A low-cost French airline, French Bee will relaunch its flights between Paris and San Francisco in early November, its second destination in the United States after New York.
[Updated September 24, 2021, at 6:25 p.m.] 8 hours on a low-cost flight, the idea is enough to make you shudder and yet that’s what the French company French bee offers. The goal: to be the first to cut prices on long-haul flights. The airline thus operates long-haul flights between France and major tourist destinations. Following the announcement of the reopening of the borders of the United States, French bee announced its return between its base at Paris-Orly and San Francisco airport as of November 3, 2021.
The low-cost airline will initially offer two flights per week. Departures will be scheduled every Wednesday and Sunday at 5:50 p.m. arriving at 8:10 p.m., return flights will depart California every Monday and Thursday at 7:45 p.m. arriving the following day at 3:30 p.m. A third weekly rotation, Fridays, will be added on December 10.
The French airline currently flies to four low-cost destinations: Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, Saint-Denis in Réunion and Papeete in Tahiti. In the future, French Bee will mainly position itself on leisure markets, with new destinations in the Indian Ocean: Mauritius, the Seychelles…
Several fares are offered: the Basic at 149 euros one-way offers the possibility of bringing a hand luggage of 12 kilos in the cabin. The Smart fare at 199 euros one way, allows the boarding of a hold baggage of 23 kilos, and offers a meal, a snack and a “comfort kit”. Finally, the so-called Premium fare offers a one-way ticket at 579 euros, it includes a seat in Premium blue class, two checked bags, champagne, a meal, a snack and the comfort kit. Destinations, dimensions of luggage authorized in the cabin and in the hold, reviews, flight reservation or cancellation, become an expert on the French Bee airline (formerly French Blue).
Choice of seat, additional baggage, skip the line, service packs… The French bee company gives you the possibility to personalize your trip by modifying your reservation online up to 60 minutes before the departure of your flight. From 15 euros for a Standard seat to 80 euros for a Premium Maxi Leg seat, you have the option of opting for window or aisle preselection thanks to this paid service. In order to simplify your life while offering you a trip in your image, the low-cost company also offers four service packs to choose from when booking: a Comfort pack with upgrade to Premium and access to the lounge lounge, a Tranquility pack with skip-the-line, priority boarding and access to the lounge, a Rapido pack with dedicated counter, skip-the-line and priority boarding and a Duo pack, which includes duo seats, 2 glasses of champagne and petit fours. To view or modify your reservation, you must have your 6-character reservation number and the main traveler’s last name ready and go to the “Manage my reservation” tab (see here).
When you have made your reservation to the destination of your choice, you can find in a few clicks all the information necessary for the smooth running of your trip thanks to the dedicated space “Manage my reservation” on the website of the French bee company: departure airport, departure and arrival time, seat number, additional baggage. In the event of a delay or strike, you can also find information about an ongoing flight in the “Our alerts” tab.
At French bee, you can check in online for free from 48 hours before your flight and thus save time at the airport on the day of your departure. On the French airline’s website, you can also get your digital boarding pass before arriving at the airport for check-in. If you want to check in at the airport on the day your flight departs, make sure you respect the check-in deadline, which is 60 minutes before the scheduled take-off time.
When you travel with French bee, your reservation entitles you to free boarding with cabin baggage weighing up to 12 kilos, and with maximum dimensions of 55 x 40 x 20 cm. You can also board with an additional small accessory, which can be easily placed under the seat: handbag, laptop, coat, umbrella, camera…
Your ticket type determines if your checked baggage is included or if you have to pay extra when booking. If checked baggage is not included in BASIC class, one piece of baggage up to 23 kg is included in SMART class and two pieces of baggage up to 23 kg each are included in PREMIUM class. If your baggage in the hold exceeds the authorized dimensions and weight, you have the possibility of taking an oversized piece of baggage, up to a limit of 32 kilos per suitcase and at the price of 100 euros before departure or 125 euros on the day of departure.
While major airlines such as Emirates, Lufthansa or Norwegian are among the top 100 best airlines in the world, French bee is not yet part of the ranking established by Skytrax… Read also on the Linternaute Voyage forum: “Que do you think of the French Blue company?”.
If your French Bee flight is delayed due to bad weather or a technical problem, the company will first inform you as much as possible of the delays and schedule changes. In order to avoid the cancellation of the trip during a significant delay, the company may have to offer passengers to be transported on another device or to make the trip on the flights of another carrier.
In case of cancellation of your flight, French bee offers to book a later flight to the same destination, provided that seats are available. If you no longer wish to travel, you can cancel your reservation and request a refund for your unused ticket, via the contact form.