Monday newsletters always feature top 10 travel lists to inspire.
Today: Top 10 airlines offering Business Class “Plus”
Some airlines have taken their Business Class product to a new level by introducing Business Class “Plus”. This new concept comes from an innovative idea to integrate a seat with a First Class footprint within a Business Class cabin. In most cases, these Business Class “Plus” seats are located in the first row of the Business Class cabin. It allows airlines to offer a premium product up front in the Business Class cabin without losing out on passenger count. Here are the only 10 airlines that currently offer a Business Class “Plus” seat (although not all airlines market that product as such).
Have you ever flown in Business Class “Plus”? If so, what was your experience? Leave a comment.
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10. SINGAPORE AIRLINES BULKHEAD SEAT (BOEING 777 & AIRBUS A350)
Singapore Airlines features a great Business Class product – with seats arranged in a 1-2-1 layout – onboard its Boeing 777 and Airbus A350 aircraft. Each seat comes with a footrest, but the size of this footrest differs from seat to seat. Most seats have a foot cubby to the side, except for the bulkhead seats, which are equipped with seat-wide ottomans making for a much better flying experience (whether sitting up or sleeping). Singapore Airlines doesn’t formally market this special product as a Business Class “Plus” product and does not charge extra for these seat but they are only available to elite members of its frequent flyer program KrisFlyer ((although they also become available to other Business Class passengers 92 hours prior to departure).
9. CHINA EASTERN LUXURY BUSINESS CLASS (AIRBUS A350)
China Eastern Airlines’A350 flagship aircraft offers a three class cabin layout of 288 seats: 40 Business Class, 32 Premium Economy Class and 216 Economy Class seats. The four Business Class seats in the first row feature a lot more space and are branded as ‘Luxury Business Class’ seats. All four seats have fold up buddy seats to accompany the unique table offering of these front row seats, allowing a face to face seated passenger experience. Each buddy seat comes with integrated seat belts allowing passengers to remain in the suites during turbulence. The “air living room” center double suites provide a unique table offering allowing small groups of up to four passengers to sit around a larger conference table made up of two smaller meal tables.
8. SHANGHAI AIRLINES LUXURY BUSINESS CLASS SEAT (BOEING 787)
Shanghai Airlines is an airline headquartered in Shanghai and a wholly owned subsidiary of China Eastern Airlines. As such, it should not come as a surprise that the carrier has installed the same type of Business Class product onboards its Boeing 787-9 longhaul fleet as its mother company. Compared to regular Business Class seats, the seats in the front row are more spacious and come with double doors. In addition, the center pair of these front-row seats can be converted from two private suites into a larger, shared space that is ideal for couples or colleagues traveling together and also creates an incentive for passengers to select the inboard suites over the often-preferred outboard window suites.
7. LUFTHANSA ALLEGRIS BUSINESS CLASS SUITE (AIRBUS A350)
Lufthansa’s recently launched new Business Class cabin – called “Allegris” – offers six seating options with the highest level of comfort, all of them featuring chest-high walls and sliding doors. Each suite also offers its own wardrobe & personal minibar and can be individually heated or cooled as desired. The suites in the first rows of the A350’s two Business Class cabins offer an abundant amount of space, including higher partitions, extra storage, larger ottomans, and larger entertainment screens. Thanks to its exclusive position in the first row you’ll enjoy peace and quiet and lots of privacy. Passengers in these suites also receive an enhanced soft product, including extra bedding and pajamas. For now, Lufthansa is offering free seat selection while the product is finding its feet.
6. ASIANA BUSINESS CLASS SUITE (AIRBUS A380)
In 2019, South Korean carrier Asiana rebranded its First Class offering on its A380 superjumbo aircraft as “Business Suites”. The 12 Business Suites are located in rows 1 to 3 on the Airbus A380’s lower deck. Each suite is equipped with two sliding doors, a full flat-bed stretching 82 inch (210 cm) in length and one of the world’s largest 32 inch (81 cm) HD personal monitors. Asiana’s A380 Business Suite is the most spacious Business Class seat in the world, offering an experience that comes very close to First Class. Moreover, the Business Suite comes with an enhanced soft product, including access to Asiana’s First Class lounge at Incheon International Airport, extra bedding onboard and selected culinary offerings.
5. MALAYSIA AIRLINES BUSINESS CLASS SUITE (AIRBUS A350)
In 2018, Malaysia Airlines rebranded its First Class seats in its Airbus A350 aircraft to Business Suites. These four suites, located in the front row of the plane, are a lot more spacious than regular Business Class seats and come with retractable privacy doors, 24-inch inflight entertainment screens, extra console stowage, and a magazine rack. Malaysia Airlines also offers an enhanced soft product since Business Suites are complemented by a dedicated check-in counter, access to Malaysia Airlines’ First Class Lounge, extra baggage allowance as well as a fine dining experience onboard. Contrary to the other Business Class “Plus” products in this list, Malayia Airlines’ Business Suite is sold as a separate product (and not as an upgrade option to Business Class passengers).
4. VIRGIN ATLANTIC RETREAT SUITE (AIRBUS A330neo)
Virgin Atlantic’s Business Class cabin (designated as ‘Upper Class’) onboard its brand-new Airbus A330neo aircraft boasts The Retreat Suite, which consists of two exclusive suites at the front of the cabin. The Retreat is the airline’s most spacious suite yet, comprising a fully flat bed with a length of 200 cm (79 inches) and a 27 inches touchscreen with Bluetooth connectivity and wireless charging. With each suite boasting an ottoman that doubles up as an extra seat, up to four people can comfortably dine, chat or play games in their own private social space. There’s no difference in soft product between The Retreat and the 30 Upper Class (Business Class) suites located in the same cabin.
3. JETBLUE MINT STUDIO (AIRBUS A321)
Although Jetblue is a low cost carrier, the carrier does offer a superb Business Class product (designated Mint) on transatlantic A321 flights between New York and London, Paris and Amsterdam, with excellent food, amenities and seats. Each A321 also has two Mint Studios in the first row of the Business Class cabin, which come with all the bells and whistles of the regular Business Class suites (such as sliding doors) plus some extras.The latter include an extra side table, a guest seat that can accommodate an additional Mint customer during flight for face-to-face dining, and the largest TV (22 inches) and largest lie-flat bed of any USA carrier. There’s no differentiation to the soft product.
2. CONDOR PRIME SEAT (AIRBUS A330neo)
The four Business Class seats in the front row of Condor’s brand-new Airbus A330-900neo Business Class cabin are called Prime Seats since they offer an even further elevated travel experience compared to regular Business Class seats. This includes more space, a bigger bed, a “visitor” seat (which allows face-to-face dining with a buddy), and an extra-large 24 inch 4K screen. Condor also differentiates the soft product since passengers booked in the Prime Seats get some extra amenities & goodies, such as pajamas and a welcome snack basket (containing Haribo gummy bears, peanut M&Ms, Pringles, chocolate crackers, and salted caramel popcorn).
1. AIR FRANCE BULKHEAD SUITE (BOEING 777 & AIRBUS A350)
Air France’s bulkhead Business Class suites onboard the carrier’s A350 and refurbished B777 aircraft offer an enormous amount of extra space, which equals that and even tops the space you usually find in First Class cabins. The ottomans of these seats are the largest you’ll find in the skies, allowing for a good night’s rest when the seat is fully reclined. Complete privacy is also guaranteed by means of a sliding door. So far, Air France has not made a lot of fuzz about this feature and the carrier doesn’t sell these seats at an extra cost but they are only available to Flying Blue elite members at booking (although they also become available to other Business Class passengers 72 hours prior to departure).
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