Trying other J classes
Jan 18, 2019, 8:35 am
#31
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Flatland
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold 1MM, BA Gold, UA Peon
Posts: 6,111
Having tried Finnair a few times last year, I was overall fairly pleased. The crews (short and long haul J) all came across as very nice people, with attentive service and a caring attitude. The food was ok (short haul) or actually rather good (long haul), the tableware was attractive, and so on. The aircraft (A320s and A330s, I haven't tried their A350 yet) were clearly a bit tired and scuffed but everything worked OK. I still think BA Club World is slightly better seating than Finnair's A330, BA's huge improvement that was the CW seat has kept them ahead for so long that they're still competitive with quite a lot of other carriers, as in this case.
It's as good as BA with a good crew and the new Do&Co catering and service. Or I could say that BA is as good as Finnair if you get a good crew and the new Club service. Meanwhile, BA's previous Club offering looks rather lacklustre in comparison to Finnair - but also in comparison the Do&Co offering. BA are keeping up with their peers in this comparison, but they had to put some effort in to do so. BA really needs to get the new Club service out everywhere, or anyone comparing an experience like Finnair with the previous BA Club service is going to find BA wanting.
Now, most BA crews are pretty good too, and I suspect Finnair aren't all perfect. However all the Finnair crews we had gave a very warm and competent service indeed, so overall no problems with the people there and the Finnair people have got a quality product to deliver, resulting in a good experience all round.
Connecting in HEL is quite pleasant, including being able to easily get into town on a multi-hour layover (for all your important summer cloudberry shopping needs). I can clearly see how a short connection in HEL could go sideways pretty easily in adverse conditions, much like a short LHR T5 connection is fine when all the moving parts move but if anything jams up, you're stuffed. The HEL lounges are quite nice when quiest but got pretty busy (no seats) at prime time... rather like BA lounges, now I come to mention it
Overall Finnair exceeded expectations. BA need to keep on their toes.
It's as good as BA with a good crew and the new Do&Co catering and service. Or I could say that BA is as good as Finnair if you get a good crew and the new Club service. Meanwhile, BA's previous Club offering looks rather lacklustre in comparison to Finnair - but also in comparison the Do&Co offering. BA are keeping up with their peers in this comparison, but they had to put some effort in to do so. BA really needs to get the new Club service out everywhere, or anyone comparing an experience like Finnair with the previous BA Club service is going to find BA wanting.
Now, most BA crews are pretty good too, and I suspect Finnair aren't all perfect. However all the Finnair crews we had gave a very warm and competent service indeed, so overall no problems with the people there and the Finnair people have got a quality product to deliver, resulting in a good experience all round.
Connecting in HEL is quite pleasant, including being able to easily get into town on a multi-hour layover (for all your important summer cloudberry shopping needs). I can clearly see how a short connection in HEL could go sideways pretty easily in adverse conditions, much like a short LHR T5 connection is fine when all the moving parts move but if anything jams up, you're stuffed. The HEL lounges are quite nice when quiest but got pretty busy (no seats) at prime time... rather like BA lounges, now I come to mention it
Overall Finnair exceeded expectations. BA need to keep on their toes.
Jan 18, 2019, 9:58 am
#32
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2017
Location: Surrey
Programs: BAEC - Gold
Posts: 885
I can't seem to find them anywhere
Jan 18, 2019, 10:15 am
#33
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Bedfordshire, UK
Programs: BA Gold, Geek platinum
Posts: 2,004
Having tried Finnair a few times last year, I was overall fairly pleased. The crews (short and long haul J) all came across as very nice people, with attentive service and a caring attitude. The food was ok (short haul) or actually rather good (long haul), the tableware was attractive, and so on. The aircraft (A320s and A330s, I haven't tried their A350 yet) were clearly a bit tired and scuffed but everything worked OK. I still think BA Club World is slightly better seating than Finnair's A330, BA's huge improvement that was the CW seat has kept them ahead for so long that they're still competitive with quite a lot of other carriers, as in this case.
It's as good as BA with a good crew and the new Do&Co catering and service. Or I could say that BA is as good as Finnair if you get a good crew and the new Club service. Meanwhile, BA's previous Club offering looks rather lacklustre in comparison to Finnair - but also in comparison the Do&Co offering. BA are keeping up with their peers in this comparison, but they had to put some effort in to do so. BA really needs to get the new Club service out everywhere, or anyone comparing an experience like Finnair with the previous BA Club service is going to find BA wanting.
Now, most BA crews are pretty good too, and I suspect Finnair aren't all perfect. However all the Finnair crews we had gave a very warm and competent service indeed, so overall no problems with the people there and the Finnair people have got a quality product to deliver, resulting in a good experience all round.
Connecting in HEL is quite pleasant, including being able to easily get into town on a multi-hour layover (for all your important summer cloudberry shopping needs). I can clearly see how a short connection in HEL could go sideways pretty easily in adverse conditions, much like a short LHR T5 connection is fine when all the moving parts move but if anything jams up, you're stuffed. The HEL lounges are quite nice when quiest but got pretty busy (no seats) at prime time... rather like BA lounges, now I come to mention it
Overall Finnair exceeded expectations. BA need to keep on their toes.
It's as good as BA with a good crew and the new Do&Co catering and service. Or I could say that BA is as good as Finnair if you get a good crew and the new Club service. Meanwhile, BA's previous Club offering looks rather lacklustre in comparison to Finnair - but also in comparison the Do&Co offering. BA are keeping up with their peers in this comparison, but they had to put some effort in to do so. BA really needs to get the new Club service out everywhere, or anyone comparing an experience like Finnair with the previous BA Club service is going to find BA wanting.
Now, most BA crews are pretty good too, and I suspect Finnair aren't all perfect. However all the Finnair crews we had gave a very warm and competent service indeed, so overall no problems with the people there and the Finnair people have got a quality product to deliver, resulting in a good experience all round.
Connecting in HEL is quite pleasant, including being able to easily get into town on a multi-hour layover (for all your important summer cloudberry shopping needs). I can clearly see how a short connection in HEL could go sideways pretty easily in adverse conditions, much like a short LHR T5 connection is fine when all the moving parts move but if anything jams up, you're stuffed. The HEL lounges are quite nice when quiest but got pretty busy (no seats) at prime time... rather like BA lounges, now I come to mention it
Overall Finnair exceeded expectations. BA need to keep on their toes.
Jan 19, 2019, 8:41 pm
#34
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: CGK
Posts: 2,375
unfortunately I think they had a sale when you booked it, given that the prices between SGN-HAN OW is now circa ~£150
R
Jan 20, 2019, 6:34 am
#35
Join Date: Dec 2016
Programs: BA Bronze
Posts: 15
I had an excellent experience on AY in December, LHR-HEL-HKG-BKK-HEL-LHR. it was the first time I have used AY (usually fly Cathay to HKG or BA to BKK) and I was pleasantly surprised. Finnair I find usually to be at least half the price of BA and Cathay but I had never booked them in 3 years because I have been wary of connecting in HEL. In the future I will use Finnair as my first port of call when looking for flights to Asia.
The cabin was a bit dull looking, but seemed pretty fresh and in good condition. I really like the feeling of space on the A350 with no centre bin. Food and drink was great, as was the service. A350 between London and Helsinki is also a big bonus if you can time it right - I managed to get it both directions. The A330 I had from BKK-HEL was showing its age, especially the seats . . . but the hard product is still miles better than CW (in my opinion).
The cabin was a bit dull looking, but seemed pretty fresh and in good condition. I really like the feeling of space on the A350 with no centre bin. Food and drink was great, as was the service. A350 between London and Helsinki is also a big bonus if you can time it right - I managed to get it both directions. The A330 I had from BKK-HEL was showing its age, especially the seats . . . but the hard product is still miles better than CW (in my opinion).