Best Business Class from SFO-BOM?
 

I am currently planning for my honeymoon and want to take business class from SFO to Mumbai. As far as i can tell the new A380's by Emirates offer the best business class from and fly from SFO, I always heard Singapore Air was the nicest, but it seems like they use 777's from SFO and not A380s and there would be 2 stops as opposed to just one. Etihad also flys 777's from SFO but I have also heard good things about them. Are these airlines business class on their older planes comparable or nicer than that of Emirates A380? Are there other airlines I should be looking at? Thanks for the advice.

I'm not sure if you are using miles or cash so I'm going to assume cash in my response and give you a couple more that are in different alliances. These are not ordered by preference though the first 3 would be the most appealing to me in some order.

1) Cathay Pacific (SFO - HKG - BOM); The Wing and The Pier plus widely regarded as a top tier business seat

2) Turkish (SFO - IST - BOM); Fantastic J lounge in IST and I believe you can get a free transit hotel if you want to spend a night in IST as paid J - downside is it is all 777 which are in a 2-3-2 format (which wouldn't be awful assuming you can get the 2, it's open ottoman style which makes stepping over the person next to you relatively easy)

3) ANA (SFO - NRT - BOM); Great new J style seat (similar seat style to EK on the A380 and it is 1-2-1 though NH is only a 777) - however not sure if such a fare exists, I couldn't find an option on NH with a quick google search though a TA may be able to ticket such a thing or might require you to route via BKK and TG to get to BOM

4) LX (SFO - ZRH - BOM); Don't know much about LX but have heard it's a solid airline and solid product - believe it has throne style seats

5) BA (SFO - LHR - BOM); Depending on status could be good - varying views of BA J and transiting Heathrow is a pain

6) LH (SFO - FRA / MUC - BOM); LH does not have direct aisle access in J though it is lie-flat - this option would be worth it if F was an option since you would get FCT access (and LH F is fantastic)

I believe the 777 that SQ flies to SFO (from both HKG and ICN) are equipped with either the newest generation J or the previous generation J both of which are supposed to be quite nice though I don't have experience with either.

EK is a fine choice as long as you have A380 the whole way. The bar is cool and the seats look nice (I've only flown F on EK, not J but walking by them they look comfortable and nice). However if the DXB - BOM is on a 777 you will not have lie-flat seats for that segment. This may or may not be important but I believe all the other options I laid out above do have lie-flats in J the entire way there with the exception of LH which has some planes on various routes that haven't been converted yet.

Is price a consideration? Perhaps once you have your dates and look online for some pricing (assuming you're paying and that you care about price), the answer might be clearer. Maybe one is better than the other, but at what price? Also, do you care about points accruing in any particular plan?

Congratulations!

Afraid I can't answer most of your questions. But from Duke's excellent list, I'll second the notion that Cathay Pacific business class is superb in terms of both seats and service, plus Hong Kong and its lounges make for a nice transit point (or even a city to visit if you have a very long layover).

You make a good point about flying on Singapore Air requiring an extra stop, though if you view your flights as part of your honeymoon it has probably the nicest business class seat around, as well as great service and a very nice airport (and if you have time to visit, an easy and pleasant city) to transit through.

Etihad is also very good, but transiting through Abu Dhabi reportedly can be a real pain.

Unfortunately, I don't know for sure about the quality of the business class on the shorter hops from any of these airlines' home airports to BOM.

Steer clear of BA, LH and any US carriers, as their seats and/or service are inferior to other options. Plus, FRA (for LH) can be a real nightmare to transit through.

There should be a SkyTeam option through AMS or CDG. KE through ICN might also work.

Note that if you don't have BA status, they charge an additional fee to reserve seats in the business class cabin. It's about $100 per person per TATL segment, so probably about $400 per ticket to India.

JAL or AA/JAL through Tokyo might also do this route, but watch out for transfers between NRT and HND.

For a honeymoon, think about cabin configurations that allow you to sit next to each other in business class and talk. Some 1-2-1 is OK in the center section, but on other aircraft, those seats are angled away from each other. You might prefer 2-2-2, all facing forward, or even 2-3-2 if you can get a window-aisle pair. Some new business class interiors are almost suite but without the guest seat found in many FC suites.

You might want to look at FC fares for comparison. The SQ center double suite would be fabulous for a honeymoon, although sex in the big bed during flight is forbidden.

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry: BlackBerry8530/5.0.0.1030 Profile/MIDP-2.1 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/417)

"The SQ center double suite would be fabulous for a honeymoon, although sex in the big bed during flight is forbidden."

Only during flight?

:D

Flown LAX-BOM on CX and LH, BOM-LAX on EY -

LH is horrid and transit at FRA is a mess.

Loved CX and transit through HKG, soft product definitely lacking in J.

EY would be my pick of the 3 as long as you get the middle seats together (this is staggered J so alternate rows will have middle seats together), the food and service on EY are top-notch! The issue with EY is that SFO-AUH is on a Jet Airways aircraft and reviews of the seat and service are mixed.

Of the 3, I would take EY but transit through either LAX or ORD. Should not be a problem with an AA codeshare. If you are firm about not adding another connection, then CX is great!

As this is not an award program question, and is off topic for the Info Desk, let's see how it does here in TravelBuzz.

Congratulations and good luck!

Moderator, Information Desk

I think that LH does a decent job on SFO/FRA if you have lie flats on the A380 (is the entire fleet done?). The SFO lounge experience isn't good (UA club) but the FRA lounges are decent. I do hate FRA transit.

Your trip will overall, be much more pleasant if you only have one connection, and that you don't have any connections in the USA. SFO is a great port of entry to the US, and has the best int'l departure terminal in the country.

Have you considered TK? Some seem to like them a lot, and you are often better off being in the front (business) cabin of a 2 cabin airline, than the mid cabin of a 3 cabin airline.

I read and didn't see Air India. Maybe I missed it or maybe people don't like it.

I have flown with them a few times and really like their biz class. Yes, others are a bit more luxurious, but Air India's biz class prices are very cheap and IF you like Indian food, it's pretty good.

Additionally, at the chaotic BOM airport counter, they'll take very good care of you. They assign a helper who will follow you carrying your bags and also to make sure that you get through security quickly. (So make sure you don't get of all of your rupees when you leave! I tipped fairly well because those guys are great!)

(I also am a sucker for airlines that give you pajamas.. I still wear my Air India cargo sweatpants around the house!)

However, if you don't like Indian food, don't even consider as their western options are limited.

LH

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