The TRUTH About FIRST CLASS in the USA

first class what comes to your mind when you think of flying at the pointy end over the top lounges champagne and caviar a private Suite in the sky but what if I told you flying first class in the United States won't get you any of this well in this video we'll talk about expectations versus reality of flying first class in the U.S hello jet Setters I'm Jeff Brooks from greenergrass.com whenever we publish videos here on our YouTube channel about U.S domestic first class I often read comments from people who are surprised by the relative lack of luxury that's why we're making this video to bust the main myths about U.S domestic first class but first I just want to express to you how grateful we are to have had the experience to fly first to class look I love to fly no matter the class and so any kind of experience is special and please don't mistake any criticism for a lack of gratitude we just want to make sure you know what you're getting next time you decide to book U.S domestic first class so let's get into it what's flying first class in the U.S really like we'll start with some basics first we're talking mostly about the mainline domestic first class products here in the US and narrow body airplanes the real backbone of domestic flying here we're talking about 737s 757s and a320s there are exceptions and we'll talk about them as we go through okay let's help you decide whether paying for that upgrade it's worth it to you the best way I know to do that is to consider the five dimensions of the Jeb score it's our unscientific way of ranking flights based on the lounge the seat the food the in-flight entertainment and the service let's start with lounges surely a first class ticket will get you access to these fancy Airline lounges right think again fly any of the big three U.S airlines in first class that's United American or Delta and you will not be granted access to their lounge with a first class ticket that's right you'll be hanging out in the gate area instead of sipping coffee and enjoying the buffet this is one of the comments I hear most frequently people just can't believe that a domestic first class ticket won't get you into the lounge but that's the surprising truth the only U.S airline which grants access to their lounges with a first class ticket is Alaska and that's great because their lounges are some of the nicest in the country but if first class tickets don't get you in why are these clubs always so full First International Business Class tickets Grant you access as to tickets on certain transcontinental routes between the Northeast United States and the West Coast many of the people in these clubs though are frequent flyers who chose to buy a membership others have sufficient status that the airline just gives them a membership but most Club goers have the right credit card the basic rule of thumb to remember is if it's a domestic flight and it's called first you're not getting into the lounge with a ticket alone unless you're flying Alaska now let's talk about the seats on board you've seen these over-the-top seats these beds in the sky Suites entire rooms to yourself well here in the U.S that's not quite what you get maybe when you think of a first class seat you think of something that looks like a hotel room rather than a seat on an airplane you're in private Suite in the sky complete with a seat that turns into a giant bed a huge TV screen even a closing door for complete privacy I've been lucky enough to fly in some of those and let me tell you it's an incredible experience but heads up you're not gonna find these seats flying domestically here in the U.S instead first class offerings here typically mean a simple recliner style chair with no bells or whistles you will get a couple more inches of leg room and maybe the seat's a bit wider than economy you'll find a tray table and a small drinks tray but that's about it the seats are fairly basic on most narrow body aircraft these seats will be laid out in a 2-2 configuration all right ready for a secret about how to get a better first class seat in the U.S oh this is one of those exceptions I mentioned earlier on a limited number of domestic routes you may find larger airplanes usually reserved for long-haul flying their wide body planes meaning they have two aisles and may feature the lay flat seats typically reserved for International Business Class but if you can find one flying domestically it's a nice upgrade from the typical domestic first so how do you find them well if you're gonna find one they'll usually be between Airlines hubs across the country or sometimes even to Hawaii let's look at this example on American Airlines from their Hub in Miami to their Hub at JFK you'll see the 402 flight is on a 737 Max featuring the typical first class recliner seat but the 7 35 PM flight is on a Boeing triple seven featuring live flat seats and look at that in this case the better seat is actually the cheaper seat can find these aircraft operating domestically you may find yourself flying a bit more comfortably than normal on the other end of the spectrum be wary of regional airplanes like crj-200s or erj-145s if you're booking a multi-segment trip like this one from Greensboro North Carolina to Seattle some segments may be operated by Regional airplanes without first class cabins look carefully for notations like economy or mixed cabin when you're booking a trip like this to avoid surprises when you board if you like travel I hope you'll click the Subscribe button for even more videos about going from one place to another first class dining means champagne caviar multi-course meals right not here in the U.S you may think that food when flying first class always includes a fine dining menu fancy meals served on China and Cocktails in the sky it's not quite like that here in the U.S and here's what you need to know about domestic first class dining if you plan to eat on your next first class flight the first thing you'll want to do before booking is to check the airline's website to see what type of food to expect for example here's Delta's first class meal policy each airline has one and it's best practice to Take a Look Before you depart I'll link to all of them in the description below the type of food you'll be served if any will vary based on the time and distance of your flight for example on some flights you might just get a snack and a drink by the way drinks and alcoholic beverages are complementary In First Class to accompany your meal on other flights you might get a more substantial cold snack like this one from Alaska Airlines then if your flight is long enough though you might even get a meal with multiple courses served on a single tray these days and on some special routes Airlines Spotlight even more significant meals like this one from Atlanta right now but how do you know what to expect on your upcoming flight well the airlines make it Easy by showing you the flight details what service will be offered here's what I mean take a look at this flight from Atlanta to LAX if you leave at 8 30 PM you can count on snacks drinks and dinner but if you take the 1036 departure out to LA you'll only get snacks and drinks since the flight is under 2300 miles and departs after 8 59 PM let's just put it this way not all first class is created equal but when it comes to in-flight entertainment first class is pretty much the same as economy on the majority of domestic first class flights you will not have a TV screen in front of you whether you're booked into first class or economy instead you'll have to bring your own device thankfully the views from your window are always way more mesmerizing than what you see on any screen anyway of course a major exception to this is Delta they consistently offer individual television screens with plentiful options than most of their aircraft United also offers in-seat screens on a limited basis and are equipping more of their Fleet with individual screens and of course JetBlue has always believed in seat back entertainment but let's face it with no lounges and extremely limited first class service they're in a class of Their Own something else that I frequently get comments about is that Wi-Fi is not included in a first class ticket here in the US instead you'll have to pay up if you want to connect to in-flight Wi-Fi at first class on many airlines these fees can vary from five dollars to nearly forty dollars for a flight depending on the airline and Route first class is all about those over-the-top perks am I right not so much sipping a cocktail in the onboard bar taking a shower in the sky before slipping into your very own pajamas even getting a kit of your own lotions and potions to take home if you're expecting these top-notch services on your next first class flight in the U.S you're going to be a bit disappointed in fact there isn't really much on offer in first class that you can't also get an economy not even a pillow or blanket on many flights you certainly won't find perks like bars or showers what you will find though are flight attendants that are perhaps more attentive the ratio of flight attendants to passengers in first class is much smaller than an economy there's also just more service to give so if you're looking for the attention of a flight attendant first class might be a better choice no matter what kind of ticket you buy whether it's the least expensive economy ticket or the most expensive seat in first class all the airline really promises to provide is passage from one place to another everything else all the other added Frills are designed to woo you to their airplanes and all we wanted to do here was make sure you knew what to expect next time you're deciding whether to upgrade between now and the next time see you in the sky first class or not

Channel: Jeb Brooks

Views: 340,441

Keywords: First Class, First Class in the USA, First Class in America, First Class Flight, First Class Review, Upgrade to First Class, First Class Lounge, First Class Seat, First Class Food, First Class Service, US First Class, american airlines first class, united airlines first class, Alaska Airlines first class, delta airlines first class, delta air lines first class, is first class worth it, the truth about first class, should i book first class, first class in the usa

Id: G11f5SeBqaI

Length: 9min 19sec (559 seconds)

Published: Sat Nov 12 2022