Flight Review: China Airlines A350 Business Class Review | SFO to TPE
Introduction | China Airlines
Flights to Taiwan are quite competitive and often attract flight enthusiasts from all over the world. Airlines like Eva Air, China Airlines and the up and coming Starlux Airlines have all been well known for their fantastic hard and soft product. I had a chance to fly back to Taiwan with my wife these last few years and wanted to share how how much we enjoyed our time with China Airlines.
Design | China Airlines
I love this cabin design. Absolutely love it.
When compared with other rival business class airlines, China Airlines decided to go for natural vibe and warm look, which I can say, is incredibly successful. The interior cabin itself is beautiful - it’s romantically set with the faux wood treatment set in the seat design and the enclosure around the Business Class cabins.
In the middle section of the business class, there is a bar that consisted of various snacks and drinks. On the side of the bar, there are bookshelves that contain books and travel guides, as well as coffee and tea selections. I loved this concept and hope other airlines can utilize this as well. It’s super awesome for those that plan on staying awake.
Business arrangement is in the 1-2-1 layout, and the seat is arranged in a reverse-herringbone style, with every seat having direct aisle access. Great for people like me who like to move around and head to the bathroom every 30 minutes. Speaking of the bathrooms, they all contained a window, which is kinda…awesome when you’re doing your thing. Overall, great first impressions and we loved every moment of it.
The Seat | China Airlines
My wife and I had seat 12K and 14K, which was in the first row of the business class and a fantastic choice with the location having less people traveling in the aisle. For storage, there are three compartments for you store your stuff. Personally, I ended up using the aisle-side armrest for trash and other unwanted plastic cling, whereas the console was where my passport, phone and other goodies were held.
The cabin lighting evokes mood from luxury lounges and bars, and the seat is set with a small reading lamp that simply acts as a form of lighting. Very impressed.
The lovely flight attendants provide us with plenty of pillows and blankets, and I was thankful this flight was on the cold side - hot flights simply is unbearable with the dry air. With a 23-inch touch screen display, watching some awesome movies was a breeze. There are various charging ports as well, with a AC power outlet and two USB ports.
If you wanted to sleep, you can simply turn the seat into a bed, and the pillows and comforters will easily bring some sheep into your dreams while you sleeping across the Pacific Ocean. I had tons of leg room and was able to move around easily during the flight and made for easy access of just cruising around the cabin for some much needed walking.
Dining | China Airlines
When it comes to the dining experience, my stomach was more than ready. About an hour into the flight, we began our experience with some refreshments - sadly I was not feeling well and simply required hot water and tea. A bit later I requested a glass of orange juice. For dinner and breakfast choices, you can choose between Chinese or Western-style meals. It’s highly recommended, at least in my opinion, to try the Chinese option, as the selections are often fantastic and well-thought out.
The drink menu was fairly extensive, with a mixture of expensive whiskey, cocktails and various red and white wines. Again, being under the weather, I couldn’t fully enjoy their drinks, but the tea and copious amounts of hot water made up for it.
Let’s talk about the breakfast and dinner.
From the get-go, the flight attendants were incredibly warm and kind - they began with the appetizers, a bread try and later on a salad. The dinner was the stir-fried seafood in XO sauce, and was very intense in flavor, even clearing up my sinus at times! The winter-melon soup also deserves a shout-out, as it was incredibly flavorful and warming to the body.
I had the congee coming into Taiwan for breakfast, and boy was it fantastic. The small side dishes that go with the congee made a fantastic meal, especially the bean curd and the string beans!
My wife also went with the Chinese options for both breakfast and dinner, and the chicken soup was one of the best tasting dishes on the flight. I’d say it’s one of the best soups I’ve had on an airplane. The Taiwanese minced pork noodles was also fantastic, and my wife enjoyed every last bit of it.
An hour before arrival, the flight attendants came and collected all our dining trays and drinks, which I took in turn to head to the bathroom for a brush-up.
Conclusion | China Airlines
China Airline’s business class is easily considered one of the best product of any Skyteam alliance flights. The cabin is incredibly beautiful and warming to the eyes, the service is fast and attentive, and the seats and bedding makes it super easy to sleep. Gorgeous cabin, stunning seat design, and plenty of entertainment made this a great choice for those opting to flying internationally with China Airlines.
With a great onboard experience, I was super glad to have flown this back to Taiwan and back home to San Francisco during our trip to Asia. This is simply a top notch business class product, and one I would easily recommend and vouch for!
