#9 out of 94 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings.
173 reviews
After being closed to non-residents and non-essential international travellers for over two and a half years during the pandemic, Japan finally re-opened its borders in October of 2022. I'd been wanting to go to Japan since moving to the West Coast, as it was a much shorter flight. So I jumped on the opportunity to book for our next available time frame, which would be during our son's February winter break from preschool.
While there is non-stop Japan Airlines service to Narita from my home airport of San Diego, there were only 3 weekly flights planned for February, which didn't work out for our schedule. We opted to fly from LAX instead, as we often do, where there was a more robust flight schedule and more competitive pricing. JAL flights from LAX were also operated by larger aircraft with a Premium Economy cabin, which allowed us to book a mixed itinerary with Economy outbound and Premium Economy return, whereas San Diego flights are operated by smaller 787-8 2-cabin aircraft.
On the outbound flight, we'd gotten to experience JAL's uniquely spacious 2-4-2 configured "SKY WIDER" Economy cabin, on this return home, we had the opportunity to compare with the Premium Economy experience.
There's a short Japan Tourism bonus section at the end of this report.
To get from the city to Narita airport, we took the NEX Narita Express from Tokyo Station.
With our JR Green Pass we had access to the Green Car (First class), which featured nicer seats with more room and good recline.
Narita is quite far from central Tokyo–the journey from Tokyo Station took about an hour on the NEX. It can take up to 1.5h on local trains.
The terminal wasn't very crowded and it was easy to find our way around.
We made our way to the First class check-in area, to which we had access with oneworld Emerald status.
We were warmly welcomed by several agents who took great care of us and helped with baggage. We were the only ones checking in at the time.
Every check-in desk had these fancy rugs.
There's also a seating area running the length of the First class check-in area which also adds to the premium feel.
There was no queue at security and we were through in minutes. Always a pleasant experience in Japan with very polite and helpful staff.
One of the best perks of oneworld Emerald status is access to First class lounges, rather than Business class lounges, where available.
The main JAL First Class Lounge is centrally located. There is another, smaller, First lounge in the Satellite terminal for flights departing from those gates. Luckily our flight was departing from the main terminal so we had access to the larger lounge.
Business class "Sakura" lounge check-in is located right at the entrance, whereas First class lounge check-in is located on the left.
The JAL First Class Lounge is huge with many seating areas, workstations, and conference spaces along long corridors. There are relaxation areas and shower suites, and even a smoking room.
The restaurant area is at the end of the corridor. We were warmly greeted with bows as we entered.
It's spacious and light-filled, though the plexiglass separators between seats at the larger tables broke up the space too much–I imagine those are gone by now.
The dining room was completely empty so we had our choice of seats. We found a nice corner by the windows.
Food and drink can be ordered via the online menu accessed by the QR code at each table.
Started things off with some champagne.
There is also a self-serve beverage station, a staffed bar, and waiters come through the dining room regularly as well.
The online menu is available in Japanese and English
It can be used to reserve shower suites in addition to ordering food and beverage for both the Sakura Business Class Louge and First Class Lounges.
The food menu for the First class lounge has a good amount of different dishes, both Western and Japanese.
There's something for all tastes…
But I'm here for the sushi…yum
I feel like there was more of a variety of sushi pre-Covid, but I'm happy with any sushi #SushiAddict
It's also been years since I'd last been to the JAL F lounge in NRT so I could very well be wrong.
Started off with a nice bowl of Soba noodles.
Then it was sushi time!
The lounge remained pleasantly quiet throughout our time there.
After a very pleasant lunch in the JAL First Class Lounge, it was time to head to the gate for boarding.
The gate for our flight was located close to the lounge and down one level. We could catch a glimpse of our aircraft before heading down the escalator.
One thing I'd found odd about JAL boarding procedures is that they only begin boarding 30 minutes before scheduled departure time. This would normally seem too tight to me on a full widebody, but again, with Japanese efficiency, they got it done in time on both of my flights. I think it helps that JAL widebodies are significantly less dense than most other airlines'.
During pre-boarding, an agent checked our boarding passes and waved us in to the Group 1 queue.
We were the first passengers in the Premium Economy cabin which gave me the opportunity to get a few shots of the cabin while it was still empty.
On this JAL Boeing 787-9, there are three rows of Premium Economy in a spacious 2-3-2 configuration. Seat Pitch in standard rows is 42" (107cm), well-above the industry standard of 38" (97cm) for Premium Economy, making for a more spacious-than-average cabin.
There's an exceptional amount of space in the first row of Premium Economy, considering the already-spacious seat 42" seat pitch in standard rows.
We were able to grab seats in the first row during booking.
A blanket, pillow, headphones, a small amenity kit, and slippers were pre-placed on each seat before boarding.
Contents of the small amenity kit.
Each seat has a 110v Universal power outlet and a USB port.
Fatastic legroom in the first row. At 5'10" (1m78) I could not reach the wall with legs fully outstretched. These seats also felt noticeably wider than most other Premium Economy seats I've tried in the past.
The headphones are better than those in Economy.
As on the flight from LAX, a very friendly flight attendant came to greet us during boarding and offered my son a choice of gifts. He'd already received a small A350 model on the outbound flight so he chose the JAL stickers activity booklet, which was super cute. Gifts for all the children on board is really a nice touch from JAL.
Despite the tight timing of the boarding, everyone was on board on time and we were ready to go.
I always find it funny that my son instinctive knows how to dim 787 window shades at such a young age.
We pushed back from the gate as the winter sun was setting.
NRT was still not operating to capacity in early 2023 so taxi time was quick and we were off.
Wow, only 8.5 hours flying time! That's a big difference from the 11h on the outbound flight—yes, I know westbound is always slower, but still kind of surprising! I always think of Transpacific flights as being very long, but not this time.
Once above 10,000 ft in altitude, the Wi-Fi became available. There are multiple plans, and I find the full-flight plan to be reasonably priced compared to most other carriers on long-haul flights.
The Wi-Fi was stable and worked well the whole way across the Pacific. I was able to stream and upload content to social media without issue.
I'm not usually a fan of fixed shell Premium Economy seats on night flights as they tend to have limited recline, in my experience–I've flown on similar seats on Air France in the past. However, the JAL Premium Economy seats have a very generous recline, which makes them very comfortable for sleeping. The additional seat pitch allows for more recline.
Along with the leg-rest, the JAL premium economy seats make for a nice cradle position for sleeping.
The service began with hot oshiboris.
Nice to have slippers on a long-haul flight. Definitely an amenity one would not expect in Premium Economy on non-Japanese carriers.
An aperitif service followed shortly after—there is a larger choice of drinks in Premium Economy compared to Economy, including Champagne.
Checking out the IFE, as mentioned in the outbound flight's review, there wasn't a ton of content, at the time. However, this appears to have been a leftover of Covid-era cuts, as most IFE content is now available, according to the JAL website.
My son's pre-ordered child-meal was delivered first and it was too adorable! JAL have the cutest CHMLs I'd ever seen.
The adult meals are also very well-presented, but noticeably the same as meals in Economy.
While the meals are indeed the same as in Economy, they are really nice with a salad, miso soup, and 3 sides in addition to the hot main dish.
As on the outbound flight, there was a Western option and a Japanese option for the main dish. I went for the Japanese chicken and rice option.
Ice cream for dessert, again, the same as Economy.
I slept for most of the rest of the flight and woke up about 2h before arrival.
For the pre-arrival meal (breakfast), there was only one option. I'm not quite sure what it was but it was tasty–definitely more Asian-inspired than western.
My son was still sleeping during the breakfast service. The cabin crew stopped by several times to see if he was still sleeping to warm up his meal. He ended up sleeping right up to the end of the flight so right after the seatbelt sign came on, our flight attendant came by with a paper bag with the contents of my son's breakfast for him to have for later. That's a level of attention and care I'm not even used to seeing in Business class, much less Premium Economy. JAL never cease to amaze!
We made our descent over a very rainy and cloudy LA Basin.
February through April 2023 were unusually rainy months in Southern California with flooding and tons of snow in the mountains.
Always love seeing the International line-up at TBIT, especially with multiple A380s.
Thanks to Global Entry, the immigration and customs process was very quick and bags were delivered immediately–JAL seem to consistently respect the priority order for baggage delivery.
The LAX Economy parking structure was unusually empty.
The rain lifted just in time for the drive home to San Diego with beautiful snow-capped mountain views along the way.
By all measures, a very good Premium Economy experience. The experience was further elevated by access to the JAL First class lounge thanks to our oneworld Emerald Status. The cabin crew were absolutely fantastic and the level of care packing up my son's breakfast to go was so rare and very much appreciated. The JAL Premium Economy seat is very comfortable with more legroom and seat width than most other carriers in the same cabin. And unlike other fixed-shell Premium Economy seats I've tried, it was actually comfortable for sleeping with a more general recline than average. The fixed shell also offers more privacy than most other Premium Economy seat models, while ensuring that passengers in forward rows do not recline into the laps of passengers behind.
Being that JAL already have the world's most spacious Economy cabin on the 787, the Premium Economy cabin needed to be even more spacious to be sufficiently differentiated. The only small item that could be improved would be a more premium meal service, differentiated from Economy. However, overall it was a top notch Premium Economy experience.
Les contributeurs de Flight-Report ont posté 18 avis concernant 6 compagnies sur la ligne Tokyo (NRT) → Los Angeles (LAX).
La compagnie qui obtient la meilleure moyenne est Singapore Airlines avec 8.7/10.
La durée moyenne des vols est de 9 heures et 46 minutes.
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8 Comments
Especially considering how 787 Y-class is higher in standards than average economy class nowadays
P.s. when I was the age of your little guy I used to travel a lot with my family and this is probably the reason I still get so excited when I step on a plane
I'm sure your son will inheritate your passion for the freedom sensation that flying gives
Best wishes :)
Indeed, the meals need to be better differentiated to create more value; other than that, the seats are well above average for Premium Economy as they offer more space and better recline than other airlines in Premium Economy.
That's wonderful to hear! I hope it will be that way for him too. I'm always a little worried that maybe he will be bored of flying because he's done it so much from a young age haha.
Grazie :-)
Good to hear that you had a good time in Japan!
The sushi in the First Class Lounge looks delicious (otherwise, the food menu seems similar to offerings at the Sakura Lounge).
Small note: Satellite Lounges (First & Sakura) have been closed since Feb 2022. Permanently?!?
I have close to nil experience in JAL’s Premium Economy but, in principle, I am not a great fan of the shell seats. It seems, though, that this time they were perceived as reasonably comfortable.
IFE offerings are one of the clear weak points of JAL. And the end of the pandemic did not bring any improvements in that field.
The level of service and attention tends to be good in JAL. It consistently reaches higher levels when kids are involved. Such a cute food display!
Did you enjoy your chicken-rice meal? My expectations were not really matched (although, overall, I found it good).
Next time you visit us, do not hesitate to explore out-of-the-way areas. They offer more rewards than the well-known Golden Route (Tokyo-Osaka-Hiroshima).
Thanks again and read you soon!
DiDi
Yes, it's basically the only difference as far as I can tell--that was the case pre-Covid as well, if I remember correctly.
Ah! Thanks for the info. That's too bad for those with flights our of the satellite. Hopefully it will re-open as traffic continues to pick up.
Neither am I normally...sleeping in AF's Premium Economy is nearly impossible in my experience. The JAL seats have a lot more seat pitch, which allows for a better recline angle and makes all the difference for sleepling. In the dozens of flights I've taken in AF W, I could never sleep correctly--one the 1 JAL W flight, I slept well.
It was fine, nothing extraordinary, but good. This is the one area where JAL need to improve in W to better differentiate from Y. The option of having champagne in W simply isn't enough, considering some airlines still have champagne in Y.
Definitely! That will be the plan for future trips.
Thank you :-)
NRT is quite far away from the city but there are so many public transportation solutions that it is bearable.
Baby Tom looks at home on the First Class carpet !
The access to First Class lounge greatly improves the experience.
The cabin is impressive. And slippers are still offered.
I am less impressed by the meals even if having a nice bottle of Champagne is a kind of luxury nowadays.
Thanks for the bonus that make me feel like flying to Japan again.
Read you soon !
Absolutely--very well connected to the city despite the distance. HND is, of course, right in the city, and has good transportation options, but not so much after midnight and before 6AM when the metro isn't running.
Too used to the First class treatment for his own good hahahaha
Yes, love getting slippers, especially since aeroplane lavs are often a cesspool of germs.
Totally agree, the catering could use some improvement to move it up-market in order to better differentiate from Economy
Japan is always a good idea any time of the year!
A bientot
I had no idea Narita was that far!
The lounge gives a really good first impression, quiet amd bright and the food is well presented.. a really nice one.
Lol this is why we can't do 30min before ahah.
The premium eco looks actually quite good but it must have felt a bit of a stretch between the lunch at the first class lounge and premium eco cabin eheh.
When old farts are still trying to figure it out ahah
Your son's meal was really cute .
Beautiful bonus
Yes, it's pretty full, but thankfully Japan does public transportation so well it's easy to get there
Haha a bit, but better than going from F Lounge to Y, which was the case on the way to Japan
Thanks for stopping by :-)
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