Flying Azores Airlines in Economy Class? Here’s What To Expect [Review]

I recently took 2 flights in Portugal with Azores Airlines, an airline I’d never flown before. In many ways, the trips were rather unremarkable, which is sometimes a good thing.

There weren’t any standout moments that left me impressed, but I also didn’t encounter any negative aspects during my flights.

I flew from Lisbon (LIS) to Ponta Delgada (PDL), the airline’s main hub in the Azores. A few days later, I took another flight from Ponta Delgada to Funchal (FNC), the largest city on the island of Madeira — also a Portuguese island in the Atlantic.

Here’s what I learned from my 2 flights in economy with Azores Airlines.

Where Does Azores Airlines Fly?

Azores Airlines is based in the Azores Islands, a Portuguese territory. Its main hub is the John Paul II Ponta Delgada Airport (PDL) on the island of São Miguel. From here, the airline flies not only to other islands in the Azores but also to the Portuguese mainland, Madeira, Cabo Verde, Spain, France, Germany, and several destinations in the U.S. and Canada.

The 2 U.S. airports served by Azores Airlines are New York City (JFK) and Boston (BOS).

What It’s Like Flying Azores Airlines in Economy

Checking In

Surprisingly, check-in for Azores Airlines at Lisbon only opens 2 hours before departure. For my flight from Ponta Delgada to Funchal on the island of Madeira, check-in opened 3 hours before departure.

Both airports offered a priority line for those with disabilities or who were pregnant. I didn’t see any dedicated lines for elite passengers.

However, at the PDL hub, there were separate check-in lines depending on the destination of your flight. Overhead screens indicated which line to use, depending on your destination, and a special line was also available for those taking interisland flights.

Aside from these details, check-in felt very normal. It was also possible to check in for your flight online and receive a digital boarding pass. Additionally, the PDL airport had kiosks available for self-service, although I didn’t attempt to use them.

Boarding

As is the case with many departures from Lisbon, my Azores Airlines flight from LIS to PDL departed from one of the gates that has few seats and a confusing zig-zag system. The zig-zag system makes boarding disorganized and inefficient, no matter which airline you’re flying with.

While the Lisbon departure boarded directly into the plane, the Ponta Delgada departure involved walking across the tarmac to the plane and then using the front or rear stairs, depending on the row in which each passenger was seated. The Ponta Delgada boarding process was also much more organized.

In Ponta Delgada, staff did a much better job of calling (and enforcing) boarding groups.

Seats

From Lisbon to Ponta Delgada, I flew on one of Azores Airlines’ Airbus A320 planes. These have 168 economy seats, no business class, and a 3-3 layout.

The seats felt very dated. The dark blue leather was faded and showed signs of wear. Each seat had a tray table that could be easily released with a latch and measured 18 inches in width. Pitch wasn’t great at 30 inches, though. My knees were nearly pressed into the seat in front of me. For reference, I’m 5 feet, 10 inches.

My flight from the Azores to Madeira was operated by an Airbus A321neo plane. It was instantly clear that the plane was much newer than my first aircraft. This aircraft had 16 seats in business class and 170 in economy, again using a 3-3 layout.

The seats had a much more modern construction, and the dark blue cloth showed no signs of age or wear.

On the A321neo, economy seats were 18 inches wide and had 30.5 inches of pitch. The extra half an inch of space between rows wasn’t noticeable in any meaningful way.

On both flights, the tray table was sturdy and easily held my 14-inch laptop.

Inflight Amenities

Neither of my flights had a screen at the seat. That’s not something Azores Airlines offers on any of its planes. However, seats had outlets for passengers, and it was possible to stream content to your personal device, allowing you to watch movies and TV shows after connecting to the plane’s entertainment network.

Inflight Wi-Fi wasn’t available on either flight, though it’s available on select A321LR aircraft.

Snacks, drinks, and meals were available for purchase on both flights. A multilingual menu was available in the seatback pocket, offering a variety of options for selection. Soft drinks, wines, and beers were available, along with chips, nuts, sandwiches, and other snacks.

Prices were displayed clearly, and the menu listed more substantive options for Azores Airlines’ long-haul flights to the U.S. and Canada.

I didn’t purchase anything on either trip, and flight attendants passed through the aisle offering complimentary water on both flights.

The lavatories were well-stocked and clean during both flights. Despite my relatively short flights, I observed flight attendants inspecting the lavatories during both flights to ensure they were well-maintained.

Service

Since I didn’t purchase any food or drinks on my flights, my interactions with staff were limited to check-in, boarding, and deplaning. I found the staff to be friendly during all of these, though to varying degrees.

While checking in for my Lisbon departure, the desk agent wasn’t overly friendly, though he was efficient. I asked a question about my next flight, departing Ponta Delgada a few days later, and he provided clear and concise information. By contrast, the check-in agent in Ponta Delgada was friendly and smiling, despite the long lines.

For both flights, gate agents were more focused on the process than on being friendly. They did give customer greetings and thank yous, though.

The flight attendants were the friendliest employees. They warmly greeted passengers during both flights, they were present and helpful throughout the trips, and I appreciated that they checked on the lavatories, even though my flights were just 2 1/2 and 2 hours, respectively. They also thanked passengers for flying with Azores Airlines as they exited the aircraft at the end of both flights.

Bottom Line:

Ground staff gave customary greetings but weren’t overly friendly. The flight attendants, though, appeared genuinely friendly and helpful on both flights.

Final Thoughts

I didn’t experience any standout moments that made me say “wow” during either flight. I flew 2 1/2 hours from Lisbon to Ponta Delgada and 2 hours from Ponta Delgada to Funchal. Although these had different aircraft, many elements felt similar, with no screens, modest seating space, and no complimentary snacks.

While there weren’t any real highlights, there wasn’t anything particularly bad about my 2 economy flights with Azores Airlines. I arrived safely at my destination, had nonstop flight options, and the flight attendants were friendly.

I would be willing to fly this airline again.