Authors Note : This is the first time I am reviewing a product outside of the entertainment or the books category. I am wandering leaving my d.o.m.a.i.n. So bear with me.
I found it hard to rate them as there was such a stark contrast between the two flights. While the first journey was terrible and had me cursing the whole way, the return was much better as you will gather from my review.
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The pleasure of free travel
I had the chance of travelling to New Delhi recently. The first time being early July my friends and I took the Grand Truck Express. Money was limited and so it was necessary that we were frugal.
The second time however our host in Delhi and our college jointly financed our trip. The unexpected added cash being an incentive we decided to fly instead.
Booking though was a bloody problem. Our trip was around the Diwali time and the three major airlines (IA, JET and Sahara) had launched the apex fairs. The result was that the first two were booked and Sahara was the only one with the empty seats.
There wern't many problems with the booking. We went through a travel agent and the whole process was smooth.
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Boarding at Chennai
Check in was quick. Really quick to be honest. The cute and friendly women at the boarding counter and the unexpected candy made sure that my friends and I were in really good spirits.
At this point of time I couldn't help but laughing at those ' early birds ' standing and waiting at the Indian Airlines counters. (Ah! the virtue of procrastination)
What happened next was unexpected.
The weary traveler might have forecasted this but to my friends and I a delay of nearly two hours meant that we would be touching down in Delhi after midnight. (Not exactly the best thing to happen since we had to be up at 6 AM next day for one of the biggest days of our lives).
I really can't blame Sahara since the delay was due to some bloody VIP traffic (can you believe that) near the Mumbai Sector.
( Those Indian Airlines passengers had the last laugh as their flight took off way before ours did...)
After the delay and a series of apologies from the people at Sahara we took off.
Food
I will get straight to the point. The food was TERRIBLE. Trust me when 4 hungry teenage boys don't wolf down the food in front of them it means the food is bad.
The paratha was bad and had acquired Rubber like qualities. The chicken was undercooked (I gathered that from the two women behind me). Whatever rice they served was bad too. I was pretty certain I was in for a bad stomach.
The only good thing about the food was the Baskin & Robbins. That seemed to mitigate almost everyone including the two experts behind me.
(I was honest and insulting in the feedback form they gave us. I didn't really care as I was pretty certain at that point of time that I wouldn't be flying Sahara after that trip again)
In-Flight Entertainment
We didn't get any headphones for music and the in-flight books were terrible. The books didn't make good reading and neither did the choice of papers on flight ( Times Of India was a shock to me after years of reading THE HINDU, but then that's another review!)
There was an auction of sorts. On sale were good stuff, but nothing that interested me really. What really caught my eye was a Nike Watch. I bid 500 for a watch that was worth Rs. 5000 out of boredom more than anything else. (The women behind me won...They couldn't stop singing their praises of Sahara now)
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Return Journey
We made the return journey from New Delhi through the Bangalore sector.
There was a delay again of nearly an hour. I had an exam the next day and this just meant that I could study in the comfort of the Delhi airport.
The staff was excellent. The care for a really old Punjabi couple sitting in front me just stood out. It was the first time the two were travelling and the staff went out of their way to make sure that they felt comfortable.
Surprisingly, there was music. The choices available were..1. Trashy Hindi Pop. 2. Yanni 3. Lucky Ali and 4. Ghazals. I wavered between Lucky Ali and Yanni.
The food this time was fantastic. They had got everything right . It was hot and out of this world. There were added snacks on the trip from Bangalore to Chennai.
They must have taken my comments seriously or the first flight must have been one hell of an off day.
Tried my luck again with the auction. Didn't win again.
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My opinion
It was a pleasant experience overall.
The staff is excellent, both on the ground and on air.
The delays should be avoided but then in my case they could have hardly been blamed.
To win more and more people and ensure that the customers remain loyal they need to be a whole deal more consistent.
You can always fly Sahara when your option reads Indian Airlines.
Unexpected Bonus
Touching down at Chennai airport after midnight I caught a fleeting glimpse of Shilpa Shetty. Apart from Baazigar I haven't seen any other movie of hers but a glimpse is a glimpse!.
That's one thing I can strike off from my to do list.
Ah!. The things that make a teenagers day!
