Royal Brunei Airlines
143 reviews
Originally we were meant to fly the 787 and as i was travelling with a child and infant, i had booked and paid for the front row seats that had more leg space and bassinet. However the plane was changed to an A320 without notifying us until 5 days out when i was told of a retime to an hour later and had noticed then we were changed to their A320.… Read more
I was automatically given the row 28 ; i was happy with that as that has plenty of legroom. I was told 48 hours out that i had to change to row 23 as infants werent allowed in the exit row ; obviously this didnt have much leg room at all and there was no option for the bassinet (though at this point it the bassinet wasnt a high priority as our infant we found out didnt like the bassinet anyways). By this time rows 21 weren't available anymore. I had asked for an explaination and some sort of apology for this issue in any form but was met with the standard "too bad" spiel.
I have always given good feedback and encouraged people to fly RBA as an alternative to the airlines flying out of Australia due to the lower costs, professionalism of the ground staff and courtesy /friendliness of the air crew ; this experience has however changed my view of RBA for the worse.
its hard enough to convince people to fly a dry airline with little to do in Brunei as a stopover) and they forever are losing a customer to Singapore Airlines despite the longer flight time with them.
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Very very poor service. Dubai to Australia flight. Workers treated us bad, they were very rude. Made us wait 3 hours just at the check-in desk. They assigned our seats to someone else on a 14 hour flight. Very uncomfortable. They even forgot our luggage when reached Australia. We had to wait 1 week for our luggage to arrive home. Show details
Reviews with attachments
Terrible it is – Please dont go with this flight I agree the ticket prices are cheaper compare to other airlines but this airline is the worst I had a flight from dubai to Brunei and then connecting flight to Melbourne, as soon as we borded the flight in dubai the aircraft had issues the captain asked us to wait for 15 minutes and took 30 minutes then some how… Read more
the aircraft moved as soon as we were on runway the aircraft has a black out again somehow the flight came back to the parking the captain said it will take 30 minutes to fix it and it took 1.5 hrs then we moved again and as soon as the flight took of within 15 minutes right up in the air the captain announced that there is engine failure and there will a emergency landing we landed in muscat and the wrost part the entire brunie crew disappeared on us we were left on our own the oman airport crew were blank they dint have any amswers we waited for 18 hrs in oman airport atlast we had to go for a new booking Pay little extra but fly with airline who will take your responsibility if any emergency happens Never ever in my life i will use this airline
Extremely limited customer service skills and didn’t offer good advice – Royal Brunei Whatsapp chat agent has extremely limited customer service skills and didn’t offer good advice. My husband was hospitalised for two weeks for Covid in Rome. I was alone in a foreign country and having fever. I was extremely stressed and having a headache! I requested a refund for my flight from DXB to BWN but the chat agent asked me… Read more
to email their call centre. The call centre ignored my emails. The agent could have advised me to reschedule my flight so it will remain active and I could change it for other destinations or transfer to another traveller by paying a fee. They were absolutely unempathetic. Ill trained agent and unresponsive call centre!
Great staff, great service – Despite being challenging passengers, changing the dates of our flights on numerous occasions, cancelling some flights , the airline and staff were always understanding and helpful, I have become a member and will use RB on every occasion I can . Show details
Positive reviews
Excellent value and a decent service :) – Four flights across four months and all were punctual, clean, with good service and decent in flight entertainment. For the price it was excellent. Would happily fly RB again!
Very impressed – I picked this airline primarily on cost having never flow them before and was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the aircraft and crew. I did not travel to Brunei only transiting through but their airport was clean and adequate to spend a few hours waiting. Jets (787 and 320) were both clean and modern with nice video screens and a decent… Read more
selection of film and tv. Cabin crew were attentive and could accommodate my vegetarian meal selection with food that tasted pretty good by airline standards. They don't serve alcohol which is completely fine by me but something to be aware of.
The only minor issue for the sake of completeness was my flight waiting time got increased after booking by 30 mins first leg and by 1 hour on the second which was communicated well in advance.
I will definitely look to use this airline again if they service my next destination.
Excellent airline, amazingly polite people with best service – Nothing to say much but an airline, was best by all means. The most impressive is, most humble people I have ever met. Regarding booking it was third party so few hassles, still accommodated my required. Regarding Wifi its strange, I have never heard that any airline in the world giving free wifi? ..... nothing to complain Show details
Negative reviews
No experience because they took our money – Do not go anywhere near this airline. Took our money pre-covid and after five years of waiting now refuse to pay us back even though we were unable to take the flights...not even a credit. Now saying our claim is out of date. Yes out of date because RB made it out of date.
Worst travel experience in recent years – Just came back from a tour to South Korea return flight on Royal Brunei Airlines. Cabin service and customer service is poor. Meals are horrible and lacking variety. Brunei airport has nothing much to offer especially if you stayed in their transit area. We spent 8 plus hrs transit during our outbound flight and decided to go out of the transit… Read more
area. Staff in BWN airport are polite, respectful and helpful. Only pleasant experience is dining in Jollybee restaurant out side the terminal. For that you have to spend 10 Brunei dollars and get a transit visa (valid for 3 days) from their immigration. Make sure you DO NOT go to the transit area directly if you want to go out side. You will be stuck there with no option of proper dining facilities or killing transit your time pleasantly. Royal Brunei Airline and Bandar Seri Begawan (BWN) airport needs so much to improve to make tourists and transit passengers attract to that place. Long story short would I travel to Brunei or fly on Royal Brunei Airlines to any destination again in the future. My honest answer is Noooooooooo !!!!!!!
Bad Booking – I booked 4 tickets and made the payment. I didn't get anything email or whatsoever so i tried contacting them. Now they are claiming they didn’t receive any money. This kinda of error is really bad for an airline or a business in general.
Recent reviews
We flew via Bangor Seri Bagawan which has the worst customs officials, but the airline was wonderful in the care they gave my wife and I. At least $1000 cheaper than the other airlines and comparible service Show details
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DO NOT GIVE YOUR MONEY TO THIS AIRLINE!! – Absolutely awful airline, with even worst customer service. We arrived in Melbourne on 28th Feb 2023, only to find that my luggage was missing. I got it back after 2 MONTHS and had to spend all my savings on new clothes and medication. The journey to getting it back was absolutely appaling. My emails and calls were being ignored to the point… Read more
where I was trying to contact them every day. I ended up going through Facebook messenger.
They finally got back to me saying they have found my suitcase and will contact me when it is on the way. 2 days later and the WRONG suitcase arrived with no indication it was on the way, AFTER I had asked them to check the contents inside before the sent it. So then I ended up with some poor woman's suitcase in my garage.
Fast foward another month, and my mother all the way back in England was also trying to contact them as we were being IGNORED!!
FINALLY my suitcase turned up, not thanks to Royal Brunei, but to the luggage company in London/Melbourne (Menzies I believe). I have been trying to contact Royal Brunei for a further 3 weeks now about the compensation they owe me (they should pay me a certain amount for each day I was without my case and then some!!) STILL NO LUCK and yet again being ignored after resorting to contacting them about 4 times a week.
They clearly do not want to take responsibility for the amount of financial and mental stress they have caused me, yet alone pay me the compensation I deserve. They are withholding my money and it's disgusting and unethical.
I have never known such useless and disgraceful customer service.
Please fly with another airline!!
Change our flight – I bought my tickets with Royal Brunei in July last year for December January in September they emailed us and told us our flights cancelled and they couldn’t accommodate us with the time we wanted to travel. It was disappointing because we couldn’t buy other tickets by that time all other flights tickets were much expensive. And I couldn’t go and see my family . Show details
Late, Late, Late and more Late – If you don't mind missing flights to your connecting destinations then this is the airline for you. Guaranteed to make you Late or miss your connecting flight. Basically if you want to feel respected as a customer then don't ever fly with this mob. Show details
In flight staff lovely but otherwise poor experience – Paid additional fee to get a seat selection for 15 hour LHR to Brunei flight. Seat recline was broken which meant a very cramped and more uncomfortable than usual flight. Original flight from Brunei to Melbourne was cancelled meaning I had to cut short my trip. Flights from LHR and Brunei were both delayed. Excessive additional bag checks for… Read more
transiting passengers added to delay and discomfort. Would not recommend. In flight entertainment limited and free earphones terrible - could barely hear and it was mono.
Unable to reach – I’ve tried calling Royal Brunei on multiple occasions and emailing them as well from Australia after having my flight rescheduled 3 times and then cancelled. I need to be in London before Christmas Day and they have changed my flight so many times to land after Boxing Day. I’ve tried asking for a refund and calling constantly and there’s no way to… Read more
get through. How can anyone get contact with Royal Brunei as I’m stumped as I’m meant to be leaving in 6 weeks I don’t know what to do
Shocking service- trying to get a refund due to COVID 19 – I first contacted Royal Brunei on 2/4/20, via their website, requesting a refund for my cancelled flight in May. I shouldn't have had to contact them at all, but did not receive any proactive communication from them. The website noted that my request would be acknowledged within 7 days. It wasn't. I followed up via Facebook Messenger, and… Read more
received an email acknowledgement after 15 days, advising that the refund may take up to 8 weeks. 8 weeks???!!! It has now been 9 weeks. My original date of departure has come and gone. Still no refund! I understand that they are going to charge me a BND50 "cancellation fee" also. I am flabbergasted that they are charging a fee at all, when the reason for cancellation is out of everyone's control. At this stage I have no confidence that I am ever going to receive my refund and am certainly not willing to pay a fee for this extremely poor service. I am fully prepared to take this matter to aviationcomplaints.gov.au if it is not resolved soon. Beware, the customer service from this airline is totally non-existent! I have heard of several more timely, fee-free refund experiences with rival airlines during this unprecedented time. This was my first time choosing Royal Brunei and I would not dream of booking with them again.
Weeks and weeks of lies – Tried to get refunded in March for cancelled flights , they are trying to take processing fee and oblivious to the fact they can’t honour the flight due to the restrictions of Covid 19 ( yeah!) Been told done on certain date , told to contact bank , given the runaround . Still no refund in our account. You must take matters further with this lot… Read more
as they are being told from the airline how to handle customers . The fact that we will never use them again doesn’t cut much I know, as they couldn’t give a toss clearly , but people be warned in a problem they are useless albeit cunning.
Disappointed customer – Since covid19 I have contacted Royal Brunei Airlines since the beginning of March for a refund for 4 adults. They have made so many excuses, but I still have no refund. I’m so disappointed with their service and the lack of knowledge and understanding of what’s going on around the globe. Customers should not have to wait 4-6 weeks for a refund,… Read more
and if that is the case I’ve waited my time, and it’s not a small amount of money. You need a wake up call Royal Brunei.
Poor Customer Service – Poor Customer Service: On my recent flight i was provided a voucher for the sum of USD25 and was told a follow up email will be sent. To no surprise this never happened. I followed up with numerous calls and was told the same story, email will follow. Week ago i called Melbourne office and they asked me to provide a voucher and a short note, which… Read more
i did. Received a email back stating this voucher was used with the email sent but cannot show proof of the email or address it was sent too. This typical arrogance and know wonder travel agents are reluctant to sell tickets on Royal Brunei. I am not desperate for the USD 25 voucher but it shows utter disrespect for their passengers. You really need to lift your game and treat passengers with respect.
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Wonderful Service on board the plane but scum baggage handlers? They are criminals yes in burieni – My trip was auckland to Melbourne to Brunei to london two weeks later london to Brunei to melbourne to auckland then in on to my home with another flight to find out getting bome some scum bag baggage handler stole my tablet in Brunei yes you guess it Brunei my tablet was traced to been turned on almost a day after getting home back at work… Read more
the next was traced to been on in You guess it Brunei so Stealing of the people that bring them a job money in there pocket to support there familys baggage handlers stealing a samsage tablet out of your personal suitcase that checked in London to Auckland what's up with this I have messaged royal Brunei twice with full details and I've never heard a word back from royal Brunei air lines they have rules of up to killing you by the law of there King if you brake any rules in there country. is it all good for a baggage handler that has a camera on them stealing your stuff .So we are talking 4 to 6 baggage handers working max and one of stealing of the costmer not a busy airport at all is it ok for the Brunei airlines to steal of you the royal brunei costumes them people entering there country for a short time to pass to another country supplying a job for Brunei people a job why are they stealing of those costumers when there Kings kills people for crimes so Royal Brunei why is this allowed I've flown with you two times to many times Ps I have heard Richard Branson is looking at dropping you in partnership flights if so Go Virgin to room for crime path thou Royal Brunei
Stolen Luggage $500 lost – First let me say, in flight the staff are very nice, snacks and drinks make the rounds regularly. I had 2 4 flight in total with Brunei to and from Japan, 2/4 However, on my flight to Tokyo about $500 worth of luggage was stolen right out of my suitcase as Brunei was my connecting flight I didn't notice until i arrived in Tokyo. Wish I could give a better rating, but luggage handlers that thieve from travellers is simply unacceptable. Show details
Poor service and stinky hotel stay due to flight delay – I flew from Melbourne to Seoul on 12th Aug via Brunei. The flight attendants did not seem to care about their works. They walked back and forth like they had been on a vacation. They served very slow and clumsy. 3 hours wait at the airport in the evening without any F&B services available. Fickle internet connection really annoyed me. Rough… Read more
flight from Brunei to Seoul
On 20th Aug our flight from Seoul to Brunei was also very rough in an old airplane. The same poor service. The flight from Brunei to Melbourne was delayed for more than 9 hours. So the ground staff put 7 of us into a beatup dirty van to Grand City hotel near the airport. The room stank. Free dinner at 7 PM at the hotel restaurant. We could barely eat the sweet dinners. Our new departure time was 3:45 AM on 21st on Boeing 787 which is the only plus for this trip. That's why I am giving 2 star service. We have been exhausted by this longest trip ever.
Last year my wife also took RBA and also had a 9 hours delay. They put her and my daughter in a very bad hotel with cockroach under the pillow!
The ticket price is cheaper than others but it cost us time and health. The airlines and the airport are run by the government who does not seem to care about the services.
Royal Brunei Airlines – We booked a Royal Brunei flight from Melbourne to London return in economy class. Expecting the usual "knees under the chin seats" we were pleasantly surprised when we boarded the plane and settled into our allocated seats. The leg room was enormous. My daughter and her boyfriend are 6 feet plus and they had ample room for their long legs. … Read more
This space cannot be compared to any other airline's economy seating - it was great. The excellent service provided by the flight attendants who always smiled and attended to any passenger needs. All in all an above average economy class flight.
Not good enough, RBA – My wife and I arrived at Melbourne airport with plenty of time for our Royal Brunei flight to Tokyo via Brunei...or we thought so, only to learn that the plane was already leaving. RBA has not bothered to inform us that the departure time had been changed by over three hours. The airline did allow us on another flight leaving two days later, but… Read more
our holiday plans were severely disrupted, as were those of our son who lives in Japan and had taken two days leave from his job to be with us. We figured that we deserved compensation for the disruption and asked for an upgrade to business class. This was declined. Sorry RBA; your cabin attendants are polite and helpful, but your senior management showed us scant respect and as a consequence we will never book another flight with you.
Melbourne to Manila - cheap but long stop over is not worth it – Melbourne to Brunei is 6 hours then we had a stop over for 17 hours at Brunei, had free hotel accommodation on departure, but upon return, which is another 17 hours stop over, this is not provided. Quite mislead that all hotel accommodation is provided both ways. The money you'd spend for hotel and the time wasted in Brunei is not worth it. Might… Read more
as well endure an 8 hour direct flight. Brunei has not much to offer with sight seeing. Shopping is meh, we went to the "city" (which is like your ultra average town, more shops in Footscray market seriously), walked around, and people would just stare, as if they've never seen other humans walk around the streets, it's weird. Taxi to hotel even when it's just 5 or 10 mins away is on a fixed rate of 20 to 25$. Rip off. There's no Uber. Service is excellent. Flight attendants are all smiles, clearly a great team work going on, and definitely a 5 star service. Plane landing, 10/10 perfect score for the pilot, smoothest ever!!! Great job!!! I can't complain on take off as this went on smoothly too! Food is awesome! It's like picnic in the sky, you'll never go hungry. Airport is so basic, but there's Jollibee yay!! I would never take Brunei airlines again even if the service is excellent, because money wise, we've spent more than taking a direct flight to Manila.
Perfect and happy travel – We traveled MEL to London and back, aircrafts are clean and on time, service on board is excellent. Crew is friendly and attentive, For the price we paid it is great to travel with Royal Brunei and much savings compared to others charges on this route. Will definitely use Royal Brunei for future travel. Show details
Not safe – I booked a flight to London with Royal Brunei, as they seemed to have good reviews. But only a few weeks later it was announced that Sharia Law will apply from April 5, not only in Brunei but also on board their aircraft. Being LGBT, I don't want to run the risk of being jailed, or stoned to death. I pulled out of my flight, but my wallet is now… Read more
$450 lighter as they wouldn't budge on the cancellation fee. If you care about human rights, don't fly with this airline.
Don't risk it – Sharia law applies upon this aircraft. Lousy IFE, not safe to be in Brunei if you have alcohol, are LGTBIQ or get mixed up in other so called crimes. Airport in Bandar is really bad. Lounge so basic. Avoid! Show details
WARNING SHARIA LAW ON BOARD – Boycott this airline and anything to do with this country, including the hotel chain owned by the sultanate. Sharia law on board the aircraft even when in another country. This could mean your death for being misconstrued.
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