While I’ve loved trying lots of business class products in the past few years (including Thai, Korean Air, Swiss and Cathay Pacific), I’m guessing I won’t be able to have such amazing opportunities in the far future. I’ve been keeping my hopes on premium economy, due to how many airlines offer it nowadays – though the only premium economy products I’ve really reviewed are Cathay Pacific’s and Virgin Atlantic’s. They’ve all been amazing experiences, so I’m willing to keep going deeper into the market.
Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787-9 Premium Economy
Well, in this quest to do so, I’ve booked two premium economy products at reasonable prices that I think will give me a pretty good impression of what the premium economy is like. They seem to be at opposite ends of the spectrum, too, which makes it even more interesting.
Singapore Airlines Premium Economy (~HK$4,300)
I’ve been able to grab some early Singapore Airlines premium economy fares roundtrip from Hong Kong to Singapore, which has been awesome. While trying out their business class is one of my dreams, the prices are up the roof, so I’m not going to be able to do that. I got some backlash when talking about my perspective on premium economy last year, so I’ll be able to get a little more exposure with what many people consider to be the world’s best premium economy in the sky.
Singapore Airlines Premium Economy
I’ve got one leg booked on the A380 and the other booked on a 777-300ER, so I’m really excited to see what’s up.
British Airways World Traveller Plus (~HK$13,000)
I originally polled to see what everyone wanted to see a review of, but since the view rate’s gone down, I haven’t got that many answers. I eventually decided that roundtrip premium economy for less than what most airlines were charging for one-way premium economy was too good not to take advantage of, so I pulled the trigger (well, not yet, as it isn’t confirmed, but it’s booked) on British Airways World Traveller Plus.
It seems like the other end of the spectrum to Singapore Airlines based on what I’ve read, so I’m intrigued to learn more about their product. Hopefully they’ll still let me take my cabin pictures, or the review will be kind of useless.
British Airways Premium Economy
I have one leg booked on the 777-300ER and the other booked on the A380, so hopefully there’s a little variety in how the products are.
Bottom Line
I can’t wait to try out more premium economy products in the future. While trying out all the business class products in the world would be a dream, I think I’ll stick to targeting at all the premium economy products available, due to how attractive the prices seem. Ultimately, these prices aren’t what I’d call “dirt cheap”, but if I need to be there anyway, none of these prices are that much more than economy (both less than HK$2,000 of a premium compared to roundtrip economy), so I can’t wait for this to happen next year.
It doesn’t hurt that the British Airways legs are taken alone, which gives a bigger chance at an empty seat next to me, given how big the British Airways cabins are – too bad Singapore Airlines doesn’t allow seat selection until confirmation, and British Airways doesn’t allow seat selection until check-in.