#17 out of 94 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings.
229 reviews
This series covers a trip to China for our first "post-COVID" TPAC expedition. Unfortunately, China was easing their restrictions faster than airlines were responding to the impending surge in travel so direct options from the US into China are still non-ideal. UA has maintained its SFO-PVG service throughout the pandemic, but uses the route for corporate greed with Y fares in the $5-6k range and J fares in the $15-20k range with no competitors. Fortunately, the Japanese, Korean, and Taiwanese carriers have already ramped up their TPAC route networks so 1-stop options via NRT/HND/TPE/ICN are priced more competitively even if they come with some sporadic intra-Asian timetables that lead to long transit times. The other factor to consider was flight times since most TPACs depart at midnight, which is not so attractive when traveling with a toddler, so we limited our focus onto options with daytime departures, which also limited the carrier options to BR, JL, and NH since we didn't want to touch UA metal. Considering all permutations, we opted for a routing on NH that also provides a stopover in Japan. Within this series there will also be some domestic China flights that were all booked on separate one-way tickets, which will be introduced later.
This report will cover the flight from San Francisco to Tokyo-Narita. As discussed in the background, between JL, NH, UA, and ZG there are 9x daily options from the Bay Area (SFO/SJC) to Tokyo (HND/NRT) so a lot of metal to fill. NH itself operates 1x daily service into NRT and 1x daily service into HND, but only NH7 to NRT is a daytime departure and what we opted for. Although both flights are on B77Ws, only NH107 to HND has The Room cabins currently, but since that flight departs at 1:40am and arrives at 4:50am, it was not something we wanted to test with a toddler so we settled for the older cabin operating to NRT with a better flight time.
As a reminder, the routing for this series:
We booked a ride at 9:30 and were dropped off at SFO’s international terminal 15 minutes later with very little traffic on the 101 at this hour. Inside we stopped to check the FIDS confirming our flight was on-time and headed over to Aisle 1 where NH’s check-in counters are located. There are 5 flights heading to Tokyo at lunch time with service to NRT (JL/NH/UA) and HND (JL/UA).
The NH counters open at 9:20 and since they only have 1 flight at this time slot, the counters were quite empty and we were quickly helped by an agent that checked our visas, checked our bags, confirmed our seat selections, and handed us our boarding passes with instruction for the Polaris Lounge and location of our gate.
Security is right next to the NH counters and with TSA PreCheck we were airside by 10:00. The UA Polaris Lounge is just after security so we headed in to grab some breakfast. Checking into the lounge, they asked for both passport and boarding pass. Not sure why they need passports for a lounge, but whatever.
The first floor of the lounge is mainly just sitting areas, but we headed up the escalators to where the buffets and dining room are.
On the second floor, there is more quiet seating to the left, but all the food to the right.
The buffet was busy, but had all of the breakfast items out. We opted to go to the dining room to have a more expansive meal to tie us over.
The dining room wasn’t too crowded and we were shown to a table immediately. The menus for this month. I didn’t take pictures of the cocktail/drink menu since it was too early to start.
We sampled almost all of the hot options. The breakfast sandwich was tasteless, the omelet was so-so, and the pancakes were probably the best item. The breakfast quality is a big step down from what lunch/dinner offers in my opinion. Service was up to UA standards, i.e. not great, and we finally finished eating around 11am.
We headed into Concourse G and split up to kill some time. I took my son plane spotting to burn energy while my wife bought some duty free items for family. No playground in G, so we will do the sprint down the moving walkways down to our gate.
UA B772 departing for KIX.
UA B77W, B772, and B789. The dots on the western facing windows of the airport impede spotting quite a bit.
Our flight was leaving from G13 at the very end of the concourse. This is also where there is a set of doors that lead out to the observation deck at SFO.
The deck has seating areas, sculptures, and nice tarmac views of international movements when the weather is nice.
Our B77W being prepped for the return to NRT.
The UA B77W next door was also being prepped for departure for NRT.
UA B772 leaving for HND.
Back inside, we went down to the gate area. The pilots and crew arrived at 11:25 at which point it was announced that boarding would be delayed until 12:05. We did another loop around the concourse to tire out our son for the flight.
All Nippon Airways, NH7
Equipment: Boeing B777-300ER [JA792A, delivered April 2015]
Departure: 12:20 (ATD: 12:55)
Arrival: 15:25 (ATA: 14:30)
Flight time: 9:35
As expected on NH, boarding started promptly at 12:05 with pre-boarding followed by Group 1 at 12:08 and Group 2 at 12:10.
We boarded through two gates so it was handled very efficiently and we were quickly through into the jetbridge. L1 was reserved for F so everyone else filtered through L2. The purser was there to greet us and direct us through the galley to our seats.
We are traveling on the high-density J68 configuration B77W, where the old J product is split across 3 cabins (2 rows, 11 rows, 4 rows) . Since the mini cabin behind F did not have 3 free seats, we picked seats in the rear mini cabin to be in a lower foot-traffic area to help our toddler sleep better and not disturb as many people. The load factor on day of departure swelled to ~85%
Reaching our seats, a FA was quick to intercept us and help us settle in. As I mentioned, we took the last row of middle seats for my wife and son and I took the aisle seat across from him. Due to the stagger of the cabin, my seat is within arms reach of him so it was easy to help him throughout the flight.
My seat for this flight. Yes, not the most private, but since my son was to the left and the two seats in front of him were empty, it was still comfortable and quiet. The only traffic past this seat mid-flight is the FA serving my son or the person sitting behind me in 21J since the curtains were drawn to W and all service to that cabin is from the rear galley.
Pre-placed on the seat were the bedding, which I’ll cover later and a plastic bag containing the amenity kit from Globe-Trotter, Sony noise cancelling headphones, and slippers.
The slippers are good quality and come with a shoe horn and bag.
The amenity kit contents are basic, but have most essentials (pen and lotion are the only things I would prefer to have included) and facial mist is always appreciated to help with the dryness.
The Sony headphones are definitely off the mean for J.
Although this is the “old” J product, I find it to be a very good designed forward-facing seat with tons of storage. The foot well is huge and doesn’t taper, plus there is enough space to fit a large bag underneath it.
There is also a lot of space along the window to store shoes or other small bags mid-flight.
The IFE is antiquated (small, low resolution, and not very responsive to touch) for current J standards. I’ll discuss content in detail later.
Beneath the IFE is the power ports.
The side table is large, sturdy, and has a non-slip surface.
I like the storage compartment that can store a good amount of small items. There is a small tray under it with a tacky material that is ultra-non slip, which is good for small loose items.
The “literature” contents.
The safety card on this B77W, which has been updated with the newer F/J cabin details.
All of the seat controls and IFE remote (not needed since touch screen) are below the side table. The downside of these locations is the lights shine in your face when you sleep, but this is a typical problem for almost every seat.
There are no individual air vents in these older cabins.
PDBs were offered with orange juice or champagne (they described it as sparkling wine). The champagne was served in plastic cups, not good when you provide the same service standard as UA.
Our son was offered an orange juice in a kawaii cup.
Our flight attendant was very attentive and asked me if it was his first time flying ANA, what name to address him by, and if they could serve/assist him directly. There was another family in the bulkhead with 2 small children and another family with a baby in the forward cabin, so NH remains a very family friendly carrier and their crews are very attentive to their needs. A little card handed out to families on children’s safety on-board.
The FAs came out for a bow as we initiated our push back at 12:35.
Our GE90s fired up at 12:38 filling the cabin with the aroma of jet fuel. Picture of the cabin as we start our taxi.
As we taxied out and around, the safety video played on the monitors highlighting the need for precision in one’s technique when exiting the aircraft in an emergency.
Taxing past an UA B772 at the domestic terminal before crossing past DL and AS operations.
We turn to align and have a rolling take off on Runway 28L, as is standard for heavies, over 30 minutes late.
Lifting up over South City as we can confirm our registration information.
We lift up over the bay with only glimpses of downtown’s skyscrapers and the Bay Bridge visible before we turn to start our trek across the Pacific.
Since we had cloud coverage outside, I'll turn to introduce the IFE. This is the old interface and was not very responsive to touch. The movie selection is okay, with ~100 Western movies and ~20 Eastern movies. I don't watch a lot of movies/TV on flights so the content doesn't really bother me and there was a good quantity of kid's content that interested our son so I can't complain too much.
Western options were the standard mix of new and old films. There were 16 Japanese movies and "world movies" was only 3 (1 Indian and 2 French).
The moving map, similarly, is old with limited options, but gets the job done.
Packaged oshibori were handed out followed by menus. The menu is on a very flimsy paper. Both are downgrades from pre-pandemic showing the cost cutting.
Since the menus are available online, I’ll just post the PDFs below versus photos of the menu in cabin.
Drinks menu.
I asked for our son’s children’s meal to be handed out first after take off so that we could help him eat without interfering with the crew being up and down the aisle. The FA also confirmed that I had pre-ordered a Japanese meal, but also offered me the chance to change if I preferred. I opted to stick with the Washoku. Drink orders were also taken.
Our flight attendant soon returned with our son’s meal. She served him the meal and put the napkin on him as a bib. She knelt and explained the food to him before returning to the normal service in our cabin. The children’s meal on NH as presented.
Clockwise we have meatballs and vegetables, tuna salad with vegetable sticks, a roll, and mac and cheese. They later offered him warm bread from the western menu and he was able to pick out items from the dessert tray when the main cabin was served.
The tray table is large and very sturdy. Like everything else, it has a non-slip surface.
About 50 minutes after departure, the service finally reached my row as the linens were laid.
Drinks were then poured at the seat with display of bottles. A glass of water and the Hiroshima sake.
The amuse bouche was then served. The marinated mushrooms and tomatoes were nice.
Interesting tidbit about the napkin material being derived from recycled green tea leaves.
A tray containing the appetizers (kuchidori, otsukuri, and kobachi) were laid down and drinks were re-filled.
The kuchidori. As expected the deep fried scallop in the middle was lackluster with a cold soggy batter. The rest of the meal was representative of Japanese simplicity and well received.
The kobachi was excellent.
The otsukuri was decent with both tuna and squid as proteins. I did not care for the dressing.
Metal cutlery, but disposable wood chopsticks feel cheap. The hashioka is a simple blue paper versus the red crane provided on JL.
In our mini-cabin, there were 2 FAs, 1 per aisle and they performed all service by walking items from the bar area located in front of our cabin. The larger J cabin was served by cart.
After I finished my appetizer, the FA removed the tray, refilled my glasses and served my shusai.
Unveiled rice and miso soup.
The amberjack was excellent and it is refreshing to finally eat well cooked, moist fish on a plane.
The tableware is Noritake, a nice homage to my former NGO^^
Once nice feature of the tray table and this seat is that both are spacious and you can push the tray table forward leaving plenty of room to leave to use the restroom. I found this seat much easier to get in and out of than The Room.
After the trays were removed, the post meal service was done by cart. Cheese plate, fruit, and vanilla ice cream were offered along with coffee/tea.
I selected just the fruit plate and ice cream along with a whiskey to finish off the meal. As expected on NH, it will be Haagen-Dazs in a package and no Matcha flavor on offer, only vanilla…
“For relaxing times, it’s Suntory time.”
Meal service concluded with another packaged oshibori.
The main J cabin as meal service was concluding.
Pajamas are available, but not explicitly offered. I went to ask our FA in the galley for a pair. They come in S/M or L/XL sizing.
The lavatory mid-cabin is your standard affair, but has the bidet toilets installed as expected on a Japanese carrier. They were also well stocked with toiletries.
As mentioned during boarding, the pillow is large and firm. It doesn't compress into nothing like most others so was very good for sleeping.
The duvet is light and soft and the mattress pad is a nice addition to the seat.
My turn down service. The bed is very long and wide. I found it very comfortable for sleeping despite the reduced privacy.
I like how both sides of the seats have armrests with cutouts below them with additional padding to allow some additional room around the upper body/chest during sleep.
The foot well is tall and wide. I had no issues sleeping on my side or back.
Nothing but clouds outside so it is time to sleep.
Cabin lights were turned off as we approached south of Anchorage. Our son had already gone down for his nap after the exhausting morning.
The cabin as the lights were turned off.
I really like the side table light in these cabins, it provides a nice subtle ambience when not sleeping.
I had a short 2 hour nap. The crew was regularly through the cabin collecting service items and trash mid-flight. They also handed out water bottles.
The bar had light snacks, drinks, and more amenities. I had a nice chat with our FA in the galley to help brush off the rust off my Japanese. She was very thankful for me addressing her in Japanese and provided some recommendations for our stay in Narita.
My son woke up from his nap as we were approaching the date line.
When I took him to the bathroom, the FAs were quick to offer him a plateful of snacks, though the quantity of chocolate is a little excessive…
He was still feeling hungry, so we ordered a couple of the items off the menu to try.
Rice bowl with ginger-fried pork and hojicha. The rice bowl was so-so.
IPPUDO plant-based ramen. This was very good despite being plant-based.
The plane was WiFi enabled and the prices are very cheap ($18.80 for a full flight), but there are some dead zones over the Pacific.
The lights came on around 2h15m out from Narita for the 2nd meal service. It seems very early, but since it was noon in Tokyo, I think they anticipated it be a lunch time service.
They asked me what our son wanted, he asked for the warm BBQ chicken foccacia and fruit off the menu, which was promptly brought out by tray. Again, the FAs decorated his plate to make it more kid friendly.
Orders were taken for food and drink. Unique since it gives you the chance to flip flop between Japanese/Western options, but I went for the Washoku again. Linens were laid (always good to see for a 2nd service) and the meal was provided by tray.
The kobachi.
The shusai, which is served with steamed rice and miso soup. Fish twice on the same flight is a little unexpected, but again, the mackerel was well cooked and delicious.
Cutlery again is metal with disposable wood chopsticks.
Final descent started 35 minutes out as we approached Narita from the east. As the cabin was prepared for landing, these goodies were delivered to our son. The wooden plane only comes in one version unlike JL, which lets you collect the J, A, and L models.
Land is in sight as we cross into Chiba.
We turn north offering a little glimpse of Tsukuba Circuit.
Then over the rice fields of Narita as we approach from the northwest.
We had a smooth landing on Runway 16R at 14:30, almost an hour ahead of schedule. We had a short taxi over to T1.
Some NH heavies at remote stands as we turn back to the terminal.
NH A380 awaiting its nighttime journey down to HNL. I do like the tail livery, wonder if it is a future option for a brand refresh…
A glimpse of a CA A321 taxing away, see you soon my old friend.
We pull in next to a NH B788. We are in SMBC territory today, but soon it will be HSBC. We came to a stop at our gate at 14:36.
Deplaning was quick and we were guided forward through F for deplaning through L1. Some last looks at JA792A as we are guided to arrivals.
Immigration was empty so we were immediately through to the baggage claim. Our bags were already checked through, so we proceeded directly to customs and were land side at 14:55.
We were spending the night in Narita-shi, so either JR or Keisei worked for us. The tourist throngs were blocking most of the kiosks not knowing they can’t buy the Skyliner tickets there so we just missed the 15:08 Keisei Main Line so had to wait for the 15:29, which had us in Narita-shi in just 9 minutes only 1 hour after landing. The conductor even gave our son some Keisei train stickers to help keep him entertained during the wait. The Keisei service to Narita-shi is currently ¥270 and children are free.
We’ll end this series here as we enjoy some local unagi after an evening stroll through the Omotesando.
Thanks for stopping by!
NH continues to offer a solid product in the crowded TPAC market. My first time flying them in years and it is has not changed much in terms of quality, but there are some obvious cost cuttings (packaged oshibori, flimsy menus, and disposable chopsticks).
Cabin/Entertainment: The hard product is now much more variable with 3 cabins across their B789s and B77Ws, but the soft product is consistently good. I felt the old B77W staggered cabin is still a really good product even after 10 years. The seats are very wide and long and have an enormous amount of storage space. The downside is that the IFE is 10 years old and that will likely irritate a lot of people when The Room has an enormous 4k display. The IFE content is very average, but the WiFi is the cheapest I have seen.
Crew: The cabin crew on this flight was phenomenal, no complaints about the FAs working our area despite their weak English ability. They do everything right and are very proactive in their service. Traveling with children is not easy and they make sure all families are well taken care of.
Catering: NH catering is good, but not memorable. I find JL to offer a slightly better overall dining experience, but both carriers are quite similar. Both fish dishes were very good, but the dessert offering is weak and the mid-flight snacks were hit (ramen) and miss (pork bowl). I think their food is a solid 8, but give them +0.5 for the CHML.
Les contributeurs de Flight-Report ont posté 5 avis concernant 2 compagnies sur la ligne San Francisco (SFO) → Tokyo (NRT).
La compagnie qui obtient la meilleure moyenne est ANA avec 8.0/10.
La durée moyenne des vols est de 10 heures et 53 minutes.
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4 Comments
The SFO Polaris lounge looks very nice. It's a shame the food was just meh, but that's always a problem with breakfast time. It's difficult to elevate breakfast foods to the same level as lunch/dinner, but you'd still expect to see something a little better than a breakfast sandwich and kimchi eggs benedict (doesn't sound remotely appealing). At least have something like crab cake or salmon eggs benedict. It just all feels cheap, though the presentation is actually decent.
Hah, I always have the same mindset, I guess it's a AvGeek-toddler-parent instinct
Hah, I always do the same thing on staggered configurations so that I can watch my kid and still kind of have a window. Gone are the days of having a real window.
And also hurts my eyes, lol. Though it's generally a nice seat, I really don't care for the aesthetics and finishes. It's so plasticky and all that bright blue has a very IKEA kids furniture look to it.
Great views on the climb out of SFO . The plastic cups and packages oshibori are VERY surprising to see on ANA in J...especially since we got real oshiboris in Y and W on JAL a few months ago!
The catering looks quite good and is well-presented, as you'd expect on a Japanese carrier, and the CHML is adorable. Japanese carriers are great with kid's stuff between the little gifts and the super Kawaii meal presentation.
Nice to see the Wi-Fi is so reasonably priced. You'll often pay that much on a short-haul flight on AA!
Great report as always and very nice to see a TPAC report,
Thanks for sharing!
We ended up getting to sample all of NH’s hard products on this trip, The Room will be on the return leg.
#1 reason to fly Asian carriers since breakfast is a normal meal instead of some industrial egg dish ;)
Tell me about it, nearly tore my rotator cuff reaching the window to take these photos. These seats are surprisingly wide…
LOL, I think the F cabins are actually worse with those little blue cup holders. To be fair, the blue is not as bright in person, I think the camera pulls out more of the neon effect. I agree that NH cabins generally are drab (but not to OZ level), they really need a global brand refresh and the new F/J cabins look much sleeker with the dark blue and grey tones.
East Asia in general is super kid friendly, free gifts everywhere. The CHML meal ex-SFO is obviously not as kid focused, so I appreciate that they went out of their way to improve the presentation.
Thanks for stopping by Kevin!
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