Review of Lufthansa flight Nice Frankfurt in Economy

Airline Lufthansa
Flight LH1059
Class Economy
Seat 15A
Aircraft Airbus A320
Flight time 01:35
Take-off 25 Oct 18, 10:25
Arrival at 25 Oct 18, 12:00
LH   #64 out of 96 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings. 1610 reviews
Aigle_voyageur
Published on 9th April 2020

Warning: Due to the limitation of 150 photos per flight-report by the management team, I had to make considerable changes between the French and English Version for the following flights:

* Lufthansa 1058 From Nice (France) to Frankfurt-Am-Main (Germany)

* Lufthansa 720 From Frankfurt-Am-Main (Germany) to Beijing (China)


INTRODUCTION


For my 2018 holidays, I wanted to travel to Asia once again. Although I loved my trip to Japan, I decided to visit another country, like China for its history. This trip also included an express visit in Hong Kong.


with which airline ?


For this trip to China from NCE, I preselected the following airlines :


* Air France - KLM :


France's main airline offers several flights to Beijing via CDG or AMS and with Air China's partnership. The arrival is estimated between 6.00 a.m. and 8.00 a.m. according to the operating airline for 730€.


* Aigle Azur:


Second French airline. The airline usually flies around the European continent, but most of its flights were between France and Portugal and France and Algeria.

When the German airline Air Berlin (AB) went bankrupt, Aigle Azur picked up 2 A330-200, which were used for flights going to Bamako (Mali), Sao Paulo Viracopos, (Brazil) and, coincidence, to Beijing, (Republic of China).

It would have been a great occasion to experiment a long-haul flight with a quite discreet airline like ZI (Aigle Azur's IATA code). If the price was very cheap (around 500€), the scheduled time of arrival was very early (6.35a.m.) and you could fly only from Paris ORLY.

Nowadays, this airline also went bankrupt.


* Lufthansa:


Germany's national airline offers a satisfying product in all classes and has a lot of lfights to China thanks to its numerous partnerships with the other Star Alliance airlines.
 
To do so, I must transit:

- Either at Frankfurt-Am-Main (FRA) airport.
- Or München Franz-Josef-Strauss (MUC) airport.

Ticket price around 750€.


* Singapore Airlines:


Known for its quality. However, I'll have to make 2 stops although flights are operated with wonderful aircrafts such as the A380-800, 777-300ER or A350-900.
 
The departure time since NCE airport is either early in the morning (7.00 a.m.) or late at night (7.00 p.m.) to arrive at PEK around 2.40 p.m. As for the price, it exceeds 1000€.


* Emirates:


After my last journey with them, I was quite surprised. If Emirates had a clear advantage for its A380, its IFE, the acceptable transit time, good catering and its price (around 500€), the arrival time is scheduled 3.35 p.m. which is too late.


Verdict:


Because I'm joining a group, I mustn't arrive later than 10.00 a.m. In other words, Both EK and SQ are out.

I also try to avoid AF-KL, not for the airline, but for the tedious transit in Paris CDG. Besides, between Paris and Beijing, the flight could be a potential disaster. Despite the French reviews gave more credits to Air China, I'd rather stay on a solid value.

ZI was very interesting but I can't select it either because there was no flight at the date of departure. Besides I'll have to buy a NCE-ORY-NCE separately, which could be dangerous for my connection in case or delay or cancellation.

As for LH, although both hubs can make a route to Beijing, Each one has its own aircraft: the one from/to FRA is an Airbus A340-600, while the one from/to MUC is no other than the A380-800.

In the end, I choose to fly with Lufthansa. However, international flights will all transit in FRA but two China Eastern domestic flights will be included in this circuit.


our silk's route


Version Française:



English version:


Routing

  • LUFTHANSA 1059 NICE => FRANKFURT-AM-MAIN You are here
  • LUFTHANSA 720 FRANKFURT-AM-MAIN => BEIJING Coming soon
  • CHINA EASTERN 2151 XI'AN => SHANGHAI HONGQIAO Coming soon
  • CHINA EASTERN 9635 SHANGHAI PUDONG => GUILIN CITY Coming soon
  • LUFTHANSA 797 HONG KONG => FRANKFURT-AM-MAIN Coming soon
  • LUFTHANSA 1058 FRANKFURT-AM-MAIN => NICE Coming soon

Before the departure


To go to China, whether you are a French or Canadian citizen, you need a visa that you will only get at China embassy's website. If you travel with a tour operator, the visa's fees are generally included and they will supervise the whole procedure.

In all cases, if the delay is estimated to one week, getting the precious visa can become very arduous. After I sent everything, the embassy can ask your last 3 salary slips. All of them must show a minimum amount of 1200€ a month (around 1300 US $).

A few days later, the agency is calling me again. The embassy demanded this time my bank statement, which must be more than 1000€ (around 1088 US $). Personally, I do not approve sending any bank statement because of privacy reasons but I did it anyway.

Once I finally got my booking number, I noticed my ticket allowed me a normal upgrade only on NCE-FRA flights for 110€ each, which I was not interested in.

However ! LH does the "bid" upgrades: You can then choose the amount you're ready to pay to travel either in Premium Economy ou in Business via your booking. The airline usually replies 2 or 3 days before the departure if your offer has been accepted or not. 


photo enchre lufthansa

I gave it a try by making the lowest fare at all long-haul flights and they both got accepted.

Of course, the amount is per person and is paid ONLY if your offer has been accepted.


If this kind of upgrade is possible for any customer who wishes to travel in a more luxurious class, it is impossible to take part on tickets bought in India or in Japan. That also applies if you travel among a group (at least 9 people travelling under the same booking).


Bad point for LH: I never received my e-mail answer about my upgrade request whether it  was accepted or not. I only had my answer during the OLCI.


on the departure day


Lufthansa is located at Terminal 1 in NCE. It hosts most of Oneworld and Star Alliance's airlines. (except Finnair which operates at Terminal 2).


photo t1 landside modifi

My parents accompanied me at the airport and stopped at the kiss-and-fly.

Caution: if you stay more than 5 minutes, you will pay.

Back then, tram line n°2 was operational between the city's administration and the Olympia Harbour. It was a matter of time before the tram line 2 could reach the airport's terminals.


photo tram t1 1photo tram t1 2 modifi

T1 is quite calm for a flight scheduled in the middle of the morning. Lufthansa Group's check-in desks are in area F as usual.


photo intrieur t1 1photo intrieur t1 2 modifiphoto intrieur t1 4 modifi

Straight ahead the First and Business desks. On the right the Economy desks. I went via the Fast Track but the agent didn't check if I was eligible or not.


photo vers la j modifiephoto intrieur t1 5

Check-in quickly passed. The ckeck-in agent didn't tell all the security questions (Is this baggage yours? ; Do you have any forbidden items in your suitcase ? Did you make your baggage yourself?…) while AF always does.

Although I prefer using my smartphone's Boarding Pass, I'm not against a ticket made with solid paper as a souvenir.


photo les bp modifisphoto bp modifi

It took me 5 minutes to go through security. But I had a second control to go through (15 minutes). A very odd procedure because if you have to leave the Schengen area, you still have a third control before reaching your flight.


photo paf modifiephoto paf-2-81175

Long corridor that leads to a duty-free alley.



Airside view of T1, which let a feeling to be in an aircraft shed.


photo t1 airside

Our flight is expected at gate A35. The flight to MUC will be so late that the gate will change in A01, which means a boarding via paxbus.


photo embarquement

By the way, T1 isn't spotter friendly, unlike T2. The only place we can spot is on the ground floor. But right now, there is almost no traffic. I'll get only this A320 Vueling (EC-MVE) going to Barcelona (BCN), Spain.


photo rdc t1photo a320 vueling pour bcn

The same aircraft with an AF landing and EZY that took-off.


photo vueling af et easyjet

The lavatories, clean.


photo toilettes

I tried to connect myself to the airport's Wi-Fi but the connection wassn't very effective because the airport site required some confidential data. I didn't insist.

Vueling left its parking to our aircraft, D-AIUE.


photo notre avionphoto carte-didentite-d-aiue-anglais

The boarding gate is ready for boarding.


photo porte dembarquement

Boarding started on time and priorities were respected. I noticed Business and Frequent Travellers boarded directly at the desk while other passengers boarded via self-boardings.


photo embarquement lanc

Boarding for Flight Lufthansa 1059 going to Frankfurt-AM-Main


Here we go.


photo passerellephoto lavion-depuis-la-passerellephoto passerelle-2

Our neighbor, SE-RJS, 737-700 SAS going back to Stockholm (ARN), Sweden. It started at SkyEurope Airlines before being transferred to SunExpress and Anadolu Jet before joining Scandinavian Airlines on the 25th of June 2014. "Nice to meet you".


photo 737 sas pour arn

Quick view on T2 with AF and DL.


photo t2

Fuselage shot.


photo fuselage shot

Door moment.


photo porte modifie

Greetings of a smiling crew, his colleague seemed too busy to even say "hello".

A view of my Recaro seat.


photo sigephoto ttire

The legroom is acceptable for 1,80m (6 foot tall)…


photo espace 1

… but there's not much pitch left with a hand luggage and a big windbreaker under the seat in front of me.


photo espace 2

Clean test OK.


photo test horatius

Sharklet view with our swedish neighbor.


photo sharklet

Passenger safety manual.


photo fiche de scu 2photo fiche de scu 1

The LH european's network…


photo rseau des destination 1

… and its worldwide network.


photo rseau des destinations 2 2

LH's fleet…


photo flotte de lh

… with our aircraft.


photo notre appareil

The roof.


photo plafonnier

Some of you may have noticed, we can use Wi-Fi onboard (of course with an extra).


photo wi-fi-a-bord

10h19 Boarding completed and we don't wait for pushing. A220 LX.


photo a220 lx

Our aircraft is now free, onward. Asian's salutations clearly don't exist here.



A321 Finnair coming from Helsinki (HEL), Finland.


photo ay arrive

Take-off runway 04R


photo piste 04r

View on T2. EZY and AZ landed.


photo t2 2

NCE and the city.


photo vous-avez-donne-le-ticket-a-la-tour-de-controle

Off we go !!!



With the airport's famous right bend…



Saint-Jean Cap Ferrat and French and Italian's coasts.


photo virage-a-gauche-1photo virage-a-gauche-2photo virage-a-gauche-3

10 minutes after we took off, the "fasten your seatbelt" signal's out and flight attendants immediately brought trolleys.

A first trolley passed for sandwiches, either chicken or cheese, followed by another one for drinks. I took a cheese sandwich with a tomato juice. At this moment, the stewardesses were surprised to hear me speak German.


photo le tout

I didn't eat the sandwich during the flight but I took it with me in case I would starve. It'll be good.

Cheers !


photo sant

We had no turbulences until we started our descent.


photo vues du ciel 2photo vues du ciel

The arrival at Frankfurt


Imminent diving into the clouds.



The weather at FRA is quite cloudy.


photo entre-les-nuages-3photo entre-les-nuages-2

Last moments inflight.



A few aircrafts waiting before going to gate.


photo lot-davions-au-garagephoto lot-davions-au-garage-3photo lot-davions-au-garage-2

A330 LH with its new livery.


photo a330 repeint

Welcome to Lufthansa Land. We're passing by Lufthansa Technik's sheds.


photo hangars lufthansa technikphoto lh land

77W ANA heading to Tokyo Haneda (HND), Japan.


photo 77w ana

A388 SQ going to Singapore Changi (SIN), SIngapore.


photo a388 sq

I don't know why, but I have a bad feeling right now…


photo jai un mauvais pressentiment

Boeing 767-400 Uzbekistan Airways going to Tashkent (TAS), Uzbekistan.


photo 757 ouzbkistan airlines

Bingo! We parked next to this CR7 IB flying for Air Nostrum. We are going to the terminal by bus.


photo cr7 iberiaphoto parking arrive

Everyone got up to pick up their hand luggage.


photo instant-danette-29

Until I can reach the aisle, I flash a few aircrafts. Especially this 77W CX or, even better, this MD-11 LH Cargo in its final approach.


photo 737-tuiphoto 77w-cathay-pacificphoto dc-8-cargo

Last view of our aircraft, getting ready for its next flight, to Oslo (OSL), Norway.


photo dernire vue de lavion 1photo dernire vue de lavion 2

Despite offboarding via a bus, we can make a satisfiyng spotting on our way.



the transit at frankfurt


And now, let's go to the lounge.


photo direction la correspondance

During the OLCI, I've been given the 03H seat. That was the best seat ever for the next flight. I'll tell you why on the next FR.

That's when I finally found which boarding gate I had to go: it was gate Z52. It wasn't bad at all because The LH Business Class and Senator Lounge Terminal 1 section Z is located just next to it.

The terminal leaves a bad impression at some places…



The FIDS didn't confirm our gate yet.


photo porte-non-communiquee-modifiee

the lufthansa Business and senator lounge terminal 1 area gates Z


Here we are.


photo entree-du-lounge

Let's go to the Business Class Lounge, located upstairs.


photo vers-le-saint-graal-modifie

The lounge is very crowded, but it will be quieter after an hour.


photo arrivee-dans-le-lounge-16

You can store your belongings on those lockers. But don't forget your locker's key.


photo casiers

The buffets are available.


photo coin-petit-dejeunerphoto coin-desserts-11

The drinks spot.


photo coin-ksarphoto buffet

The hot selection…


photo selection-chaude

… and the cold one.


photo selection-froide

My selection for my first lounge meal.


photo premiere-selection

The desserts I chose.


photo dessert

And because we're transiting in Germany, it is out of the question to end this Chinese prologue without a famous bretzel. ;) I hope you enjoyed it. If so, don't hesitate to leave a like and subscribe. As for me, I'll meet you soon for the next flight, From Frankfurt to Beijing.


photo herr-bretzel

our flight's replay


photo route-de-nice-a-francfort
See more

Verdict

Lufthansa

7.5/10
Cabin8.0
Cabin crew8.5
Entertainment/wifi6.0
Meal/catering7.5

Nice - NCE

7.8/10
Efficiency7.5
Access8.0
Services6.5
Cleanliness9.0

Frankfurt - FRA

6.6/10
Efficiency6.5
Access6.0
Services8.0
Cleanliness6.0

Conclusion

A good flight from one point to another.

The catering is sufficient for a short flight.

NCE: Very calm and convenient. Too bad there aren't lots of shops landside though.

FRA: I can't really explain why, but I feel like FRA looks like CDG quite a lot. If boarding and offboarding via Paxbus may not be appreciated, I have plenty of time as for my connection.

I'll tell more about the lounge on the next FR.

Information on the route Nice (NCE) Frankfurt (FRA)

Les contributeurs de Flight-Report ont posté 14 avis concernant 1 compagnies sur la ligne Nice (NCE) → Frankfurt (FRA).


Useful

La compagnie qui obtient la meilleure moyenne est Lufthansa avec 7.3/10.

La durée moyenne des vols est de 1 heures et 35 minutes.

  More information

4 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 550743 by
    ThomasDutch SILVER 632 Comments
    It's a pretty good joke that LH considers a 810 bid as a low fare on a longhaul flight... If calculating it right, those prices will result in a pricier J class than if you book J class straight. KL for example lets you buy J class upgrades for just 400 euro for a flight of 11 hours or so. Thanks for reporting, but you took more than 150 pictures? How do you even manage that on a flight of less than two hours? :p
    • Comment 550779 by
      Aigle_voyageur AUTHOR 838 Comments
      Thank you for your comment and for reading me :)

      It's a pretty good joke that LH considers a 810 bid as a low fare on a longhaul flight...


      Actually, 810 wasn't the minimum, the picture was there only to show how it works. The cheapest fare was 690€ for longhaul flights. Below that amount, it's a no offer.

      KL for example lets you buy J class upgrades for just 400 euro for a flight of 11 hours or so.


      But you can have this upgrade offer only during the check-in AND depending on vacant seats remaining. Unlike here, you can have the possibility to make an upgrade from the moment you bought your ticket until the OLCI. Of course, the airline is free to decline your offer for any resaons. Being a Flying Blue member and having a certain rank could also explain how often you can receive an offer and how cheap the upgrade price is.

      But I don't have a frequent traveller number.

      How do you even manage that on a flight of less than two hours? :p


      If you take a look on the next flight in French version, it contains 164 photos. And that is over the 150 photo's limitation; if I want to publish the FRA-PEK in English version, I had to remove 14 pictures. And because there were 120 pictures on the French's NCE-FRA, I had to transfer some pictures from the original one and add them into this one in order to publish the next one.

      It would have been too bad not to publish the FRA-PEK in English because at the end of the year, I would have been at 5 points to reach Flight Report's Gold status. :(

      Take care ;)
  • Comment 550923 by
    Pilpintu TEAM 997 Comments
    Hello, Aigle_voyageur!

    Warning: Due to the limitation of 150 photos per flight-report ....

    Yes, that came like a stab in the back to me as well. Life is unfair. Hahahha Just joking. But I did find a way to make 197 photos fit into the 150-photo limit in my last report. I put two or more photos in the same image! Mwaaa ha ha ha ha.

    Aircraft's identity

    You took the time to make an ID card for the plane??!! Wow, you'll be my new role model, believe me. :D

    We had no turbulences until we started our descent.

    Mir gefallen diese Photos aus dem Flugzeug sehr schön. Vielen Dank! :D
    • Comment 550962 by
      Aigle_voyageur AUTHOR 838 Comments
      Thank you for reading my report and for your comment :)

      But I did find a way to make 197 photos fit into the 150-photo limit in my last report. I put two or more photos in the same image! Mwaaa ha ha ha ha.


      Wow. How clever indeed. I wouldn't have thought about it. You give me the idea about looking at your review right now. ;)

      You took the time to make an ID card for the plane??!! Wow, you'll be my new role model, believe me. :D


      Glad to hear it. :D

      Take care. ;)

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