eml

Hello!

I'll be flying business class with Air France next month and I'm interested in any info or experiences. I've done a couple Google searches but nothing very specific came up. I'd like to know what to expect. What's the dental kit like? Is it a good enough toothbrush and toothpaste that I don't need to bring my own from home?

Your flight : San Francisco - Venice
21:05 - San Francisco,
International Airport (SFO) - United States of America
> 16:55 - Paris,
Charles de Gaulle (CDG) - FRANCE
Business AF085

Duration :
10h50
Operated by :
Air France Aircraft :
Boeing 777-200 Departure terminal :
I
Arrival terminal :
2E

--

21:00 - Paris,
Charles de Gaulle (CDG) - FRANCE
> 22:35 - Venice,
Marco Polo (VCE) - ITALY
Business AF1326

Duration :
01h35
Last check-in time :
20:20
Operated by :
Air France Aircraft :
Airbus A318 Departure terminal :
2F

--
SFO - PAR Gluten free
PAR - VCE Gluten free

Thank you!

obscure2k

Please follow this thread as I move it to the AF Forum
Thanks..
Obscure2k
TravelBuzz Moderator

Goldorak

yes, no need to bring your own.

San Gottardo

Not sure what your expectations are or what you are used to, but in general people love the new longhaul Business Class cabin (you’ll be on a plane that has that), food is definitely better than on any US-based carrier, especially on the flight back leaving from Paris. Crews definitely are a class act, they can vary but if they are good they are just fantastic (70% change I’d say - others may give you different probabilities). IFE is a matter of taste, it tends to have more artsy-brainy stuff than you would find on a US carrier, but there still is enough numb shooting stuff if that is what you prefer. Wide choice in any case, and screens are large and touchscreen-controlled, headphones are noise-cancelling and supposedly very good (I use my own, so don’t know myself). There is no onboard WiFi if that matters to you, only two Euro airlines out of SFO offer that. Amenity kits are good, there is a toothbrush in each one of them.

On CDG-VCE you may be shocked to see that Business Class seats are actually the same as in Economy Class, and the particular plane you fly on is basically in a low cost configuration (tiny seats, can’t move backrest, tablet of the size of a postage stamp, nowhere to hang your jacket). There is some catering, nothing fancy but well presented, including a full bar, and again definitely much more and better than what you’d get on a flight of similar duration in the US (bretzels and a plastic cup of ice with a drink?). Not sure though what happens if you ask for Gluten-free on shorthaul flights, again that is something much more common in the US than in Europe (both the allergy and the food).

You can use lounges in SFO and CDG, in CDG you can use the lounge only in the terminal from which you leave to VCE, i.e. CDG Terminal 2F.

The potentially worst part of the journey is the transfer experience in Paris. After some marked improvements over the years it has become tedious again, with long lines at immigration (in case you didn’t know: you will pass immigration in France, not Italy). You can use the fast lane by following the « SKYPRIORITY » or « ACCÈS NO. 1 » signs, but even that may be slow. And you have to go through security again, as Paris CDG does not have the OSS principle where flights arriving from the US are considered « clean » and passengers don’t have to go through security anymore as is the case in some other European airports. On the way back from VCE to SFO you won’t have to go through security again, only coming in from the US. The thing is that it’s difficult to forecast. You may have only few people in line and many immigration booths open, but it’s very well possible (and actually even likely) that you’ll spend 30 Minutes in line.

All in all, for a trip in Business Class from SFO you have taken one of the best choices in terms of carriers for the longhaul - you won’t have any regrets. The shorthaul will be fine, just make sure you get a window seat, the flights from Paris to Venice can be very scenic flying over the Alps towards the Mediterranean. But you have one of the poorer choices in terms of transfer hub, Paris is not great these days.

I hope this helps. If there are things in here that you already know, apologies, but other than the toothbrush you didn’t say much about what you’re interested in or what you are comparing it to/what you are used to.

Goldorak

To complement very accurate post from San Gottardo, on the flight to VCE, take a window seat on the right hand side. The view on Venice is really cool 2-3 min before landing.

HalconBCN

Great advice!
I would personally recommend taking a front row window seat on the shorthaul leg as you will have more legroom and the crew will serve you first.
About the toothbrush, it's perfectly adequate for one time use but you may prefer to take your own if you have sensitive teeth.

irishguy28

You should always bring your own. It's not like they take up loads of space in your luggage.

Otherwise, you're going to have to buy a toothbrush and toothpaste shortly after arriving in Venice, anyway.

Ditto

Actually, AF give you those 19ml (or 20?) toothpastes so that is more than enough that you won't have to carry your own.
I would hate to have to use any airline toothbrush for more than once or twice though.

phant0m

AF085 is the new angled business class?

Sjondorn

Yeah they finally fly BEST on SFO-CDG (I'll finally fly it on 24th Dec, albeit on 777-300ER with P).

phant0m

Awesome. Looking to redeem a trip soon and the LAX offerings are almost all old business. Gonna fly to SFO and then fly from there.