dkc192

This is not unique to LH and happens on many airlines, including to me on UA once.

nexus7556

LH's ground crews are still in meltdown modes. I had three 2-segment flights in the last three weeks. Each time they left my bags in the connection city. If you plan on taking LH and connecting with a checked bag, expect your bag to arrive a day or two late.

halls120

It's not just the "novelty" of the menu. They actually serve what they advertise. And it's not just that - the boarding process is smooth and efficient, a FA introduces themself near the beginning of the flight, and then stops by near the end of the flight to ask if you had an enjoyable flight. They don't disappear after meal service. The cabins and lavs are clean.

When Polaris was first rolled out, UA offered a competitive product. Kirby has decimated that product.

UA does the same thing.

dcpdxtrans

Appreciated all of the responses. After posting but prior to reviewing the responses, I thought: I know Polaris, and I like it bc I find the seat comfortable and easy to sleep. I've never found UA food/service to be comparable to non-US carriers, but I'm ok with that since that is sometimes variable. The hard product is not. So I concluded, why would I want to chance a poor experience on such a long flight? As my wife and others in the Apple cult assert: it just works. I guess for me, Polaris just works (enough).

With that stated and since I'll be traveling with my wife, I think we are going to try to snag LH/LX on the westbound. I had always heard a lot of rumblings about LX that I never even considered. One potentially awesome option would be to fly the 748 in J or above, which I have never flown. My wife has never flown any 747 period. I have always wanted to be in the nose in F. My only trepidation would be disappointment in that the plane/hard product might be too old, but based on the responses, that does not seem to be the case (and I'm not sure I saw the Queen on my options in any event).

FLYMSY

I think it’s more a matter of an individual’s palate, in general, as opposed to catering to American tastes or German tastes. While being an American, I have been in Germany many, many times and love German food. With that said, LH TATL J food is mediocre. IMO, if you want better LH group food, fly with OS.

As far as, J seats - Polaris is better than LH for me.

danielflyer

You've had much better experiences than me! I have had the introduction, though, and this is nice.

aa4ever

agreed on the food. Lufthansa is definitely better than United and I do enjoy that it’s different. But it’s still very mediocre. And to my mind slightly better food doesn’t compensate for a massively sub-par seat

Unfortunately from a product perspective star alliance is probably weakest transatlantic offering, especially with BA upgrading their J product

returnoftheyeti

My wife and I currently have a flight from FCO-YUL and then connecting to YUL-SFO. We are booked into premium economy. I bid to upgrade both of us for $970 usd.

I am trying to decide if its really worth it. Daytime flight, so no sleeping. If I sit in PE I get the window seat, but business puts me in the middle of the plane. Is the soft product and food “that much better” than PE?

perkele

flew LH J this week, for the first time in years. EWR > MUC.
the seats are, well, the same that i remember and far inferior to Polaris. (new LH cabins start rolling out in 2023).
since they don't have individual aisle access, i prefer the middle seats. at least overnight where i don't want to be climbing/climbed over during sleeping hours. (ofc the shared "footsie" ottoman is weird)
the food and onboard service are far superior to Polaris IME.
UA P+ seats are superior to current LH Premium Economy seats.

cfischer

Yes, that is a good price. Go for the upgrade

porciuscato

The food is more than slightly better, it's vastly better. If you care about wine, of course, that is vastly better too.

But the service is the biggest difference. As an earlier poster mentioned, the LH FAs don't disappear after the meal service only to materialize right before the plane lands. They accommodate your pace, rather than rushing you so they can go back to their games in the galley.

I can't count the number of times UA flight attendants have whisked away my tray before I was done. Or the times they've ended their service when the plane was over an hour away from the destination. If you keep in mind that it's all about the employees and not the customer, you will understand United service.

LH First and Biz are like going to an elegant European restaurant, whereas United is more like a cheap diner.

findark

I would prefer the Polaris seat and LH soft product, so for me it's a tossup.

There are some who have a near-fanatical hatred of any seat that is not all aisle access, so that will generate some anti-LH bias. Personally I don't mind a 2-2(-2) configuration at all, although the privacy from Polaris is nice. Splitting the difference seems like a nice way to go, especially if you can get upstairs on a 747 with a companion in the other seat.

Ironically I find the LX seat fine for sleeping, but awful for being awake. When in a semi-reclined position, my legs are up at an angle so I am always smashing my shins on the edge of the well. I have similar issues with other "long-tunnel" designs like the newer DL seats.

econ

Sadly, that's still enough to surpass UA.

Yep. On one of my LH TATLs this year, I dozed off after takeoff and didn't begin eating until well into the meal service. The FA said to ring the call button when I'm ready for the next course. Don't recall ever hearing that on UA.

Santander

Don't want to stray too far off-topic, but I flew AC PE LHR-YUL last month and it was great. Food was far better than UA domestic F or LH PE and service was good. J is definitely better, and $970 would be a good price, but I could personally justify going either way.

cfischer

LH food and service is far superior to UA, not even on the same planet. UA's seat is much better. red-eye to Europe ... UA (or LH First) and back from Europe ... I think LH business is just fine and a lot more time to enjoy the service