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THE ALVIATOR'S VERDICT
China Eastern's premium economy product isn't amazing on many levels (and feels more similar to economy than other premium economy products), but it's really good value for money, given how cheaply the product can often be priced |
3.5
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In November 2025, I flew China Eastern’s A350 premium economy from Madrid to Shanghai. I’m trying to find the best premium economy product flying, and one of the main questions I had was whether mainland Chinese airlines offered a competitive premium economy product. The opportunity arose to pick up a ticket from Madrid to Shenzhen via Shanghai in China Eastern premium economy class for one of the cheapest one-way premium economy rates I’ve seen, so I was very keen to try China Eastern’s premium economy cabin out.
So how was it? Well, on one hand, the experience wasn’t anything special – there were some nice touches such as slippers, a great amenity kit, WiFi, and good service, thought the seat was mediocre and catering was similar to economy. However, it’s hard to fault the value of their premium economy product, given the price points are some of the most competitive in the market.
This was also my first time flying a Chinese airline longhaul, so I was interested to see what elements of the passenger experience they invested in. Anyway, here’s my review, where I’ll detail the seats, catering, service, and more.
Booking China Eastern’s A350 Premium Economy Class
I booked my China Eastern one-way ticket from Madrid to Shenzhen via Shanghai, which cost £481.1 (HK$4,993). I thought that it was very cheap for a premium economy ticket, and was the catalyst for this review trip. I booked this on China Eastern’s website, and the actual process of getting the ticket wasn’t very difficult – I just had to enter my passport details on top of the typical details you’d expect for a ticket.
The catch is that the China Eastern website is quite difficult to navigate once you’ve booked – especially if you’re on the English version. The actual process of seat selection is not that difficult, particularly if you select your seat during booking and just don’t change it afterwards. However, my connecting flight in economy featured “preferred” seats, which I could select for free with my premium economy ticket…but only if I signed up for China Eastern’s frequent flyer programme, or had WeChat. I did have the latter, but I can see the website IT being a total pain if you’re not from China.
Anyway, here’s the itinerary I ended up booking:
17/11 China Eastern 710 Madrid (MAD) – Shanghai Pudong (PVG) dep. 10:30 arr. 06:20+1 (Premium Economy)
18/11 China Eastern 5331 Shanghai Pudong (PVG) – Shenzhen (SZX) dep. 09:00 arr. 11:40 (Economy)
While I wanted to credit points from this flight to Virgin Atlantic (another SkyTeam airline), I wasn’t actually able to put my frequent flyer programme details during any part of the booking process. I wasn’t able to do it at the airport either, though to Virgin Atlantic’s credit, the miles were credited almost instantly to my account after I put in a missing miles request. This segment earned me 7,009 Virgin points and 50 tier points, whereas my subsequent segment to Shenzhen earned me 759 Virgin points and 10 tier points.
China Eastern’s Premium Economy Ground Experience in Madrid
My attempt at online check-in for China Eastern was unsurprisingly unsuccessful, and I believe the airline doesn’t actually allow the use of mobile boarding passes out of Madrid at all. Coupled with the fact that I wasn’t sure what to expect based on the newly pioneered EU Entry/Exit System, I went to Madrid Airport’s Terminal 1 a bit earlier than I’d hoped (especially since the Hotel uVe Alcobendas shuttle only ran on the hour), getting there at 7:20 AM ahead of my 10:30 AM flight.
I had nothing to worry about – even if there was a line (which there wasn’t, so early in the morning), China Eastern offers SkyPriority services for their premium economy passengers, in line with their SkyTeam counterparts. The signage doesn’t actually say that premium economy passengers have SkyPriority access, though I was quickly directed to that line by a check-in agent upon asking.
China Eastern Check-In at Madrid Airport
The new EES system was deactivated completely at Madrid Airport that morning. So, despite security not being particularly organised, I made it out of security and immigration control in under 15-20 minutes – that left me with a whole 1h 45m to spare before boarding even started. It’s worth noting that while you do get priority check-in and boarding with China Eastern, priority security isn’t included – though this wasn’t an issue on the day, given that there wasn’t too high of a volume of traffic.
China Eastern doesn’t give their premium economy passengers lounge access, though I used my Priority Pass card to access the Cibeles lounge. I’m not going to review it, as it was far too crowded for me to get good photos and write a good review. However, I did want to share that they have a great terrace, where you can get some fresh air and see some widebody aircraft close-up on the tarmac.
Sala VIP Cibeles Lounge Madrid Airport
On this slightly damp November morning, I was able to enjoy a view of an Air China 787 (I was kind of glad I wasn’t flying it in premium economy, as Air China has a “faux” premium economy product onboard their 787s).
Sala VIP Cibeles Lounge Madrid Airport View
Boarding was scheduled for 9:30 AM, a full hour before departure. Gate A6 was a walk away from the main non-Schengen area, so I made my way over at around 9:10 AM. There was someone sat at the gate agent’s desk, though upon trying to ask whether I could add my frequent flyer number, I was informed “I’m not ground staff” – she happened to be a flight attendant.
China Eastern Gate Area at Madrid Airport
Even when two ground agents showed up, they weren’t able to add my Virgin Atlantic frequent flyer number to my booking, presumably as Virgin Atlantic is new to SkyTeam and wasn’t on China Eastern’s internal systems yet. I figured I’d either just deal with this at Pudong Airport, or try and credit the miles retroactively.
When boarding lanes were set up, once again premium economy wasn’t listed on the SkyPriority signage. However, premium economy passengers ended up being able to board in the same line as business class, meaning that I was one of the first onboard.
China Eastern boarding signage at Madrid Airport
Boarding ended up being delayed by a little bit, and we were invited to board just short of 9:45 AM. We stood outside the China Eastern A350 for a minute or two, before being invited onboard through the second set of doors.
China Eastern A350 at Madrid Airport
China Eastern Flight MU710
Monday, November 17, 2025
Origin: Madrid (MAD) Gate: A6 Dep: 10:30 (10:25)
Destination: Shanghai Pudong (PVG) T: 1 Gate: 139 Arr: 06:20+1 (05:55+1)
Duration: 12 hr 50 min (12 hr 30 min)
Aircraft: Airbus A350-900 Reg: B-324X
Seat: 28A (Premium Economy Class)
This was my first ever longhaul flight onboard a mainland Chinese carrier, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect!
China Eastern A350 Business Class
Since we boarded through the second set of doors, I was able to walk past the rear cabin of China Eastern’s stunning new A350 business class seats. These are enclosed suites with doors, very similar to what you’ll find on Delta or Virgin Atlantic’s A330neos. I’d love to try this product out someday.
China Eastern A350 Business Class
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Class Cabin and Seat
Since I was one of the first to board this flight (and the couple who boarded in front of me were seated in business class), I was surprised to see people in the cabin when I walked in. I believe that these were non-revenue passengers, as they seemed to be friends with the crew.
China Eastern’s A350s feature 32 premium economy seats, spread across four rows in a 2-4-2 configuration. The cabin colours are entirely beige with faux wood finishes – not very exciting, though there’s at least some effort to spruce up the cabin with floral patterns on the headrest covers.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Cabin
To China Eastern’s credit, mainland Chinese carriers sometimes sell extra legroom economy seats as premium economy, and China Eastern isn’t one of those airlines. These are Collins Aerospace MiQ seats, which are very similar to what you’ll find on KLM or Cathay Pacific’s A350s – however, while both of the aforementioned airlines made some modifications to the seat (particularly on the storage and ergonomics front), these seats are straight off the manufacturer’s shelf.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Cabin
I’d selected seat 28A, the left window seat on the last row of the cabin. This is my strong preference in premium economy and economy class, as I can take advantage of the recline function throughout the flight without worrying about anyone behind me.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Seats 28A and 28C
Padding at these seats was fine, though not spectacular. I appreciated that these seats had both a fold-up legrest and a fold-down footrest, though the recline in these seats felt quite weak for me – and that wasn’t even because I was seated in the last row. I had a test of the recline function in the other seats, and it was pretty much the same as what I’d experienced in my own seat. It was definitely better than economy, though I noticed the difference onboard my Finnair return flight.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Recline
The seats have 38″ of pitch, which is industry-standard. I thought that this was a good amount, given that the seats are fairly slimline as far as premium economy seats go. The bicycle-style footrest was also handy to use.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Legroom and Footrest
Each seat featured a universal 110V power port, as well as a USB-A port.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Power Ports
There was also a faux wood cocktail table by the centre armrest.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Armrest Cocktail Table
Each seat featured a large high-definition TV. While I’ll detail the entertainment system selection later (spoiler alert: not great), the TV itself was high-definition, and quite easy to use.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy TV
The tray table folded out of the left armrest for me, and I thought that it was very sturdy.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Tray Table
One thing that I found was incredibly lacking at the seat was storage. There was no usable storage pocket by the seat in front (apart from the seat pocket), and the only appropriate to place “bits” such as AirPods, a phone and glasses was this tiny storage area under the armrest between seats. I think other airlines do this so much better by providing nooks and crannies to store small items, such as underneath the TV screen of the seat in front.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Storage (or lack thereof)
This isn’t the greatest seat – the seat itself is standard, storage is lacking with missed opportunities, and recline isn’t great. However, China Eastern is generally known for having the cheapest fares in premium economy across the industry, and for that I think that the seat was adequate for this flight. I didn’t feel like sleep was impeded too much (apart from the 10:30 AM departure, which made getting good-quality sleep quite difficult anyway), and could eat and work comfortably, and there was working in-seat power. I’ll take that for a £480 one-way Europe-Asia premium economy flight, without too many complaints.
China Eastern A350 Economy Class
Since I was seated in the last row of premium economy, I had the chance to check out the economy class cabin behind me. China Eastern’s A350s feature 216 economy seats laid out across two cabins – much like premium economy, these seats are straight off-the-shelf designed by Collins Aerospace, and in this case are the longhaul version of their Pinnacle seats.
China Eastern A350 Economy Class Cabin
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Class Amenities
China Eastern’s premium economy amenities aren’t particularly impressive. The blanket and pillow provided at my seat were both the same as what were provided in economy – neither felt particularly plush or luxurious. The pillow was small, and the blanket felt thin.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Pillow and Blanket
The amenity kit did exceed my expectations, however. It was a very nice pouch, and housed a dental kit, eyeshades, earplugs, and a very substantial comb.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Amenity Kit
I was also surprised to see that we were given slippers. These are always quite handy on a longhaul flight, and they felt quite good quality as well.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Slippers
In terms of other amenities, we were given some earbuds after takeoff. They were quite bad, to put it mildly – I’d definitely try and arrange my own headphones if possible, if I was planning on taking advantage of China Eastern’s entertainment system.
Also, the fact that these were given after takeoff meant that you couldn’t really watch the entertainment system before that, unless you had your own headphones to use.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Earphones
In the literature pocket was a newspaper. These alternated between English and Chinese, so I wonder whether a newspaper was put at every seat based on which language the person booked their ticket with. That would’ve been some remarkable attention to detail, despite the fact that I don’t think anybody took advantage of the newspapers. These were from China Daily, as you’d expect.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Newspaper
The last thing offered at each seat was a bottle of China Eastern-branded water.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Water
I found the varying quality of each of the different amenities available to be interesting. The pillow, blanket and earphones were underwhelming, whereas the amenity kit and slippers were impressive. This felt very similar to my experience with amenities when flying Lufthansa/Swiss premium economy – not great, though not near the bottom of the pack either.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Class Entertainment System
Chinese airlines are known for having comically bad entertainment systems, and this was no exception. “Sky Entertainment” was enabled from boarding until shortly before our final descent (it wasn’t available gate-to-gate), and at least the interface was intuitive.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Entertainment System
The total number of movies was in the low hundreds, which is not terrible. Even then, I wasn’t too convinced by the selection available, which seemed random and didn’t seem to straddle either the best of Western or Chinese movies.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Entertainment System
The real kicker was that there were a total of five TV shows available, and the same selection was available even in Chinese.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Entertainment System
You can, however, get three different views of the business class walk-up bar on the IFE (which we didn’t have access to), as well as one view of each of the cabins onboard the aircraft.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Entertainment System Aircraft View
To be fair, China Eastern does feature the wonderful A350 tail camera feature on their inflight entertainment system. Personally this is enough to keep me entertained throughout the flight, and makes the entertainment system otherwise a moot point for me.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Tail Camera
China Eastern isn’t an airline with an award-winning entertainment system, and in fact it was probably a bit worse than I had imagined. However, they do have inflight WiFi (which I’ll cover in a separate section below), so I’m not too fussed about having a great entertainment system.
Taking off from Madrid Airport
Boarding was completed at around 10:15 AM, 15 minutes before our scheduled departure. Economy actually seemed quite full, but premium economy was half full at most (even with some non-revenue passengers), with the middle seats all empty, except for the front row. A lady was initially sat next to me, though she took the chance to move to one of the empty centre aisle seats, so I ended up with both seats to myself.
While the lead cabin attendant came onto the PA to welcome us and announce our flight time of 11h 40m (and also announce that power banks were prohibited onboard this flight), the pilot didn’t address us at this stage of the flight. I noted that the PA was very weak, and I could barely hear what the flight attendant was saying.
We pushed back at around 10:25 AM, leaving the Delta 767 parked next to us.
Delta 767 at Madrid Airport
The safety video was screened three separate times in Chinese, English, then Spanish. The English version tickled me a bit – “China Eastern Airways always be by your side, pursuing your dreams for a better future”.
China Eastern A350 Safety Video
When the cabin crew came to give their safety checks, they advised that I could fasten my bag by the seat next to me, presumably so I could get more legroom. This was new to me – I’ve not done this before. So I said hi to my new seatmate, before we were on our merry way eastward to Asia.
A new and familiar seatmate in China Eastern A350 Premium Economy
Even though we pushed back early, our assigned runway was basically on the opposite end of the airport – we were taking off from Terminal 1, the runway was closer to Terminal 4, and Madrid Airport is massive. So our taxi took almost half an hour, as we taxied past all of the airport’s other terminals before taking off from runway 36R at 10:55 AM. At least this made for some good planespotting, including an Iberojet A350, an Aeromexico 787, and various Iberia widebody aircraft.
Taxiing at Madrid Airport
Once we finally took off, we quickly pierced through the cloud cover over Madrid Airport. We made a few right turns to get on our course to Shanghai Airport (remembering that as a mainland Chinese airline we could fly over Russia), quickly encountering blue skies as we did so.
Takeoff from Madrid Airport
We reached cruising altitude at around 11:20 AM, 25 minutes after takeoff.
While the seatbelt sign was turned off at a few points throughout the flight, it was largely left on throughout the flight. When the pilots actually needed us to be back in our seats, they’d put a turbulence notification on the IFE, advising us to keep our seatbelts fastened (this would usually be accompanied by a PA announcement). After the turbulence steadied, people would generally just get up and walk around, and the crew wouldn’t stop us.
China Eastern A350 Turbulence Notification
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy WiFi
China Eastern offers WiFi onboard their A350s. You can either buy WiFi on the airline’s app, or you can do so onboard. I will say that you should pre-purchase WiFi if you’re planning to use it – the portal itself isn’t the fastest. There was a QR code on the seat in front of me which was meant to load the WiFi pre-order page, though it didn’t work – the easiest way was just to load up China Eastern’s website, let it redirect, and enter the six-digit code I got after paying for WiFi.
WiFi is free for first and business class passengers, though not premium economy – it cost 258 CNY (£27.6) for my flight, which is on the steep end, though at least there were no data caps. However, do note that the great firewall is in place, and it even blocks VPNs. So I couldn’t use WhatsApp or Instagram, though I was pleasantly surprised to learn that my website is reachable in mainland China (iMessage still works, and obviously WeChat works). I also found WiFi to be quite slow compared to industry competitors, and it was a bit more patchy than I’m used to on an Europe-Asia route.
Regardless, I appreciated having WiFi on this awkwardly timed daytime flight. I couldn’t sleep much due to the early departure time, and arrived in Shanghai sleepy by the time a new day was starting. However, I wish I was more well-rested (I only got a few hours’ sleep the night before due to a delay on my previous flight, but still couldn’t really fall asleep due to the amount of daylight outside), as I would’ve been uber-productive with access to many work websites, but not any social media websites.
China Eastern A350 WiFi
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Class Lavatory
China Eastern doesn’t have any dedicated premium economy lavatories on their A350s, so lavatories are shared with economy. There are five lavatories – two are behind the first economy cabin, and the other three are behind the second economy class cabin. So that’s a 49.6:1 passenger to lavatory ratio, which isn’t terrible for economy, though not great for premium economy class. I regularly faced a wait for the lavatory, especially after meals and before landing.
China Eastern A350 Economy Class Lavatories
To the airline’s credit, I liked the faux tiling on the lavatory floor, and never found the lavatory conditions to be unpleasant (despite them deteriorating slightly throughout the flight). The lavatories were also stocked with dental kits and cups.
China Eastern A350 Economy Class Lavatory Dental Kit
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Class Meal Service
The meal service began not very long after we hit cruising altitude. This began with a hot towel, which was presented 35 minutes after takeoff.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Hot Towel
At this point I was communicating to most of the cabin crew in Mandarin, and I ran into a bit of an issue here, due to my limited Chinese. China Eastern doesn’t have menu cards in premium economy, though I knew that I was going to order the Chinese option no matter what, as I’ve heard some atrocious things about the airline’s catering quality of Western food (though people generally seem to enjoy their Chinese options).
When I heard that they were serving beef and a certain type of noodle, I chose that option. Turns out that the certain type of noodle that I’d heard in Chinese was…penne pasta. So even though I intentionally tried to dodge getting the Western dish, I ended up with a beef stew with penne pasta of sorts. I later learned that the options were beef stew with penne pasta (what I ended up getting), or a pork with rice dish, which was the Chinese option.
Given the horror stories I’d heard, I was very pleasantly surprised – the beef was tender, I found the dish to be flavourful, and the pasta was okay. I can’t say the same about the sad side salad with a single slice of pepper jack beef and no dressing, however, and the dessert of cut oranges and pineapples felt a bit lazy. This was also served with a Boer sabor wafer.
I asked what drinks they had, and they seemed to have the classic soft drink options, beer, and red and white wine – I went with a Chinese beer.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Meal
We were also given some bread at this time. I actually found the bread rolls to be delicious – they tasted fresh and moist.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Bread Roll
The presentation of the meal itself also wasn’t amazing – it’s a bit sad to get an aluminium casserole dish in premium economy. However, perhaps I came in with particularly low standards, because I found the meal to be alright. Of course catering pales in comparison to what I’ve experienced on some other airlines in premium economy, though China Eastern also prices their premium economy product very cheaply, so I find this level of catering to be acceptable.
Cruising over Eastern Europe and Russia
Strangely, the first time the captain came onto the PA was after the first meal service, at around 12:20 PM Madrid time. He welcomed us onto the flight and announced that we were then cruising at 36,000 feet, and gave us an approximate arrival time of 5:40 AM local time (40 minutes before our scheduled arrival time).
After the meal service, the cabin crew dimmed the lights, though a couple of people decided to keep their window shades open. I will say that the first row is worth avoiding if you’re looking to get some sleep – as much as I love looking at the airshow, I can imagine finding a huge screen at full brightness extremely annoying, especially if it’s right in front of me and I can’t turn it off. I wonder why airlines do this, as it seems like such an easy nuisance to avoid on a longhaul flight.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Cabin
So, how was flying over Russia for the first time in years? Well, much like flying over anywhere else in the world, really. It was also getting quite dark, so we couldn’t actually even see much that was going on outside. The only noticeable advantage of flying over Russia is the shorter flight time.
I’d love to be able to fly over Russia regularly again because I want war to cease, not because there’s much to see in the sky above there
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Class Mid-Flight Snack
Around four hours into the flight we were able to enjoy a sunset, as we flew into Russian territory.
Sunset over western Russia
I wasn’t really hungry at all, though at around this point in the flight I decided to survey what midflight dining options there were in China Eastern premium economy. The crew were friendly, and said that sandwiches were available – though they said “if you want anything else to eat, we can see if we have it” (suggesting that they would’ve heated up a meal for me or brought something from another cabin if I requested). I didn’t want to push any boundaries, so just asked for a sandwich, so I could see what was on offer for premium economy passengers. For the record, this is the same as what would’ve been offered in economy.
This was just a very simple ham and cheese sandwich – I was tired but figured it wasn’t even nighttime in Hong Kong, so asked for a coffee with it. I later realised that these sandwiches were readily available in the galley, though I didn’t spot any other galley snacks on offer.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Mid-Flight Snack
The crew were warm and friendly, and when I finished my coffee, they asked whether there was anything else I wanted to drink.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Class Service
I’ve got to commend the crew on this flight for being incredibly warm and personable. Admittedly this wasn’t too difficult of a task, given that the premium economy cabin was half full.
The crew also wasn’t given much to work with – I’d say that the service design in premium economy isn’t differentiated from economy much at all. The meal service is identical, or any other differences to the soft product beyond the amenities on offer. I’d say that there could’ve been a few tweaks on that front – for example, the second meal service could’ve started with the economy cabin before the premium economy cabin, menus could’ve been offered, and there could’ve been a few dedicated menu items for premium economy passengers to have mid-flight.
However, the crew seemed genuinely invested in making sure passengers had a good experience. I was always asked whether I wanted a drink refill (even midflight), and the crew made an effort to make sure that I was comfortable, including with fastening my backpack to the seat next to me, and offering to get me anything I wanted to eat (even outside the standard available options). At one point when I was waiting for the bathroom I asked whether I could take a photo of the galley (which just had a walk-up bar of sandwiches and water), and the crewmember said “no, I need to make it nice before you can take a photo). The galley wasn’t particularly messy so I didn’t want her to do any additional work, though she asked if I was an aviation geek – I said I was, and she gave me the cute postcard below.
China Eastern A350 Crewmember Postcard
I kind of wish that the crew could work with a soft product they could’ve been prouder of, though I can’t fault the way they executed their service at all.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Class Pre-Arrival Meal Service
Around 2h 30m before landing, the cabin crew came around with hot towels. This was followed by a pre-arrival meal service, consisting of two options – pork with penne pasta, or fish with rice. I wish that they could’ve had more exciting options, though was quite glad that this wasn’t the typical pre-arrival breakfast of eggs vs. congee.
I don’t know exactly what kind of white fish I was served, and it came with the same kind of sauce you’d expect with coronation chicken. However, the fish was flaky, and the rice and vegetables were fine as well. This was served with a Mediterranean potato salad with olives (which I actually really enjoyed). We also received the same dessert of chopped pineapple and orange as we received during the first meal, as well as the same Dulcesol wafer. I asked for another coffee with breakfast.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Pre-Landing Meal
Given the amount of time there was after breakfast, I dozed in and out of sleep for a bit (especially since the tail camera was more or less pitch black), before just putting on the moving map and working a little bit on my laptop.
China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Moving Map
Landing into Shanghai Pudong Airport
At around 1h 30m before landing, the crew came round with arrival cards into China.
The cabin was prepared around 40 minutes before landing, as we neared Shanghai just before 5 AM. Unfortunately there wasn’t much in the way of views upon descent (with the smog coupled by the fact that it was dark outside), so I just had the moving map on as we began our final descent.
Moving map during descent into Shanghai Pudong Airport
We touched down on Pudong Airport’s runway 35L at 5:35 AM, and taxied over to the satellite area of Terminal 1, which took around 20 minutes. We parked next to another China Eastern A350, which had just flown in from Geneva a couple of minutes earlier.
Taxiing at Shanghai Pudong Airport
The sun was just starting to rise as we deplaned, which made for a couple of good photo opportunities (though unfortunately they were fairly obstructed, due to the terminal layout).
China Eastern A350 at Shanghai Pudong Airport
While I had my connecting boarding pass on me, international-to-domestic transit security only opened at 6 AM. At this point I decided I’d register for the immigration e-gates (which I could do at a kiosk landside at Pudong Airport), so I passed through immigration, before re-clearing security for my flight to Shenzhen.
Conclusion: China Eastern A350 Premium Economy Class
China Eastern’s premium economy class can’t compare with the world’s best, and here’s why: the seat itself doesn’t have sufficient recline or storage, the meal service and overall service structure isn’t differentiated from economy (and the overall food quality is “not bad” at best, and feels low-effort with repeated desserts etc.), the entertainment system sucks, and there’s huge room for improvement on the amenities front (especially the pillow and blanket).
However, I still think this is a worthwhile product, mainly because of the extremely competitive pricing. Generally, you’ll find China Eastern to be the cheapest option in premium economy across multiple markets – whether it’s between Europe and Asia, the U.S. and Asia, or even Europe and Australia. I still found the seat to be comfortable enough, there’s WiFi, service was extremely well-intentioned, and I was actually surprised by a few premium elements, including the amenity kit and slippers.
There are quite a few other airline options I’d fly instead in premium economy if they were similarly priced. However that isn’t often the case, so I wouldn’t hesitate to book a cheap China Eastern premium economy ticket on a longhaul flight.
Have you flown China Eastern’s premium economy class before? How was your experience?
