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I recently flew on Hawaiian Airlines in "First class" between Honolulu and Kona. I thought I would write a quick trip report about the Hawaiian inter-island experience.
Most inter-island flights take only around 30 minutes. For such a short flight, I wouldn't usually pay extra to fly in a premium cabin. But allow me to explain why I paid to fly in the pointy end in this instance. Firstly, the cost was only around $50 more than a regular Economy ticket. The difference is even less if you have checked baggage. Checked baggage costs $25 extra if you’re in Economy, while it’s complimentary for First passengers. Since I had to check a bag in anyway, the difference was only really $25 or so per sector.
So, what do you actually get in Hawaiian inter-island First class? The honest answer is not a whole lot, but you do get a larger seat with more legroom, a complimentary drink on-board and lounge access. There's one more thing that may be of benefit to some people: if crediting the flight to Virgin Australia, you also get Business/First class status credits. That means earning 40 Velocity status credits per sector, instead of 10. In my mind, ~$50 for an extra 30 status credits is pretty good!
The hard product
Hawaiian Airlines operate a fleet of 2-class Boeing 717 aircraft for inter-island flights.
First class consists of two rows in a 2-2 configuration at the front of the plane. These comfortable, spacious leather seats have about 38 inches of seat pitch.
The legroom in row 1:
Behind the two rows of First was a curtain, though it was never closed.
There is no toilet at the front of the plane, so First passengers were instructed to head to the rear of the aircraft.
Economy is in a 2-3 configuration:
Most inter-island flights take only around 30 minutes. For such a short flight, I wouldn't usually pay extra to fly in a premium cabin. But allow me to explain why I paid to fly in the pointy end in this instance. Firstly, the cost was only around $50 more than a regular Economy ticket. The difference is even less if you have checked baggage. Checked baggage costs $25 extra if you’re in Economy, while it’s complimentary for First passengers. Since I had to check a bag in anyway, the difference was only really $25 or so per sector.
So, what do you actually get in Hawaiian inter-island First class? The honest answer is not a whole lot, but you do get a larger seat with more legroom, a complimentary drink on-board and lounge access. There's one more thing that may be of benefit to some people: if crediting the flight to Virgin Australia, you also get Business/First class status credits. That means earning 40 Velocity status credits per sector, instead of 10. In my mind, ~$50 for an extra 30 status credits is pretty good!
The hard product
Hawaiian Airlines operate a fleet of 2-class Boeing 717 aircraft for inter-island flights.
First class consists of two rows in a 2-2 configuration at the front of the plane. These comfortable, spacious leather seats have about 38 inches of seat pitch.
The legroom in row 1:
Behind the two rows of First was a curtain, though it was never closed.
There is no toilet at the front of the plane, so First passengers were instructed to head to the rear of the aircraft.
Economy is in a 2-3 configuration: