Worst airline ever! Very unprofessional. You can't ever get anyone on phone, only automated system. When I needed them to change date on return flight, they emailed me nonsense. There was emailing back and forth and it seemed like airline did not know what they are doing. I had to contact my lawyer to resolve the problem.

When i tried to get a seat assignment online it was refused. However on the same site XLAirways will take my money for luggage charging $100+; saying no charge for carryon under a certain weight (not sure what that weight is cause it wasn't stated in pounds) even though i was transferred to the american version of the XLAirline site that took at least a minute). Anyway I cannot get a seat assignment, though i have already paid handsomely for a seat and frankly waiting until 2/3 days before flying ... well my experience is that most seats are already assigned by then. i don't understand this whole process. The planes are the same, the plane seating charts are the same but they will not make the seating charts available online to ME or allow ME a choice. i contacted Expedia who booked my flight and they sent a request to XLAirways for my seating choice. They too were surprised i could not book my seat. They also agreed my choices will be limited. You see i was traveling to France with a friend who had come to NY and I was returning to France with her (but not together on the 8+ hour flight). We planned to travel together. HAHA on us. Further the website that will not allow me to choose a seat said i have to pay an additional cost of at least twenty dollars for an aisle or window seat when i can actually request a seat wishing 2 to 3 days before my flight. What the Hell is going on? I don't understand who has priority on seating and why? I do know my flight was $200 more than my friend who booked from France. If I find myself in an uncomfortable seating and without my friend i will have no choice but to make everyone around me uncomfortable also; so much so that the XLAirways realizes this disregard toward their clients works both ways. So I have informed my friend that I won't request we sit together because i don't wish to embarrass her, and i doubt my effort to get us sitting together will come to anything. in closing: XLAIRWAYS: How dare you take my money for a seat on your plane, not give me an assigned seat and charge me for my choice within 2/3 days before the flight at which time my options are already limited. You are treating me like a caged animal for over 8 hours and charging me for it.

I was afraid to fly this airline after the reviews but after flying to and from Paris from JFK I give it 5 stars!!! The flight left and returned on time both trips. I was able to book my seats about a week in advance online for both trips. The plane was new and very clean. The seats were tight like all economy flights but I was comfortable. The staff was very friendly and helpful. Food was pretty good for airline food. The staff kept coming around with water throughout the entire flight. Movies were in French but I slept or read so it didn't matter. I saved about half of what other flights were charging and would highly recommend this airline. It was a great experience and I have no negatives to say about them!

Uncomfortable, dirty and unsafe and the staff is rude and angry. They will disappear and hide until they can. If you want something, they tell you to get it yourself. You will sit aroung with trash in front of you and on the floor since they don't have enough receptacles due to how they reconfigured the aircraft by squeezing as many seats possible. If you like suffering, go for it. It is wild!!!

The WORST airline by far, no consideration to the customer whatsoever. - There is no Registration online, so be ready that they Intentionally close their check in earlier, and there is no way you find any reps after. I spent all night in the airport after missing my flight (even though I arrived 1 hour before flight), and they asked me to pay full fair on One way flight next day, which was equal to the price of my round trip ticket. I found a good deal with a different airline and wanted to catch up with my outbound flight from Paris to NY, since the ticket was still valid. NOT THE CASE WITH XL! They asked me to pay a fee of $175 + $200 difference fee for converting my ticket into one way ticket, just because I did not use Them as an option for my missed flight (which again was $600 extra). This is beyond any scam airline I've heard of! Keep in mind that you will freeze to death in the salon, with no blankets, no pleasant service or any edible food. AVOID THEM, YOU WILL PAY 3 TIMES MORE DUE TO ONE REASON OR ANOTHER, THEY DO IT ON PURPOSE. They don't deserve even one star.

I booked the 11:55 pm from JFK to Paris. Price was good. Travel agent said no frills, no advance seating. OK. Get there at 8:30pm sign says delay till 6:30am. No one at desk to check in or answer questions. At 9:30pm they start check in. Give some food vouchers and we sleep on floor. The plane lost gate rights so they had to bus people (50 at a time) to plane in the middle of the strip. Did not leave till 9:00am. No TV or movie. No compensation. No hotel offerings.

Took the 7:30pm flight from CDG to JFK on July 12th. It was unclear which terminal to go to because it was not on their website. I booked with expedia and the booking said terminal 2A and that is where we went. Checked the departure board and check in was in section 3. There is a scale in section 3 to weigh your luggage. We got to the airport 5 hours before the flight because we read horror stories of people being closed out of their flight for not checking in within a hour of departure. There was another flight to JFK leaving at 7:45pm which led to further confusion. People starting lining up at 3:30pm and check in began at around 4:00pm. There did not appear to be on line check in available. Here is the reason why we were dissatisfied with xl, we were misled by the check in representative. We were told a soft duffle bag would need to be checked in despite meeting the size and weight requirement. The rep said it was a small plane and that there was no overhead compartment. When we told her we could store it under the seat in front of us and that it had something fragile inside, she did not care and made us check it in. She also told us that seats were already assigned. While walking to the gate we saw people in line with us carrying much bigger bags than our duffle bag. Boarding was chaotic. As we boarded the plane we saw overhead compartments on the plane. The plane was a Airbus 330 with 53 rows in a 2 4 2 configuration. Not a small plane and certainly with overhead compartments. We were incensed. To add insult to injury people were using our overhead compartment to store their much larger items. The seats were okay, the meal was penne with tomato sauce with peppers and water was free. We arrived 1 hour late. We realize this is a discount airline but it was so unorganized. Overall, a hot mess.

NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCE! Please beware of this airline! It is very dangerous and poorly managed. My husband and I almost died on a flight coming back home from our trip to Paris to JFK airport. The pilot was about to take off the runway and was going fast and braked in the middle of the takeoff almost at lift off and set everyone nearly flying even with seat belts on. This caused the plane to set on fire on one section. It was the scariest experience of our lives. The pilot did not explain to us what happened leaving everyone frantic. The flight crew are extremely rude and uncaring and treat the passengers horribly. They ignore you and are just very nasty individuals and have no ounce of kindness. We had to evacuate the plane and it was a huge mess. We had to wait 4 hours to get on a new plane and even then the plane ride was horrible. They only gave us water and you had to pay for other drinks. The crew had very angry demeanors the whole time and it was overall a very uncomfortable experience. We would never fly with XL Airways again and warn others to stay away if you value your life and want a pleasant trip to wherever you are going. Horrible airline that should be shut down!!!

I flew my family from JFK to Paris and the flight out was delayed by over 3 hours. The service was terrible and the plane was so tight it was simply over crowded. On our return from Paris the staff were rude and simply disgraceful. Rude looks, barking commands to passengers and simply unhappy in the work-place. After we waiting 3 hours ahead of the check in time we were treated like 3rd grade citizens. We were then carted of the plane after an aborted take off and were subjected to another 4 hour delay. I hope this airline goes out of business. they dont deserve your our my business.

This is the WORST airlines I ever traveled with. Being a French American, in the past I have traveled many times from the US to France and this summer's trip was the worst ever. 2 hours of delay at departure both ways, hours in line for checking, Smallest seats I ever sat on with knees touching the front seat and hips stuck in the arms of the seat (and I am 125lbs for 5'4). Toilets paper was not recharged during the flight so after a while you could not use the bathroom. Movies were either not the same announced or the same both ways (3 weeks intervall) I am sure I will never use this airline again and I won't recommend it either. I wish they won't stay in business long.

We took a chance with XL since we would save $3,000 for a family of three. We booked 9 months in advance. If you follow all the rules, you should not have a problem. We flew round trip JFK to CDG. We arrived 4 hours before to check in and receive our seat assignments, then we spent the rest of the time relaxing at the airport. If you arrive early there will NOT yet be a huge line and you will not be bumped off because you arrived late for check in. First come, First served. Baggage weight is restricted, something like 11lbs for an on board hangbag and 45 pounds for a checked bag. You can also take your computer and that is separately counted so no worries there. Seats are small as people have written, it is true. This means if you are a wide, big, or a very tall person, you simply will not fit in the seat. No kidding here, don't even bother because you will spill over to the next passenger and it will be super uncomfortable for the both of you. This is a no frills flight, food is not good and drinks are minimal with charges. So bring food/snacks and buy extra drinks at the airport gate after your TSA check. Stay hydrated is the most important part. We did have the TV's on our flight going because XL overbooked and therefore we had a bigger fancier plane but it is not part of their regular XL Airbus fleet, however you might get lucky too. Seats were still small but in leather. I found flight attendants were sweet, no problems. We saved so much money by taking XL and it was a direct flight! This made us feel we could splurge in Paris for food and shopping! All in all, I would fly XL Airways again, just come prepared!

Be careful if you fly XL airways from France to Miami !.... My luggage disappeared during the fly a week ago, I still have no explanation or news from the company !..... Horrible !!... Cheap rate = no customer service !! Be aware ....

Cyril, qui est la personne avec laquelle j'ai parlé concernant un changement de vol, était très agréable, et m'a très bien renseigné sur ce que je devais faire pour changé mon vol, étant donné la situation difficile dans laquelle je me trouvais.

After booking on XL to France and reading the awful reviews, I was very apprehensive. I am happy to say our experience could not have been better. Checking in was easily accessible and quick. The flight was on time and smooth. No food or entertainment but at that time of night, who cares. Some confusion on the trip home due to misleading e-mail that said our flight would be delayed. We arrived at JFK about 15 minutes late. I would fly XL in a heartbeat. Seats are tight, but all flights are. The food on the return trip was awful, but all airline food is awful. Clients are young and mostly European. Great trip.

Even before you arrive at your departure gate, your experience with XL will feel.. Kafkaesque. Pre-check in? Forget it. Once at the airport, you will shlep your luggage to the shadiest check-in counter, then navigate your way to the most isolated gate at your terminal. Meanwhile, you will encounter the same Gestapo agent at the check-in counter (Name? Flying to? One bag? Two?) and then at the gate: your interaction will be brief and to the point, giving you just enough time to pray she isn’t also your flight attendant. (She is). Rude to the point of abusive, the crew will make sure you feel punished for being a cheapass. Ok, so XL does not win any medals for hospitality. But the planes fly alright, no? Well, they do fly. On the downside, they are all throw-aways from second-tier airlines that XL purchased for peanuts. This is understandable, because XL was only a charter airline not too long ago. You may find that you’re traveling in, say, a Garuda Airlines plane from the 80’s. All the signage will be in Indonesian, which would be cool in an offbeat sort of way if it weren’t for the filthy carpeting and disgusting bathrooms the size of a coffin. This will be mildly annoying or terribly irritating, depending on your disposition, until, of course, you discover your seat. The seating arrangement on XL is probably in violation of at least a dozen FAA regulations, and if not, it should be. Where seats are normally arranged in rows of 2-4-2, this airline opted for a novel 3-3-3 set-up. This adds an extra seat to each row, but unfortunately the back of each seat is practically glued to the back of the adjacent seat, and as a result the armrests between seats have nowhere to lift. You will be squeezed in so tightly that if you’re even moderately overweight, forget it: you won’t fit (and if you do, your fellow passengers will seriously hate you). God help you if you’re taller than 6 feet: you will probably hurt your knees, back, and/or neck staying in a contorted position for 7 hours. No, the seats don’t really recline, with the exception of a few broken ones that recline too much, which is sure to cause some altercation with the person sitting behind you. The rows are so close to each other that a laptop larger than 11” won’t open with sufficient clearance to let you type on it. The food will be nothing short of revolting, but you should expect that. Don’t eat it. Also, bring your own water: the one you can purchase on board costs $3 for a 16-oz bottle. Want coffee? That will be another $3. Instant coffee never tasted so sour. They say you get what you pay for. Sometimes, however, the bargain is just not worth it. So, before you book that JFK – CDG flight at a price that’s too good to be true, consider this: there is no such thing as free lunch. You you will be utterly miserable getting there. And you’ll be utterly miserable coming back. Unless you’re a buddhist monk or have some morbid curiosity to experience travel a-la-cattle, preserve your sanity (or dignity) and look elsewhere.

I travel from Paris to Las Vegas a couple of times per year, but this August my boyfriend and I took his children (ages 6 & 8) with us, so I thought it was best to take the non-stop flight. It WAS NOT less expensive than other flights on brand-name carriers. The sole advantage was that it was non-stop. And in the end, it was probably worth it just for that reason alone. The seats are very small and the food was very bad, and I don't really have any problem with airline food overall, so it has to be pretty bad for me to say it was really bad! But we read reviews and brought food made from home for the kids and for us. I also planned ahead and purchased seats in advance at the front of the plane (120 Euros for 4 seats) - the reason being that we know from experience that the lines at passport control can take an average of 2 hours, and we didn't want to experience that with children in tow. We were in row 5, and the exit upon arrival was actually a few rows behind us. I ran ahead as soon as we got off to get in line at passport control, and we took maybe 10 minutes to get through - that was well worth the 120 Euros I paid. The people at passport control told us there was another plane from China with another 300+ load of passengers, so the line was going to be very, very long. The flight took off about an hour late but we arrived nearly on time, and the same thing happened on the way back. You have to be patient in these situations and know you are flying a charter and have to be patient. It is true that check-in at CDG was an absolute bordel!! The line was forever long and they couldn't even check everyone in on-time based on their own rules. We were there more than 2 hours in advance and I'd say check-in took about 1.5 hours standing in line and getting checked in. On the way back in Las Vegas, we checked in right when counters opened 4 hours before, checked our bags and got our seat assignments (free this time - their online systemwas down and didn't allow you to purchase sets) and then we left the airport and hung out for several hours and went shopping before going back to the airport.

The best and only good part of XL is that their fares are cheaper than other airlines. Negatives: * No online check-in * No kiosk check-in (at JFK or CDG) * No pre-flight seat selection * Takes a long time to check-in * The food is terrible- it's the stereotype of airline food * TVs are small and few- obviously no individual tvs at your seats * No wifi for purchase So if XL is WAY cheaper, yes I'd fly it again. But only for that reason. And I'd bring enough food to last the flight.

This company is just a rip off. They pretend to be cheaper but you have to pay everything. Only 20 kg allowed to fly NY-Paris. Only one baggage allowed. Only 5kg allowed for your carry on. When I arrived at the checking point, at least 10 people where on the floor with their luggage open and trying to figure out where they could put their underwear. It was a panic. $18 per extra kilo. I paid $100 for my bike that they LOST. They have a terrible customer service. They are just incompetent, arrogant on the phone and don't care at all.