To finish off the Trip Around the World 2017, I flew First Class on Japan Airlines from Tokyo-Narita to Chicago ORD.
Booking
I booked this as an award ticket using 80,000 American Airlines Advantage Miles. I confirmed availability by looking at the British Airways website. There was only one seat available and I booked this 355 days in advance. So award availability is definitely tight. I called the American Airlines Australian Customer Service center to book the ticket. You cannot book online.
Flight
We took the Skyliner train to Tokyo Narita Airport in the morning
On-Board the Skyliner. 2-2 Configuration
We then made our way to the First Class Only Check-In area. Customer service is excellent. They apologized for making us wait about 10 seconds!
Front of First Class Only Check-In Area
Exiting from the First Class Check-In
We then made way to the First Class Lounge:
Entrance to the Lounge
The lounge was really empty. When we arrived, I think there were only 2 other people in the lounge at the moment. As time went by, people started to arrive in the lounge.
We Were The Only Passengers In The Dining Area
First Class Dining Area
The Lineup for the morning
It was buffet style dining in the lounge. The food was nothing special but got the job done.
Buffet Style Dining in the First Class Lounge
My Wife and I got some breakfast items
I enjoyed the Whole Body Massage Chair! Wish I would have found this earlier.
After I enjoyed the massage chair, we made our way to the boarding gate. Boarding was delayed about 15 mins. The boarding area started to get crowded with passengers wanting to board. One thing to note, First Class passengers don’t get there own boarding group. They are mixed in with elites. That was disappointing but it doesn’t matter in the end.
Boarding Area before the storm
Boarding Lane for First Class PAX and Elites
Boarding Area was packed after the 15min delay
777-300ER JA734J 12 Year Old Plane
Seat 2A
1-2-1 Configuration. Cabin Was Full
Seat Level View. Slippers Were Provided
View of The Runway
Time To Eat
For Dining, you can go with either the Western or Japanese Menu. I’m not a big seafood guy but I still went with the Japanese menu because well its Japan Airlines. I noticed though a lot of people in the cabin went with the Western Menu. One thing to note is the majority of the cabin was Japanese. I was the only foreigner in the cabin. Which makes sense because I would assume foreigners would fly with a U.S carrier because they have status with them or the majority of their points are with a U.S carrier.
Ok enough of that, the Japanese and Western menu is below:
Japanese or Western Menu
Food Menu
Wine List
Salon 2006 Champagne! $400 a bottle. Only Airline to Serve This. I liked it better than Krug or Dom!
One of the Biggest Trays I have ever seen. Tons of Space
Appetizer with some Salon 2006 Champagne
Chop Sticks are provided
Seasonal Five Colorful Delicacies
Some more Salon please!
Owan – Japanese Clear Soup
Hair Crab Meat and Cold Steamed Egg Custard
“Wagyu” Beef Filet – Eggplant – Steamed Rice – Miso Soup and Japanese Pickles
Roppongi Pudding – “Wasanbon” Flavor Herb Ice Cream – Japanese Style Baked Pistachio Cake
Macaroons are given out mid-flight
2 hours before we land, we are served other meal:
Breaded Chicken sandwich with potato chips
Lamb with bread
Dessert – Sorry forgot exactly what was served but trust me it was good!
WOW! The food was amazing. Everything was delicious and also the presentation of the meals was excellent. The crew would explain everything that was served. They would check on me every 5 mins and always ensured I had a full glass of Salon 2006. An absolute great meal service.
The Seat
A VERY Large Tray
Many Seat Options to choose from
Seat Controls
Preset Seat Positions
IFE Remote – The Viewing Screen is Controlled from the IFE Remote
Laying Down in Bed after it was made with a hard mattress, pillow and blanket
View Laying Down
The Seat was excellent. There were plenty of storage options. The seat controls were great and everything was well placed.
The IFE worked well. You control the screen by using the remote and then anything you choose on the remote is shown on the full screen. Definitely not the most selections to choose from. but enough to choose from for an 11 hour flight.
The bed was super comfy! The flight attendants came by and made the bed for me. They asked me if I wanted a “soft” or “hard” mattress. I choose the “hard” mattress.They also give me a pillow and blanket. Unfortunately due to the timing of the flight, we left at 11am, I barely got about an hour of sleep on this 11 hour flight. But if it was a night time flight, I would have easily gotten a lot more hours of sleep.
Amenities
Porche Amenity Kit
Bose Noise Canceling Headphones
Shiseido Products with Case
Complementary WIFI is given for FREE!
Speed is not fast. Just enough for browsing and sending emails
The amenities were great on this flight. Amenity kits were nice, even though I don’t really use them much. The Bose headphones were great. But what really stood out was the complimentary WIFI. I don’t understand why more airlines don’t do this in First Class. Nice for Japan Airlines to do this. Even though the speed was not fast, it was good enough for browsing and sending emails which is fine by me.
Overall
WOW, what a flight! I kept hearing great things about Japan First Class on the 777-300ER. But this still exceeded my expectations. The presentation of the delicious food, comfy bed, and customer service really stood out. The flight attendants were always ensuring I was comfortable and were super kind and courteous.
As the flight was about to end, the flight attendants came by and thanked me for being on the flight. It was a little weird having 4 flight attendants surround you and start small talk, I’m kinda shy, but it was still a really nice touch!
I don’t see how JAL First Class is not one of the Top 5 in the world. It has to be in the Top 5. I highly recommend you put this flight on your bucket list. You will not be disappointed!
Has anybody else flown JAL First Class before? Are you planning on flying it in the future?