We talked about it several times, but finally, in the last days of the previous year, we decided it was time - football weekend in London with pals. At one point, return tickets on British Airways for Ljubljana - Heathrow were priced at 135 EUR, but as we had to sort out a few things before booking, prices went up to 170+ EUR. The alternative was Ljubljana - Gatwick on easyJet and a return flight on Ryanair from Stanstead to Klagenfurt. As we live in Kranj, Brnik Airport is only 10 km away, and Klagenfurt Airport is 60 km via Ljubelj/Loiblpass.
The outbound easyJet flight U2 8842 on February 1st was priced at 45 EUR on the day of booking (January 9th), whilst Ryanair flight FR1268 for February 5th was 20 EUR. My girlfriend drove us to the airport, and my friend's brother picked us up in Klagenfurt. A third friend joined us in London, travelling by Eurostar train from Brussels South to St Pancras, his return ticket was around 140 EUR.
We arrived at the Ljubljana Airport at minute to 7 PM. Passengers for Istanbul were already boarding, Amsterdam passengers were waiting for the inbound flight to disembark, and Belgrade and London passengers were checking in, passing through security or waiting for their flight.
We passed through security with ease and were already in the “All Yours” duty free/caffe/area.
As I had access to lounges via Diners Club/Priority Pass, we went straight in and by 19:05 we were pouring ourselves a drink.
As our flight was the last of the day, the lounge also closed with our flight. Nevertheless, there was still some food at the bar, as well as fruits and sweets. The fridge was also nicely stocked. Overall lounge was clean.
View from the Lounge terrace of cargo planes departing into the night
We left the Lounge at 20:15, passed the border control and by 20:19 were already on the jet bridge. The first half of the plane boarded via the jet bridge, while the second part used the boarding stairs. Our plane for tonight was an almost 13-year-old A319 with registration G-EZGJ.
I was seated in 2F and had a view of the former Novair Airbus A321neo already in Air Samarkand livery with registration OE-IHX. Boarding was completed ahead of schedule and by 20:50 we were already above Kranj. I’d say LF was around 75-80%
We landed at Gatwick airport at 21:45 local time, while our STA was at 22:20.
We proceeded without problem through border control and took the airport shuttle train from the north to the south terminal. From there we took the Thameslink train to London Bridge Station (14 GBP for a one-way journey, 40 min train ride)
After watching two matches (one on Saturday, and one on Sunday) we departed from South East London toward Stansted Airport around 4 AM, took a Bolt and 50 minutes later we entered the airport.
Security control went fast as all lanes were opened and working. Despite many airport staff giving out plastic bags for fluids between the check-in area and security control, some still didn’t listen and were turned back from the line to get every ounce of liquid in one single bag.
After security control, we entered duty-free and… holy cow. Departure lounge. It was my first time at Stanstead and I didn’t expect so many people there at 5:15. What are your experiences flying from Stanstead?
Flight boards weren’t really helpful, but as I got information about our departure gate inside the Ryanair app, we proceeded to take the shuttle to Gate 34.
We boarded the plane via the forward stairs…
…and the boarding was completed almost at the same time as the gate closed. We were among the last to board and the number of passengers displayed on the gate agent's computer stopped at 65. This means our flight to Klagenfurt on six-year-old Boeing 737-8AS with registration 9H-QEH had LF around 35%.
We departed right on schedule at 6:40. The flight was smooth and quick. Flight attendants were professional and polite.
View from 10 E/F. I had the whole row for myself.
The plane landed 20 minutes before schedule at 9:20. Landing was as usual on Ryanair flights - the pilot tested the quality of landing gear.
After border control, we proceeded through baggage reclaim…
… and entered the landside part of the terminal. As it was my first time at Klagenfurt Airport, I went to see what the airport looked like. Below is the view from one side of the terminal (arrival) towards the other side (departures)
All flights in the coming days.
And one more image of the inside of the terminal.
The airport is served by Austrian Airlines (Vienna year-round, Hamburg seasonal), Ryanair (London year-round, Alicante and Palma de Mallorca seasonal) and Avanti Air (Paros, Skiathos seasonal charters). All in all easily accessible from the north/north-west part of Slovenia.
Bonus photos:
Watford - Cardiff City
Chelsea - Wolverhampton
This is my first trip report and hopefully, you find it interesting. Please leave any tips or suggestions below.
Share your travel experience by submitting a trip report to exyu@exyuaviation.com
Excellent photos! I love trip reviews with loads of photos.
ReplyDeleteBut I can't believe you took a 50 minute Bolt to Stansted 🤣 I know it's convenient but it's such a rip-off with the £7 drop off charge. That must have cost more than all the flights and trains put together! There are overnight buses from Stratford you could have taken.
Thanks for the feedback!
DeleteHa, only now have I seen the surcharge for the drop-off 😅 The ride was 59,90 GBP (~70 EUR). As we were two in the cab, we’ve split the bill.
Taking the bus to Stansted at that hour? Not my cup of tea as well, I'm afraid! A taxi seems far more the ticket.
DeleteThe bus is direct and goes almost as fast as the car, and it's a fraction of the taxi price.
DeleteExactly. National Express is taking the same highway as the cars, so absolutely no need to pay £70+ for Uber/Bolt when return fare on National Express throught Ryanair app is less than £14.
DeleteAs stated before; Bolt from our location was 59 GBP. Divided by two it was some 10 GBP per person more then bolt to liverpool street + bus or train to stanstead. Thats less then two pints :)
DeleteGreat report, thanks for sharing - the views over Austria look amazing. Have considered flying to Klagenfurt but is it worth visiting?
ReplyDeleteI use STN a fair bit and have found it has been very busy even at 3AM.
I live very close to Austrian Carinthia and frequently go there for skiing, hiking and OS flights. The nature is absolutely stellar and definitely worth a visit. Cities are more relaxed, with that older touch to them, also not bad to visit. But the nature is what takes the top spot for me
DeleteIf you’re ever in Klagenfurt, Villach old town is also worth a visit. It’s not far from KLU. Also Velden, the charming town by the lake.
DeleteNice report, thanks. Klagenfurt airport looks very depressing and like a hospital based on the photos published. Absolutely same reaction when visiting DUS airport. Depressing, old and tired. Go to BCN T1 or ZRH airports and feel how modern and cool they are. Spanish airports are neat, nice passport control handsome men and beautiful women especially if you speak to them in Spanish. Klagenfurt just looks horrible, depressing hospital tiles sorry and this is a personal opinion.
ReplyDelete"This means our flight to Klagenfurt on six-year-old Boeing 737-8AS with registration 9H-QEH had LF around 35%." - no surprise here.
You were probably at Terminal C at Dusseldorf. Terminals A and B are great, the airport is highly functional and has excellent transport links, and the departure hall is modern and well designed.
DeletePerhaps it looks that way in the pictures, but in reality, it’s really not half bad. Mind you, it’s terribly small; it’s a provincial airport, so to compare it with BCN is a moot point.
DeleteAre you seriously saying that the third largest airport in Germany is a provincial airport?
Delete13:29 I said that DUS looks depressing, unwelcoming and tired but maybe 12:14 corrected me and was a Terminal C. But, Klagenfurt airport just looks horrible and so surprising coming from a rich country like Austria. BCN and MAD airports are 150 times better. Klagenfurt looks like a pharmacy. As I said this is my opinion and not urge anyone to agree with me and looking at the photo. Heck, even the BUD LCC terminal looks so much nicer
Deleteso Ryanair is flying with 35%LF to KLU but is stil ignoring the likes of SKP & BEG ... hm ok
ReplyDeleteBecause Klagenfurt pays them to fly there, full or empty.
DeleteExactly. And perhaps the loads improve during summer? I flew a few time STN-KLU and the flights were quite full. But that was always during JUN-SEP.
DeleteI presume that Klagenfurt's business case relies on winter sports and/or general aviation rather than the Wien flights - the new Koralm railway will make it quicker to get to Wien by train for most of the airport's catchment area.
ReplyDeleteExcellent, concise, and pleasant-to-read trip report. Well done, especially considering this was your first one!
ReplyDeleteMany thanks!
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