About Transavia
Transavia is a Dutch low-cost airline that sells flights to more than 100 destinations, mainly in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East. Founded in 1965 and legally incorporated as Transavia Airlines C.V. (Dutch Chamber of Commerce number 34035297), it is a wholly owned subsidiary of KLM within the Air France-KLM group, with its head office in the TransPort Building at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. Flights depart from Dutch bases at Schiphol, Rotterdam The Hague, and Eindhoven, and sister company Transavia France flies from Paris Orly. Booking runs directly on transavia.com in euros: you pay with iDEAL | Wero, credit or debit card, PayPal, or Klarna, which also allows paying in three installments. The e-ticket arrives by email and check-in is online or at the airport. Transavia fits travelers who want cheap point-to-point flights from the Netherlands and can live with a no-frills product: baggage, seat selection, and food all cost extra, and its customer service scores poorly when things go wrong.
What are alternatives for Transavia
Pros of using Transavia
- Established airline: founded in 1965, wholly owned by KLM, holder of a Dutch Air Operator Certificate
- Dutch payment methods at checkout: iDEAL | Wero without surcharge, plus PayPal, Klarna (including three installments), Visa, Mastercard, and American Express
- More than 100 destinations from Schiphol, Rotterdam The Hague, and Eindhoven
- Low base fares for point-to-point routes in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East
- You book directly with the airline, so changes and claims do not run through a middleman
Cons of using Transavia
- Trustpilot score of 2.8/5 from more than 16,000 reviews, low even by airline standards
- Refunds regularly take more than 30 days according to reviewers
- Frequent reports of delays and slow, hard-to-reach customer service
- Hand baggage beyond a small underseat bag, hold baggage, and seat selection all cost extra
- Reviewers report resistance and slow handling of EU261 compensation claims
