FLIGHT REVIEW: Air France Business Class From Barcelona to Mexico City Via Paris

Booking

This was a one way cash fare from Barcelona to Sao Paulo which included flying Air France Barcelona to Paris to Mexico City and then Aeromexico from Mexico City to Sao Paulo.  I chose this routing specifically to kill a few birds with one stone.  I needed to go to Brazil to visit family, I also wanted to stop over in MEX to catch up with a friend for her birthday and the fare was significantly cheaper from Spain hence the Barcelona departure point. 

I booked my ticket using an online travel agent (OTA) and once I had my booking reference was able to manage my booking on both the Air France and Aeromexico website/app and select seats.

Flight 1

• Air France – Barcelona to Paris
• Airbus A321
• F-GTAT ‘Aurillac’
• Seat 2A
• Actual flight time: 90min

Barcelona Check in

I checked in online via the Air France app (opens 30hr prior to departure) and received all three of my boarding passes to my phone.  With a 6:10am departure I didn’t want to spend an unnecessary amount of time at the airport and arrived at BCN Terminal 1 at 5:00am.  Having hand baggage only and my boarding pass in my phone wallet I proceeded directly to ‘Fast Lane’ security and what can I say other than BLISS.  No queues.  No drama.  Agents that smiled.  I was airside within literally 90 seconds.  Compare this to my departure from Liverpool the day before – security agents snarling and barking orders and so many bags being rejected (definitely over 50%) that they had to stop the x ray conveyer belt moving due to the backlog.  My bag was pulled, apparently, the clear plastic bag I have been using without issue for the past 15/20 flights for my liquids is now ‘too big’ and so I waited around thirty minutes to move exactly the same contents into a ‘compliant’ bag that I had to pay £1 for in a vending machine.  Look, I understand there are rules and some agents/airports follow them more than others, but there is still a respectable way that airport security staff should talk to passengers and a professional way to behave.  It seems like Liverpool airport is aspiring to surpass Manchester in the security miserableness stakes.  Anyway, back to BCN.

Pau Casals Lounge, Barcelona

Air France like every other airline that provides lounge access at BCN T1 directs passengers to the Pau Casals lounge which also welcomes the usual paid lounge membership cards.  I have used the lounge a few times before and I would definitely rate it pretty highly as far as airport contract lounges go. 

It is very spacious, has never been overcrowded when I have visited, clean, modern and relaxing.  The food spread is very much up my alley with predominantly cold offerings – delicious Spanish meats and cheeses, salads even gazpacho. 

Boarding

Boarding was indicated at 5:40am on my boarding pass and indeed when I reached gate C76 just a minute after this time boarding was underway.  Air France like most airlines these days uses the Group boarding system with groups 1 and 2 being ‘Sky Priority’ groups for top tier frequent flyers and premium cabin passengers.  There were massive queues for the other groups but none at the priority lane.  My boarding pass was scanned, and the dreaded ‘bleep’ and a red light illuminated but it just turned out the agent had to check my passport validity for Mexico.

I was welcomed by two friendly crew at the door of the 16 year old A321 and took my seat 2A.  The crew were very focused on getting the aircraft away on time (I overheard the Purser complaining to the ground staff they had allowed too much hand baggage on which was making boarding slow) and at 6:05am the door was closed.  We pushed back bang on time at 6:10am and were airborne at 6:20am bound for Paris.

The Seat

As we all know with intra-europe business class, nothing to get excited about as it is basically an economy seat.  On this flight business class consisted of just two rows.  Interestingly, when I first booked, I selected my preferred seat, an aisle seat last row of business class which at that time was row 5.  About ten days before the flight, I received a message that my seat had changed to 3D which had now become the last row of business class.  The day before, row 3 also became economy (the flight was 100% full) so I was moved to 2A.  As nice as it would be for European airlines to have ‘proper’ business class seats you cannot ignore how beneficial it is to the airlines to have such flexibility in their revenue management.  As per the norm, the middle seat was unsold and empty however there was no table or anything over it.  The leg room seemed decent, the padding was pretty good, there was a USB-A port and well…. that’s it really!

The Flight

Once in the air, the friendly crew member offered breakfast which is usually nothing to get excited about on any flight let alone a 90-minute intra Europe hop.  I do feel however AF could definitely have done better with its catering.  There is only one option and the small tray consisted of three tiny dry sandwich triangles each with cheese, two slithers of cold pancake with some apricot compote, a small side of maybe six little chopped fragments of citrus fruit, and a choice of a croissant or bread roll.  It was basically a dry, flavourless stodge.  I took a tray to get a picture for this review but just picked at the fruit.  We landed ahead of time however our gate was occupied and parked at terminal 2F five minutes late.

The aircraft was Wi-Fi equipped but it seemed it wasn’t operational as I was unable to connect on either my phone or laptop.

Verdict

It is obvious to see why airlines struggle to sell intra Europe business class as a stand-alone product with all eight fellow passengers in the two rows of ‘eurobiz’ also connecting to long haul flights with Air France.  Fast Track security, priority boarding, and lounge access are useful perks but if you have mid or top tier SkyTeam status you will receive these when travelling economy anyway.  The only difference onboard is a guaranteed middle seat closer to the front of the plane and a **cough** ‘meal’.  However, in terms of the flight in general I appreciated the punctuality and the friendly service.

Transit

Terminal 2E and 2F are the home of Air France and are a sprawling series of buildings however transit from 2E to 2F was relatively straight forward.  2F comprises of three separate piers – K, L, M – and once I saw on the flight information screen that my flight would be departing from K pier, I followed the yellow signs.  It was a bit of a walk but probably for the best on a day where I will otherwise be sitting, sleeping, or eating!  I had to go through passport control (there was a priority lane for business class) and then I was in the K departures hall.  I was pleasantly surprised I did not have to pass through security again.

Air France Lounge, Paris

Each of the three long-haul piers of terminal 2F has its own Air France ‘salon’ and you can only use the lounge in the pier your flight is departing from technically.  In my opinion, the lounges vary quite a lot with the one in the L pier to be the best, the M pier being OK, and I would say the same about this one in the K pier. 

In AF’s defence, there is a big sign at the entrance to the lounge advising the facility is being updated and an upgrade is due I would say.  I find in lounges that people are a little like sheep, on entry they often follow the herd and jump straight into an empty seat creating the impression to anyone else entering that the lounge is very crowded.  Which is what I discovered here, turning into the lounge from reception there was a large room with no natural light and more or less every seat taken.  Newcomers were quick to jump into any vacated seat I guess worried they may be left standing!  I have learnt however to continue exploring and a few twists and turns and there was a much quieter area around the back with natural light and then I noticed a staircase so went up to an almost deserted mezzanine. 

On the positive side, the lounge had three separate buffet stations which all offered the same food, so it thinned the crowds out a little in that respect.  The offerings were cold cuts of meat, fruit, yoghurt, bread an croissant.  There were also a couple hot items, some terribly overcooked scrambled eggs and probably the saddest looking bacon I have ever seen.

Self service bars were also dotted around with wine, spirits, and champagne as were a number of refrigerators with cans of soft drinks. 

Wi-Fi was extremely fast and easy to log onto.

All AF lounges have Clarins spa however I have consistently found an appointment impossible to get even when I have had four of more hours transit time.  The spas have either been filled, or in the cases of my last two visits to the lounges at CDG, closed altogether.  I did take a shower to freshen up in one of the seven shower suites after a short wait of about 15minutes.  The showers were clean and equipped with Clarins products as well as amenities such as toothbrush sets and amenity kits. 

Flight 2

• Air France Paris to Mexico City
• A350-900
• F-HYTQ ‘Menton’
• Seat 8L
• Actual flight time: 11hr 4min.

Boarding

Gate K35 was only a short walk from the lounge and when I arrived at 11:25 for our 12:15 departure boarding was underway.  Groups were as per the previous flight and after having my passport checked and boarding pass scanned there was a short wait on the jetty before passengers were allowed onto the aircraft.  Boarding was completed by 12:00 however there were some delays to catering and cargo loading so we did not push back until 12:35.

At my seat was the bedding (a pillow and blanket), a coat hanger, headphones, bottle of water and a pair of slippers.  A charming crew member approached and asked if I had a jacket to hang and when I indicated not, removed the coat hanger.  The crew then passed through with amenity kits, pre departure drinks (champagne, OJ or water) as well as the menu for the flight.

The seat

Air France has two types of seating on their A350’s and I got to sample their newest product on a flight from Chicago to Paris (see TLFL review) and it really blew me away.  The other product which was on my two year old A350 today was originally intended for Air France’s short-lived subsidiary ‘Joon’.  Joon was launched under the previous CEO to operate flights on a lower cost margin predominantly on leisure routes where Air France mainline struggled to make money.  The airline was a kind of hybrid combination of not exactly ‘LOCO’ but reduced customer offerings in Economy yet still a premium business class cabin.  It weirdly marketed itself as an ‘airline for millennials’ however when the new CEO took over AF Joon was disbanded and merged into Air France which also inherited the Joon A350’s.

I knew the seat on this flight wouldn’t be at the same level as the new ‘flagship’ suite with doors on the newer 350 but it still exceeded my expectations.  First thing to be aware of is that it is a staggered design so not all seats are equal as is the downside of aircraft that have these alternating configurations.  Solo seats along the windows alternate between being closer to the window (my preference) or the aisle and middle seats alternate between pairs close together or further towards the aisle.  I selected myself seat 8L which is towards the rear of the cabin and one of the ‘true’ window seats. 

I was impressed how private the seat felt despite the lack of a door as the seat casing is quite high and the seats themselves are deliberately misaligned with the seats across the aisle.  The touch screen IFE screen is large, has bright and crisp resolution and can also be controlled by a remote.  What I appreciated most apart from the sense of privacy is the footwell seemed much larger than other staggered seating products.  Storage is adequate with the cupboard housing the headphones big enough to accommodate the bottle of water, and some other bits and pieces and my backpack was able to go under the ottoman.  Charging wise there is a USB-A port directly under the IFE screen and a multiplug adaptor beneath the seat.  Seating controls were straight forward with the ability to choose from three preset positions (upright, relax or sleep) as well as the ability to manually customise the seat recline.  There was a reading light at shoulder level as well as the standard reading lights above and unfortunately no individual air nozzles.

The flight

After take-off the crew came through taking meal orders with an iPad or in my case confirming my pre-ordered meal of the veal (you can pre order your main selection on airfrance.com 15 days before departure).  Hot towels were then passed out and collected and then a bar service commenced.  I had a G&T which must have been 50% gin and my drink was served with an amuse bouche and the delicious cheese crackers I am obsessed with. 

I am not much of a drinker so the glass of fizz before taking off and the almost neat gin with dash of tonic was taking its effect, I am quite the lightweight.  After clearing in the glasses, the crew commenced the meal service.  

Trays are presented from a trolley which consist of the starter and side salad and a choice of white or brown baguette is offered.  I always enjoy the Air France starters and salads especially out of Paris they are always fresh and tasty.  Wine and water were also offered.

The starter plates were cleared, and the main dish presented.  I have found that whilst AF main courses will never win any awards for presentation, they taste pretty good.  The shredded veal with pasta and cheese was delicious and I polished it off. 

The crew were very proactive with the wine and bread top ups and once the main course was cleared each passenger was presented with a cheese course consisting of three varieties.  No biscuits of course but thankfully the crew again passed with bread.  Now feeling absolutely stuffed I passed on the offer of dessert, digestif, tea and coffee.

I put my seat into bed mode and tried to get a few hours sleep and whilst the bed was relatively comfortable it was a little narrow at shoulder level.  I also found it felt quite hot and stuffy and it is usually at this point I find individual air nozzles to be worth their weight in gold.  Although the cabin itself wasn’t too warm with the construction of these seats there is just very little air circulating at a lower level in bed mode. 

I dozed on and off for a few hours and decided to get myself up and about with around four and a half hours left of the flight.  I popped into the galley to request an espresso and there was also a small snack station mainly consisting of packaged savoury snacks and fruit. 

After watching the original IT film and a few episodes of The Simpsons on the IFE we had around 1hr45min to go before landing and the pre-arrival meal began.  There was a choice between chicken breast and potatoes or pasta, and I went for the chicken which came with some citrus fruit, a Madeline cake and some bread.  The full array of drinks was again offered and I just went with some water and another espresso.

The trays were cleared away, hot towels offered and then the announcement that we would shortly begin our decent.  After a few minutes into our decent the captain came on the PA to make an announcement that there were thunderstorms passing through the area and we would have to hold for around fifteen minutes.

IFE/WIFI

The touchscreen IFE screen was large, crisp, and responsive and content could also be navigated by a remote control or even my own phone if I chose to connect it with Bluetooth.  I was delighted there was both a tail and forward-facing camera and that and the moving map is pretty much all I use the aircraft IFE for as I prefer to download my own content onto my personal device.  This A350 also was Wi-Fi equipped and offered a free service for messaging apps, a ‘surf pass’ (Eu10 for 1hr or Eu22 for the whole flight) and a ‘stream pass’ (Eu38 for the whole flight).  There was also the ability to pay for Wi-Fi using Flying Blue miles.

Service

Three gentlemen worked in the business class cabin, two serving the customers and one primarily in the galley, and they were all exceptional service professionals. Between the three of them they had nearly 85 years of service with Air France, and they exuded warmth, patience and professionalism throughout the entire 11 hour flight.  The chap serving my aisle welcomed and introduced himself to me on boarding, at each interaction asked if I enjoyed the meal/drink and thanked me for flying Air France at the end of the flight.  The service is exactly the type I value – nothing over the top, no fawning, just genuine care, and warmth.

Verdict

Air France ticked all the boxes for me on this flight – nice private seating with direct aisle access, very good food, and beverage as well as friendly and professional crew.  I have had a number of Air France business class flights over the past year and although there has been a variation of seating options the experience itself has been consistently very good.  I have not experienced any significant delays, poor food or sub-par staff on any of my journeys and they would most likely be my first choice of European carrier if prices with a competitor were similar.

Click here for another review from Jason.