What plane to choose for first class flight
 

Hi there,

Having not flown CO for around 20 years :eek: I need some help with what plane to choose for an upcoming flight.

Flying in first class, the following operate on the route I am looking at:
LAS-EWR

737-800
737-900
757-300

Any pros/cons, but I am tending towards the 737's are they are much newer than the 757's, but again open to ideas/suggestions/rants/whines/complaints/feedback.

Also any links to menus for the meals in first for breakfast, lunch and dinner, as that may also sway my choice

Thanks :D

Take the 757-300 anyday! 24 seats in F so if you are going to upgrade, then this is the best p lane to be on. I loved the ride on these things but everyone has a different opinion I guess.

The 753s are not that old and they are well maintained inside. I'm not sure that apparent age would differ inside.

The 739 is most likely to have LiveTV on it but no guarantees as only the 73Es are actually fully configured (and nothing is showing right now pending the repairs).

The food thing is very much a personal decision. I generally like the lunch/dinner meals better than the breakfasts but others might disagree. The difference is more pronounced on transcon flights but I'm guessing that isn't what you're looking at based on the 753.

What is the route? That would help us give you more information.

Should have added the route!

LAS-EWR

Also the CO lounge at LAS looks pretty damn good compared to UA's offerings....

The lounge at LAS is quite nice, but you do not get access based on an F ticket LAS-EWR. Hopefully you have a scheme to make that work.

I'd go for a lunch or dinner meal on that route but not the redeye and not let the a/c type drive the decision. The seats on the 73Es are a bit less comfortable than the others IMO bot otherwise it is really a wash.

Given a choice I always opt for 757s...I just like those birds. A Continental captain that I rode next to several years back described the 757 as "a 737 on steroids".

sbm12: Thanks :) I should be * Alliance gold by the time I take this flight but I also have a Priority Pass card which (at the present time) gives me access!

Thanks for the advice.

As I said it's been 20 years since I have flown on CO so very excited to be getting back on board again!

+1.

Another benefit of the 757 over the 737 options is CO usually boards the 757 from door 2L immediately behind the first class cabin which makes it nicer to store your carry-on, flight attendants can serve drinks, you can use the lavatory, etc. while main cabin is boarding.

As sbm12 noted, the 900 is most likely to have DirecTV and will certainly be the newest metal. I would avoid the redeye (753) as service is limited and sleep will be uncomfortable if at all. CO F breakfasts are the best and most filling of all NA carriers but you'll have an early wake-up call. If you like to get up at a civilized hour and/or like to drink and fly (or fly and drink) the lunch or mid-PM dinner (mostly 753s in January) would be better.

As the LAS-EWR schedule changes frequently over the next month and a half, if you tell us you approximate travel date, we can opine more specifically.

I would choose the 753, especially if you can get 1A or 1B. The big cutout for your feet and carry-on luggage makes them some of my favorite non-BF seats in CO's fleet. I also find the older seats a bit more comfortable than the newer ones on the 739s.

As for the meal, I would generally opt for dinner if I had a choice, although on a recent BOS-IAH trip the dinner seemed to be more like what lunch used to be. I agree the breakfasts are very good.

Personally, I like the 737-900ER since they have the LiveTV (free in F, $6 in coach). The flight goes by so quickly and you can surf nearly 100 channels.

*G in and of itself will not get you into the LAS Club as LAS-EWR is a domestic flight. Make sure your Priority Pass Card will still work or you or you may have problemse.

If you want to sit way up front, I recommend 1A on this plane.

I think for the most part, we're splitting hairs here. CO's domestic fleet is pretty consistent with respect to the first class cabin. The notable exception would be a 757-200 with international BusinessFirst seats, which does serve the LAS-EWR route occasionally. But as mentioned, the LAS schedule seems to change quite frequently.

I would choose my flights by schedule first in this case (unless a 752 shows up, then sometimes I'll make a sacrifice).

That being said, I agree 1AB on a 753 are probably the best seats, and the door 2L boarding on the 753 creates a more tranquil boarding experience. (It also means you usually have to fight with coach pax when getting off the plane unless the FAs block them, which they sometimes do.)

But a drawback of the 753 is the 24 seats served by 2 FAs which makes service incrementally slower and less personal than the 16-20 passenger cabins on the 737s (also served by 2 FAs).

If you can get a plane with DirectTV / inseat power, that would probably also be a factor. It's probably difficult to guarantee that well in advance, but a First Class ticket is flexible, so you may be able to change flights a day before when the IFE details are posted on pda.continental.com.

It will unless the *G status comes from UA, US or CO. :-: