Aer Lingus is Ireland’s flagship airline. It has a proud tradition of supporting Irish tourism while bringing the diaspora home. The airline serves destinations across Europe, North America and the Caribbean.
The airline’s fleet favours Airbus, with A330 planes on long-haul routes and A321neo on medium-haul flights to North America. On short-haul routes across Europe, Aer Lingus operates A320 family planes. Flights within Ireland and the UK tend to be on ATR 72-600 turboprops.
I’ve always enjoyed my Aer Lingus flights, not just because of the cabin product, which meets a good standard. The airline’s cabin crew has always been welcoming and friendly, which can make such a difference.
Classes and services on long-haul flights
Aer Lingus offers two classes of service on its wide-body planes and the long-range A321s. It has a single class of service on other narrow-body planes and the regional fleet, though you can book a special front-row fare, which offers some nice perks.
Business Class on long-haul flights
I find Aer Lingus Business Class on long-haul flights quite comfortable. Besides a great seat, you get lounge access and other perks that make the higher fare worthwhile.
Overall, the airline’s Business Class seats are better than average – 22 inches wide, with a 6 foot 5 inch lay-flat bed. The cosy duvet bedding ensures a good night's sleep.
To keep travellers refreshed, Aer Lingus offers an amenity kit with essentials, including a toothbrush, toothpaste, lip balm, hand cream, eye mask, socks and earplugs.
Seating tips on Aer Lingus Business Class
Aer Lingus arranges Business Class cabins differently from other airlines, allowing couples a window seat while ensuring singles get all-aisle access. To do this, the airline mixed up the cabin layout, alternating between 1-2-2 and 1-2-1 rows, with six rows in the cabin. This leaves only 2K, 4K and 6K with a window and no direct aisle access.
Aer Lingus used the same strategy on the A321neoLR, though I find the result is somewhat less favourable. This 2-2 1-1 cabin has only four single seats. The others are doubles. That means window seat passengers need to climb over the person beside them. If travelling alone, I’d forgo the view on this plane in favour of aisle seats.
Also, while the single seats offer more personal storage, the footwell is narrower. Taller passengers may feel a bit crowded at the feet when trying to sleep.
Economy long-haul flights
I’ve found Aer Lingus Economy cabins are somewhat more comfortable than others for long-haul flights, mainly because the seats are wider. The separation between seats might make taller passengers feel a bit cramped. For a 5-hour flight, I find it’s not bad, and the fare is significantly less expensive than Business Class. Still, I’m sharing some tips to find better seats.
Better seating on Economy flights
On Aer Lingus’s A330 planes, Economy seats are in a 2-4-2 configuration, with the last four or five rows in a 2-3-2. Seats are 17.7 inches wide and 31 inches apart. I prefer this to planes with triples by the windows, since I’ll usually book a window seat. The downside of the view is you’re trapped when your companions are sleeping, and it’s less awkward to get out and stretch my legs on a twin seat than on a triple. As a short person, legroom is less of a priority for me, but I will still pay to pick a seat because I don’t want to be randomly assigned to the middle four.
On the Airbus A321neoLR flying routes to and from the US, you’ll find economy seats in a 3-3 configuration. They are also 17.7 inches wide and 31 inches apart, though exit rows 14 and 15 offer more legroom.
Aer Lingus short- and mid-haul flights
Flying Aer Lingus on short- and mid-haul flights is about the same as flying with other European flagship carriers in terms of comfort, though tall passengers may find it a bit tight. The airline’s A320-family planes are set in a one-class 3-3 configuration with 17 inch wide seats set 30 inches apart.
If you want more comfort, I’d suggest booking the AerSpace fare tier, which has dedicated seating in the front row. It’s a standard Euro-Business Class with the middle seat blocked.
Aer Lingus flies the A321neoLR on some longer European routes, which offers wider seats, more legroom, a 9 inch in-flight entertainment screen and power outlets. On the A321neo, the AerSpace fare gets you the long-haul Business Class seat in a private cabin. Other perks include a more generous baggage allowance, flexibility for flight changes, fast-track through security and lounge access where available.
In-flight dining
Aer Lingus’s in-flight dining is fairly good, and you won’t have much trouble finding something you’d enjoy, though it’s not quite a restaurant quality. However, you must pay for meals and snacks when flying in Europe.
Business Class in-flight dining on long-haul flights
The airline’s Business Class in-flight dining is generous, featuring international dishes and a touch of Irish flavour (I love the cheeses). The airline serves two meals in Business Class during the flight and a lighter third meal on longer flights to North America. It also offers a variety of beverages and nibbles. When I’d rather sleep, I’d order a lighter meal to be served early. When flying out of London Heathrow (LHR), visiting the newly refurbished Aer Lingus lounge is always a relaxing experience – it offers comfortable seating and space to work before flights.
Economy in-flight dining on long-haul flights
Aer Lingus will serve a meal and a snack on long-haul flights. You can also enjoy a warm breakfast sandwich on longer flights to several North American destinations. A choice of orange juice, tea or coffee will also be provided. Alcoholic beverages are available for purchase andare not included in the complimentary service for Economy Class.
Economy in-flight food and beverage on short-haul flights
Aer Lingus sells food and beverages on most intra-European flights. The offer is reasonably good and includes some hot sandwiches and even an Irish breakfast of bacon and sausage with bread (no eggs). Overall, the prices are about what you might pay for food and beverages at the airport.
Wi-Fi and power
Aer Lingus offers high-speed satellite Wi-Fi on most of its long-haul fleet, except for a few A330s, and on all of the A321neo flying mid- and long-haul flights. However, the A321neo only offers a Wi-Fi service option, not a separate messaging and SMS network. Unless I’m working, I generally just use connectivity to keep in touch with family through messaging, but you can still do that with a Wi-Fi connection. The only real difference is the price is higher for Wi-Fi.
The Aer Lingus Wi-Fi connection fees are reasonably affordable, though the messaging-only service is the cheapest. You can buy Wi-Fi passes for 4 hours or for the whole flight, though you can’t connect until 20 minutes after take-off, and the service goes off 20 minutes before landing.
Business Class passengers on long-haul flights get free Wi-Fi.
You will find plenty of room to work and relax while awake in long-haul Business Class. With universal 110V AC and USB-A sockets, you’ll have no trouble keeping your devices powered in flight.
There is no Wi-Fi available on the planes flying short-haul and regional flights, and there are no power outlets either. In most cases, I’d pass the time reading or looking out of the window on these flights. I usually carry a power bank if my phone needs recharging en route.
In-flight entertainment
Aer Lingus' in-flight entertainment is on the higher end overall. The long-haul Business Class features a 16 inch high-definition touchscreen display and noise-reducing headphones, while the Economy Class has 9 inch screens, plus USB and AC power outlets.
I find the airline offers a fairly good selection of new-release films, TV programmes, music, games and even LinkedIn learning courses. With the Aer Lingus app on your smartphone, you can pre-select your in-flight playlist. If, like me, you’ve ever regretted the in-flight entertainment being cut off right in the middle of a good film, you can use the Aer Lingus app to pick up where you left off on a later flight.
Aer Lingus lounges
The Aer Lingus Green Lounge at Dublin Airport (DUB) has spacious seating arrangements and a laid-back atmosphere. Travellers will have access to more than 7,000 newspapers and magazines via the PressReader app while connected to the lounge Wi-Fi. Shower facilities are available and fresh towels are provided. Get a barista coffee or a croissant and just relax. The food and beverage selection is generally pretty good. It's located in Terminal 2. If you're travelling to the US, 51st&Green Lounge through US pre-clearance is a better choice so that you can relax on the other side before your flight.
The recently refurbished Aer Lingus lounge at London Heathrow, meanwhile, offers a luxurious experience, including new seats and furnishings that provide a variety of zones for customers to work, eat or relax. This includes individual work pods and private meeting rooms. There's also a delicious all-day coffee barista service for passengers to take advantage of..
Business passengers and elite loyalty programme members can access partners’ VIP lounges, including the Aspire Lounge (short-haul flights) and Escape Lounge (long-haul) in Manchester, as well as the Aspire Lounge in Birmingham.
This KAYAK-commissioned article is presented as-is, for general informational purposes only, and may not be up to date. The opinions contained in the article are original to the author and reflect their authentic experience, which may vary significantly from the experience of others. Find more perspectives in our user reviews below.
