After dropping $68 to cure my anxiety about missing a flight, I was super pumped up for what would be my first flight in an international premium cabin. I approached the Asiana business class check-in counter at JFK and received very polite service and was handed my boarding pass.
I proceeded to go through security. Unfortunately, most non-US airlines do not allow for TSA PreCheck, so I had to go through the naked body scanner. There was a premium cabin line though, so at least I got through very quickly.
I decided to go to the lounge to get a drink and a snack. Asiana uses the Swissport lounge for their business class customers, which is also available to people who have a Priority Pass membership (this costs a few hundred dollars per year, or you can get one for “free” with several premium travel credit cards, as I did). The lounge was pretty nice, with ample seating that was pretty empty at the time I went.
There was also a selection of carbohydrates, some of which were stale, and a make-your-own sandwich station with a variety of meats and veggies, and some various salad ingredients.
There was also a decent selection of beverages. For alcohol, there were several types of beer, including Samuel Adams Oktoberfest, which I had, and some cheaper beers as well as red and white wine. As for non-alcoholic drinks there was your typical selection of Colca-Cola products, Tropicana juices, and bottled water.
There were also newspapers in several languages catering to the citizens of countries represented by the airlines that contract with the lounge.
Lastly, the lounge had great views of the tarmac, and I could very clearly see my Asiana A380 as it was being loaded up.
Boarding time was 1:10 PM, so naturally I left the lounge around 1:15 to walk over to my plane. There were neat lines of people waiting to board first, business, and economy class. I always wonder why these sorts of things are the norm among northeast Asian carriers while US-based carriers can’t seem to handle them…
Anyway, boarding started slightly late but everybody was more or less on board in time. I was super excited and decided to have a look around at my seat. Asiana’s business class is staggered 1-2-1. That means there is one window seat, then two aisle seats, and then a window seat again, so everybody has direct aisle access. It also means the window seats alternate between having a table in between the seat and the window, and one between the seat and the aisle. Since I like to look out the window, I picked a seat that was next to the window with the table next to the aisle.
Asiana’s business class has a fully-flat seat, which means I could recline it all the way and lay on it like a little bed. There were several controls that would help me achieve my desired seating arrangement.
The little device that looks like a PSP (anybody remember those?) also functioned as a remote for the personal entertainment console.
To my left, next to the window was a convenient little area to store small items
To my right was a little table which had on it an amenity kit, some headphones, and the typical in-flight magazines, which included what was probably the thickest duty-free magazine I have ever seen.
To my front was the personal entertainment system and a nice spot to put my feet, under which was a little extra storage area.
On the seat was a big comforter and pillow, though I did not expect to sleep on this flight, as it was due to arrive at around 5 am New York time (not long past my bedtime considering I was still adjusted to living in California). The comforter had “Asiana Airlines business class” sewn into it, which I thought was a nice touch.
The amenity kit was branded L’Occitane en Provence (which makes some of my favorite smelling soap) and included a bit of lotion, an eye mask, some earplugs, a toothbrush, a comb, and some tissues.
I was also provided with the necessary forms for Korean immigration.
Lastly, we were all offered a welcome drink. Unfortunately, Asiana does not serve alcohol on the ground in the USA due to tax reasons so I selected a glass of orange juice.
I looked out the window and there was an AeroMexico plane right next door, presumably heading to Mexico.
Although boarding started slightly late, it seemed to end on time and we were on our way just a few minutes past schedule, at around 2:00 pm.
I always find it interesting how pilots from different countries act differently with regard to the fasten seat belt signs on planes. While American pilots seem to turn it on at the first sign of mild turbulence, in my experience British and Japanese pilots will turn it off five minutes after takeoff and leave it off until five minutes before landing, even if the plane is shaking in the sky. The Korean pilots seemed to take a middle ground, turning it on when necessary but not too trigger-happy with regards to the sign.
Sometime after take-off, I decided to check out the lavatory. It was what you would expect from an airplane lavatory, although business class had some nicer amenities and was a little bigger and cleaner. There was soap and lotion from L’Occitane en Provence, disposable razors, and toothbrushes.
Pretty soon afterwards the service began. We first distributed a hot towel.
This was followed by the menu and wine list.
There was a western menu and a Korean menu. I have always been excited to try airplane bibimbap, so I chose the Korean menu, naturally. The alcohol menu was also decently extensive, with several wines and liquors, and also contained the tea and coffee menu. I was super excited by the idea of drinking Champagne on a plane, so of course that is what I chose. Asiana’s business class serves Laurent Perrier, which seems to retail at around $49 per bottle, and I thought it was decent. One thing that I loved was that although the glass was small, it was refilled between every course of the meal.
The flight attendants set my tray table for me and started serving food. There were three starters in the menu, the first of which consisted of a couple melon balls, a slice of prosciutto, and a shrimp. It was pretty good.
This was followed by the second starter which was some vegetables and crabmeat wrapped in pickled turnip. I was not a huge fan of this one, though it may just be because of my personal tastes. At this point they also gave me the silverware set, which had metal chopsticks and a spoon.
Next I had the pumpkin porridge, which I actually really liked. I don’t often like pumpkin products, but this was nice.
Next I was served some bread from the breadbasket. I am not sure if I was technically even supposed to get any with the Korean menu but hey, I won’t complain about free bread!
Next was what I had been waiting for, the bibimbap! For those of you who are unfamiliar with the dish, it is basically a bunch of vegetables and meat mixed up with rice and a spicy sauce called gochujang. I have had it several times as Korean-ish food has become quite popular in the states recently, and was curious to see how the airplane version was. It came served with kimchi, some fried egg, a soup, and even instructions on how to mix the bibimbap.
Here is what it looked like all mixed up:
It tasted pretty good too. It seemed lighter than the bibimbap I have had in the states (which of course, may be fattened up to satisfy the local tastebuds) and was definitely nicer than probably any other airplane meal I have had.
After that was dessert. First we got the deep-fried rice cake, which was alright, and the bean jelly, which I didn’t care much for.
Then we got the raspberry cake, which was really good. It was served with a coffee.
Finally, they gave me a bottle of water.
I don’t really sleep well on planes, and even though this was technically an overnight flight my internal clock would have thought we were simply arriving late at night in my own time zone, and dinner was finished earlier than I would normally have started eating it! On top of that, it was daytime for the entire flight and I didn’t see myself sleeping at all, so I decided to check out the in-flight entertainment system. There was a good selection of movies from around the world. I watched a Korean film called “Mayor,” which was about a Seoul mayoral candidate who uses very dirty tactics to win. It was decent. Then I watched another Korean film, a comedy called “Daddy You, Daughter Me” which seemed like a ripoff of “Freaky Friday,” although it is supposedly based on a Japanese novel. Finally, I watched an American classic, the film “Rear Window” by Alfred Hitchcock, about a temporarily disabled man who spies on his neighbors to try to solve crime mysteries.
There was also an international selection of music and TV shows, and a few games, including sudoku which I did a few puzzles of.
Sometime during the flight I checked out the airshow, and noticed that our projected route was going straight over North Korea! I imagined that can’t be the case, and as expected, our flight path went over China and then the Yellow Sea, far away from North Korean shores.
Also sometime during the flight I got a bit hungry again, and remembered that we can always order certain refreshments, so I ordered some ramen, and they were about the best instant noodles I have ever had, garnished with a few vegetables and served with kimchi and pickled radish.
Not long before the end of the flight the “snack” service started. Our tables were set again and first I was given an appetizer with a couple pieces of prosciutto, a shrimp, and some salad.
Next a bread basked was brought around and I picked a pretzel roll which was accompanied by some olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
Then was the main course, which was beef in teriyaki sauce and some rice, which was quite good for airplane food.
Last but not least was dessert, which was a fruit tart and was again served with a coffee.
We landed safely at Seoul Incheon airport on time and were greeted by very thick fog.
Finally, we deplaned and headed to Korean immigration, which was swift and painless.
I was super excited for my first opportunity to fly in a premium cabin, and it surely did not disappoint. Being able to relax in a comfortable position even during taxiing, takeoff and landing was really nice, the food was definitely the best I have ever had in the sky, and the “bottomless” Champagne was definitely a cool touch. The Asiana crew were also quite nice and professional. Some people say that after the fly first or business class across the ocean they would never do economy again, and I guess I can see why. But would I pay $2500 for this one-way flight? Probably not, and probably not if I were rich either. I like really good deals, and so if I came upon a really good deal for a premium cabin, why not? But “regular price” for this kind of service is really not that worth it. If we are talking about paying with frequent flyer miles though, I’m all in, although it still has to be a good deal. I did quite a bit of research when deciding my routing and a lot of thought went into this, even as to why I chose to fly on Asiana despite everyone telling me they prefer Korean Air (things about airline alliance partners and stopover rules on award tickets). In any case, I do feel I made a good decision considering what I wanted to try and where in the world I needed to be on certain days, and that’s what really matters, eh?
Have you ever flown in a premium cabin across an ocean, or is it something on your wish list? If so, how does it compare? Do you think it is worth the extra cash?