While boarding at PVG, there was a ticket checking at the gate, then there was another ticket checking at the bottom of the escalator, which created quite a dangerous congestion. Not sure which idiot made this absolutely unnecessary arrangement.
The flight was delayed by 2 hours, although to their credit they delayed my connecting flight so people could reach it. Also their site is a nightmare to navigate on a phone. Everything else was good.
CTU-KMG-CNX with 1.5 hr connection at KMG. Doable but just barely bc immigration exit from China is at the last flight leg, here: KMG to CNX. We hauled out of the domestic terminal to reenter at the international departures (luggage checked thru to CNX thankfully). Immigration had only two agents, even though KMG gets a HUGE number of foreigners. It took forever for such a shot line. Then security also took a while, so I just just made the connection. Recommend if you exit China with domestic international transfer, plan for 2+ hrs to avoid a heart attack. Airline personnel don’t suffer if you miss the flight, you do. Plan accordingly.
China Eastern as a member of Sky Alliance airlines should have the same standards overall of their partners, Besides the seats comforts everything else is bellow the standard for a business class travelers.
Price is the main attraction. Staff is OK but difficult to communicate with them due to general lack of English. Food is truly abysmal, the main courses (4) were barely edible. The choices for breakfast served at 5:30 am prior to landing at Gatwick airport were Spaghetti Bolognese or seafood fried rice. Choices offered for all 4 mains were either something rice or noodles. Shanghai airport layover is much too long in a very poorly serviced airport. We were unable to use WiFi; private lounges required cash only payment with no ATM or cash exchange open.
I was surprised and appreciate that they actually served a hot meal on such a short, early morning flight. The check in and boarding was hassle free and most of all my Alliance Status / Code Share was recognized and the revelant courtesy was extended; other than some needed attention to detail concerning the cleanliness of the cabin, and some unnecessary aggressive wording their safety briefing, it was an overall pleasant flight, and I would certainly fly with them again.
Lost Baggage - very frustrated…learned that bag was never put on plane.
For the price we paid, I couldn’t complain. Was good value for money. Service was excellent but food was mediocre. Crew were excellent and spoke English. You will never go hungry. The food was ample but was mediocre. Entertainment limited and wifi doesn’t all allow you to access some social media. The best part was comfortable seats and bed (business class) with a screen to close out the rest of the cabin.
Cheapest option from Gatwick £400 cheaper than Emirates and Qatar. Entertainment no where near as good as Emirates and Qatar, but saved £400 so all good.
The landings were smooth . Being unable to check-in online was terribly stressful and the queue at Haneda exemely long. We paid extra for window seats and did not get them.
