Flixbus – Berlin to Opole

During the 2003 Iraq War there was a Minister for Information named Muhammad Saeed al-Sahhaf, although he was better known as Comical Ali. Flixbus’s advertising always reminds me of him, it’s aspirational to say the least. My past experiences with Flixbus have ranged between dreadful and poor, so they’ve really focused in on providing a consistent level of service.

I wasn’t going to use Flixbus any more because they’re really not very good. But, there’s something quite amusing about them, in the same way that Comical Ali attracted quite an audience. Anyway, on this journey, I can’t fault the information provided at Berlin coach station, it was perfectly sufficient to know when and where my bus was going from.

And there were also screens to show passengers where to go, which is all excellent and often not provided by other bus operators around the world.

And, information at the bus stop itself. I was worrying at this point that Flixbus would be providing an excellent service.

The coach pulled in fifteen minutes early and let people board. This is also excellent, as it can be frustrating to have a coach at the stand and no way of boarding it. I didn’t work out what language the driver spoke as he didn’t say very much, but he was efficient and polite. At this stage, I was verging on being distraught that Flixbus were offering such a quality service.

I sat upstairs in front of the steps, meaning that I didn’t need to have anyone recline into me. Although not one single person did recline, perhaps that’s the politeness of the Poles.

And, I have to say, the driving of the bus was decent and the journey was comfortable. The temperature was appropriate, there were no disturbances and the driver made regular announcements. For the first time, Flixbus have provided me with a bus service which is comparable to that of Megabus, so I’m slightly surprised to say the least.

I can’t say that perfection was reached though as the wi-fi didn’t work and nor did the power sockets. But I didn’t need either thanks to a large data allowance and a fully charged power bank.

And, the coach stopped at a BP petrol station on the Polish border for reasons unknown. I’m sure it was important, but I could have done without the bus being plunged into brightness for fifteen minutes, although a few customers did go and buy snacks from the Wild Bean Cafe.

The coach having arrived in Opole, around 25 minutes late. I’m not sure why the coach arrived late as it seemed to be on time at all its stops, but the delay was actually useful to me as it meant that dawn had fully broken and I wasn’t in a new city in the dark.

My ticket for this coach cost £13.99 and I have to say, this was an entirely acceptable service from Flixbus. This is the first time I’ve been able to report that, so either things are picking up or this is just an aberration.