Check out this post to experience my business class trip onboard United's Boeing 767-400ER. You will find details about - Lounge, Aircraft, Seat and Food.
Lounge
I visited the Swiss Business lounge that I had access to through my ticket. The entrance is marked by Breitling watches and a sign that says SWISS. As soon as you enter, there is food on the right hand side and a few seating spaces on the left - check out my YouTube video to see the full tour. Link to my channel at the bottom.
Lounge entrance
Breitling watch display
I walked past the entire lounge, a few coffee islands and another Breitling watch display - more like a mini store, to get to this elegantly lit up area with couches. I got to the lounge at 7am in the morning and it was almost empty, however, at 10am when I was leaving, there was no space to sit.
This is where I sat
Beautiful seating space
Anyway, I kept my stuff and headed straight for the observation deck before being stopped by a staff member. I was not allowed to go outside due to safety reasons as there was a bit of snow. That disappointed me a little but I still managed to take a couple pictures of the planes at the gates.
Plane spotting from lounge
Plane spotting from lounge
There is a live looking station where a chef prepares various styles of egg. I asked for an omlette with pepper flakes which turned out to just how I like it.
Live cooking station
The lounge has a variety of seating areas - private lounging chairs, eating tables, benches, sofas, work areas and relaxation pods. It also has a couple of shower suites and unique coffee islands.
Relaxation pods
Aircraft
I flew on the Boeing 767-400ER which comes in 3 classes - United Polaris Business, United Economy Plus and United Economy. There are a total of 240 seats split as (39/70/131). The plane is powered by General Electric GECF6-80C2B8F engines, each rated at 63,500 pounds of thrust.
Even though United launched Polaris Business in 2016, they have not upgraded all planes in their fleet. Like this B764 did not have the new United Polaris in 1-1-1 configuration but instead had the old B/E aerospace diamond seats in 2-1-2 configuration. The thing with this orientation is that not all seats have direct aisle access. Especially, if you are seated on a window seat, it is almost inevitable to hit your fellow passenger while getting out of the seat. I already knew this so I chose one of the middle single seats (row D) with direct aisle access.
United B764 seat map (Image source: Seatguru)
Seat
Unlike a few European airlines, United lets business class passengers select any seat from the available ones at the time of booking. Keeping in mind the cabin layout and the fact that I was flying alone, I did not waste time in picking seat 4D - single middle seat.
Obviously, if you are flying with a companion, it makes more sense to pick a pair of the window seats. If you are flying alone and don't plan on getting up that often, then picking a window seat can be a good option, otherwise, the 7 seats in row D (1D-7D) are the ones to go for.
Pairs of seats along the window
Middle single business seats to go for
I was greeted by a Saks Fifth Avenue blanket, large pillow, comforter and a memory foam pillow with cooling gel. While I was settling in my seat, a flight attendant came to offer a pair of United branded slippers which I happily accepted. Goodies on planes make me so happy!
My seat: 4D
Everything was great quality courtesy of Saks Fifth Avenue.
Great quality stuff from Saks Fifth Avenue
I noticed the menu, headphones and amenity kit kept on the upper right side of the seat that to my surprise offered nice storage space. The headphones, though, were pretty average but the amenity kit had some nice products from cowshed along with a pair of striped socks.
United branded headphones
Amenity kit
The seat controls are on the right hand side and visible but the in-flight entertainment system controller is kind of hidden. Nonetheless, the thing that I care about the most is a comfortable lie flat seat that can give me sound sleep at 38000 feet in the sky. Gladly, my seat changed into a cozy bed and the Saks blanket and memory foam pillow added to my comfort and joy.
Seat controls
Seat controls and IFE controller
Bed
The bed length was decent at 75" and so was the width at 21". I am 6.1 ft and was able to have a great sleep. I am actually really proud of United for having amazing Saks bedding - honestly, a good night's sleep makes the entire flight a whole lot better.
There is nothing exciting about the entertainment screen and the controller. However, United has a channel called "Live from Flight Deck" - that lets passengers tune in to the pilot's radio and hear all communication between cockpit and ATC. It is very cool and arguably the best thing about United's otherwise okay-ish entertainment options. The sad thing though is that the channel is not turned on a lot of the times but you can always ask the flight attendant and see if the captain switch it on.
Entertainment screen with controller
There is a good amount of storage space for documents and passport under the IFE screen. Additional storage is also available on the top right hand side of the seat - it also has various ports.
Additional storage and ports
Food
There were two main meal services on this flight - welcome dining (lunch) after takeoff and arrival dining (lunch again) before landing. Before, I dive into food, this is how they set up the tray table for you. The table comes out of the right side of the seat just under the seat controls.
Tray table
Anyway, I was offered a hot towel and water soon after takeoff. While I was enjoying the warmth of the towel on my face, a flight attendant kept a bowl of warm nuts on the table and asked for my choice of beverage. I did not feel like drinking anything but I still took the assorted nuts.
Assorted warm nuts
Menu
Menu
Menu
Menu
For the welcome dining service, there were a couple of options for starters, entrees and desserts.
Starters:
Entrees:
Desserts:
I went with the Grilled chicken breast for the entree which turned out to be a little chewy. But that did not bother me much as I was really excited for the sundae the entire time. I finished my entree in a hurry and got really happy when I saw the great United sundae cart come down the aisle.
Food
Grilled chicken entree
Dessert cart
I chose a chocolate macaroon and went with toppings of chocolate, caramel and almonds on vanilla ice cream. The desserts were absolutely delicious. If I had the space for a second serving, I would have definitely taken it.
Chocolate macaroon and signature Ice-cream sundae
The arrival dining service had two options - Grilled chicken or Fruit, vegetable and cheese plate but I was not really hungry so I passed.
Overall
I had a good experience overall. The crew was pleasant and helpful and the food onboard was appetizing. And the United signature ice-cream sundae was just incredible. Although the seats were not the new United Polaris seats, the bedding made up for it - luxurious Saks Fifth Avenue stuff. At Zurich, Swiss lounge was fantastic and I absolutely loved the live cooking station and the observation deck - even though it was closed when I visited due to snow.
If you get a chance, you should fly United just for the sundae and the bedding!!!
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Check out my channel on YouTube