Austrian Airlines is the flag carrier of Austria. It is part of the Lufthansa Group and shares a corporate parent with the German airline Lufthansa, as well as several other European carriers.
Austrian is known for utterly charming onboard service that reflects the alpine traditions of Austria – passengers bound for Vienna will get in the mood immediately, as the airline plays the Blue Danube waltz during boarding. Austrian is small compared to many European airlines, but it offers service to many niche destinations, particularly in the Caucasus and Persian Gulf regions.
Network
Austrian’s sole hub is at Vienna Airport, where they operate long-haul services to North America and Asia, and short-haul services within Europe, particularly in central and eastern Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. It’s the only European airline offering service to Iraq and also offers significant service to Romania, North Macedonia, Slovakia, Serbia, Montenegro, Moldova, and several other smaller eastern European countries.
Classes of service
Austrian offers Business and Economy Class on all flights. Business Class differs between the widebody fleet and the narrowbody fleet. Within Europe, Business Class is a separate cabin with enhanced service with an empty middle seat, but the same seat type as Economy. On Intercontinental flights onboard widebody aircraft, seats are lie-flat and the service is comparable with other Intercontinental Business Class products.
On widebody aircraft, Austrian also offers Premium Economy, a middle way between Business and Economy, offering larger seats with more legroom, seat width, and recline, enhanced meal service, an amenity kit, and upgraded pillows and blankets. I’ve found Premium Economy on Austrian flights to be particularly competitively priced compared with the airline’s Economy fares.
Seats and service – Economy Class
Economy Class seats on Austrian Airlines are relatively comfortable on either European or Intercontinental flights, with seat pitch starting around 28” within Europe and 30” on long-haul flights. Meals are free in Economy Class on long-haul flights and are “Austrian Melangerie” buy-on-board within Europe on flights scheduled longer than 50 minutes. Austrian Melangerie allows for pre-orders, but meals cannot be preordered on long-haul flights.
There’s seatback entertainment available in Economy Class on long-haul flights. Wi-Fi is available for purchase on Boeing 787 aircraft and on most Airbus narrowbody flights within Europe. Wi-fi is not available on Boeing 777 or 767 aircraft. Austrian sells “Preferred Zone” seats near the front of the aircraft and extra legroom seats in exit rows for an additional fee. All but the most discounted fare types within Europe include preassigned standard seats; preassigned seats are available for a fee on all Intercontinental fare types.
Seats and service – Business Class
Within Europe, Business Class seats are the same as Economy Class. The minimum standard for legroom is typically a few inches more, but legroom in Business Class can still be pretty tight. The benefit is that there’s a separate cabin, middle seats are always blocked, and there are free meals and drinks. Passengers also have access to a lounge at the airport.
On long-haul flights, seats are lie flat and the onboard service is greatly enhanced, served in multiple courses. Business Class passengers can pre-select meals, which are served by an onboard chef. One of the dishes is an Austrian favorite, while the other two are international standards. Austrian is noted for its triangle-shaped plates, which are meant to evoke the mountains of the Alps. After the main meal service, there’s a “Viennese Coffeehouse” coffee service to round off the meal.
One of the delights offered during the coffee service is Wiener Eiskafee, a Viennese-style iced coffee served by pouring the coffee over a scoop of vanilla ice cream and topping with whipped cream. This coffee drink is only available on flights departing Vienna, and not return flights to Austria.
Seat assignments
Standard seat assignments are free on Austrian for all but the lowest fares within Europe. On Intercontinental flights, seat assignments are included in all classes of service. In Economy, Austrian charges extra for extra legroom seats or seats at the front of the cabin. In Business Class on the 777 aircraft, there are single “throne” seats staggered (Extra Space Seats) on the window side of the aircraft, for which Austrian charges a premium.
I like the throne seats because they have plenty of extra room and they ensure you won’t be sitting next to another person. The only drawback is that the footwell is slightly smaller than the double pairs of seats. Top-tier members of Lufthansa Group’s Miles & More program can book the throne seats without an extra charge.
Duty-free sales
Austrian Airlines, like the rest of Lufthansa Group, is a holdout on duty-free sales onboard, continuing them after many other European and US carriers have suspended them. One of the better buys is Mozart chocolates, from the famed composer’s birth city of Salzburg, Austria. They’re widely available in Austria, but good to pick up on the flight home if you’ve forgotten a last-minute gift.
Loyalty program
Like other Lufthansa Group carriers, Austrian uses Miles & More as its frequent flier program. Members can earn points on Austrian, other Lufthansa Group carriers like Lufthansa, SWISS, and Brussels Airlines, or Star Alliance partners like United, All Nippon Airways, Singapore Airlines, or Air Canada. Members can redeem miles for Austrian or Star Alliance flights, or a host of non-air redemption options.
Check-in
Austrian offers a huge number of ways to check in, particularly in Vienna. You can check-in online on the mobile app, or at Vienna Airport the day before departure (if you’re going to the US you can’t check bags earlier than 24 hours prior). If you’re taking the CAT train to the airport from Vienna Mitte station, you can also check in at the train station. Perhaps because of all these options, I rarely notice a long line at Austrian’s ticket counters in Vienna.
For inbound flights to or through Vienna, the online and airport ticket counter check-in options are more standard, typically up to 4 hours prior to departure for baggage check. Star Alliance Gold travelers and Business Class travelers typically have their own dedicated check-in counters. Passengers departing Vienna can also reserve a private check-in desk for themselves or a large party in half hour increments.
Baggage
Austrian is famously strict on carry-on baggage weights, perhaps at no airport more than Vienna. Carryon bags must weigh less than 8 kilos (17 pounds), and I routinely notice agents weighing bags while passengers are boarding, although they typically don’t keep a close eye on Business Class or Star Alliance Gold passengers. At other airports, it can be hit-or-miss, but generally speaking, they’re more strict about carry-on bag weights at European airports.
Economy and Premium Economy passengers are allowed one piece of carry-on baggage, while Business Class passengers are allowed two. There’s also a personal item allotment, similar to most US flights, but the weight restrictions also apply to personal items.
Austrian is also one of the few airlines that participates in electronic bag tags for bags that are RIMOWA, BAGTAG, or BagID that are equipped with them. They’re not available on every flight due to local restrictions, but once you’ve completed check-in for your Austrian flight online or on the app, you can access the mobile app for your electronic bag tag to download your Austrian bag tag.
Boarding
Austrian boards by zones, reserving the first three zones for Business and Premium Economy (on flights that have it), and Miles & More and Star Alliance elite customers. Business Class passengers are Zone 2 because Zone 1 is reserved for top-level Miles & More elites and passengers connecting to First Class on SWISS or Lufthansa flights (Austrian doesn’t have First Class of its own but supports First Class passengers on other Lufthansa Group airlines).
Many of Austrian’s European airports use automated boarding pass gates, with a barrier that automatically opens after a boarding pass is scanned. These gates are also designed to deny boarding to anybody who attempts to board before their group has been called. It helps to pay attention to which group is currently boarding to avoid the embarrassment of being rejected by the machine and told to wait your turn.
Lounges
Austrian operates a pair of lounges at Vienna Airport, one for departures within the Schengen Area, and one for departures to all other destinations. Within these, there are three tiers of lounge. The Business Lounge is for Business Class customers without elite frequent flier status with Miles & More or Star Alliance. The Senator Lounge is for Senator tier members of Miles & More or Star Alliance Gold members.
The HON Circle Lounge is for Miles & More’s top-tier fliers, and also for passengers with a First Class flight on Lufthansa or SWISS on the next segment in their itinerary (neither carrier offers First Class on their flights to Vienna). Austrian sells access to customers without a lounge entitlement to the Business Lounge only.
This KAYAK-commissioned article is presented as-is, for general informational purposes only, and may not be up-to-date. The opinions contained in the article are original to the author and reflect their authentic experience, which may vary significantly from the experience of others. Find more perspectives in our user reviews below.
