Icelandair is continuing to expand its services in North America!

In recent years, the Windy City has been attracting new international airlines with new routes to exciting destinations. Some could argue that these new flights could be added to some of the  things to do in Chicago!

Chicago is one of the growing North American cities that Icelandair flies to. The airline started their service to and from Chicago in 2016, which no doubt helped increased Iceland’s popularity as a tourist destination among mid westerners in the US.

The moment I saw a fare deal for an Icelandair flight from Chicago to Reykjavik, I immediately purchased the deal considering Iceland has always been on my bucket list.

Compared to other major North American and European airlines, Icelandair is relatively unknown. Let’s be honest, we don’t really see much of Icelandair on the ground (or in the air) in many international airports – so their service is still relatively unknown.

If you are wondering how it would be like to fly Icelandair, below is a recap of my experience flying with them.

FOOD & BEVERAGES

I wouldn’t know because I refused to pay for a prepackaged inflight meal (looked more like a snack box) on a “major” European carrier on a transatlantic flight.

Out of all my travel experiences with major international airlines, I don’t ever remember having to pay for an inflight meal.

INFLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT

No complains here.

I actually wanted to sleep all the way through until we landed in Reykjavik. But this flight had great selection of movies/tv shows (among other things) – and I was glued to the screen.

I actually watched a bunch of Iceland destination guides – adding extra excitement before our arrival.

 

Icelandair B767 econonmy cabin

The coach cabin

 

ICELANDAIR CHICAGO TO REYKJAVIK SEAT COMFORT

Alright, I was ready to give this another 1 or 2 out of 5 considering that I was expecting a Boeing 757, a single aisle aircraft that is primarily used for a medium-short haul domestic flights.

But to my surprise, I noticed prior checking in that the equipment for this specific flight was the wider and more spacious Icelandair Boeing 767 aircraft – an aircraft more appropriate for international flights. This matters to me, especially traveling internationally, because the cabin is extra spacious and has more room for movement around the cabin. I mean, who wants to be squished and feel claustrophic inside an airplane for almost 7 hours?

Also, the experience is just not the same and just feels naturally weird to fly a small/medium size airplane internationally. I would feel like I’m flying from Chicago to Cleveland instead of Chicago to Reykjavik.

It makes a BIG DIFFERENCE!

 

Icelandair B767 economy cabin

That one time I thought nobody was going to sit next to me… but then…

 

Icelandair B767 economy cabin

The girl sitting next to me made my right arm her pillow…

 

CABIN CREW

Cabin crew didn’t really leave any positive nor negative impressions. They were just…there. I can’t decide if that’s a good or bad thing.

Ground staff on the other hand… 0/5

 

GENERAL EXPERIENCE

Here are a bunch of reasons why Icelandair is not high up on my scoresheet:

– Check-in counter agent made me check-in my luggage because it was barely a kilo over the limit. I frequently travel with this bag on business trips as a carry on and have never had a problem with bringing it on board – even on smaller aircrafts.

– Lost my luggage

– When asking for the status of my luggage upon arrival in Reykjavik, the staff were not able to give me any details on the location of my bag as they don’t have the capability to track luggage coming into Reykjavik.

– Calling customer service – I had an average hold time of 30 minutes each time I called asking if they had status update on my bag.

– No daily direct flights from ORD – KEF, meaning I had to patiently wait for the next flight out to receive my bag (that’s if my bag was actually even found). After three days and many frustrating calls later, I finally received my bag. Not the most convenient when I was only on a five-day trip.

– Positive: They reimbursed me for everything all the clothing I paid for while I didn’t have my bag. But the inconvenience far outweighs what they could do to fix it.

 

Icelandair B767

Our ride to Reykjavik