The world's most expensive ticket. All Nippon Airlines review, first class on the 777 is called The Suite
This is the most expensive airline ticket in the world, ANA (All Nippon Airlines) first class is among the best in the world, booking it with points is a masterstroke
All Nippon Airways (ANA)
Star Alliance
LHR
Japan
I am on board the 777/300 of All Nippon Airlines, I'm drinking a glass of Hibiki, a Japanese Whiskey that sells for over €1,000 a bottle, and I'm watching the first episode of Back to the Future.
In this article:
- Specifications
- Aircraft:
- B777/300
- Class:
- The Suite
- Treat:
- LHR - HND
- Price:
- 60,000 VS points + £550
- Book
In this surreal scenario I am starting to write the review of this flight, what barring surprises will be my last first-class ticket of 2023.
For the past 18 months I have been flying first class aboard British Airways, Air France, Qatar, Emirates and with today complete the podium of the world's top three first classes, actually I miss Swiss to complete the Top 5.
Reservation
This is not the first time I have booked this ticket, but this is the first time I've been able to get on the plane. The other ones twice flights had been canceled due to pandemic and closed borders.
To book this ticket I used points from Virgin Atlantic's loyalty program, it took 60 thousand Flying Blue miles plus taxes. This ticket is bookable with several loyalty programs, but of all the options the VS points option is the cheapest.
This is The Room the business class cabin
I have been chasing this ticket for months, looking for a free date from Frankfurt and London, I would have liked to be able to redeem a round-trip ticket by being able to combine The Suite (the first class) and The Room (the business class), but I was unable to create the fit, so to try business class I will have to wait a few more months.
This is now the most expensive ticket in the world. In the past when Etihad's A380 flew around the world. The Residence used to cost more, but today that only flies between Abu Dhabi and London. can be found at around €5,000, while For this ticket we are talking about no less than 8,000 pounds.
At the airport
I arrived in London the night before the flight, I had no desire to miss this flight because of a strike or a flight cancelled at the last minute. Of course the inconvenience was flying into the British capital and stay one night at Hilton Heathrow, but these trips I take to review not for vacation.
After checking in I headed, on foot and without any chauffeur service or golf car, in the Singapore Airlines lounge in the LHR Terminal 4 satellite. ANA does not have its own lounge and relies on Silverkris for the world's best airline first class passengers, they are part of the same alliance and, in contrast to what happens in Frankfurt between Singapore itself and Lufthansa. is given access to ANA passengers to the most prestigious lounge.
Here I refrained from eating/drinking too much so as not to spoil my appetite on board. The ambiance is nice and reserved, also because you only get in here with a first class ticket so for a few, very few.
About 30 minutes before boarding, I headed to the gate, of course. trying not to get caught by a TFC reader hunting for the Poodle.
On board
Very few of ANA's 777/300s have this cabin set up, which entered service shortly before the outbreak of the pandemic was grounded for a very long time since ANA, due to Japan's closed borders, only flew the smaller 787s which do not have this seat.
The first thing I did as soon as I got on board was to go browse the business class cabin, renamed The Room, one of the best in the world, but not as nice as first class.
My seat was 1K, the first class cabin configuration sees only 8 seats, 4 per row. Emirates in its "gamechanger" has only 6 cabins of first In 1-1-1 configuration, only Air France sits fewer passengers in first class, 4 in all.
The master bedroom suite aboard Singapore Airlines' A380.
If you are traveling in pairs, you can opt for middle seats, However, the partition remains fixed, which does not allow the a double bed comparable to the Singapore Airlines Suite, but it should not be forgotten that we are on a 777 here not an A380.
Personal space is plenty, but I'll say it now I was not left speechless as at other booths. I have no idea whether the reason was the very high expectations or the immediate comparison with other First Class cabins I have been frequenting lately. Space is plenty, but the doors isolating the passenger from the aisle are not comparable to the competition first class, but neither is it at Qatar's QSuite. The privacy is there, but it is not what the world's best cabins offer today to the most exclusive passengers.
What is surprising is the size of the TV screen, is as wide as the seat, stuff never seen aboard an airplane and that to date no other airline even equals. Of course new cabins with even bigger screens are on the way, but today this is the top of the top.
Storage space is virtually infinite. Of course there is a whole hat box available, then there is a huge cockpit perpendicular to the structure that hides the door, and a double cockpit in the opposite side under the windows. There is then plenty of space under the TV screen where I placed my backpack.
The seat is operated entirely from a hand control, and there is a thumbwheel that allows you to find the perfect seat position; there is no possibility of error, no risk of accidentally pushing a button.
There is a flap in the seat wall that when opened turns into a mirror, perfect for hair and makeup.
Each passenger has over 2m linear feet of space, not the most you can have but few compagies offer such space.
The coffee table is large enough to be used by two passengers who wanted to dine together, while the bench at the opposite end of the seat can serve as a seat for the second diner.
The armchair obviously becomes a bed, over two meters long. There is plenty of space, but What disappointed me was the lack of the topper to apply over the chair in bed mode. Of course the Japanese sleep on tatami, but I would like to be able to choose to sleep on a slightly softer surface as well. Also the pillows are small and below average of what is offered in First Class by other airlines.
The curtains are electronic and are operated by the crew, this is something I don't like on the 787, let alone in this case.
A small coat hanger is also hidden in the structure of the chair; you certainly won't hang a fur coat or a jacket on it, but everything else you can hang without squeezing it.
The bathroom is normal, certainly not comparable to what one can find aboard an A380, but some have been more generous. However, one has to remember that every cm has a price, personally the shower in the clouds is nice the first time, then it is an (uncomfortable) shower like many others.
Again, however, you can see the Japanese manic attention. There is one thing I had never seen in an airplane bathroom, a footrest so you don't get dirty when you change in the bathroom.
It lowers and so one can take off one's shoes and put on one's pajamas without touching the bathroom floor.
Unmissable, of course, is the Japanese tablet. The only flaw is that it is not a recent model; it lacked hair dryer functions, privacy music, and tablet temperature management.
Otherwise standard equipment and of course, all functions handled without any contact with pulses and switches to ensure hygiene at 100%.
Service
Here ANA comes close to perfection, to get the 10 needed cuddling on the ground as well, at this price I expect at the very least the chauffeur to pick me up at the hotel, a fast route through the airport, or at least a ride in a golf car to get me from one point to another in the Heathrow lounge. For example, Singapore Airlines at T2 at LHR offers, to F passengers just a ride in a little electric car from after security to the door of the lounge.
The other minor flaw, but again it is an atavistic and cultural issue, is the lack of English-speaking staff on board. We are at the bare minimum, but if companies like ITA have native-speaking flight attendants why can't ANA do the same ?
Removing these minor flaws for the rest my flight attendant was AMAZING. Sure not at the level of Geraldine aboard Air France's La Premiere, But difficult to do more without "understanding" each other.
At the place I found the beauty kit, one of the nicest I have ever received. In fact maybe aesthetically the most beautiful.
Very "poor" content all branded Ginza. Compared to what Singapore, Emirates, British Airways offer, the products are very few.
The kit also includes a cardingan, complete pajamas and a pair of slippers. No other company in the world gives away a beautiful cardigan like ANA's.
Shortly after I sat down, the assistant came by with a tray with an eye mask, socks, and sachets with the aroma "The Suite" or a perfume reminiscent of the perfume used inside the cabin.
IFE
That the screen is huge did I say that? in case always better to repeat it. It's really something never seen aboard an airplane.
Lots of technology, but untapped at 100%. It would be logical to expect thousands of contents, lots of quality, and instead it is not at all like that, there are only about a hundred movies, and I to celebrate such a journey decided to watch "Back to the Future."
Obviously impossible to handle the screen with touch (it is too far away), fortunately there is a controller that doubles as a second screen.
Passengers are also given Bluetooth headphones, to be connected wirelessly to the IFE system.
The best thing for me in IFEs are the webcams that capture what happens outside the plane, they are only two but on such a screen they are a hell of a panoramic window.
All passengers are given a voucher for free and unlimited use of onboard wifi on all devices, Average connection performance, perhaps a little below the competition.
Food & Beverage
Look at this photo to understand the level of presentation and quality of the offerings prepared on board. A level that surpasses any other airline. I opted for the Japanese menu over the Western proposal, a service consisting of 9 different courses. A lunch that in an average Tokyo restaurant would have cost me no less than 33k yen, excluding drinks.
From amuse -bouche to dessert is an escalation of flavors, all with a star-studded restaurant mise en place, but here we are aboard a plane at 30,000 feet altitude.
Same quality for the second service as well, of course I continued with Japanese cuisine because I definitely wanted to experience "local."
Where I gave the 100% of myself was inside the "cellar" of ANA. I don't know if the other passengers were teetotalers or Japanese beer lovers, but I was the only passenger who drank Krug. To be exact. initially was served a 2004 vintage label, a bottle that cannot be found under €500.
The wine list is also rich in sake, which I have tried, but I am not overly convinced.
At the end of the meal I treated myself to two glasses of Hibiki, a 21-year-old whiskey, What I am sipping as I finish writing this review. A bottle opened especially for me, an unobtainable bottle that can be bought (if it can be found) for no less than 1000€.
Instead, for snack, I was opened a "half bottle" also of Krug, this time, however, a banal grand cuvée, which costs about 60€. I could have drunk a lot more, but drinking alone tires me out, when I make friends with other passengers instead then it is the flight attendants usually who say "enough" not me.
Pro
- The wine cellar and gastronomic offerings
- The TV screen
- The service
Against
- Staff do not speak English
- IFE with little content
- One topper is missing