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United Polaris - New Business Class seats & inflight service {Archive}

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Old Jan 17, 2020, 6:38 pm
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Archive thread -- Active thread is United Polaris - New Business Class seats & inflight service -- 3+ years after Intro

United website - Explore: http://view.ceros.com/united/polaris-business-class/p/1
from UA's Facebook stream
Only customers traveling in United Polaris business class or United Polaris Global First on international flights and customers in Star Alliance international first or business class cabins on flights longer than six hours will have access to the United Polaris Lounge.
Official Polaris Lounge Access Rules are here: Polaris Lounge Access Rules

United Polaris Business and Polaris First pax may access the Polaris lounge at connecting airports and their final destination within 24 hours of departure or arrival.

*A international J and F pax may only access the Polaris lounge at the departure airport. For purposes of Polaris lounge access, Canada, the Caribbean, Central America, and Guam are excluded from the definition of "international."

Seat Chart.

Press release: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-relea...300278706.html

NEW YORK, June 2, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- With the aspiration of making weary business travel a relic of the past, United Airlines today unveiled its all-new United Polaris business class, the airline's most significant product transformation in more than a decade, featuring a reimagined, sleep-enhancing, departure-to-landing experience for intercontinental travelers.

Named after the North Star, United Polaris is the shining new star of business class travel that flyers can turn to for a tranquil and restful journey.

"United Polaris will change the game in international business travel with an exceptional level of relaxation and comfort throughout our customers' journeys," said Oscar Munoz, president and CEO of United. "This completely reconceived experience exemplifies the new spirit of United and the innovation, excitement and operational momentum across our airline."

Path-Breaking Design

In setting out to create a transformative business class experience, United chose to outfit its widebody fleet with a custom-designed, exclusive-to-United seat, rather than select an option already in the marketplace. Designed in partnership with Acumen Design Associates and PriestmanGoode and manufactured by Zodiac Seats United Kingdom, each United Polaris seat will offer direct access to the aisle, 180-degree flat-bed recline and up to 6 foot 6 inches of bed space.

Crafted as individual, forward-facing, suite-like pods, each customer's personal suite will feature a "Do Not Disturb" sign, mood lighting, one-touch lumbar support, several storage areas, multiple surfaces for simultaneous working and dining, a 16-inch high-definition entertainment screen and, for seats in the center of the cabin, electronic privacy dividers. Complementing the new seats, United and PriestmanGoode have also conceived an all-new look for the United Polaris cabins.

In rethinking the international business class experience, United conducted more than 12,000 hours of research, and sleep emerged as the single most important priority for international business class travelers. United Polaris' path-breaking design and sleep-enhancing focus was inspired and informed by insights from hundreds of customers and employees, inflight product simulations and more than 100 product evaluations.

Sleep-Enticing Amenities

In addition to the sleep-enticing United Polaris personal suites, several other amenities were designed with our customers' sleep in mind.

In a first-of-its-kind partnership, United has worked with leading luxury specialty store Saks Fifth Avenue for custom-designed bedding. All designed to provide the best sleep in the sky, the new bedding collection will feature plush duvets, lightweight day-blankets and a large and small pillow for each United Polaris customer. In addition, mattress cushions will be available upon request.

Slippers will be available on all flights, and customized United Polaris pajamas will be available by request on flights longer than 12 hours**. Flyers will also be able to request a gel-cooled pillow. New amenity kits will feature ergonomically designed eye shades, calming lavender pillow mist and additional products from Soho House & Co.'s Cowshed Spa.

With the introduction of United Polaris, the airline intends to donate tens of thousands of pillows, blankets and other inflight service items to Fisher House Foundation, which United and its employees have long supported.

Elevated Dining Experience

Upon boarding their flight, each United Polaris customer will be welcomed with a pre-departure beverage of his or her choice and gourmet chocolate. While in the air, customers will enjoy regionally influenced in-flight menus updated seasonally, developed in partnership with The Trotter Project and its critically recognized chefs, including Bill Kim of acclaimed Chicago restaurants Urbanbelly, bellyQ and Belly Shack.

The airline will offer an upgraded wine experience, with the highest-quality options curated exclusively by United's Master Sommelier. Inflight service will also include made-to-order signature ice cream sundaes, a dessert cart with a variety of petit dessert options, chocolate truffles and wine flights. On daytime flights longer than eight hours and on all flights longer than 12 hours, hot mid-flight snacks such as lobster macaroni and cheese will be available.

Raising The Bar With United Polaris Business Class Lounges

United will also open an exclusive portfolio of United Polaris business class lounges in nine locations around the world – the only lounge of its kind offered by a U.S. airline to business class customers – that will feature custom-designed chairs, private daybeds, spa-like showers and chef-inspired hot meals served in a boutique restaurant setting so customers can refresh and dine before boarding their planes. Premium sparkling wines and spirits, refreshing snacks and bottled water will also be offered.

The first new United Polaris lounge will open at Chicago O'Hare International Airport on Dec. 1, 2016. Lounges in eight other locations – Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, New York/Newark, Washington Dulles, Tokyo Narita, Hong Kong and London Heathrow – will follow in 2017.

United Polaris Introduction

United will begin to introduce United Polaris on Dec. 1, 2016, with the new inflight food and beverage experience, new custom bedding from Saks Fifth Avenue, new amenity kits and the new United Polaris lounge in Chicago. The United Polaris business class seat will first take flight in December on Boeing 777-300ER aircraft and subsequently on Boeing 787-10 and Airbus A350-1000 aircraft, as well as on Boeing 767-300 and 777-200 retrofits.

United Polaris will serve business class customers flying the U.S. airline industry's most global route network, reaching more than 330 destinations in more than 50 countries.

More information on the United Polaris business class can be found at united.com/Polaris.

[From [email][email protected] 11/15/2016]
Starting December 1, 2016, United Polaris Business Class service will replace United BusinessFirst service on international flights, and United Polaris Global First service will replace the current United Global First service.

Between 2017 to 2019 eight additional United Polaris lounges will open at EWR, HKG, IAD, IAH, LAX, LHR, NRT and SFO. We do not have the exact opening dates at this time. A scheduling announcement will be forthcoming.
** Flights with pajama service (for both directions)
SFO - ICN, PEK, PVG, HGH, XIV, TPE, AKL, HKG, CTU, SYD, TLV, SIN
EWR - NRT, PEK, DEL, BOM, HKG, PVG
ORD - NRT, PEK PVG, HKG
LAX - PVG, SYD, MEL, SIN
IAD - NRT, PEK
IAH - NRT, SYD
(from United Twitter feed https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CyjFHZLW...jpg&name=large

{Similar Threads:
Polaris Lounge Roadmap 2017-2018 (wiki) (thread)
Polaris lounge ORD - opened 01 Dec 2016 (wiki) (thread)
SFO Lounge changes? Which will become Polaris? Shower options?(wiki) (thread)
United Polaris-New Business Class seats & inflight service and new Polaris Lounges(wiki) (thread)}


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United Polaris - New Business Class seats & inflight service {Archive}

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Old Jul 10, 2018, 10:02 pm
  #4231  
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Programs: American EXP; British Airways Gold
Posts: 1,896
Originally Posted by 1015-1k


Well, I tend to disagree, and I’ve flown it much more than that (just saying that as a point of reference since you did). Things are slowing evolving back to the old tired UA service...

<snip>

-No guarantees that the wine list is accurate.

<snip>
There was a different issue on my AKL-SFO Polaris flight. One hour into the flight, United ran out of red wine. I guess the crew likes Pinot.
jcatman is offline  
Old Jul 10, 2018, 10:47 pm
  #4232  
 
Join Date: May 2001
Location: RNO, NV, USA.
Programs: UA 2MM
Posts: 5,063
Originally Posted by jcatman
There was a different issue on my AKL-SFO Polaris flight. One hour into the flight, United ran out of red wine. I guess the crew likes Pinot.
Usually it is the champagne they run out of, rather than the red wine.
restlessinRNO is offline  
Old Jul 10, 2018, 11:21 pm
  #4233  
 
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: EWR, PHL
Programs: UA1k 3MM, AA Plt, peasant on everybody else, elite something or other at a bunch of hotels.
Posts: 4,637
Originally Posted by zitsky
In Polaris I believe it is often Nicolas Feuillatte. But the menu says that selection varies.
Two to three weeks ago it was Pommery on SFO-TPE or vice versa, maybe both.
1kBill is offline  
Old Jul 11, 2018, 12:40 am
  #4234  
 
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: MRY - CNX - TXL
Programs: UA 1K / *G / Marriott PE / Expedia Gold+ / Hertz PC
Posts: 7,058
“That’s why you have an eye shade.” - FA to the J pax that asked about the 787 window because the sun was beaming right into her face.
She was trying to watch a movie, not sleep hence the eyeshade point being moot.
JVPhoto is offline  
Old Jul 14, 2018, 3:15 pm
  #4235  
 
Join Date: Jul 2017
Posts: 6
My biggest issue is the food quality and variety sucks on UA. That is simply a matter of $.
and I am GS, only fly on paid J and have 285k PQM so far ytd so I think that’s a reasonable sample size.
like all airlines - there are great crews and some less great but that isn’t UA only. My worst flight this year for service was on SQ J
I do wish for a $9k IAD-LHR some reasonable wine and food would be included.
bml2017 is offline  
Old Jul 14, 2018, 3:29 pm
  #4236  
 
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: NYC (Primarily EWR)
Programs: UA 1K / *G, Marriott Bonvoy Gold; Avis PC
Posts: 9,008
Originally Posted by bml2017
My biggest issue is the food quality and variety sucks on UA. That is simply a matter of $.
and I am GS, only fly on paid J and have 285k PQM so far ytd so I think that’s a reasonable sample size.
like all airlines - there are great crews and some less great but that isn’t UA only. My worst flight this year for service was on SQ J
I do wish for a $9k IAD-LHR some reasonable wine and food would be included.
As an EWR-based flyer, anytime I am flying a TATL redeye from now on, I will get to the airport early enough to have a sit-down meal at the Polaris lounge and skip eating onboard so I can sleep more. At least based on my experience in the ORD Polaris lounge, the sit-down food is not spectacular, but it is miles ahead of what you will eat on the plane.
PsiFighter37 is offline  
Old Jul 14, 2018, 3:34 pm
  #4237  
 
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: NYC (Primarily EWR)
Programs: UA 1K / *G, Marriott Bonvoy Gold; Avis PC
Posts: 9,008
Objectively, UA does have pretty bad food onboard. I have flown a lot more other carriers this year on international J (LO, OS, TG, BR, SQ, SK, and AC), and all of them have had substantially better offerings than UA does on their international flights. It’s not even close. I used to pooh-pooh these objections since I had not experienced other carriers’ products, but outside of dessert (I will give UA props for the sundae offering), they are materially behind what other carriers put forth.

It’s not a dealbreaker for me (and as a US-based flyer, I highly doubt either AA or DL are miles ahead), but it is a complaint that has a lot of validity now that I have seen what other *A members offer to their premium flyers.

Last edited by WineCountryUA; Jul 14, 2018 at 5:31 pm Reason: removed quote of deleted post
PsiFighter37 is offline  
Old Jul 15, 2018, 11:16 am
  #4238  
 
Join Date: Jul 2018
Posts: 4
Having just registered today, AND not wanting to read 4200 posts to see if my question is present, does anyone know if/when Uniteds new Polaris seats are going to be used between the US and Singapore and/or Shanghai?
clojacks is offline  
Old Jul 15, 2018, 11:25 am
  #4239  
 
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: RDU
Posts: 5,242
Originally Posted by clojacks
Having just registered today, AND not wanting to read 4200 posts to see if my question is present, does anyone know if/when Uniteds new Polaris seats are going to be used between the US and Singapore and/or Shanghai?
It may depend on type of plane. 777, 767 etc Someone should be on soon to give you a better answer.
zitsky is offline  
Old Jul 15, 2018, 11:27 am
  #4240  
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: SJC / DPS
Programs: AS G75K, UA Silver
Posts: 1,757
Originally Posted by clojacks
Having just registered today, AND not wanting to read 4200 posts to see if my question is present, does anyone know if/when Uniteds new Polaris seats are going to be used between the US and Singapore and/or Shanghai?
Currently, no. There is the odd exception that ORD-PVG will get the new seats but it is random and not likely.
pushmyredbutton is offline  
Old Jul 15, 2018, 11:34 am
  #4241  
 
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: RDU
Posts: 5,242
Originally Posted by pushmyredbutton
Currently, no. There is the odd exception that ORD-PVG will get the new seats but it is random and not likely.
It looks like that route is served by a 777-200 which will probably be the last to be reconfigured. I have a South America flight on the same plane. I dont expect it to be reconfigured anytime soon.
zitsky is offline  
Old Jul 15, 2018, 11:50 am
  #4242  
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: SJC / DPS
Programs: AS G75K, UA Silver
Posts: 1,757
Originally Posted by zitsky
It looks like that route is served by a 777-200 which will probably be the last to be reconfigured. I have a South America flight on the same plane. I dont expect it to be reconfigured anytime soon.
There's 3/27 active reconfigured pmUA 772s currently, so that's roughly an 11% chance of getting one of the new frames on ORD-PVG or any other route that flies the pmUA 772. The rest of the PVG/SIN routes are on 787's which feature the old Diamond seats.
pushmyredbutton is offline  
Old Jul 15, 2018, 12:04 pm
  #4243  
 
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: NYC (Primarily EWR)
Programs: UA 1K / *G, Marriott Bonvoy Gold; Avis PC
Posts: 9,008
Originally Posted by zitsky
It looks like that route is served by a 777-200 which will probably be the last to be reconfigured. I have a South America flight on the same plane. I dont expect it to be reconfigured anytime soon.
That would be serviced by an sUA 772, which are actually the first 772s to be retrofitted. sCO 772s (which mainly fly ex-EWR and IAH) will be the last ones to get done.
PsiFighter37 is offline  
Old Jul 15, 2018, 3:24 pm
  #4244  
 
Join Date: Jul 2018
Posts: 4
Originally Posted by clojacks
Having just registered today, AND not wanting to read 4200 posts to see if my question is present, does anyone know if/when Uniteds new Polaris seats are going to be used between the US and Singapore and/or Shanghai?
To add a bit more specifics....we are either flying from SFO or Vancouver to Singapore in January and returning to same from Shanghai. I’d rather fly Air Canada’s pods than United’s old Business configuration. SFO would be a 789, which I believe are not in line to get the new (well, 2 year old) seats. Any insight would be helpful as we are looking to book in the next couple of days.
clojacks is offline  
Old Jul 15, 2018, 6:30 pm
  #4245  
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
 
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 56,470
Originally Posted by pushmyredbutton
There's 3/27 active reconfigured pmUA 772s currently
3/33.

Originally Posted by clojacks
To add a bit more specifics....we are either flying from SFO or Vancouver to Singapore in January and returning to same from Shanghai. I’d rather fly Air Canada’s pods than United’s old Business configuration. SFO would be a 789, which I believe are not in line to get the new (well, 2 year old) seats. Any insight would be helpful as we are looking to book in the next couple of days.


SFO-SIN and PVG-SFO are both 789 routes. These aircraft will not get Polaris seats for quite some time.
Kacee is offline  


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