- Introduction: Birthday Hotel Hopping In Paris
- Review: Lufthansa First Class Boeing 747-8
- Lufthansa First Class Terminal Frankfurt Review & Guide
- This Is Lufthansa’s New Business Class Catering?!?
- Review: Ritz Paris Hotel
- Review: Four Seasons Paris George V
- Review: Cheval Blanc Paris
- Impressions From Our Trip To Paris
- Review: Air France Business Class Boeing 777-200
After an amazing six nights in Paris, it was time to fly back home. While we enjoyed flying Lufthansa first class via Frankfurt on the outbound, for the return we decided to just book the most direct routing, from Paris to Miami on Air France.
In this post:
How I booked our Air France business class tickets
We lucked out, because for our return journey, the Air France-KLM Flying Blue program had nonstop business class award space from Paris to Miami for just 55,000 miles on the following flight:
10/18 AF90 Paris to Miami departing 1:45PM arriving 5:15PM
Best of all, I had transferred some Amex Membership Rewards points to Flying Blue in September when there was a 25% transfer bonus, so in reality I paid just 44,000 Amex points per person for the transatlantic flight.
Taxes and fees totaled $375 per person. France has pretty high aviation taxes, so there were around $190 in carrier imposed surcharges and $185 in taxes and airport fees.
I’d say that’s quite a deal! I tend to think the Flying Blue program is underrated for transatlantic business class redemptions:
- Air France & KLM have significantly lower carrier imposed surcharges than British Airways
- The Flying Blue program has access to so much more business class award availability than partner programs, and that doesn’t even account for Delta SkyMiles’ outrageous award pricing
- While Lufthansa generally has good business class award availability, the business class experience leaves a bit to be desired
- Air France-KLM has a higher percentage of business class award seats with direct aisle access than IAG and Lufthansa Group
When we booked, our flight was supposed to be operated by an Airbus A350-900. However, about a week before our flight the aircraft type was swapped to a Boeing 777-200. While the planes have different types of business class seats (read my Air France A350 business class review & my Air France 777 business class review), I don’t have a strong preference one way or another, other than generally preferring the A350 as a plane.
With that out of the way, let’s get into the review. I didn’t end up reviewing the business class lounge, so we’ll start off once onboard the airplane.
Air France Boeing 777-200 business class cabin & seats
Air France’s Boeing 777-200s are in a three cabin layout, with business class, premium economy, and economy. Business class has 40 seats — this includes a forward cabin, consisting of 28 seats, spread across seven rows in a 1-2-1 configuration.
Then there’s also a rear mini-cabin with just 12 seats, spread across three rows. I assigned us seats 12E & 12F, the two center seats in the last row of business class. It’s interesting to note that the forward business class cabin was almost completely full (transatlantic flights are starting to fill up!), while the rear business class cabin had just five people, including us.
Air France’s 777s feature reverse herringbone seats in business class. These aren’t cutting edge anymore, but they’re well maintained, and extremely comfortable.
As we settled into our center seats, there was a partition between the seats. This partition couldn’t just be pushed down, but rather it could be removed completely, and then the flight attendants store it in the overhead bin. I quite like this system, since it gives you about as much privacy as you can get in a center seat, should you be traveling alone.
Next to the seat was a storage console with a mirror, an entertainment controller, and a reading light.
Underneath that were the easy to use seat controls.
The tray table also slid out from the right side of the seat. It could be folded in half, should you not need the whole thing.
At the very bottom right of the seat were power outlets (110v and USB), a literature pocket, and a bottle of water.
I appreciate that the footwells in these seats have a good amount of space, so you shouldn’t feel too constrained when the seat is reclined.
My only real frustration with the cabin layout was the lack of individual air nozzles, which is a common problem among European airlines.
Air France business class amenities
Waiting at each seat upon boarding was a coat hanger as well as a packaged blanket and pillow.
The pillow and blanket aren’t cutting edge, but are solid — they’re well cushioned without feeling too warm.
There were also noise canceling headphones at our seats.
Moments after settling in, we were offered a travel safety kit, including face masks and hand sanitizer.
We were then offered amenity kits, with the choice of either a beige or blue kit.
The contents of the kits are the same, and they include eyeshades, socks, earplugs, a pen, a shoehorn, a cleaning cloth, a dental kit, and two creams from Clarins.
We were also offered pre-departure drinks, and we both had champagne.
Shortly before pushback we were also presented with the menus for our 9hr15min flight, which included lunch after takeoff, and a snack prior to landing.
Air France business class lunch service
The crew quickly sprang into action after takeoff, and the lunch service started within 30 minutes. The lunch menu read as follows:
The drink list read as follows:
Drinks were served off a cart. I ordered a glass of champagne — Cuvee Royale Brut Joseph Perrier was on offer, and it was quite good. I also asked for some still water, and was offered a package with cashews and cranberries.
About 15 minutes later a cart was rolled down the aisle with the first course. This included vegetables marinated in olive oil and dill, smoked salmon with lemon cream, a salad, and a selection of bread.
For the main course I ordered the pollock with seaweed, lovage sauce, and camargue red rice, spinach, and fennel compote. While the presentation left a bit to be desired (between the general plating and the aluminum ramekin), the dish was incredibly flavorful, and tasted excellent.
Ford ordered the poultry with smoked black tea, and pea royale soup with ginger and lemon. Ford also enjoyed this dish.
Once main courses were cleared, a dessert trolley was rolled down the aisle. Everyone was offered a cheese plate, and then there was the choice of either a raspberry cream puff, opera cake, and tarte tatin, or ice cream and sorbet. I had the former. I also ordered a cup of coffee.
The entire meal service was completed about two hours after takeoff. A few general thoughts:
- I’m happy that Air France has more or less resumed the standard pre-coronavirus business class service, unlike airlines in the United States
- The actual taste of the food was very good, I thought
- There’s room for improvement when it comes to presentation, especially when it comes to the plating of dishes
Air France business class entertainment & Wi-Fi
We were traveling on a Monday, so for me this was a standard work day. All Air France A350s have Wi-Fi, while only some 777s do. Fortunately we lucked out, and our Air France 777 was equipped with Wi-Fi. A while back Air France eliminated data caps on Wi-Fi plans, which I very much appreciate.
Wi-Fi for the entire flight cost 30 EUR, with the “streaming” function. While that’s not cheap, it’s a totally reasonable price to pay in order to be productive for a flight this long. The Wi-Fi speeds were excellent, and I was more or less able to work just as efficiently as at home. There were no coverage gaps, with the exception of the last 45 minutes before landing.
While I didn’t use it a whole lot, Air France also has a solid selection of audio and video on demand, with dozens of movies and TV shows.
Instead I just kept the moving map on for the entire flight.
Air France business class bed
While I didn’t sleep on this flight, I did recline the seat and test it out, and it was as comfortable as you’d expect for a reverse herringbone seat. I appreciated the size of the footwell, and didn’t find it felt tight at all.
Ford slept almost the entire time between the two meals, so I guess that’s an endorsement of the seat comfort.
Air France business class lavatories
The Air France 777-200 has lavatories both at the very front of the cabin, as well as by the second set of doors, ahead of the mini-cabin. Using the forward lavatory is generally preferable, as it’s much larger. That’s because this is the same bathroom Air France used to have back when these planes had first class, so it was intentionally bigger at the time.
Air France business class service & snacks
The flight attendants working business class were lovely — they were friendly, attentive, and charming. They provided great service during the meals, and also passed through the cabin periodically to offer snacks & drinks.
Since I was working and all the window shades were closed, I needed some caffeine to stay awake. Around the halfway point of the flight I ordered an espresso, which was great.
Later in the flight I made the mistake of ordering a cappuccino. I really don’t learn from my mistakes, because Air France serves powdered cappuccinos, which aren’t very good.
In the center galley there was also a little bar setup, with self-serve drinks and snacks.
Air France business class snack service
Around 75 minutes before landing, the pre-arrival snack was served.
The menu read as follows:
All meals included a starter of quinoa salad with asparagus and curd cheese with ginger. Then there were two main course choices. I selected the hake fillet with lemongrass sauce and creamy black rice. While the presentation wasn’t amazing, it tasted good. This was served with a bread roll as well as plain yogurt.
Ford had the other main course option, which was penne pasta with goat cheese and lemon.
15 minutes after trays were cleared we started our descent. We ended landing at around 5:40PM, and getting to the gate about five minutes after that, roughly 30 minutes behind schedule (that was due to strong headwinds). What an easy way to cross the Atlantic!
Bottom line
It’s nice to see transatlantic flights returning back to normal, both in terms of being pretty full, and also in terms of once again offering full service. Air France offers a solid transatlantic business class product, with great seats and Wi-Fi, and good amenities, food, and service.
I’ll take it a step further — I think among the “big three” European global mega-airline groups, Air France-KLM offers the all around best business class experience. In the case of Lufthansa Group, Lufthansa doesn’t even have a single plane with direct aisle access from every business class seat. In the case of IAG, British Airways has come a long way, but is still a long ways from having Club Suites as the standard business class product.
If you’ve flown Air France business class, what was your experience like?
The pushing and shoving of business class is a frequent occurrence in the US whilst flying AF. Total chaos and a mess. What’s going on?! Minor improvements but still the pushing shoveling trampling of J class people. Not right
Hello, first time here. I totally agree with Peter on one point: boarding is and remains chaotic whether it is in CDG, LAX, or CAI. After I complained bitterly to the D.G., Ms. Anne Rigail, there was dramatic improvement in CAI where we were treated like royalty but the situation in CDG and LAX remains terrible. Biz class passengers should be boarded separately particularly now because of Covid instead of being trampled, shoved, and pushed...
Hello, first time here. I totally agree with Peter on one point: boarding is and remains chaotic whether it is in CDG, LAX, or CAI. After I complained bitterly to the D.G., Ms. Anne Rigail, there was dramatic improvement in CAI where we were treated like royalty but the situation in CDG and LAX remains terrible. Biz class passengers should be boarded separately particularly now because of Covid instead of being trampled, shoved, and pushed (LAX last April). We are flying to LAX and HNL next week, and CAI at the end of Dec. and I will report on those flights. Cheers.
Hallo.. wir sind jetzt das 2te mal AF buisiness class geflogen und es war gigantisch.. ein super Preis Leistungsverhältnis.. wir hatten ein sehr sicheres Gefühl vom einchecken bis zum Ziel.. klasse Leistung..sehr nettes Personal was auch Mut viel Geduld behilflich war.( Übersetzungen vom französischen ins deutsche)
Alles ein dickes Minus.. es gibt im Entertainment keine games.. was ich sehr schade finde.. daran sollte AF arbeiten. Sonst können wir AF nur empfehlen
I just flew this route both over and back, Air France has a poor business class check-in experience at Paris CDG. I wanted to check a small bag containing food that I could not take through security. I was carrying my backpack onboard. Air France’s agents refused to check my bag because it was "too small". It seems like they make-up convenient rules in the moment. of course, my bag of food that was well...
I just flew this route both over and back, Air France has a poor business class check-in experience at Paris CDG. I wanted to check a small bag containing food that I could not take through security. I was carrying my backpack onboard. Air France’s agents refused to check my bag because it was "too small". It seems like they make-up convenient rules in the moment. of course, my bag of food that was well protected in multiple bags was taken by security due to its liquids (mustards). This is the sort of service I expect a leading airline to tend to - finding a solution to delight the customer?
After the indifference of business check-in, there was no priority security service offered. You walk back out and into the mass line early in the morning. I later watched as they loaded my 2 checked bag weight allotment with pallets of DHL cargo that I am sure they can increase if fewer passenger check bags.
The Air France Business lounge in 2E is very old and gets crowded. Going to San Francisco, Terminal 2E will not allow you to use their new lounge. Many roped-off seats reserved for their important repeat passengers. No Clarins free facial service available because of an “exceptional” closure. Food rather limited for breakfast. Very poor showers with no ventilation that leaves you sweating.
The boarding process was poorly managed and a complete mess as they collect their Covid “attestation” forms that MUST be submitted in paper. They combine economy plus with business class in one line in an area that does not have enough room for all these passengers. Of course, people were cutting the line from all directions. We then had to wait standing on the bridge another 20 minutes after entering until they allowed use to actually enter the plane.
Food was disappointing. They like to serve various "mushes" that plate nicely. They tase good, but there were no taels with sauces - just a couple veal cubes in mush. They are much less generous on the snacks in the galley. Did not meet my expectations. The FA kept the curtain tightly closed throughout, and I had to practically crawl under it to get to the lavatory. She was working in a little office area and I guess did not want to be disturbed.
I flew this same heavily worn 777-300 from SFO to CDG and it was delayed 3 hours due to electrical problems. We backed out at SFO and eventually had to return to the stand. There were some brief “electrical problems” on this return flight at CDG on the same aircraft. Both flights were completely full - including first class. On this flight from CDG to SFO, business class on this airline is just not worth the significant extra cost.
Did you like the mini cabin seats and where you were specifically in row 12? Seems like there is a lot of privacy and behind you was a partisan and curtain to separate premium economy. Would you choose this mini cabin over the bigger one?
Agree-AF/KLM food has gone way down hill. It's disgusting mainly. Deserts are decent but the 'quality' is on par with US empire carriers.
Air France served the most disgusting food that I have ever had on an aircraft while seated in business class. That pretty much summed up my experience in AF biz. I actually disagree with you. I avoid AF-KLM and IAG as I would the plague.
I much prefer the AF 777 to their 787 and A350. I recently flew to India and both the 787 and A350 have only 2 toilets in the business class cabin and AF has started blocking off one of them for the crew. So it's only one toilet for the whole J cabin.
Any and all American Airlines are cutting corners in business class. I will not fly them again.
I agree. The European leg of Air France is great.
However there is discrimination on the Nigerian route (Paris-Abuja-Lagos)
Business Class HAD ONLY ONE RESTROOM FOR 40 PASSENGERS!!
Such an obvious in your face discriminatory attitude.
The Planes are OLDER, TOO and you can see broken panels.
Silly, but that’s life. The only time I flew Biz on AF was when I was 23…many many years ago. It was a 767 SFO-CDG, back when they had domestic style Biz, and a bean bag foot rest.
I had never flown Biz class. They served dinner with a big chunk of butter, and I thought it was cheese, so I at the whole thing in one swallow. It was butter! The lady next to...
Silly, but that’s life. The only time I flew Biz on AF was when I was 23…many many years ago. It was a 767 SFO-CDG, back when they had domestic style Biz, and a bean bag foot rest.
I had never flown Biz class. They served dinner with a big chunk of butter, and I thought it was cheese, so I at the whole thing in one swallow. It was butter! The lady next to me was appalled….so embarrassing…but a memory that was hilarious.
Now I fly oneworld First, and look back on the AF experience with a smile.
Maybe the only thing that matched it…
I flew BA First quite a lot, and still do. Fond 747 memories.
The FA guys in BA F were very “fresh”. Sexual gestures and letters in my arrival docs with phone numbers.
I’m no longer young, so that probs won’t happen again.
Entirely unprofessional, but flattering.
Woes me?
I remember that happening even in World Traveller. Though surprising (you can’t shock a 23-year-old), it left me with great memories of flying BA in the nineties. The current line-up no longer cuts the mustard.
Great review. The 777s seem to be showing their age here and there, but still overall a pretty high end product. How do the seats compare with the A350? Or the 787 for that matter?
Wanted to add- I agree that AF/KLM has some good transatlantic availabilities, a 350$ fee to redeem miles is very high- it's almost the cost of an additional one way economy class ticket much of the year.
Great review. The 777s seem to be showing their age here and there, but still overall a pretty high end product. How do the seats compare with the A350?
Thanks for the detailed review! With AA cutting all service to Italy for December (and all service to FCO until March), I am in need of a different way to visit my family for the holidays. MIA-CDG/AMS-FCO seems like the best option. BA/IB have terrible departure times out of FCO to connect in MAD/LHR onto AA metal.
Oh, and btw, the hangar upon boarding is such a simple yet nice touch! Years ago AA...
Thanks for the detailed review! With AA cutting all service to Italy for December (and all service to FCO until March), I am in need of a different way to visit my family for the holidays. MIA-CDG/AMS-FCO seems like the best option. BA/IB have terrible departure times out of FCO to connect in MAD/LHR onto AA metal.
Oh, and btw, the hangar upon boarding is such a simple yet nice touch! Years ago AA would offer to hang my blazer on every flight, even in domestic F. It's been forever since an AA FA has offered to hang my coat for me. Guess that's maybe a "COVID" cut?
Nature is healing, Lucky is complaining about air nozzles again (or lack thereof) ;)
Sorry but photos are very disappointing. I love the idea of AF FIRST but this is very "meh".
A means to an end, I guess. Happy it was a safe flight.
"all the window shades were closed"
Why do airlines (and passengers) insist on closing the shades on these daytime eastbound flights? If anyone is interested in reducing fatigue and jet lag, isn't it better to keep the place as light as possible and to try and avoid sleeping?
Air France has stopped serving champagne in its Paris lounge until AFTER most of Delta’s morning flights depart. I confirmed this with a lounge manager when I was there last week.
They are serving other booze, just not champagne. I found that very interesting. Perhaps they don’t want to waste the good stuff on Delta’s passengers.
I took AF in business from IAD to BoM. While the seats were nice iad to cdg, they were abysmal cdg to Bom. CDG -Bom had 2-2-2 businsss with semi reclining seats which is unacceptable by present standards. Food and service were okay but somewhat underwhelming when comparing with other carriers. I probably just did not have the best crew but I do not understand the buzz for AF based in my experience.
I...
I took AF in business from IAD to BoM. While the seats were nice iad to cdg, they were abysmal cdg to Bom. CDG -Bom had 2-2-2 businsss with semi reclining seats which is unacceptable by present standards. Food and service were okay but somewhat underwhelming when comparing with other carriers. I probably just did not have the best crew but I do not understand the buzz for AF based in my experience.
I would definitely prefer Etihad, emirates or Qatar for iad- Bom.
As far as food, Turkish (prepandemic) had the best in skies.
We flew AF from SJO CDG CAI last April on Business. Window seat 5 A. We love window seat for the view and not feeling claustrophobic. Food was nice, the service was good, we appreciate the starched tablecloth. Cutlery by Christofle. The presentation of our food trays was fine, and the bread was warm. Sleeping on the flat bed was comfortable. Note: boarding in SJO was hectic just one outside staircase in the open air...
We flew AF from SJO CDG CAI last April on Business. Window seat 5 A. We love window seat for the view and not feeling claustrophobic. Food was nice, the service was good, we appreciate the starched tablecloth. Cutlery by Christofle. The presentation of our food trays was fine, and the bread was warm. Sleeping on the flat bed was comfortable. Note: boarding in SJO was hectic just one outside staircase in the open air for all the passengers and no priority for Business class!
Air France Food is the best airlines Food worldwide . The service is excellent and first class is The best product.
Long time AF TATL flyer. I flew LAX-CDG earlier this month on a 777-300, same layout as the 200, and the menu was the same as on Ben's flight. However, I was disappointed with the food, both meals were not up to the usual standard IMO, and as noted by a previous poster, usually there is foie gras on the menu on flights leaving from Paris, but not this time. Clearly a 1st world problem, but AF has me spoiled.
Whilst good , catering is almost always superior from the hub ie CDG. Foie Gras sales have been banned in California since 2012
Flew AF ATL-CDG in C last week. Great flight, service and food.
3 issues: WiFi didn’t work and FAs couldn’t get it going.
FAs shut off front lav for last 4 hours of flight, apparently to avoid interrupting their club up there. So 40 business class passengers lined up for the one lav that quickly looked very used.
At least a third of the C passengers ignored mask rules and I saw no attempts/announcements to encourage use.
No mask rules were enforced?? Well, thank you. That makes my decision so much clearer and easier.
The AF food looks very good. Too bad that the swap was made from the A350. Hoping you will review it sometime soon. Excellent review.
Why are commenters have gold and Platnium by their names
It's a newly implemented feature that was a secondary priority of the updated site rollout. If I understand correctly, "status" is determined by the number of "helpful upvotes" you accrue. Gold is entry level, then Platinum, then Diamond.
Agree AF and KL biz is the way to go. Flown LH biz on the a380 and 747 this year and while the upstairs cabin is novel the food was terrible on the 747. I was lucky not to have a seat mate but had there been someone next to me there would've been no storage. Also flown SAS a350 biz but prefer the AF/KL herringbone seat to the vantage on SAS. Sleeping position is much lower and no good lounge position because the footrest and well are so low compared to the KLM seat.
Just flew Lufthansa business class Frankfurt to Vancouver. Hard uncomfortable seat, though it had a coat hook! No place to hang jackets. Very nice, genuine crew. Terrible catering. Worst ever. Poor menu options, did not reflect any recognizable menu theme, over salted main course. Clearly, money was being saved. Espresso came with a spoon. No cookie or chocolate. Two tiny indifferent chocolates from Latvia did come with dinner. Again, selection seemed random, when a German...
Just flew Lufthansa business class Frankfurt to Vancouver. Hard uncomfortable seat, though it had a coat hook! No place to hang jackets. Very nice, genuine crew. Terrible catering. Worst ever. Poor menu options, did not reflect any recognizable menu theme, over salted main course. Clearly, money was being saved. Espresso came with a spoon. No cookie or chocolate. Two tiny indifferent chocolates from Latvia did come with dinner. Again, selection seemed random, when a German airline serves chocolates from far away!
Lucky, you lucked out getting Air France seats!
Poultry with smoked black tea! What an interesting flavor combination
love to do this but for my dates next year the AF/KLM Flying Blue price is over 200,000 per passenger. Make DL look like a bargain!
Looks awesome. But God give you strenghth if you are ever stuck in Y on the AF 777.
Thanks for this review! I enjoyed the entire Paris trip series!
It sounds like a great flight! We flew Air France business in early August, though we were in a 777-300 headed to DC rather than a 777-200. I thought the food was terrific, well beyond what I was expecting. (PresRDC: We were offered foie gras for a starter on my flight. I personally do not eat it, but my husband appreciated it.) My main...
Thanks for this review! I enjoyed the entire Paris trip series!
It sounds like a great flight! We flew Air France business in early August, though we were in a 777-300 headed to DC rather than a 777-200. I thought the food was terrific, well beyond what I was expecting. (PresRDC: We were offered foie gras for a starter on my flight. I personally do not eat it, but my husband appreciated it.) My main course at lunch was especially delicious, "Conchiglie pasta, swiss chard and lemon coulis, creamy, lightly smoked ash-coated goat's cheese, toasted pumpkin seeds." We pre-ordered a vegan meal for my daughter and they did great by her as well.
I too found the seats very comfortable and got in a solid couple hours nap in recline after lunch. I love waking up and discovering we're more than halfway home!
We are considering taking a vacation to Spain next and are highly considering going on Air France again because it was such a pleasant experience.
I'd agree AF has the best business class product of the big 3 European based airline groups (when including BA, LH). La Premiere is in a class by itself and one of the best in the world. LX has a great business class too that's probably close to AF in quality.
"The crew quickly sprung into action after takeoff"
You mean "sprang".
Herringbone, not "reverse herringbone"?
Great report. You always get good value for points. Not a fan of cuveè but the champagne looks nice.
We recently flew AF JFK-CDG RT and thought it was great, certainly compared to AA or DL. The seat was at least as good and the food and service were much better.
I know you don't like it, but I'd be bummed if I flew Air France in J and a foie gras terrine was not offered as an appetizer.
I find Air France J indeed is the best way to cross the pond using award miles. I used to fly a lot of BA F but these days, they keep increasing surcharge plus there are barely any F award tickets available (not to mention no more VAT refund). At some point, flying AF’s J is the easiest, comfortable, cheapest way to cross the Atlantic. If I can snag Lufthansa’s F award tix a year...
I find Air France J indeed is the best way to cross the pond using award miles. I used to fly a lot of BA F but these days, they keep increasing surcharge plus there are barely any F award tickets available (not to mention no more VAT refund). At some point, flying AF’s J is the easiest, comfortable, cheapest way to cross the Atlantic. If I can snag Lufthansa’s F award tix a year out, I would def do that. Sadly not possible so AF is the best way for me to cross the pond these days and likely option I choose going forward.
Air France is indeed a reliable and safe choice for TATL. I flew CDG-JFK in J countless times, and I actually find that the service has also become more reliably friendly over the years. That used to be very hit or miss but now i have a great crew 90% of the time. Can't wait for the A350 to take over though.
Meant to post this as a general comment, not a response to JetSetGo :).
Could not agree more.
AF used to have poor Business Class seats with marginal food - now I find AF to have consistent best in class seats with consistently good and sometimes outstanding food - they have multiple types of mustard available as well as hot sauce which I think is great.
I also find that AF has more little nice, creative touches than either IAG or LH airlines. Also I now think...
Could not agree more.
AF used to have poor Business Class seats with marginal food - now I find AF to have consistent best in class seats with consistently good and sometimes outstanding food - they have multiple types of mustard available as well as hot sauce which I think is great.
I also find that AF has more little nice, creative touches than either IAG or LH airlines. Also I now think the AF lounges in CDG are better than those at either FRA, MUC or LHR - better food and booze.
Well done AF.
While CDG is not a great airport to connect in, it is starting to grow on me.
Shame about the loyalty program either FlyingBlue or SkyMiles.
Was lounge access available when using flying blue miles for your ticket? I have noticed that AF award tickets have been excluding lounge access and seat assignments lately.
I'll be flying Air France from MIA to MXP in December, after reading your experience I look forward to hoping my flight is as good.
Just did KLM JFK to AMS Biz class Beds not great and the food needed work but staff were very nice. AND I got a house this time! NOt sure how I missed it on the last 2 KLM Biz flights!!
What, you didn’t pay for AF F lounge access? I thought this trip was all about splashing out…
:p
Anyways, this “OW Fanboy” is enjoying the AA nonstop SEA-LHR. Wide open J award availability. It’s even pretty accessible using transferring points with CX Asiamiles- cheaper than FB unless they’re running a promo.
Yeah their F&B isn’t great (it’s about what you had on your Greek trip this summer, Ben, perfectly fine just not amazing), but...
What, you didn’t pay for AF F lounge access? I thought this trip was all about splashing out…
:p
Anyways, this “OW Fanboy” is enjoying the AA nonstop SEA-LHR. Wide open J award availability. It’s even pretty accessible using transferring points with CX Asiamiles- cheaper than FB unless they’re running a promo.
Yeah their F&B isn’t great (it’s about what you had on your Greek trip this summer, Ben, perfectly fine just not amazing), but it is guaranteed lie-flat… and with the current AMEX transfer promo you’re getting lie flat for 51k AMEX each way. Very hard to beat that.
I believe they don't allow you to pay for F lounge access anymore unless you've actually paid for F in the past.
Ben has. Wrote a report about it.
Did a very similar trip in September
I flew out of EWR with Lufthansa first
And back with Air France I got some solid sleep on Air France very comfortable
I agree with your review. AF is definitely the best TATL experience at the moment in the air, maybe tied with VS. KL unfortunately has 2-2-2 seating on too many of its planes. The oneworld fanboys who are flying AA/BA/IB across the water boggle my mind.
Yes I think a lot would agree that AF is the best of the lot. I also like KL, but as you say, their 2-2-2 format and lack of privacy are downsides, but I would consider it over the likes of LH, BA or IB.
I’ll take Emirates or Singapore over the others TATL.
AF is the best in J these days, maybe also Swiss / Austrian for J.
VS just restarted normal multicourse catering with starter choices nice to see and also in the top tier again.
Superior wines on AF though, and the multicourse service makes a big difference. in fact what they're doing today is better than even 5 or 10 years ago when the cheese was presented upfront and less elaborate starters.
BA J...
AF is the best in J these days, maybe also Swiss / Austrian for J.
VS just restarted normal multicourse catering with starter choices nice to see and also in the top tier again.
Superior wines on AF though, and the multicourse service makes a big difference. in fact what they're doing today is better than even 5 or 10 years ago when the cheese was presented upfront and less elaborate starters.
BA J was good for a couple years before COVID with the Do&Co catering, but they're still playing nonsense 'fewer touchpoints' games. if they resumed proper catering they'd be a winner with their new J seats.
Alitalia was a winner - sounds like the new airline is sitll in COVID mode meal wise so that's a no go.