Finnair Plus - BA vs AY in Business

Have an upcoming work trip and wanted to ask who has a better product offering in business from the US? Can use either on would just need to connect in LHR or HEL for onward travel. Thanks

It really depends a lot on your final destination. Would you be kind enough to divulge that information so the resident experts could judge better?

Ops sorry about that. Routing would be either JFK-LHR-STO or JFK-HEL-STO. BA uses a 747 and AY has the A330. Thanks

There is at least one advantage taking an AY flight.
There are no longer any security checks for passengers arriving from the U.S. It is either straight to the non-Schengen gate or just through passport check if your final destination is in the Schengen area (EU excluding UK, Ireland, Bulgaria and Romania and including non-EU Switzerland, Norway and Iceland).

P.S. I just saw your final destination is Stockholm. Finnair can get you also to the convenient city airport Bromma and even to Norrköping to the south of Stockholm.

For my taste, AY has better (sometimes much better) food in business, also better wines.

Service in AY can be really good, and sometimes it is not. BA is more consistent, IMO.

Changing planes in LHR is always more of a hassle than changing planes in HEL. Although I must admit I have never arrived into Schengen area in ARN, but HEL is pretty easy. Flight from JFK arrives in the morning, there shouldn't be too many other long-haul planes arriving at the same time.

As Stockholm is your final destination I agree that it's a total no-brainer to take AY. A clean T5-T5 connection at LHR is not too bad either but HEL is much smoother in any case...BA seat is better for sleeping, though, if that's your priority. Also, BA has more departures to select from with many of them with "CW Sleeper Service" ex-US....AY6 is not good for sleeping at all..the departure from JFK is too early and the dinner service takes 2hrs+ into a ~7hrs+ flight..lucky if you get 4hrs of sleep (if you eat dinner onboard).

The AY A330 on this route should be with a fully flat seat, which has been well received. This new seat, combined with the easier connection in HEL might help make the decision. BA would have many more flight options, however.

I am assuming that the non-stop from NYC-STO on DL or SK is not an option for you for some reason.

Ops sorry about that. Routing would be either JFK-LHR-STO or JFK-HEL-STO. BA uses a 747 and AY has the A330. ThanksHmm, this is a hard one. The upper deck window seat on the 747 is reallly private and the service is good. Also, I prefer BA's food, maybe because it is more exotic to me. Although you have to choose between cheese and desert, there is also the well stocked Club Kitchen downstairs. And if you have the time, you can get a neck and shoulder massage at T5 before continuing to Stockholm. Finnair is also good and if this is one of your rare chances to fly Finnair, then I would give it a try. The sleep quality on the new 330 is excellent but BA is not bad either and on such a relatively short flight you may not sleep that much anyway.

Hands down, AY. Biz class section is small and intimate. And, if you're lucky, you may end up with the next seat empty.

Also, I'd do anything to skip LHR; it's notorious for holding patterns. At HEL, your plane is always #1 for takeoff. The airport, especially the non-Schengen area, is not crowded. Whenever I fly AY6, I always have a meal before the flight and sleep all the way through breakfast.

And the #1 reason for flying AY: they have espresso machines on AY6.

Caveat: the flat bed is not always available on this segment. Nine of our 10 times, I end up with angled flat bed on AY6 but I have now mastered the art of sleeping on angled flat beds.

Do Finnair serve haute Finnish cuisine for dinner? Whats that like?

Do Finnair serve haute Finnish cuisine for dinner? Whats that like?

Reindeer soup as a starter for example.

Reindeer soup as a starter for example.

cool!

cool!

Had a reindeer starter and charred Lapland salmon main on a shorthaul AY flight last month. The longhaul menus are rarely so "localized", soups are more of the veggie type etc.

Had a reindeer starter and charred Lapland salmon main on a shorthaul AY flight last month. The longhaul menus are rarely so "localized", soups are more of the veggie type etc.

Starter on my flight to Shanghai two weeks ago was Sapas (name for Finnish tapas launched by Restaurant Juuri in Helsinki) which included smoked vendace, baltic herring roe, smoked roast elk and Lappish baked cheese. Soup was creamy chanterelle soup.
This was, in my opinion, one of the best starters I have had on Finnair flight. It tasted good and was nicely presented. This was a succesful act from Finnair to present some of the delicases of Finnish Cuisine which gets its ingredients from the lakes and the forrests^

Starter on my flight to Shanghai two weeks ago was Sapas (name for Finnish tapas launched by Restaurant Juuri in Helsinki) which included smoked vendace, baltic herring roe, smoked roast elk and Lappish baked cheese. Soup was creamy chanterelle soup.
This was, in my opinion, one of the best starters I have had on Finnair flight. It tasted good and was nicely presented. This was a succesful act from Finnair to present some of the delicases of Finnish Cuisine which gets its ingredients from the lakes and the forrests^

WOWee! Im really looking forward to my first Finnair flight... this beats BA hollow!

Starter on my flight to Shanghai two weeks ago was Sapas (name for Finnish tapas launched by Restaurant Juuri in Helsinki) which included smoked vendace, baltic herring roe, smoked roast elk and Lappish baked cheese. Soup was creamy chanterelle soup.
This was, in my opinion, one of the best starters I have had on Finnair flight. It tasted good and was nicely presented. This was a succesful act from Finnair to present some of the delicases of Finnish Cuisine which gets its ingredients from the lakes and the forrests^So standard "Ryysyranta" fare... :D

Arriving in ARN Schengen is quite simple. Finnair uses Terminal 5, which handles both Schengen and non-Schengen arrivals. Passengers from SChengen avoid passport control and proceed to baggage return. Non-Schengen arrivals clear immigration and then proceed to the same baggage return hall. In general, Schengen passengers will have bag tags with a green border, which means (to the customs employees) that you began your trip inside the Schengen zone. Non-Schengen passengers will have all-white bag tags (technically, they can inspect on a random basis). Walk out the green lane door past a photo of the King and Queen waving at you and you'll be in the lobby of T5.

As another poster mentioned, if you are going to downtown Stockholm, it's easier to arrive at Bromma Airport, which is much closer to city center.

In general, Schengen passengers will have bag tags with a green border, which means (to the customs employees) that you began your trip inside the Schengen zone. Non-Schengen passengers will have all-white bag tags (technically, they can inspect on a random basis).

To be precise, I believe the green tags are for all EU/EEA arrivals, not only Schengen. Immigration and customs are separate and especially with regard to Schengen/EU, they don't coincide. All EU countries form a customs union and, therefore, goods needn't be declared even in those cases where passport control is required (i.e. EU countries that do not participate in Schengen). On the other hand, there are Schengen countries (Norway, Iceland, Switzerland) between which and EU there's a customs border, but no immigration formalities. I think arrivals from those countries also have green borders in the baggage tags, but in theory, goods may have to be declared.

ETA: Oh, and then there is, of course, a tax border also between EU countries, so in principle, certain goods have to be declared anyway (but this is mostly applicable only to imports for commercial purposes).

To be precise, I believe the green tags are for all EU/EEA arrivals, not only Schengen. Immigration and customs are separate and especially with regard to Schengen/EU, they don't coincide. All EU countries form a customs union and, therefore, goods needn't be declared even in those cases where passport control is required (i.e. EU countries that do not participate in Schengen). On the other hand, there are Schengen countries (Norway, Iceland, Switzerland) between which and EU there's a customs border, but no immigration formalities. I think arrivals from those countries also have green borders in the baggage tags, but in theory, goods may have to be declared.

ETA: Oh, and then there is, of course, a tax border also between EU countries, so in principle, certain goods have to be declared anyway (but this is mostly applicable only to imports for commercial purposes).
as far as i know green tags are from flights originating from the EU/Schengen zone! I noticed that hong kong uses an orange one!!

as far as i know green tags are from flights originating from the EU/Schengen zone! I noticed that hong kong uses an orange one!!

EU has nothing to do with Schengen and Schengen has nothing to do with EU. EU is a customs area, Schengen a joint travel area and it includes EU excluding UK, Ireland, Bulgaria and Romania but including non-EU Switzerland, Norway and Iceland. Your tags from the latter three will NOT be with a green band.

Just to add another example, luggage from the UK and Ireland gets the green tag and passengers do not need to ear customs. And yet the UK and Ireland are not in Schengen. This is because the green tag relates to customs (so, EU membership) and not to immigration (Schengen).

EU has nothing to do with Schengen and Schengen has nothing to do with EU. EU is a customs area, Schengen a joint travel area and it includes EU excluding UK, Ireland, Bulgaria and Romania but including non-EU Switzerland, Norway and Iceland. Your tags from the latter three will NOT be with a green band.

Well, actually the Treaty of Amsterdam from 1997 makes Schengen arrangements an official part of the EU but certain member states have elected not to participate in it whereas some states with special-relations to the EU, mainly Switzerland, Norway and Iceland, participate in the Schengen area while not being members of the EU.