Don't they operate as partners? I.e., if you book on United, it may actually be a Lufthansa flight. Check it further.

Marilyn's right, We're flying Luftansa in a few weeks but its a United ticket. Flown them before though and really liked Luft. v. Air France or American.

Well, we are flying on FF tickets and this is what it looks like, a united 777 from SFO-FRA, and a Lufthansa 747 from FRA back to SFO.

Just would like to hear anyone's experiences with the flight service, etc.

Thanks!

By coincidence we flew last Oct. on Lufthansa. I liked it very much. I flew on UAL 10 yrs. ago to Paris and it was okay. I'm not sure about it now but I'd choose Lufthansa again. They use new aircraft and the service is great. Food of course, in cattle/sardine class, is so-so as usual for all airlines.

You may show up for your flight and find it to be a Luft. flight booked as United. The service in Luft. is excellent even in the cheap seats. My only possible criticism is that at times the crew was too attentive, they were by every 15 minutes with either drinks, warm washcloth, snacks, etc.

IMHO, almost anything's better than United.

Swalter, is that a bad thing?

Denver-Frankfurt is Lufthansa code shared with United (so it's Lufthansa planes). But I have found I get a bit better prices if I call Lufthansa directly.... than I get through United.

We fly a lot. United beats Lufthansa. Worst service we ever had going to Europe was Lufthansa. It was so bad we all still laugh about it. We felt we were prisioners being shipped to a new prison. No water as they ran out. Poor temp on plane as flight attendent would not change as she was comfortable. Bad seats.

We had wonderful service on Lufthansa in June. I noticed they were extremely accomodating with young children as well. They had no problem getting passengers to give up their bulkhead seats for folks with babies (and one of those couples was in the check-in ahead of us and just thrilled to have those bulkhead seats!).

We have flown SFO to Frankfurt several times over the last few years on both LTH and UA and find them both very similar. I have a slight preference for UA with their 777 and individual tv screens so my children can each watch what they want. I also like the individual liquor/wine bottles on UA as opposed to being served from a large bottle. LTH used to run a airbus similar to the 777 on this route but lately they seem to be using the 747 which I like less.

For me, United wins by wide margin!

As both airlines operate Code Share flights, I always try to get on the ones operated by United as their service is much more generous (I agree with the previous poster about being served individual and regular sized cans instead of being served from a bottle or even getting those ridiculously small cans manufactured only for Lufthansa).
Also, tolerance in terms of size and weight of cabin luggage is by far better at United.
And friendliness rules for me- so Lufthansa is usually beaten by most airlines I know. Living in Germany I will even willingly take small detours just to avoid travelling long distances on Lufthansa!

I'm very prejudiced toward United. They fly mostly Boeing planes and my late father worked for Boeing for more than 30 years. I always feel I have my own personal angel on a Boeing plane.

That being said, DH and I have flown United three times from SFO to Europe and have never had a bad flight or a negative experience.

Thanks everyone for all your replies.

Is UAL still giving individual mini bottles of wine on transatlantic flights?

Our Luftansa flight attendents were very friendly and accomodating. Of course, anyone who pours me glasses of free red wine for ten plus hours always gets my vote. If only they (and others) had some more leg room.

We just flew Luftansa for the 3rd time (on UAL miles) and again had a great experience. As a warning however,there food on the way home was atrocious. Pick something up at or before the airport. The service and wine was great though and the food on the way there was fine (for airline food).

Anyone know about United and their bottles of wine?

Kelly,
we recently flew to and from Europe on Lufthansa (in business class) and back on United. I think the quality of the experience so much has to do with the plane and not just the service.

On the way to Frankfurt from SFO the plane was much older than the one on the way back, Lufthansa's food was better than United and both had attentive service but frankly it came down more to the amenities...the entertainment on offer etc.

At Christmas we're travelling to Europe on Lufthansa and returning on United...(economy this time) I changed our tickets to go via Munich instead of Frankfurt so we could take advantage of the seat confirguration with the two (rather than three) seats on each side.

For me this makes the greatest possible difference in economy. To be able to sit with my husband in an aisle and window, without a third person and without a center seat makes all the difference. IMHO I think getting this confirguration is more important than which airline. You can call the airline and ask them about the seat confirguration.

If possible try to make these seat assignments in advance as they book up first.

Hope this helps

Check the aircraft they're flying (this info is available on their website). I also often fly Lufthansa (collect United miles, and get more Lufthansa tickets out of them), but my last trip on them (a mere month ago) just might make me reconsider.

I know they usually fly Airbuses out of my home town, and they are usually a lot less comfortable than 777s or even 747s, and I've made my peace with it. However, on our last trip, we flew on a spanking new Airbus 330 (individual seatback monitors, etc.), and it's officially the worst plane I've ever been (if you're flying economy, that is). They've managed to cramp in more people than is humanely possible. I don't know what the seat pitch is, but it's noticeably smaller than any other plane I've been on. If the person in front of you reclines their seat, their head is literally on your chest (or stomach, as the case may be). Forget eating, just breathing is a problem. A tall guy was seating behind me, and his feet weren't under my seat, they were under the seat IN FRONT of me. I didn't complain because what could the poor chap have done? You can't exactly fold yourself over that many times, much as the airlines would like you to.

The seats are also extremely narrow--I'm an average height female, on the slim side, and I felt that shoulder room was tight. My husband was in the aisle seat, and the part of his shoulders that was "hanging over" was pretty much blocking the aisle.

The worst part? You can't even walk around the plane. On the 747, for instance, you can circle around the cabin (using the back of the plane and the separation in the middle between the toilets). On the 330, the back was the galley (curtained off), and there was no passageway in the middle. You were really stuck in a space smaller than a coffin.

francophile03,

DH and I flew from SFO/Paris last December on United. Small bottles of wine were part of the mealtime fare.

I'm also a United person, but I've had Lufthansa flights in Europe and have not had problems. I was on a Lufthansa flight this past spring break from Frankfurt to Zurich and there was a problem with the landing gear. We went back to FRA, landed safely (thank goodness), and were put on the next available flight. Because of my premier executive FF status, I got a seat in business class on that flight. Having a "gold" Star Alliance card is a plus in my book. I'd fly Lufthansa, no problem, even if their staff isn't the
"friendly skies".

Oh, I forgot, the wine is served from the big bottles in business class on UAL. (smile)