We specialise in premium economy reviews here at The Alviator, mainly between Europe and Asia. This is because premium economy, when priced appropriately, can be a compelling option for travelling on ultra-longhaul flights. I’ve also been trying to find the best premium economy product out there, which has been a fun journey – I recently booked a trip with a few more premium economy products, which I’m really looking forward to.
In this post, I’ll run through a few other premium economy products that I’ve been really looking forward to trying. In no particular order..
Singapore Airlines A380/A350 Premium Economy
While I’ve flown Singapore Airlines’ A380/777 premium economy before, this was nine years ago, and I’ve never flown the airline longhaul. I’m very curious to see how the airline’s longhaul premium economy product is currently holding up, and whether it can compete with regional rivals Cathay Pacific and EVA Air.
This is the only product on the list that I’ve actually got an upcoming flight on – I’m back home for a wedding mid-year, and will be flying from Singapore to London Gatwick on a Singapore Airlines A350 in premium economy. I’ll share more details closer to the time, though managed to get a reasonable fare from Hong Kong to London via Singapore (I upgraded the Hong Kong to Singapore leg, so I could review business class too).
Singapore Airlines A350 Premium Economy
Virgin Atlantic premium economy
As a travel blogger based in the UK, it’s crazy how many years it’s been since I’ve last flown Virgin Atlantic in premium economy. Given that I’ve recently flown British Airways’ premium economy, I think it’s time to revisit Virgin Atlantic again, especially since they just won the Skytrax award for the world’s best premium economy (not that Skytrax is credible, but I’m sure there’s a reason).
Here’s the thing – I can either review Virgin Atlantic’s A350 or A330neo, which look awesome and I’ve not reviewed before, or I can get one of their flights to Asia, which are on 787s. I feel like the latter would let me more fairly compare the airline’s soft product against the other products listed here, though the former would allow me to fly a new cabin product. Or maybe it’s just time to visit the West Coast, where I think there’ll be a more elaborate meal service.
Virgin Atlantic 787 Premium Economy
China Airlines A350 Premium Economy
In 2024 I flew EVA Air’s premium economy, which I thought was splendid, despite a dated seat. I’d love to try China Airlines’ premium economy, to see how they stack up. They have very reasonable fares ex-Europe, especially out of secondary outstations (such as Prague).
China Airlines A350 Premium Economy
Starlux A350 Premium Economy
While I’m writing about Taiwanese airlines, I’ve gotta include Starlux, the newest player in the Taiwanese market. While they’ve been flying to the U.S. for some time now, they’re about to launch their first European route between Taipei and Prague, marking their entry into the Europe-Asia market. I think it’s time to fly them, especially as they grow and expand into the European market.
Starlux A350 Premium Economy
Air France premium economy (777/A350)
While I’ve flown KLM premium economy before (and really enjoyed it), I’ve never flown Air France’s premium economy before. Since it’s one of the big players in Europe, I think it’s time to give the product a try, especially given the very reasonable fares they charge ex-Asia and out of some European ports. Jason flew the product on a transatlantic route and found it underwhelming, though I’d been keen how it fares on a much longer route to Asia.
Air France premium economy
Vietnam Airlines’ 787/A350 Premium Economy
When I look for the cheapest premium economy fare out of hubs such as Paris, a lot of the time the cheapest option ends up being Vietnam Airlines, with a connection in either Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City. I would love to fly Vietnam Airlines’ premium economy – the 787 product looks particularly roomy, whereas the A350 product doesn’t look bad (despite the fact that there’s less legroom). Maybe I can even squeeze in a long layover in either Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City, two cities I’d absolutely love to visit.
Vietnam Airlines 787 Premium Economy
LOT Polish Airlines’ 787 Premium Economy
In Europe, one of the airlines I’d like to fly the most is LOT Polish Airlines, who offer premium economy on flights to Seoul and Tokyo. They have fairly good one-way fares, so there might be a good opportunity to fly them there. I’ve also never been to Poland, so would love to schedule in a visit while I’m transiting there.
LOT Polish Airlines’ 787 Premium Economy
Aircalin’s A330neo Premium Economy (Paris-Bangkok)
Here’s a bit of a wildcard. New Caledonian airline Aircalin flies their A330neo from Paris to Noumea via Bangkok, and sells Paris to Bangkok as a fifth freedom route. There are reasonable fares in both directions, and I’ve also not read a review of the product on a longhaul flight – I’d love to try what they’re like between Paris and Bangkok.
Aircalin A330neo Premium Economy
Austrian Premium Economy
While I’ve tried Lufthansa and Swiss‘ premium economy, I’d love to try premium economy on Austrian. They fly to Bangkok, Tokyo, and various other Asian ports, and I’ve seen some good fare deals on them.
Austrian 777 Premium Economy
ITA Airways Premium Economy
Rounding off the Lufthansa Group, I’d love to try newly-minted Lufthansa Group member ITA Airways’ premium economy. Alongside having a very nice-looking cabin and seat, I’ve heard that they serve espresso and limoncello in premium economy, which sounds awesome.
ITA Airways A330neo Premium Economy
SAS Premium Economy
I’d also love to try SAS’ premium economy, on one of their flights to Seoul or Tokyo. However, SAS heavily discourages pricing one-way tickets, often charging way more than a roundtrip (if I were to do a throwaway return ticket in economy, the total ticket cost would cost less than half of a one-way ticket). Perhaps I could explore miles redemption opportunities, though I don’t have the most Star Alliance miles in the bank at the moment – if someone has any other ideas, let me know.
SAS A350 Premium Economy
China Southern A350/787 Premium Economy
Now that I’ve mentioned airlines I’d like to try in Southeast Asia and Europe, let me talk about a couple of Chinese airlines with premium economy products I’d like to try. The first airline I’d like to try is China Southern. They seem to have a solid premium economy seat, and mainly I’d like to know how they compete with China Eastern, which I reviewed last year.
China Southern 787 Premium Economy
Air China A350 Premium Economy
On a similar note, I’d also love to fly Air China’s premium economy – while I’m here, doesn’t Air China’s premium economy basically look identical to China Southern’s? They both have blue Collins Aerospace MiQ seats (same as China Eastern), and have very bare-bones finishes.
Air China A350 Premium Economy
Hainan Airlines 787 Premium Economy
I’d also love to try Hainan Airlines’ premium economy and see how it fares against the competition. By the way, is there even a way to fly Hainan Airlines in premium economy? While they have three 787s configured with premium economy, they don’t seem to operate routes with any consistency, and the airline doesn’t actually seem to sell premium economy at all on their website.
Hainan Airlines 787 Premium Economy
Shenzhen Airlines A330 Premium Economy
A few months ago I wrote about China’s “faux” premium economy products, where economy class with extra legroom was being marketed and sold as premium economy. I’d be hard-pressed not to try Shenzhen Airlines’ version of this, as their home base of Shenzhen Airport is literally less than an hour to get to from home. Not that I’d expect this to be a comfortable flight or a worthy competitor against Cathay Pacific (or worth the money at all), though it feels like something I can’t knock until I try.
Hopefully I can get a better resolution photo than this
Conclusion
In my quest to find the best premium economy option flying between Europe and Asia, the above products are the ones I’d like to review most. These range from airlines based in Southeast Asia, to airlines based in Europe, to airlines based in China, to airlines based in New Caledonia.
After I’m done, I’d love to try some of the American premium economy products as well, such as Air Canada, American, United, and Delta. I’d just love to review a few more within the Europe-Asia market first, especially in this season where I fly to Hong Kong regularly to see my family.
Excuse me if this seems a bit blue-sky – I just love finding new products to review, and finding new opportunities to review them.
Are there any more premium economy products I should try, in order to find the best flying between Europe-Asia?
