Route: Vienna – Tokyo (Narita)

Flight Time: 11:20

Airplane: Boeing 777-200

Seat: 1A (My favourite)

Check-in: 6/10
Lounge: 7/10
Service: 10/10
Seat: 9/10
Food: 10/10
Beverages: 10/10
Entertainment: 9/10
Total: 9/10

First of all, Yes! Travelling is exhausting and taking the plane might save you hours and days, however it is even more stressful than taking the train or other means of slow travel. The best ways to prevent you from a stressful way of travelling is taking a Private Jet, followed by flying First Class or Business Class. While some airlines even feature a Premium Economy class, I have to admit that there hasn’t been a chance to test this service yet, hence I am the one who prefers flying Business Class. While I absolutely try to avoid certain airlines (not just because of safety reasons!), I am a total fan of Austrian Airlines! That’s the reason why our first airline review ever is about the Austrian Business Class – there is no better way to start this business.

Arriving in style at a hotel is always a nice way to start the stay, so why not departing the same way? So I found myself in an Uber Limousine being chauffeured to Vienna Airport (around 30 euros one way is a fair price). I was pleased to be departing from the new Terminal, however I was not impressed from the check-in process which lasted too long and the lady at the counter wasn’t even able to check me through to Shanghai (my connecting flight was with China Eastern). This was causing first thoughts if I will catch the connecting flight or not. Anyhow I decided to visit the Business Lounge before my flight has been boarded. All in all, there was a small breakfast served before they changed the buffet to a light lunch with chicken curry, rice, a choice of two soups, cold pasta salad and mousse au chocolat. The catering is by Do&Co so it is definitely worth to try and very good for lounge standards. 

When boarding began, all business class passengers could wait in a separated area with lots of available seats. As soon as I entered the plane, I was greeted with a nice smile and when I took seat, the chef steward came and welcomed me by last name before he took care of my jackets. This was a nice touch and it did not take long until the other crewmembers passed by with amenities such as blanket, pillow, amenity bag, menu and finally a glass of Prosecco! The flight started on time and the business cabin was not even half full – which is very nice, since the crew can offer a much more dedicated service. When we reached the planned altitude, the inflight service began. There has been a choice of champagne, prosecco, 3 white wines, 3 red wines, 1 sweet wine, lots of soft drinks, several alcoholic drinks and coffee – an impressive selection from my point of view!

After being served drinks, bread and a small bowl of nuts, the crew began serving the meal (call it lunch or dinner – I don’t know it neither). While you were able to choose the appetizer from a trolley, carried by a flying chef, the other courses are already prepared and will be served to your place. Depending on the final destination there is always a Western Menu and a second one. In my case it was a Japanese menu with beef fillet as a main course. Normally I don’t like fish that much and I would never ever have expected to eat fish in an airplane at all! Anyhow I had to take it as I didn’t want taking neither the Japanese course nor the second choice of the western menu – the meat dumplings. So I ended up having the best main course I ever had on a flight! The piece of butterfish was simply perfectly cooked and the puree on the excellent sauce was pure heaven.  Before I were served main course, you could choose to take a paprika soup, which again was more than excellent for an inflight meal. If you are living on the sweet site – and even If you’re not, the desserts by Austrian Airlines might catch your breath. A chocolate cake with a hot, liquid heart was served in addition to a warm chocolate sauce, strawberries and an excellent glass of sweet wine.

Soon afterwards I began to check out the entertainment channel. Beside the top quality of the touchscreen television, I was also very impressed of the several options you had with the programme. There was a live tracker from the flight in HD, a music programme, television series, actually very up-to-date movies and a games room. Even if I wouldn’t have been able to sleep, there would have been plenty of options to make the 12-hours flight as interesting as possible.

The seat in general was very comfortable, you were able to adjust it in three different positions (upright, relax and sleep) and the best part was the adjusting of the cushion, which you could make either softer or harder – depending on your taste. I liked to idea to provide business class passengers with slippers as this is giving your feet even more room. During the night I got a few hours sleep and as soon as I woke up I started a movie.

As soon as the sun rose, breakfast was starting to be served on a nice plate, containing warm bread, butter, jam, orange juice, choice of coffee or tea, fresh fruits and a ham and cheese plate. One corner was empty, waiting to be filled by the chef itself. I had the choice between Nutella pancakes (of course I chose this one!) and omelette – both dishes still very hot!

After 30 minutes we landed on time and the flight was over. Luggage arrived as one of the first pieces and after all I have to admit that the experience was far better than I would have expected. So well done Austrian – you exceeded my expectations! Especially I would like to mention the purser Ms. I. Hofmann who was outrageous while welcoming each guest with the last name before take-off and asking what they could offer, and ended the service before landing with again a personal contact and a glass of champagne! She and her team was really making me feel being welcome aboard the world's best Business Class!