China Eastern Reviews 313

I booked China Eastern from London to New Zealand return which is a flight I’ve done many times with multiple airlines. Firstly the crew could not speak or understand English I get it’s a Chinese airline but from London and New Zealand I would expect basic English. There were around 5 movies to watch that were in English and both flights had the same movies for 2 x 11 hour flights. Only 2 meals which I have to say were very good quality better than most but that was where it stopped no snacks at all, no drinks offered during the flight when I went to ask they did give me water but in a tiny cup. No alcohol other than beer I don’t drink on flights but that may bug others. Only drinks were water, orange juice and coke. The plane was also the old style plane so tiny seats and overhead lockers. Toilets were kept very clean which was appreciated. I did pay about half what other airlines were offering so I got what I paid for if you can deal with the above it does save a lot of money but if you expect what other airlines, Qantas, BA, Air New Zealand, Emirates offer you will be really disappointed. Would not fly them if their price was not competitive.

I booked my flights to New Zealand via travel up website. I was nervous after reading reviews about CEA. However, I had a good experience. Their website is awful and doesn’t work properly, however I checked in at the desk at the airport and was able to get seats together with no hassle. I am a vegetarian and they do not provide veg meals unless you give them 24 hour notice, i could not work out how to do this on the website, so I just had to pick the meat out of my food.
The first flight was to Shanghai which had a 12 hour layover there. We booked a room at the holiday inn express down the road, which has a free shuttle bus service that runs from the airport regularly and was easy to find. I would recommend doing this as it really helped us with our tiredness levels being able to have a decent sleep.
We had no issues with our suitcases, everything run very smoothly. No delays. Shanghai airport was easy to navigate and very quiet. Not a huge selection of movies to choose from. I would recommend taking own food on flight too. Plane was nice and clean and staff were helpful.
Overall, I would recommend CEA, just don’t let yourself get stressed about the website and checking in, I would just do it all at the airport.

China eastern economy class b737-800

150€ for a 1.5 hour flight including check-in baggage

Legroom and seat comfort 4.5/5
On-time performance 4/5
Service 0/5
Food 0/5
Entertainment 0/5

Low cabin pressure made me feel dizzy during the flight, basic service, no announcments

First of all, China Eastern is an airline that you would not expect much from. I will give three reasons why:

Around December last year, I was scheduled to fly from Melbourne Tullamarine - Shanghai Pudong Via China Eastern's Subsidiary 'Shanghai Airlines'. (This was a round trip). I was very surprised with the check in. Very quick and efficient.

Once I boarded their b787; the seats were comfortable, legroom was awesome (Im 175 cm) tray table was decent sized, the recline was exceptional, there was a headrest and pillows and blankets provided. However, the most shocking thing was the IFE.

1. The IFE is very boring and offers only a limited selection of movies, dramas, and songs. The wifi needs to be activated with a payment, which makes the experience even more excruciating. Furthermore, the 'games' section was unavailable. One positive about the IFE was the flightmap. Modern and works with the finger. The IFE comes with a remote, that is broken. IFE can be adjusted if the person ahead of you reclines.

Otherwise, I thought the flight would be great. I hoped for exceptional catering on China Eastern, however, obviously, I was wrong.

2. The tray table was dirty, so was the windows and IFE. But what shocked me the food. There were two very small meals on the flight. It only included a bread roll, maybe some fruits, a jelly and a meal. Bland and nothing to get excited about. For both ways, melbourne to shanghai or shanghai to melbourne; the catering was literally the same.

However, this is from past experience . When I was a kid aged 14, first time travelling solo, the cabin crew on China Eastern were not friendly nor rude. They simply didn't have the enthusiasm. I don't know how much they are getting paid, but the enthusiasm deserves 2 or 3 stars.

3. This time was the same. No enthusiasm and friendliness for most of the crew. When i wanted to go to the toilet, I had to wait 45 minutes, a two people in both bathrooms doing their business (probably). The cabin crew ignored the long wait and there was a huge queue behind me.

So that concludes it. An average and bland airline. Nothing to get out of your seats for. I hoped I helped whoever read this review. Thank you!

Unable to reach customer services by any means over a period of days. Staff at Heathrow are super unhelpful - it's like being in a sketch on Little Britain.

My checked suitcase arrived in Phnom Penh damaged as shown in the picture, I asked the Phnom Penh ground staff of China Eastern Airlines to prepare documents to prove the damage to cover it with my travel insurance, they refused to produce the documents without even appearing before us. China Eastern should retrain their ground staff in Phnom Penh.

We booked a 3 legged flight from London to Osaka in Japan via Shanghai with a 4 day layover on the return.

During our holiday we first received 4 notifications of flight time changes for our Shanghai to London leg that moved up to 90 minutes this way and that.

Then we were notified that our flight had completely changed to a different one leaving 5 hours earlier. No explanation given.

This caused a significant problem when we landed at Shanghai for our visa free stay as our original e-ticket had a different flight number. Intimidating immigration took two hours to complete as a result.

We flew from Singapore to Budapest, with two layovers in Ningbo and Kunming. After our flight was rescheduled, we had to depart earlier from Singapore, which was manageable since they covered two nights in a hotel. However, we still haven't received any information regarding our claim. Upon arriving in Budapest, we were notified via email that our flight had been rescheduled again, requiring us to stay an additional four nights. Since then, I have made numerous attempts to contact them through calls, messages, and emails over the past three weeks while we are here in Europe, but have heard nothing in response. To be fair, my experience with the flight attendants, especially on Shanghai Air, was satisfactory, but the overall experience has been truly frustrating. It’s hard to imagine if I were in a more precarious financial situation, as I could easily find myself struggling in the cold winter streets. As I write this review, I am still waiting for any communication from CE regarding compensation and solutions to our ongoing issues. Also , I am with a CHILD.

I had an extremely disappointing experience with China Eastern Airlines during my recent trip from Dubai to Tokyo via Shanghai. Our flight from Dubai to Shanghai was delayed by 3 hours, resulting in us missing our connecting flight to Tokyo.

The situation was handled very poorly. We were left waiting for 4 hours in Shanghai in their Customer Service to sort out our tickets, only to be informed that the next available flight was on the following day. Despite this significant disruption, the airline provided no accommodation, meals, or even basic refreshments. The lack of communication and assistance from customer service made an already stressful situation far worse.

This experience fell far below expectations for an international airline. I would not recommend this airline to anyone looking for reliability and good service.

Dear China Eastern Customer Service,

I am writing to formally complain about the disappointing experience I had during my recent flight with your airline, from Shanghai to London Heathrow. After spending a significant amount of money for what I expected to be a comfortable and well-served long-haul journey, I found the overall service to be extremely poor.

The issues began when a member of the cabin crew dropped a tray of food on my partner, which was both alarming and uncomfortable. This incident set the tone for the rest of the flight, as things only seemed to worsen from there. After receiving our meals, we were left waiting for the hot roll that was supposed to accompany the meal, but it was never brought to us, despite other passengers receiving theirs.

Additionally, the drinks service was inadequate. Throughout the flight, drinks were limited and rarely offered. I had to ask multiple times for something as basic as a refill of water, which should have been part of the standard service on a long-haul flight. When I finally requested to have my water bottle filled, it seemed there was an issue or reluctance from the crew, which added to the frustration.

Considering the high cost of the ticket and the length of the flight, I expected a much higher standard of service. The lack of attention to detail, the poor communication, and the overall experience were extremely disappointing. As a result of this, I am now hesitant to choose China Eastern for future travels.

I sincerely hope this complaint reaches someone in a position of authority and that these issues are addressed to prevent such negative experiences for future passengers.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. I look forward to your response and to hearing about the steps you will take to improve your service.

Sincerely,
Kamil

First they lost our luggage and expected us to chase up every stop to see where it was. We returned after a 3 week holiday still without luggage or any help tracking it down. But before we left they canceled the first leg of our return journey which we had to rebook and pay for ourselves. No refund, no compensation.
The worst airline I have ever been on.
Never book with this company.

The WORST flight company I ever experienced - and I have travelled quite a lot. Never in my life I experienced such horrible service. Connecting flight from Osaka to Shanghai cancelled due to weather conditions, while all other flights were simply delayed a couple hours. No one told us it was cancelled, we found out just from the electronic table. Then we were left completely alone.

Incompetent staff with poor english gave us a piece of paper with a Chinese call center number - giving instructions in chinese - for rescheduling, and a QR code which wasn't working. Nobody answered that number for 3 days, and I can assure you, we tried all day long.

We spent so many hours at the airport complaining and trying to find a solution, and on their shitty website which never works in any part - login was broken, rescheduling always threw errors. It was literally impossible for us to reschedule any solution offered by them. We were even joked by the one guy at their checkin that ”other people managed to do it", like it was our fault, then told to ask full refund and rebook. This joke company will not do it for you on their own flights. Of course, all other flights were too expensive, so we were forced to stick to their crap service. First availability after 5 days, which destroyed all our return plans. We were enraged and desperate, but this didn't change their effort a single bit.

While their call center didn't work, we even try to buy it ourselves, using third party instead of their crap website. Purchase confirmation never arrived. After 3 days, we managed to speak to english operator on the call center and got the flight rescheduled.

Fast forward 5 days, we manage to finally board their aircraft. More than 1h delay due to some transfering of passengers from another flight. On board entertainment is poor and mostly in chinese, food was also sub-par compared to your average fast-food delivery. Shangai airport was also a bad experience, staff is rude, free internet didn't work. We managed to land safely and, as cherry on top, they lost one of my luggages, and returned it after 2 whole days.

Yes, it's the cheapest offer around; but what you think will be spared in terms of money is actually spent in time, additional nights at the hotel, and nervous brakedown.
This crap company should not be allowed to operate in any civilized country.
Avoid it at all cost.

On September 11, I traveled with China Eastern Airlines and they broke my suitcase. Upon arriving at Barajas airport, I put the corresponding claim in AENA and processed it as I was told. To this day and after many calls to different phone numbers with changing opening hours and quite a few emails, I still have no answer. I think their way of acting is a lack of respect and responsibility and of course I will not travel with them again. Breaking a suitcase or causing problems but it could have been something more serious and their customer service gives the silence as an answer.

I booked a return ticket from London to Shanghai in October 2024 for my father and myself. My father is 87 years old and has mobility issues. I tried calling China Eastern customer service number many times as soon as I booked the flight tickets to let them know that we would be taking our electric mobility scooter with us on the plane. However there was no one answering the call. In desperation, I completed a complaint form online and the sales team of China Eastern reached out to me. They told me in an email that I could bring the electric mobility scooter with me on the plane. It will need to be checked in. I have no problem with that. They also mentioned that the lithium battery should be below 300 Wh and would need to be carried on board the aircraft in my hand luggage. I also do not have a problem with that. On the departure date, we checked in at London Gatwick. The check in staff checked the battery and was satisfied that it was within the airline regulations and we were able to board the plane. On 30 October at Shanghai Pudong International Airport, when we checked in for our departure from Shanghai, we were not allowed to carry the lithium battery on board. I showed the check in staff the email from China Eastern stating that the battery can be carried on board as long as it is below 300 Wh and the label on the battery clearly states that the power was 269 Wh. The staff would not budge and was not interested in talking to me. They do not speak English. Their attitude was very rude. They took away the battery. We had to board the plane without the battery. At London Heathrow Terminal 4 where we landed, I went to their customer service desk (opposite carousel 5). I was asked to speak on the phone with a lady called Tina who promised to look into it but so far have not heard anything from China Eastern. I was not given any case reference. I emailed China Eastern again. They replied asking me to call their customer service line on +86 212 069 5530. I called the number but I get a recorded message in Chinese. There is no option for English Language. Customer service does not exist at China Eastern. Their website says one thing but the staff on the ground makes their own rules. This airline has failed people with mobility issues. So please think twice before travelling with China Eastern. The service on board is standard. It is a "budget" airline. The food is predominantly Chinese (to be expected). The entertainment on board is very limited. If I could give a negative rating, I would.

A piece of crap airline--the worst so far.
Booked and paid for a domestic flight for November and after being notified of the flight number change, today they are notifying me that the flight is cancelled and that I must rebook as soon as possible!!!
But that I have to rebook me?????
You cancelled the flight, you book me another similar flight!!!
Just sucks...by now I've planned vacations to China but never again let alone with this airline
I have asked for a refund but who knows if I will ever see it
You really suck... but from the Chinese what can you get....
Absolutely avoid if possible

My family of 4 flew from the UK to Korea. We have food allergies and informed the airline within 72 hrs of flying. Had reconfirmed at check-in. Check in was easy and had connecting flights in Shanghai. The staff were marvellous and couldn’t do enough for us. The food was as expected but as a seasoned traveller tolerated the meal as the price was super value for money. We booked the flight via booking.com and selected meals however, do be aware that your choice will not be registered with the airline. Would definitely recommend. The flight attendants were very pleasant and professional.

I won’t fly with this company again, not even under torture.
They are cheap but it’s not worth it.
The tv/pad in front of you on a flight of 11 hours it’s useless, just few bad and old movies, no games available, prehistoric audio files.
The “food” are meals that even pigs would say “no thank you”.
NEVERMORE

Excellent service and staff. Very helpful Rashmikant Desai. From London Gatwick to bangkok on 21st September

For no reason, the airline charged me twice for the same ticket (identical amount, but only 1 ticket). The London office leaves you on hold for long periods then disconnects - spent 4+ hrs over 2 days, impossible to reach. Hong Kong Office denies knowledge of double payment. Seemed stressed/busy, not keen to discuss/look into. Also could not reach them today, after further long period on hold. Now raising a dispute with my bank. A huge amount of time/paperwork and unsure I'll ever get the extra payment refunded. I will try really hard to find any alternative, to choosing this airline in the future. I travel a lot. This is the worst airline experience I've ever had.