MH_fan
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- Apr 30, 2009
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Not a trip report in the true sense but just sharing my experience on an airline not many people have flown.
Part 1:
I recently had the opportunity and pleasure of flying Vietnam Airlines (VN) in their business class for the first time a month ago. I actually did 2 trips - 1 to Paris via SGN and 1 to Seoul via SGN/HAN. Both flights originated from Sydney. All but 1 of the flights were on their A350-900 with that single 1 being on the B787-10. I'm also an AF frequent flyer and have SkyTeam Elite Plus status through their Flying Blue programme.
Overall, VN are a pretty good airline that offers good value for money and a decent product in business class. Check-in at SYD was reasonably easy with not much of a queue in the business class line, which contrasted to the very long queues for economy. This was also during the school holiday period too. Sky Priority is offered for check-in, so you can use that if travelling in prem economy if you have status. No issues with checking through to my final destinations on both occasions. A SkyTeam Lounge invitation is given at check-in, which really is unnecessary, as you'd have access as a business class or status passenger. Anyway, the SkyTeam Lounge in SYD is alright. It's a reasonable size but not that big and can get a bit crowded at peak times. Food offerings are pretty average but there is a tended bar even in the mornings where you can get sparkling wine.
The boarding process is where VN tends to fall down a bit and this was an issue prior to boarding for most of the flights. They try their best to get it organised but it doesn't seem to help. I flew on the SYD-SGN flight for both trips and they try to indicate the different lines for business class/Sky Priority and Economy (which is divided by rows). The intention is there but the execution is somewhat disorganised. What makes it even more confusing for people is that they board passengers who have come in on an NZ flight from AKL, as that connection appears to be tight.
Once on board though, the experience becomes a lot better. The seats are comfortable and reasonably spacious with adequate storage space (in my opinion). I can't remember the design name but they're the same as the old Finnair business seats. The cabin crew are fantastic. They are always very polite, friendly and accommodating. Champagne, juices or water is offered as PDB and then menus are handed out with orders taken before take-off. This was consistently done for all flights. I was quite impressed with the catering. My advice is to always go for the Asian option when travelling Asian airlines. The food was delicious with plenty of champagne if you wanted or G&Ts, which is my preferred pre-meal drink. I love Vietnamese iced coffee and I got plenty of those on my flights! Comfort amenities like pillows and duvets were decent quality. The amenity kits were pretty standard. There was a decent selection of movies with a reasonable amount of relativity new releases on offer (but this is just my opinion and I rarely go to the cinemas). The headsets are disappointing though. They are not noise-cancelling and look cheap, which is made worse when you have to put the ear covers on yourself.
Part 1:
I recently had the opportunity and pleasure of flying Vietnam Airlines (VN) in their business class for the first time a month ago. I actually did 2 trips - 1 to Paris via SGN and 1 to Seoul via SGN/HAN. Both flights originated from Sydney. All but 1 of the flights were on their A350-900 with that single 1 being on the B787-10. I'm also an AF frequent flyer and have SkyTeam Elite Plus status through their Flying Blue programme.
Overall, VN are a pretty good airline that offers good value for money and a decent product in business class. Check-in at SYD was reasonably easy with not much of a queue in the business class line, which contrasted to the very long queues for economy. This was also during the school holiday period too. Sky Priority is offered for check-in, so you can use that if travelling in prem economy if you have status. No issues with checking through to my final destinations on both occasions. A SkyTeam Lounge invitation is given at check-in, which really is unnecessary, as you'd have access as a business class or status passenger. Anyway, the SkyTeam Lounge in SYD is alright. It's a reasonable size but not that big and can get a bit crowded at peak times. Food offerings are pretty average but there is a tended bar even in the mornings where you can get sparkling wine.
The boarding process is where VN tends to fall down a bit and this was an issue prior to boarding for most of the flights. They try their best to get it organised but it doesn't seem to help. I flew on the SYD-SGN flight for both trips and they try to indicate the different lines for business class/Sky Priority and Economy (which is divided by rows). The intention is there but the execution is somewhat disorganised. What makes it even more confusing for people is that they board passengers who have come in on an NZ flight from AKL, as that connection appears to be tight.
Once on board though, the experience becomes a lot better. The seats are comfortable and reasonably spacious with adequate storage space (in my opinion). I can't remember the design name but they're the same as the old Finnair business seats. The cabin crew are fantastic. They are always very polite, friendly and accommodating. Champagne, juices or water is offered as PDB and then menus are handed out with orders taken before take-off. This was consistently done for all flights. I was quite impressed with the catering. My advice is to always go for the Asian option when travelling Asian airlines. The food was delicious with plenty of champagne if you wanted or G&Ts, which is my preferred pre-meal drink. I love Vietnamese iced coffee and I got plenty of those on my flights! Comfort amenities like pillows and duvets were decent quality. The amenity kits were pretty standard. There was a decent selection of movies with a reasonable amount of relativity new releases on offer (but this is just my opinion and I rarely go to the cinemas). The headsets are disappointing though. They are not noise-cancelling and look cheap, which is made worse when you have to put the ear covers on yourself.
