At The Alviator, there’s no secret about how we feel about intra-European business class. To spend hard-earned cash or miles on an economy class seat with a blocked middle seat is not fun, especially since the upper end of intra-European business class pricing can be quite similar to how much you’d pay when flying business class intra-Asia.
We bang on a fair bit about how the overall market isn’t great, though given that I’m based in Europe, I still end up flying it a fair bit – either on transit as part of a larger itinerary, or because I want to try out a specific product or lounge. In this case, I wanted to get pragmatic. Given that business travellers mostly cannot avoid intra-European business class configurations, what are the other deciding factors between airlines? Or if I’ve got a large number of miles to spend and am not saving up for anything in particular, how do I decide which airline is worth upgrading on, and on which airlines should I stay in economy?
For the record, I’m not talking about the times when you do get a longhaul configuration (of course that’s worth seeking out), but I’m talking about the run-of-the-mill business class product. When I have to get from London to Frankfurt with a sizeable budget or two bags, how am I going to choose which airline I’m going to fly to get there? Anyway, here are my thoughts.
Access to good lounges
One of the biggest differentiating aspects between business and economy is lounge access. If I’m going to be flying intra-European business class, lounge access is one of the elements I’m going to try and take advantage of – whether that’s “working from home” at the lounge during the day, or whether I’m just there to relax.
Perhaps this element can be with zero credit towards the operating carrier. For example, I get a fair number of Oneworld miles, so am in a position to fly British Airways’ shorthaul business class fairly often (especially given that the APD you pay is much smaller). If I’m flying out of London, I’m much more likely to fly business class if my British Airways flight departs from Heathrow’s Terminal 3, as I have access to the excellent Cathay Pacific and Qantas lounges. In this case I can consume tasty food and drink that buys back the price difference I’ve spent on business class. Meanwhile, if I’m flying out of Terminal 5 and only have access to British Airways’ mediocre Terminal 5 lounges, I’m much less likely to buy up to business class even on miles.
I’m not saying this salt and pepper squid alone is worth the 5,500 Avios difference, though the experience adds up if you’re able to spend extended time in good lounges
Of course the best lounges will usually be in major airports (think London, Zurich, Amsterdam, Rome etc.), and I’m much less likely to enjoy a lounge in a smaller or non-hub airport.
Also, this might be a moot point – for example, there are also great credit card lounges and Priority Pass lounges that you can access when flying economy, or you might not actually have time to visit a lounge before a flight. For example, while the Vienna Lounge at Vienna Airport is a fantastic outstation lounge for British Airways business class passengers, it’s also accessible to Priority Pass passengers, and was the deciding reason why I didn’t bother with a marginally priced upgrade on a recent flight from Vienna to London.
Have a look at what lounges you have access to before your next intra-European business class flight, especially if you’re deciding whether to make the splurge or not. Very rarely is an airline lounge a good enough reason on its own to warrant an upgrade from economy, though if the price difference is minimal (esp. with included baggage allowance in business class etc.), it may be the deciding factor.
A seat with in-seat power and a large tray table
Okay, so the seat sucks…but which seats suck more? Generally in intra-European business class, I’m looking for a seat that has in-seat power – generally my definition of “good” in business class includes a 110V power port, maybe with a USB-C power port on top. I will take a 60W-rated USB-C power port (which is annoying for some older work laptops, though sadly the trend these days is moving towards USB-C), though a 15W USB-C power port or a USB-A power port just doesn’t cut it in business class, or any class at all.
Not business class, but if Transavia can offer a 60W USB-C power port at all seats, then so can a full-service carrier in business class
The second thing I’m looking for is a large, sturdy tray table. Preferably, I like it when there’s a tray table between seats. If I’m barely getting any storage space to start with in intra-European business class, I want at least some surface to be able to store my personal items.
British Airways has a decent product for intra-European business class, and I like the tray table between seats on their older aircraft
In both cases I’d just Google the product before booking, just to see what other reviewers have to say about the product. Neither of these are features that airlines market much, though I find that it does make a difference to the overall onboard experience, when the differentiation is already minimal.
A blocked middle seat, perhaps with some extra legroom
While you’d think it’s a given that airlines would do the bare minimum of blocking the seat next to you, this isn’t even true in some cases, especially on aircraft with a 2-2 configuration. For example, Finnair doesn’t block seats in business class on their E190s, so you’re literally getting an economy seat – without even having a blocked seat next to you. I’d actively check the seatmap beforehand and avoid booking business class on these configurations.
Finnair’s E190 business class doesn’t do seat blocking, so I’m much less likely to pay the premium
Also, a couple of airlines choose to provide some extra legroom for business class passengers. For example, KLM’s business and economy comfort seats have 33″ seat pitch, as opposed to 30″. This may be a deciding factor when flying intra-European business class, even though “generous” for 33″ seat pitch in business class would still be a huge overstatement.
Some form of ergonomics/seat padding and recline
While this matters to me much less on shorthaul flights compared to longhaul flights, I do notice when airlines put effort into making intra-European seats comfortable. In intra-European business class you’ll never get a PTV or any form of recline, though some airlines may resist the temptation to make their seats paper-thin, and also have some form of in-seat storage.
There are a couple of signs that I notice, which help me make the call. While I never use an adjustable headrest on a shorthaul flight, I tend to correlate seats with adjustable headrests as the more comfortable economy class seats, as it signifies that the airline is in less strict cost-cutting mode when it comes to overall cabin weight (this matches up with my overall experience). I also know which seats I like and which seats I dislike – e.g. I prefer British Airways and Air France/KLM’s seats to the Lufthansa Group seats, because they feel less like you’re sitting on an iron board.
I’m really not a fan of Lufthansa Group’s intra-European seats, especially on their older planes
WiFi (preferably free)
Since I’m not going to be getting great sleep on a flight intra-Europe, most likely I’ll want to get some work done. For that reason WiFi makes a huge difference to a flight to me (of course this doesn’t matter whether I’m in business class or not, much like the above point regarding the seat). Some may argue that you want to unplug on a flight, though there’s literally not much else to do in intra-European business class.
Preferably a plane would be equipped with free Starlink WiFi, though I’ve never actually experienced this yet. I’ll usually pay a small amount for WiFi if reasonable, though of course it’s better if WiFi is free.
Some of KLM’s 737s don’t have WiFi. Most do (and WiFi is even free), though I’d prefer an airline where I’m guaranteed it, especially if I was flying a longer flight
Generally I’m more likely to choose an airline that I’m certain will have WiFi (at least on a specific aircraft), as opposed to an airline that is still installing WiFi onboard their fleet.
Tasty, hot catering
When I’m paying the premium in intra-European business class, one of the biggest differentiating factors will be having a hot meal. Of course this is never worth the difference in ticket cost, though preferably I would like this meal to be as substantial as possible. Many airlines offer a cold meal on flights under a certain length (90-120 minutes) – the smaller the threshold, the better.
Now that I’ve said this, I’ll actually commend airlines in Europe generally for offering pretty tasty catering in intra-European business class. For example, both British Airways and Iberia are catered by DO&CO, and some of the longer flights I’ve had on both airlines have had pretty good catering. Swiss and Austrian also have good catering – Lufthansa slightly less so. (Sadly I’ve only had one experience with Air France’s catering on a flight that fell below their hot meal threshold, and the meal wasn’t great.)
For example, this Iberia fish dish I had from Madrid to London was memorably good, with a hot dish and a flavourful side salad.
I remember being generally annoyed with Iberia since they’d swapped me to a middle seat on this flight, though their intra-European catering was delicious
I’ll also appreciate if there’s some local flair to the menu. For example, on a recent Austrian flight the flight time fell below the hot meal threshold, and I actually didn’t enjoy my cold meal. However, the meal service was still designed in a way that highlighted Viennese cuisine, and I appreciated having “gotten something” out of the meal service, despite not enjoying the food that much.
My recent Austrian flight had a cold meal that I didn’t really like, though I thought that the meal service had personality, and preferred it to some carriers that serve much less interesting food\
While catering quality varies per airline, generally longer flights will feature more differentiated catering, so I’d seek out opportunities to fly longer flights if I wanted to spend miles on intra-European business class.
Some form of onboard drinks
When I’m flying in intra-European business class, I’d like the opportunity to be served drinks that I wouldn’t otherwise find in economy, whether that’s sparkling wine or otherwise. For example, I had a Helsinki dry gin and tonic onboard my Finnair intra-European business class flight, which I enjoyed, since I was able to sample something from the airline’s home country.
Finnish gin and tonic onboard Finnair’s E190 (ft. nice glass)
A differentiated ground experience
When I’m flying intra-European business class, sometimes I am genuinely travelling on business, and have work to get done at either end of the flight. That’s why I like having elements such as priority security, boarding, and immigration when I land, or a dedicated business class lane when transiting, especially since it differentiates an overall-not-very-different ground experience.
An airline that sets themselves apart in this case is Swiss, where I can access their arrival lounge after flying shorthaul business class. Perhaps not many business travellers on shorthaul flights will be looking to shower, though many may appreciate a place to sit or a bite to eat after landing, while waiting for a meeting to happen, or to take a call.
Swiss’ arrival lounge is a good place to take a call after a flight, especially if doing business in Zurich
A couple of guidelines for how to pick intra-European business class, or whether to upgrade at all
If you’ve got a healthy miles balance or specifically want to splurge for an intra-European business class:
- Try and see whether you have access to good lounges, especially if you’re flying out of a major airport (e.g. if you’re flying British Airways out of Terminal 3, or flying Star Alliance instead of SkyTeam out of Heathrow). If the lounges you have access to are mediocre, I’d consider that to be a pretty big reason to just fly economy
- Power ports and even adjustable headrests make a big difference on a shorthaul flight; prioritise these creature comforts over good marketing and branding
- I would personally book an airline that guarantees you WiFi
- I’d recommend trying to get a longer segment if you’re going to book, as it’ll more likely have better catering
Conclusion
When flying intra-European business class, there’s a variance in products, even though the overall average is “not great”. Here are some of the things that make a “less bad” intra-European business class for me, and make me more likely to splurge, especially if I’ve got a healthy balance of miles.
If you’re trying to save up for a mileage redemption, though, I’d still largely advise against booking intra-European business class.
What makes a “less bad” intra-European business class product for you?
