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Everything You Want to Know About Where to Sit on a 777-300ER

Old Dec 9, 2016, 2:37 pm
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: drewguy
United is rolling out the 777-300ER to its fleet. These planes will be the first to feature the new Polaris business class seating, with direct aisle access.

Information about the plane from the United website is here


The plane features 60 Polaris class seats, 24 Premium Plus seats, 62 Economy plus seats, and 204 Economy seats. All economy seating is in a 3-4-3 format (except for 2-4-2 in the last two rows of the plane).

Seat width in economy is 17", down from the 18" in the sUA 777-200, and slightly narrower than the 787 width of 17.3". Bassinets are provided in 20EF, 30EF, and 46EF - the center seats on the three bulkhead rows.

Polaris seats have their own power outlets; Economy seats also have power (2 outlets per 3 seats or 2 per 4 seats; all bulkhead seats have their own power). Each seat has a dedicated USB power port as well.

Detailed seating plan: AeroLOPA -- https://www.aerolopa.com/ua-boeing-77w




From sbm12:
I flew on the media preview flight this week and wrote up a detailed report on which seats are good and bad on the new United 77W. Here's a summary of my thoughts.

Polaris Seating



General notes
  • Accessible lav at 2L is the largest on board and useful for PJs changing.
  • Row 1 has no overhead bins in the center.
  • Galley at 2L/R handles crew meals so will be busier than the forward galley throughout the flight. There is also a "passthrough" at 2L/2R that is not a galley but has shelves for food prep and snacks. As a result, the front row of the second cabin isn't quite as directly exposed to galley noise.
Seating choices
  • Bulkhead seats remain the best choice for foot well reasons. "Straight" seats are second best while angled seats have a tapered foot well for the last 10 inches of the bed length.
  • The downside of the "straight" seats is the 9" notch to slide in through but overall those will remain my seats of choice. Avoid 6/7/8 for noise reasons IMO.

  • Even-row "window" seats are a bit of a misnomer. The window, if any, is across a utility table and not well-positioned for viewing. They're more semi-aisle seats.
  • Row 16 has no window. Row 18 has one window far to the rear and part of another forward. The angles are such that you can barely see out of either.
Best Window Seat (best to worst):
  • 9A (good seat, but proximity to galley/light/noise and lav should be considered)
  • 9L (good seat, but proximity to galley/light/noise and lav should be considered)
  • 1A (good seat, but proximity to galley/light/noise should be considered)
  • 1L (good seat, but proximity to galley/light/noise should be considered) Picture from 1L
  • any other odd-numbered A/L (slight preference to A over L)
  • any other even-numbered A/L (slight preference to A over L)
  • 7A/L
  • 8A/L
  • 6A/L
  • 16A/L
Best Center Pair Seat (best to worst):
  • 9D/G (slight preference to D over G)
  • 1D/G (slight preference to D over G)
  • Any other odd
  • Any other even
  • 18
  • 6

Economy Plus
  • AVOID 3024A/L [seats renumbered with addition of PP at all costs. Freezing cold in flight and the narrowest seats on board. Plus no window.
  • Aisle seats are a smidgen narrower and the center 4-block has legroom issues.
  • Bulkhead seats have good legroom, very similar to what extending your feet on a normal row would offer.

Economy
  • Row 5650 outside pairs are some of the best, though all the way at the back. A little extra space (especially under-seat stowage) and still some overhead space, something 57 lacks. Row 57 also has a misaligned window.
  • Aisle seats are a smidgen narrower and the center 4-block has legroom issues.
  • Baby Bassient Positions in Business: 9A & 9L, PP 20EF, E+ 30EF, 46EF
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Everything You Want to Know About Where to Sit on a 777-300ER

Old Jun 22, 2018, 12:40 pm
  #601  
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
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Originally Posted by eeflyer
I have this image from 19L. Not a great view, but it didn't matter as we were over water most of the time anyway. Depends on the infant. There was a bassinet between 19 F/G and the noise carried well. Noise-cancelling headphones helped a lot. The smell was worse, as there was a ton of turbulence. It seemed to always go #2 every time the seatbelt sign came on. So the parents had to sit with her for a while until the light went off. I definitely felt for the parents as they looked as if they hadn't slept in days.

Thanks for the photo and description of 19L. I hope that an infant does not smell up the cabin like on your flight. My flight will be hopefully over Greenland,Iceland etc. BTW was the engine noise loud?

I do have Noise Cancelling headphones(:

Last edited by danielonn; Jun 22, 2018 at 12:51 pm
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Old Jun 22, 2018, 1:25 pm
  #602  
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Originally Posted by sgan317
I just got re- accommodated onto a Polaris flight. Flights tomorrow. Not expecting a huge change in available seats. Flying solo. Where should I sit?

My wisdom tells me 9D for the footwell but at the same time id rather not with a nosey neighbor. ExpertFlyer seat alert is in place if a miracle happens.
9D trivially; it's the only odd-row seat left.
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Old Jun 22, 2018, 7:54 pm
  #603  
sb3
 
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Originally Posted by sgan317
I just got re- accommodated onto a Polaris flight. Flights tomorrow. Not expecting a huge change in available seats. Flying solo. Where should I sit?

My wisdom tells me 9D for the footwell but at the same time id rather not with a nosey neighbor. ExpertFlyer seat alert is in place if a miracle happens.
You can keep the divider between the seats in the up position and just not deal with your neighbor.
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Old Jun 22, 2018, 8:28 pm
  #604  
 
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Originally Posted by danielonn
Thanks for the photo and description of 19L. I hope that an infant does not smell up the cabin like on your flight. My flight will be hopefully over Greenland,Iceland etc. BTW was the engine noise loud?

I do have Noise Cancelling headphones(:
I don't recall it being loud enough to be a bother, but I also may be less sensitive to the noise. It's loud on takeoff, but shouldn't be bad after reaching cruise. The headphones should help a lot.
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Old Jul 16, 2018, 10:47 am
  #605  
dtc
 
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I'm planning a trip from SFO-HKG with my part of 3 (2 adults, 1 car seat). Unfortunately I have a $2000+ certificate on UA (long story) so I kind of have to take UA over CX and endure the 10 across in Y+.

From reading above, and other sites - it sounds like the best seat in Y+ on this plane is "None". Here's an idea I came up with: What if I bought 4 seats?

Would that make things more bearable ? The car seat has to be in the middle right?
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Old Jul 16, 2018, 11:16 am
  #606  
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Originally Posted by dtc
I'm planning a trip from SFO-HKG with my part of 3 (2 adults, 1 car seat). Unfortunately I have a $2000+ certificate on UA (long story) so I kind of have to take UA over CX and endure the 10 across in Y+.

From reading above, and other sites - it sounds like the best seat in Y+ on this plane is "None". Here's an idea I came up with: What if I bought 4 seats?

Would that make things more bearable ? The car seat has to be in the middle right?
It definitely does make the flight more bearable.

How to buy an extra seat? "EXTRASEAT" for paid or award flights

You might actually be able to get empty middle of 4 without buying it, but if you want it guaranteed best to purchase.
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Old Jul 16, 2018, 1:36 pm
  #607  
dtc
 
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Originally Posted by fumje
It definitely does make the flight more bearable.

How to buy an extra seat? "EXTRASEAT" for paid or award flights

You might actually be able to get empty middle of 4 without buying it, but if you want it guaranteed best to purchase.
I thought about booking DEG or DFG, and hoping that someone won't take F/E... but if someone does, that seems like it would be even worse than just ABC.

And I'm not sure how to forecast load for the two flights in E+.
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Old Jul 16, 2018, 1:48 pm
  #608  
 
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777-300 Polaris v. 777-200 first?

We have the option to fly United SFO-LHR in either 777-300 Polaris or 777-200 first and we're not sure if someone recommends one over the other and why. Are the seats more comfortable in Polaris? We'd love to hear what anyone has experienced on both. We're a couple so we would like to sit and talk to each other if one is better for that as well.

Thanks!
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Old Jul 16, 2018, 1:52 pm
  #609  
 
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Originally Posted by spellbound2
We have the option to fly United SFO-LHR in either 777-300 Polaris or 777-200 first and we're not sure if someone recommends one over the other and why. Are the seats more comfortable in Polaris? We'd love to hear what anyone has experienced on both. We're a couple so we would like to sit and talk to each other if one is better for that as well.

Thanks!
777-200 First hands down. Much more spacious and tons more storage plus (usually) better, more personalized service. And you can use the GFL on the way back.
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Old Jul 16, 2018, 3:41 pm
  #610  
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Originally Posted by spellbound2
We have the option to fly United SFO-LHR in either 777-300 Polaris or 777-200 first and we're not sure if someone recommends one over the other and why. Are the seats more comfortable in Polaris? We'd love to hear what anyone has experienced on both. We're a couple so we would like to sit and talk to each other if one is better for that as well.

Thanks!
772 First is a (significantly) more comfortable seat and less dense cabin. It's an easy choice, assuming you're paying the same cost. While GF is nicer than Polaris, I'm not sure how much extra I would be willing to pay.
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Old Jul 16, 2018, 3:45 pm
  #611  
 
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Originally Posted by findark
772 First is a (significantly) more comfortable seat and less dense cabin. It's an easy choice, assuming you're paying the same cost. While GF is nicer than Polaris, I'm not sure how much extra I would be willing to pay.
Thanks for letting us know. The price difference is almost the same and we are being reimbursed so we're looking for the overall best experience. We are thinking of buying it through Ultimate Rewards unless there is a significantly better way to purchase tickets that earns more miles. Any thoughts?
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Old Jul 16, 2018, 3:46 pm
  #612  
 
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Originally Posted by SFOdelayed


777-200 First hands down. Much more spacious and tons more storage plus (usually) better, more personalized service. And you can use the GFL on the way back.
Great info on the space and storage since this is the first part of a multi-leg trip. Really appreciate the feedback.
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Old Jul 16, 2018, 5:46 pm
  #613  
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Originally Posted by spellbound2
We have the option to fly United SFO-LHR in either 777-300 Polaris or 777-200 first and we're not sure if someone recommends one over the other and why. Are the seats more comfortable in Polaris? We'd love to hear what anyone has experienced on both. We're a couple so we would like to sit and talk to each other if one is better for that as well.

Thanks!
Just flew round trip to LHR in Global First and definitely recommend the 772 over 773 Polaris Business. Choose the center pairing seats for couples.The onboard meals have go down the hill, so definitely recommend using the sit down dinning feature at the LHR Global First Lounge. Love the crab cakes and the beef entree.
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Old Jul 16, 2018, 5:52 pm
  #614  
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I took the 3-class 772 in F to Asia, and the 773 home in Polaris like 10 days later. While the Polaris experience was fine, I had a strong preference for my flight over in 2A.

Last edited by MBS MillionMiler; Jul 16, 2018 at 9:27 pm
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Old Jul 16, 2018, 7:28 pm
  #615  
 
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Originally Posted by MBS MillionMiler
I took the 3-class 722 in F to Asia, and the 773 home in Polaris like 10 days later. While the Polaris experience was fine, I had a strong preference for my flight over in 2A.
Thanks for confirming. We have 2CH on the SFO-LHR, but on the other hops there's only business and it looks like 767-300 5LK on one leg and the other leg 757-200 and we have a choice between front cabin row 3 or back cabin row 6. Any thoughts?

Thanks!
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