Review of United flight from Washington to Munich in Business

Check In and Security

I had arrived at IAD quite early today because I had an appointment earlier in the day that was on my way to the airport from home, and let's just say that, at the last minute, it had gotten rescheduled to way earlier in the day, and it didn't make sense for me to go all the way back home afterwards, so I thought I'd enjoy my time in the Polaris Lounge- because, after all, it's not a bad place to spend 5 hours.

I arrived at IAD at 11:30 a.m. on the metro. A few years ago, when WMATA added the Silver line all the way to Dulles Airport, it really made things so much easier and faster. Instead of spending $50 in an uber, or even more on a taxi to get into the city, you can now do so for about $7 per person on the weekdays or $2 on the weekends! It is very convenient, and I highly recommend it.

After walking upstairs, I proceeded to the Premier 1K and Polaris Check In area, since I am both today, I have access.

The area is quite big, with many kiosks and a few agents. I went straight up to an agent because I knew the kiosks wouldn't work for me. You see, I was checking a bag today, and United has a policy that their kiosks won't accept a checked bag more than 4 hours prior to departure, so an agent must check you in. I was greeted by a friendly agent, who printed my boarding passes and checked my bag in all the way to Hamburg, my final destination, and I was off.

I then proceeded to security. Since I have both Precheck and Clear, I made it through security pretty quickly.

The Polaris Lounge at IAD

I've reviewed the Polaris Lounge here at IAD many times before on this site, so I won't do a full walkthrough of it today. Instead, I will just highlight my specific experiences today. So, you'd like to see a full lounge tour, you can check out the full walkthrough that I did in this report: https://flight-report.com/en/report/66522/united-ua2440-washington-iad-chicago-ord/

First stop was the dining room for lunch of course! Here’s the menu for today:

I was immeasurably told to just sit in any open seat. And was waited on immediately, where he filled my glass with water. I ordered a gin and tonic and to start, I went with the Arugula, Artichoke, Caper Berry Salad.

While I was eating, I took a second to realize how nice the dining room is. I prefer the Newark dining room to all of them because of the windows and the natural light, but the United Polaris Lounge dining rooms are quite nice.

After I finished my salad, the main course came out. I got the Polaris Signature Burger today with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and mushrooms.

I think United’s Polaris burger is ok, The best one that I’ve had is at Newark. At IAD, it tends to be more dry. I also wish that United would have some sort of special sauce like thousand island or an aioli to go with it. Otherwise, it’s flavorless meat, that’s what you get,

After I finished eating, I tipped the server (it’s not required but is very appreciated by the staff), and made my way to the Lounge’s seating area by the windows, where I got a pod to sit in for a few hours

I decided to read a book and have a drink for a bit. And after a few hours, I decided to check out the buffet.

They had the normal things on offer, today they had chicken tikka masala and basmati rice, which I decided to try.

After a while, I noticed that my inbound aircraft had arrived in from Munich, and I was able to get a picture of it.

Boarding, the Cabin, and Seat

Being an IAD based United Frequent Flyer, I can pretty confidently say that any gate in the C/D concourse is a maximum of 15 minutes walking from the Polaris Lounge at C17, so allocate yourself about that much time to get there. If you're on a Star Alliance Partner flight that operates out of the A/B concourse, or a United Express flight that operates from the A/B concourse, I'd allow a minimum of 35 minutes, as you have to walk back to the train station, change trains, and head to your gate.

My gate for today was C5, which was about a 5 minute walk from the Polarisg Lounge. I arrived at the gate, and unfortunately, couldn't get a good view of the aircraft from the gate area.

Boarding began right on schedule at 4:50 p.m., and began with preboarding of passengers with disabilities, followed by Global Services, Families with Children under the age of 2, and Premier 1K customers. I'm 1K, so I preboarded with that group. Though, if you're in Polaris, you'll board with Group 1, which is immediately after all of the preboarding groups.

There was only one global services member and I was the only 1K to preboard today, which I found interesting,

You could board through either door L1 or L2. I opted for L2, since I was in the second Polaris cabin today.

The 787-8 Polaris Cabin is arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration, and has a total of 28 seats. The cabin is split into two cabins, separated by a galley. The first cabin, between L1 and L2, consists of 20 seats spread across 5 rows. Whereas, the second cabin, where I was sitting, consists of only 8 seats, spread across 2 rows. So, the second, mini-cabin feels much more private.

It's also important to note that the 2 lavotories for Polaris are located at the very front of the aircraft. So, you have to go up to the very front of the aircraft in order to use the lavatories in flight. But, with 2 lavatories for 28 passengers, the passenger to lavatory ratio is 14:1, which is not bad.

The Polaris seats are arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration on the 787s, offering every passenger direct aisle access. The odd rows face straight, and the even rows are at an angle. I always prefer the odd, window seats as a solo traveler for the most privacy. Though, couples should opt for the odd numbered middle seats in the middle so that you can be close together and lower the partition.

The overhead bins on the 787s are massive, and have more than enough space to store any luggage that you may need to store in the overhead bins, especially if you’re in business class.

My seat today was 6L, the window seat on the right side of the aircraft in the first row of this mini cabin.

The seat has three windows, that are controlled by dimmer switches on the wall or in the IFE system. And this seat in particular offers excellent views of the engine and wing!

The seat controls are located next to the right armrest, with a wheel that allows you to adjust between fully-flat bed mode, and the fully-upright taxi, takeoff, and landing mode. You can also adjust your footrest, your lumbar support, and your recline with a lot of different combinations.

There is a faux marble countertop on the right side where you can set things on top of. Just above the countertop is the IFE remote control, the universal power outlet, a USB-A charging port, the headphone jack, and a small vanity closet where you can store a few things during the flight. I find this the perfect spot to store your toiletries and/or chargers.

The seat is well padded, comfortable, and extremely private. You can’t see another passenger in the cabin unless you really start looking for them, and nobody else can see you. Which is what I love about the Polaris seats- you really don't need a closing door with this amount of privacy. But, United is adding those in Polaris on their 787-9s soon! On the 787-8, there are individual air vents above your seat, and an overhead reading light.

Pre-Departure

The Amenity Kit and bedding was on top of the seat when I arrived. United provides quite a bit of bedding in my opinion. You receive: 1 regular feather pillow, 1 smaller gel pillow, a duvet style blanket, and a day blanket.

Additionally, the printed menu was located at the seat. I won't take pictures of every page, as the liquor and beer list is basically the same as it was on every Polairis flight that I take, so I'll provide a picture of the food and wine menu.

As soon as I boarded the aircraft, Mike, the flight attendant who would be taking care of me today, came to introduce himself. He offered me a pre-departure beverage of sparkling wine or water. I went with water. It was served, barely full!

At 5:15, the purser, Jay, came by to welcome me aboard and take meal orders. I preordered my meal, and he confirmed that I had preordered the cod. I also asked to do express dining, so that I could maximize my sleep.

At 5:34, they announced that boarding was complete.

At the same time, the captain came on to announce our time of 7 hours 31 minutes from takeoff to touchdown.

At 5:35, the boarding door was closed.

At 5:38, the safety video began to play.

Taxi and Takeoff

At 5:50, we began our pushback. CB

At 6:10, we lined up on runway 1R for departure. I fly out of IAD a lot and I’m pretty sure this is the first time I’ve departed from 1R.

At 6:15, we reached 10,000 feet, meaning that we were well on our way to Munich.

Cruise

We had quite a bit of turbulence on the climb.

At 6:39, the captain came on to announce that we were at our cruising altitude of 39,000 feet, but that we were experiencing a good amount of turbulence, so he asked the flight attendants to remain in their jumpseats and asked us to remain seated with our seatbelts fastened until we cleared that.

At 6:47, the flight attendants were cleared by the captain to start the service, and the seatbelt sign came off.

At 7:02, service began with a hot towel.

At 7:06, my tablecloth was brought out and Mike asked me what I wanted to drink. I went with the Pascal Jolivet wine, but he came back and said that they only had the Chablis catered, so I went with that.

A minute later he brought out my meal and my wine, all in one tray, just as I requested it.

The watermelon radish really wasn’t that great. It was hard and not really edible. I preferred it on a previous Polaris flight that I had taken.

The cod was very good. The butter sauce that it was basted in really good and flavorful. The potatoes and peas it was served with were also basted in that same butter sauce, which made those flavorful too.

I finished my meal very quickly. And at 7:20, the regular beverage service began and Mike asked me if I wanted a refill on my wine. I said yes. He also gave me some water and asked if I wanted anything else.

At 7:35, I finished my second wine and my water and decided to switch my watch to Munich time, making it 1:35 am in Germany. I made up my bed, and realized that in all the times I’ve reviewed a Polaris seat, I’ve never taken a picture of it in lie-flat mode, especially not made up.

I went to sleep right after that and woke up at 6:03, giving me a solid 4.5 hours of sleep. I really do think that I get better rest on the Dreamliners when flying to Europe. The humidifiers and quietness of the engines really make a difference.

Pre-Arrival

At 6:11, I was brought a hot towel, even though the rest of the mini-cabin was still sleeping. I was the only one who it was brought to.

At 6:17, Mike came through to offer breakfast. I was offered the kale and egg pastry, the banana bread pudding, or he said “if you want something light today, I can get you just some fruit and yogurt!”

Because I knew I’d be spending a few hours in the Senator Lounge on my layover. I opted for the fruit and yogurt option, and got a black coffee.

Mike brought it out a minute later. Chobani Yogurt is always good, and the fruit was also nice. The coffee didn’t taste good.

When I finished, Mike came through. He noticed I didn’t drink my coffee and asked if he could get me something different, I went with a Coke Zero instead.

Descent, Arrival, and a note on the Senator Lounge in Munich

At 7:00, the first officer came on to let us know that we’d begun our descent and would be on the ground in Munich in 30-35 minutes.

We touched down on Runway 08L at 7:38 am.

We parked at gate H14 at 7:44 am, for a one minute early arrival!

I made my way off of the aircraft and proceeded to passport control. The line was long, but they processed people very quickly. I was through in less than 10 minutes.

After clearing passport control, I followed the signs downstairs to the G gates, which is the same terminal building as the H gates, it’s just one level below to separate the Schengen and Non-Schengen flights.

I made my way to the Lufthansa Senator Lounge at gate G28. I’ve visited this lounge before in a previous report, so I won’t go into detail. You can view that report here: https://flight-report.com/en/report/66779/lufthansa-lh2282-munich-muc-brussels-bru/

My first stop was a shower suite. The Senator Lounge had shower suites for use; however, I was told that it was only for passengers arriving in on a long haul flight, and was required to show my boarding pass from my inbound flight in order to get access.

The suite was spacious, but had dim lighting and honestly looked like… Andy Dufresne’s cell in Shawshank Redemption. I didn’t take a picture.

I was also surprised at the lack of amenities. I asked for a toothbrush and was told they don’t offer any amenities other than what is inside of the suite. What’s inside the suite? Just a bath towel, shower gel, and shampoo. There’s also a hair dryer affixed to the wall.

Yes, these are the basics of what you’d need in a shower suite, but at least United, even at the United Club in Newark will give you washcloths, deodorant, mouthwash, toothbrushes… etc.

Regardless, it was nice to have a shower, some breakfast, and a place to hang out