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THE ALVIATOR'S VERDICT
This is one of the most glamorous ways to travel intra-Europe. My only minor gripe is that I'd have expected these seats to be free of charge to select if you're already on a premium economy itinerary |
4.5
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As the last leg of my mad trip to Shanghai and Helsinki, I flew Finnair’s A350 economy class from Helsinki to London. This was off the back of a premium economy itinerary that I had flown from Shanghai, and I decided to purchase an upgrade to a premium seat on this shorthaul leg, as it was also operated by an A350.
But Alvin, don’t you like reviewing a variety of different airline products, you ask? Yeah, it did cross my mind that I was forfeiting the ability to review Finnair’s A350 economy class, and just flying another leg on the same seat that I had flown over from Shanghai in. However, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to fly one of the only premium economy seats flying intra-Europe (along with Iberia, Lufthansa and Singapore Airlines), plus I figured I’d definitely have the opportunity to try Finnair’s A350 economy class another day. I also had a commitment in London in the afternoon, so couldn’t try another Finnair aircraft, as there weren’t any later morning flights.
I’m also glad I flew their premium economy seat this time round, since the cost of reserving a premium economy seat has since increased by 40% (still a worthy investment, unless you weren’t going to pay for seat selection in the first place). I’ll avoid paying this increased cost next time I fly the airline’s A350, where I’ll try one of their normal economy seats.
Anyway, this was a very comfortable ride for the 3h flight from Helsinki to London. All other aspects of the cabin product are the same as what you’d get in intra-European economy – Finnair doesn’t even provide a snack, so you’ll have to pay if you eat anything.
Booking a Premium Seat in Finnair A350 Economy Class
I booked a Finnair one-way premium economy ticket from Shanghai to London via Helsinki, which I found on Google Flights (and booked directly via the airline’s website). This was a ticket I found to be a really good deal – it was priced at 5,615 CNY (£597.78/HK$6,320) including taxes and fees, which is one of the best premium economy fares I’ve seen between Europe and Asia.
The itinerary I booked was as follows:
21/11 Finnair 88 Shanghai Pudong (PVG) – Helsinki (HEL) dep. 21:00 arr. 05:15+1 (Premium Economy)
22/11 Finnair 1331 Helsinki (HEL) – London Heathrow (LHR) dep. 07:50 arr. 09:10 (Economy)
I credited this flight to British Airways Avios (I figured it made the most sense to do so via a distance-based chart as opposed to a revenue-based earnings chart, since my ticket was on the cheap end). Go figure as of writing this post I’ve realised British Airways hasn’t actually credited my account yet. I’ve just submitted a missing Avios claim, and will see when (or if) they get gifted to me.
When I booked my flight, a Premium seat set me back another 399 CNY (£42.31/HK$449). From doing a dummy booking (based on a similar Shanghai to London via Helsinki itinerary), it seems like the cost has increased to 558 CNY (£59/HK$628) – that’s a remarkable premium. However, given that a standard seat selection is 328 CNY (£34.78/HK$369), a £25 upcharge for a premium seat is reasonable for a 3-hour flight, in my opinion.
As a reminder, Finnair doesn’t let you select your seat for free, even during check-in. So unless you want to play the seat lottery, you will have to pay to select your seat.
I’m not a fan of the fact that you have to pay extra for a premium seat even on a premium economy itinerary – if this were another longhaul flight, you’d be booked into premium economy throughout. I’m aware that many airlines have another similar practice, though (i.e. not booking you into Economy Comfort on a shorthaul segment, even if you’re flying premium economy longhaul on the same itinerary).
Finnair A350 Economy Ground Experience at Helsinki Airport
After landing from Shanghai and visiting the Plaza Premium lounge at Helsinki Airport, I made it to gate 42 at around 7 AM, ahead of our 7:10 AM scheduled boarding time. Despite the fact that we were onboard an A350, the gate area seemed very calm.
Our boarding passes were scanned at around 7:10 AM, starting with business class passengers. I’m guessing that Finnair gives passengers in Premium seats priority boarding, as I was given Group 3 boarding (typically airlines board back-to-front, though premium economy was at the front of the aircraft). All passengers were boarded into one holding pen (there wasn’t a separate bit for business class passengers), and after a few minutes the glass door towards the aircraft automatically slid open, making for a bit of a free-for-all down to the aircraft.
Finnair Boarding Gate at Helsinki Airport
This particular A350 had just flown over from Hong Kong, and I’d be flying it over to London this morning! As mentioned in my previous post, Finnair has ridiculously good aircraft utilisation – despite the acrobatics required to time longhaul flights across time differences, Finnair aircraft rarely sit at their outstations for over two hours. They leave Helsinki for Asia very late at night, arrive Asia in the late afternoon, leave Asia in the early evening and arrive back at Helsinki in the wee hours in the morning, often turn around quickly to operate morning flights within Europe, and come back in time for an afternoon run to the U.S..
Finnair A350 at Helsinki Airport
Finnair Flight AY1331
Saturday, November 22, 2025
Origin: Helsinki-Vantaa (HEL) Gate: 42 Dep: 07:50 (07:50)
Destination: London Heathrow (LHR) T: 3 Gate: 32 Arr: 09:10 (08:50)
Duration: 3 hr 20 min (3 hr)
Aircraft: Airbus A350-900 Reg: OH-LWM
Seat: 23A (Economy/Premium Seat)
I boarded through the second set of doors, and headed right towards my premium economy seat.
Finnair A350 Business Class
Finnair’s A350s feature their no-recline business class product. May I just comment how good Finnair is from an operational standpoint – while other airlines struggle to find product consistency across their fleet, Finnair has a single longhaul business class product onboard their entire longhaul fleet, which was done in one of the quickest fleet-wide retrofit projects I’ve ever seen.
I reviewed this no-recline business class product back in 2023, and liked it. In this case I was walking right past, though, as I was heading into the premium economy cabin featured behind it.
Finnair A350 Business Class
Finnair A350 Economy (Premium Seat) Cabin and Seat
After walking past the business class cabin, I found myself in Finnair’s 24-seat premium economy cabin. This was the exact same configuration that I’d just flown over from Shanghai – the only difference was the lack of amenities placed atop the seats, which is typical on a flight of this length.
Finnair A350 Premium Economy Cabin
I was able to select seat 23A, which was in the back row of the premium economy cabin (this is my preference, as I can recline to my heart’s content without worrying about the person behind). The seat was comfortable, well-padded, and featured a generous amount of recline, not being impeded at all by the bulkhead behind. The seat featured a fold-up legrest, though no footrest.
Finnair A350 Premium Economy Recline
Storage was as plentiful as you get for a premium economy seat – there was a storage compartment under the TV screen in front, which was perfect for a phone, glasses, or AirPods. The literature pocket was also extremely sturdy, and could easily hold a laptop or other tablet-like object.
Finnair A350 Premium Economy Storage
Perhaps one observation was that I found a missed opportunity to create some extra storage space under the armrest. This was a minor point, though would’ve added an additional storage compartment per seat, which is always a luxury.
Finnair A350 Premium Economy Armrest (and missed opportunity for storage)
Down at my feet was a water bottle holder, featuring a faux leather strap.
Finnair A350 Premium Economy Water Bottle Holder
Then behind the adjustable headrest was a handy reading light.
Finnair A350 Premium Economy Reading Light
These are very nice premium economy seats. As I noted in my previous review, on a longhaul flight, you really notice the investments made in the seat’s comfortable padding, as well as the thoughtful storage. If anything the generous padding and thick seatbacks made the 38″ legroom seem a bit tighter than usual, though obviously this was much less of an issue on this 3h flight.
Unlike my longhaul flight, the cabin was half full at best. I took the opportunity to move to seat 23L after boarding was complete, as the seat pair was free (and bid farewell to my friendly seatmate, who didn’t take it personally).
Taking off from Helsinki Airport and De-Icing
Boarding was complete just after 7:25 AM, in under 15 minutes. The cabin crew came to say a fleeting hi to all of the passengers seated in Premium seats, which was a nice touch.
At 7:30 AM the captain welcomed us. He gave us a detailed route – we’d be flying over Sweden (including Stockholm and Gothenburg), Denmark, and the North Sea, before approaching London Heathrow. He also mentioned that we’d be undergoing a de-icing process before takeoff, due to the subzero temperatures at Helsinki Airport.
We pushed back just short of 7:50 AM, ahead of schedule. However, instead of heading straight towards the runway, we’d be headed towards one of the airport’s de-icing bays.
Taxiing at Helsinki Airport
At this time, a safety video was screened, followed by safety checks from the crew.
Finnair A350 Premium Economy Safety Video
It was such a beautiful morning in Helsinki Airport, and the sky was clear as well – I’d love to be back in Helsinki for a proper visit someday!
Sunrise and Taxiing at Helsinki Airport
At around 8 AM we got to our de-icing bay, where I got a great view of the de-icing process, both from my seat over the wing, as well as through the A350’s tail camera. This was a quick process that took less than 10 minutes, and soon we were ready to head off to London.
De-icing at Helsinki Airport
After being de-iced, we very quickly took off on runway 22R, and did a right turn to head westbound towards London.
Taking off from Helsinki Airport
Finnair A350 Premium Economy Entertainment System
I reviewed Finnair’s A350 entertainment system fairly extensively in my review from Shanghai to Helsinki, so I’ve just copied the section below. While flying a widebody Finnair aircraft, the full entertainment system is available gate-to-gate onboard shorthaul Finnair flights. Obviously this is a huge perk of being able to fly the Finnair A350 over a shorthaul aircraft, since Finnair’s narrowbody aircraft don’t feature entertainment systems.
Finnair’s entertainment system isn’t the latest and greatest (and doesn’t feature modern features like Bluetooth audio), though I’m a big fan of the UI. The selection of movies was extensive – the airline has 239 movies and 33 TV shows (as of February-March 2026).
Do note, however, that the airline doesn’t always upload full episodes of TV shows. For example, there were only four episodes of the Two Broke Girls season uploaded, and five episodes of Gilmore Girls.
Finnair A350 Premium Economy Entertainment System
Outside of the entertainment selection, I quite liked that there was not only connecting gate information, but also a map of Helsinki Airport.
Finnair A350 Premium Economy Connecting Gate Information
Lastly, this A350 featured my favourite feature onboard any entertainment system (as far as I’m aware this makes every other feature of the entertainment system a moot point) – the tail camera.
Finnair A350 Premium Economy Tail Camera
There are better entertainment systems out there, though you won’t get bored or frustrated using Finnair’s system. However – not pictured are the earphones that Finnair provides for you to watch the entertainment system, which are (reasonably) the same as what they offer in longhaul economy. It’s great that Finnair provides earphones of any sort on these short segments, though do note that the audio quality isn’t great, and there isn’t Bluetooth audio functionality.
Finnair A350 WiFi
Finnair’s A350s feature WiFi, which was enabled within 5-10 minutes after takeoff.
Finnair A350 Premium Economy WiFi Graphic
WiFi on Finnair is priced as follows on this flight – this is the same as what is offered on longhaul flights:
- €7.95 (£6.91/HK$73) for one hour – €6.95 (£6.04/HK$64) for Finnair Plus members, or 700 Avios
- €14.95 (£12.99/HK$138) for three hours – €12.95 (£11.25/HK$104) for Finnair Plus members, or 1,500 Avios
- €24.95 (£21.67/HK$230) for the full flight – €19.95 (£17.33/HK$184) for Finnair Plus members, or 2,400 Avios
Finnair’s shorthaul aircraft feature different pricing, which is actually more competitive. They feature free inflight messaging (whereas these A350s don’t), and video streaming is supported as well, for €11.95 (£10.37/HK$110) for the full flight. Of course the onboard product is otherwise far inferior, though it is worth noting that Finnair’s widebody aircraft actually have inferior and more expensive WiFi capabilities (this would likely be because they have an older provider).
You can pre-purchase WiFi on the “Manage Your Booking” page. I decided to do so, as I figured it’d save a few minutes of waiting for the portal to load in the air. Unlike my last flight, entering my last name and seat number did work (I think it was because I’d changed my flight date once in the meantime, and had bought this package after I confirmed my new flight date).
Finnair A350 Economy Class Lavatory
On this particularly Finnair A350 configuration (with 43 business class seats), the premium economy cabin doesn’t feature a dedicated lavatory. So 24 premium economy passengers and 211 economy passengers share six lavatories, making for a 39:1 passenger to lavatory ratio. This was especially not an issue on this flight, since the load factor didn’t look anywhere above 50%.
Finnair A350 Economy Class Lavatory
Finnair A350 Economy Class Cabin and Seat
Since I was moving back and forth from the economy class cabin whenever visiting the lavatory, I decided to check out the economy class cabin. Finnair’s A350 economy class cabin looks comfortable, laid out in a 3-3-3 configuration. The forward cabin features 75 seats laid out across nine rows, whereas the larger rear cabin features 136 seats. (On the higher-density A350s, the forward cabin features 129 seats, whereas the rear cabin is the same size.)
Finnair A350 Economy Class Cabin
The economy class seats have a supportive headrest, and generous recline. The only (big) negative I noted was that these seats only have USB-A charging ports – there aren’t any 110V charging ports at these seats, which may be an issue if you’re flying Finnair longhaul.
Finnair A350 Economy Class Recline
As a more minor point, why do airlines put large screens on their bulkheads which are kept on at full brightness throughout the flight? This inevitably would’ve been a load of light pollution for passengers trying to go to sleep in the first row, particularly if seated in the middle section. I noticed the same issue on my China Eastern flight in premium economy – is this just not a design consideration for airlines, or what?
Finnair A350 Economy Class Annoying Big Screen
Cruising towards Heathrow Airport
As we headed towards Heathrow, the sunrise only got prettier, especially towards the left side of the aircraft. I believe this is the view as we flew over the south coast of Finland near the Archipelago Sea – what a beautiful part of the world.
Cruising out of Helsinki Airport
Once we’d flown outside the Finnish borders we hit a bit of cloud cover, where I decided to get some work done. I had direct aisle access, an awesome moving map on one screen, and the tail camera on another, so I was a very happy camper. Even though the person in front of me reclined their seat, due to the cradle effect these seats have, I didn’t feel like it impeded into my space too much.
Finnair A350 Premium Economy Cabin
Finnair Economy Class Buy-On-Board Meal Service
When booking the flight, I figured I’d eat something for the review. Finnair has a buy-on-board meal service onboard these flights, titled Nordic Kitchen. Here’s a sample menu, which wasn’t quite the same as what I was offered, though gives you a sense of the pricing available on these flights.
I paid €11 (£9.55/HK$102) for a rainbow trout bowl, which was brought to my seat – the crew had no issue locating me despite my seat move. This was served in disposable packaging, with disposable cutlery. There were a couple of bones I’d preferred not to have seen within the meal, though otherwise I found the bowl to be fresh and tasty (although probably on the pricey side for what it was – I’ve had better buy-on-board meals at a similar price point, where Swiss comes to mind). Water and blueberry juice was free for everyone within the cabin.
Finnair A350 Economy Class Buy-On-Board Meal – Rainbow Trout Bowl
Landing at Heathrow Airport
The captain originally mentioned that we’d have to hold for 35-45 minutes due to a busy morning at Heathrow, though this didn’t end up happening. We ended up being able to land ahead of schedule, and the seatbelt sign came on 20 minutes prior to landing (this was followed by a video).
While I had the tail camera on at this point, it was less fun than when we were leaving Helsinki, due to the thick cloud cover over Heathrow Airport.
Views (or lack thereof) upon landing into Heathrow Airport
We ended up flying over central London and approaching Heathrow from the east. Usually I love this view, especially from the right side of the plane. However, in this case it was so overcast that I missed the best views over central London, and we were quite far into west London by the time I could see the ground.
Landing into Heathrow Airport
We touched down onto runway 27R at 8:45 AM, and it was an extremely quick taxi to gate 32, where we’d be deplaning. We parked next to a Virgin Atlantic A350 (which I’d love to fly in the near future!).
Parking at Heathrow Airport
Deplaning was swift, and I had a view of this gorgeous Finnair A350, before I made it to immigration.
Finnair A350 at Heathrow Airport
I was surprised by how long immigration took at 9 AM in the morning, and especially how slow the queue moved – it didn’t feel like a peak period, though it still took around 30-35 minutes to get through immigration. From there, I collected my bag, and took the Elizabeth line home.
Conclusion: Finnair A350 Economy Class (Premium Seat)
Flying a longhaul premium economy seat on a 3h flight is a bit of a novelty, especially given that there isn’t a soft product upgrade at all. That being said, if I’m someone that would’ve selected a seat onboard a flight between London and Helsinki anyway, I’d say a £25 for a premium economy seat is well worth it. It’s also nice to be able to fly a Finnair A350, which has a better hard product (even if you’re seated in regular economy) and have access to the entertainment system, albeit the slower and more expensive WiFi.
On a longhaul premium economy itinerary, I feel a little differently about the pricing, and wish a premium seat was included with the itinerary. Many other airlines charge for regular economy seat selection even if you’re connecting to longhaul premium economy though (like KLM), so I suppose Finnair is in line with the rest of the pack in this regard.
If I were flying Finnair, I’d definitely seek out a flight onboard an A330 or A350 if it wasn’t too far out of my way, regardless of the cabin I was flying in. I also appreciate the airline’s resilience despite their financial and geopolitical challenges, and am a fan of the airline’s brand.
Would you pay extra for a Premium seat when flying a Finnair A350 flight?
