Hello everyone, and welcome to my latest Flight-Report series! This series covers a weekend trip to Amsterdam that I took at the beginning of 2020, back when the Covid-19 pandemic was more-or-less localized within Asia, meaning that travel was still possible. Those were the days… Hopefully the crisis will be over soon, and the skies will re-open.

trip information

This trip consisted of two Transavia flights on two types of 737NGs: the short -700 to Rotterdam, and the 'regular' -800 back down to Innsbruck. This trip marked my first time flying with both Transavia and the 737-700.

On the Great Circle Mapper:

Even though my destination was Amsterdam, I flew into Rotterdam on the inbound, due to the fact that an INN-AMS roundtrip was more expensive than buying two one ways. This INN-RTM segment cost €46, which wasn't bad at all.

the day of departure

Thanks to an early afternoon departure, I was able to start off my day just like any other. At around noon, I headed for the airport, but first snagged some shots of Innsbruck's famous shopping street, Maria-Theresien-Straße.

I caught the F bus from the Anichstraße/Rathausgalerien stop. The F runs between the city and the airport every 15 minutes (in a pre-Covid world, at least), and costs €3 per ride.

Arriving at the airport a short 10 minutes later.

innsbruck kranebitten airport (inn)

Sunny skies mean that I'd finally have some good views on the departure, as the two other flights I've flown from Innsbruck were both on foggy days.

Into the terminal building.

The line for check-in was really long, but I checked-in on my phone and therefore bypassed it.

As January is still part of the high season, there were quite a few flights departing that afternoon.

Before heading airside, I stopped by the observation deck, which is the best thing about INN!

Just two A320s, both headed to London-Gatwick.

tyrol lounge innsbruck

Security was surprisingly quick considering the crowds, and I headed upstairs to the Tyrol Lounge as soon as I passed through.

I really love the Tyrol Lounge. It's small, but never too crowded and offers fantastic views of the Alps and airplanes.

Not to mention that all the seats are very comfortable, too, and the design is very cool.

I grabbed a quick bite to eat. The food options aren't very expansive, but the cold cuts are always fresh, and there is always one hot dish. That day, it was some kind of Schnitzel with puree and peas, which tasted pretty good.

INN isn't a silent airport and neither is the lounge, so as soon as boarding was announced, I headed to the gate.

The only thing other than the Lounge that's airside is a duty-free shop, which I didn't bother to check out.

boarding + initial impressions

As is with all flights except for the Austrian Q400 flights, we were brought to the aircraft with a bus.

Unfortunately, by the time I got in, there weren't any places to stand by the window. The 737-800 in the foreground was operating one of the three Amsterdam flights of the day, while my 737-700 was in the background.

Arriving at my bird a few moments later.

My very first 737-700 was PH-XRD, an old bird, delivered directly to Transavia in June 2003.

Up the stairs.

Welcome sign in many colors and languages, which I find to be a nice touch.

One last look at the tail before getting in the aircraft. Too bad the airstairs were covered, diminishing the beauty of a 737's tail, and creating that nasty glare.

I was greeted by a very friendly attendant who was so young that she was still wearing braces! After turning left into coach (what a strange feeling ?), I was immediately surprised at how retro the cabin felt. The green seats were definitely added some color to an otherwise boring cabin, though.

I was the first one to arrive at Row 22.

Cabin during boarding.

The legroom was tight but passable for a low-cost carrier. Much better than Wizz Air, anyway.

Seatpocket contents, which included…

…an airsickness bag…

…the safety instructions card…

…the BoB menu (which I forgot to take other pictures of, sorry! You can see a sample Transavia menu here)…

…and Transavia's Enjoy! Magazine.

Austrian Q400 'Eisenstadt' from Vienna.

Another look at the cabin.

transavia 6924 - innsbruck to rotterdam

Once everyone had seated, Captain Pascal welcomed us all on the flight to Rrrrotterdam (gotta love that Dutch accent) and said that our departure would be beautiful, starting with out takeoff from Runway 26.

Shortly after that, our engines fired up, and we left the stand on our own power.

Taxiing past the terminal.

departure from innsbruck

Onto the runway.

360 at the end of the runway.

Rolling.

Rotate.

I'll let the breathtaking views speak for themselves ?

A look back at the Inntal (Inn Valley) and Innsbruck.

Cabin after departure.

Zugspitze, the highest point in Germany, at 9,718 feet.

Continuing the climb over less scenic terrain.

By the time we were over Baden-Württemberg, the clear view of the land below had been replaced with clouds.

buy on board service

The crew quickly leaped into action, and even though I wasn't terribly hungry, for the sake of the review I decided to buy a toasted Ham and Cheese sandwich for €4. It was delivered with a smile around 5 minutes later.

The sandwich was actually really good and hit the spot for such a short flight. \

mid-flight

Older Boeing PSU.

Cruising at 38,000 feet.

arrival into rotterdam

As we passed over Brussels, the captain came back on the PA to announce that we were beginning our descent. He also said that there were very strong winds in Rotterdam and that we'd land on Runway 24 to the southwest.

Slight right turn.

Flaps 10.

Entering clouds.

Hello Dutch weather! Very different than what we left behind in Austria.

Bounced around quite a bit on the final approach.

Over the airport.

Flare.

Touchdown at 3:31 PM, 14 minutes early, after being in the air for 1h13m. Despite the conditions, the landing was actually rather smooth.

Slowing down.

Vacating the runway.

Taxiing to the apron.

I bid farewell to the crew and made my way out into the miserable Dutch weather. On the bright side, there was a BA CityFlyer E190 right across from us.

Winglet.

Under the wing.

Final glances at PH-XRD. Thanks for the ride!

Into the terminal after a very short bus ride.

routing of hv6924

After taking off from Runway 26, we made a right turn and flew directly towards Belgium, climbing to our cruising altitude of 38,000 feet. We commenced our descent south of Liège and turned northeast over Leuven towards Rotterdam Airport, where we landed on Runway 24.

The journey to Amsterdam from Rotterdam Airport wasn't actually all that challenging. I took a bus to the Meijersplein subway station. From there I took a subway to the Rotterdam Centraal Station. After that it was a quick train ride to Amsterdam Centraal. I was at my hotel in Amsterdam around 2 hours after landing, which isn't bad at all. Thanks for reading, feel free to leave a comment below, and I hope to see you again in a few days for the return flight.