A few weeks ago I flew with Austrian Airlines in Business Class from Vienna to Shanghai. Austrian Airlines is using a 777-200ER for this leg. The specific 777-200ER used for this specific trip was more than 27 years old. I was curious to see whether Austrian Airlines Business Class in a 777-200 configuration, is still a competitive product. Especially when comparing with much newer business class products on much more modern planes such as the 787 and A350. Please read my review below to learn whether it’s still worth it flying with Austrian in Business Class on their 777-200.
Seat Configuration
Austrian is using a 1-2-1 and 2-2-2 seat configuration in Business Class. The 1-2-1 rows, have the so-called ‘thrown’ seats. These thrown seats, are the only window seats with direct aisle access, but these also require an additional surcharge. On my flight, this surcharge was 230Euro. I didn’t think it was worth it spending an extra 230Euro so I settled for seat 4A. This was a window seat without direct aisle access, which is of course not per the latest Business Class standards. Climbing over your fellow passenger to access the aisle is not ideal, but as I will discuss later, it’s still better than some of the latest and greatest business class seats!
Note; if you are a Miles & More elite member, you might be able to ‘steal’ these thrown seats for free upon check-in, when still available!
Cabin & Seats
When you step inside the cabin of the Austrian 777-200, you would never guess it’s a 27 year old plane. Of course this cabin has been retrofitted several times within these 27 years but it’s still good to highlight that this cabin looks more new and fresh than some of the 787 cabins from other airlines, I’ve flown with recently! Even the 15 inch entertainment touch-screen has a decent size and has a high resolution.
Privacy is of course very limited when you have a passenger sitting directly next to you. Forget modern features such as a private suite with closing door. On the other side, the seat itself is very comfortable. The seat has a width of 20 inches and stretches out to a flat bed of 78 inches (198cm). That’s very decent! More important, the footwell space is excellent! Not a tight, v-shaped footwell as you see in the majority of the modern herringbone business class seats, but instead a generous space for your foot! There is no problem moving your legs and feet when in lie-flat position. Very important if you are 6ft 3! The only negative point is that you cannot put up your knees when lying down, since the entertainment screen is in the way. I didn’t think this was such a big deal though.
Meal Service
I discovered that the absolute highlight of traveling with Austrian in Business Class, is the meal service. For starters, Austrian uses a flying chef on board who prepares the dishes in Business Class and prepares the eggs before landing. Normally I skip eggs when flying – even in Business Class – since these are normally warmed up microwave dishes. Not very attractive. But when a chef is preparing eggs-sunny-side-up, I decided to pick that for my pre-arrival meal.
First the main meal after take-off though, starting with a salad. The crew is preparing the salad live, in front of you on a trolley. They do a great presentation and the result is also very tasty. I loved the salad and I loved the bread even better. This must have been the best bread I ever tasted in a plane!
After the salad, a soup is served, followed by the main dish. I chose the chicken dish but that one was my least favorite. It just missed something; some veggies would have been nice!
Luckily after the main dish, the trolley is back, this time with the desert. I chose the vanilla creme fraiche which was simply perfect. And that wasn’t all of it! Austrian Airlines also has a coffee menu! Where with most airlines, it’s already a struggle getting a (decent) cappuccino in business class, Austrian takes things a bit further.
The coffee menu has 8 options varying from a cappuccino (Wiener Melange) to an Ice Cream Latte (Wiener Eiskaffee). Ever since my trip to South Korea a few weeks ago, I’m addicted to Ice Cream Latte so I don’t need to think for long and order the Wiener Eiskaffee. And it doesn’t disappoint, on the contrary. I would have been happy getting this served in a trendy South Korean coffeeshop, let alone in a plane. Amazing!
Pre-Arrival Meal
Just before arrival, it was time for the eggs-sunny-side-up to arrive. I was a bit skeptical. After all, freshly made eggs in a plane?
And the flying chef for sure knows his stuff. The eggs were perfect and with the excellent bread, this was one of the best pre-arrival meals I ever had.
Conclusion
I started this review with the question whether Austrian Airlines could still offer a competitive business class product using a 27 years old plane. The answer is yes! Sure, the seats don’t offer the privacy you might start to expect in business class. But the reality is that most of these newer business class seats, simply don’t offer the lie-flat comfort the seats in this 777-200 offer. Especially if you’re 6 feet or taller.
The meal service with the flying chef is simply at another level. Food was brilliant, only the main dish would need some fine-tuning. And on top of all that, there is the coffee menu offering coffee options which wouldn’t be out of place in a top of the line Korean Coffee shop.
Also have a look at my Youtube video I made of this trip, providing more details about the food, flying experience, and lounges in Vienna. And don’t forget to like the video and subscribe to the channel!
When I was in Vienna, I stayed at the Andaz in Vienna. Please also read my review of the Andaz Vienna. Perfectly located next to the main train station and the Schloss Belvedere.
Lastly, I used LifeMiles to book this ticket. With LifeMiles it can be very attractive buying Business Class tickets. If you want to know more about that, please review my blog on how to use LifeMiles for buying Business Class tickets.
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