- Prologue: The Most Stressed Out Cruise Vacation Ever – So Much Just Went Wrong!
- Introduction: My “Free” Carnival Glory 14 Day Crossing Cruise from Barcelona Spain
- Not Very Impressed: The Atlanta American Express Centurion Lounge (Review)
- Fox Brothers Bar-B-Q Beef Short Rib Delta Air Lines First Class Meal Review
- How to Transfer from Mexico City MEX Airport Terminal 2 to Terminal 1
- The Hilton Mexico City MEX Airport Hotel Terminal 1 Review 2024
- Review: American Express Centurion Lounge Mexico City Airport MEX Terminal 1
- Air France A350 Business Class Mexico City to Paris Review
- Review: The Air France Lounge at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport – Terminal 2F
- Review: Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona Spain Corner King Suite – A Diamond Free Upgrade
- Carnival App plus Pre-Boarding and Boarding Experience Arriving Early
- Carnival Glory Aft Wraparound Cabin 7445 Review
- Carnival Glory Main Dining Room Food Review 2024
- Carnival Glory Entertainment Reviews 2024
- Expedia Booked “Rapha Transport” Driver Speeding at 90+ MPH While Blasting Religious Music From Carnival Cruise to Orlando Airport Transfer!
- My Disappointing Delta Air Lines 757 First Class Flight from Orlando to Detroit
- Final Thoughts on my “Free” 14 Day Carnival Cruise from Wydham Status Match Offer.
Let me start by stating that, yes, I know, the featured photo is not an Air France A350-900 but I did not get a shot of my jet from the outside so I used this one that we pulled in next to for the post! 😉
Now on to the review. We were really excited about this flight as it will likely be the last time ever I get to spend only 75,000 Delta SkyPennies to fly in business class across the ocean (fyi you can still score 105,000 point tickets each way).
We left the Amex Centurion lounge with plenty of time to take the VERY long walk from security out to our gate and were some of the first in line. We chose not to take the time to visit the Priority Pass lounge that Air France uses for business class guests but maybe should have looked into the golf cart thing to get to the gate!
The gate agents, while we were waiting in line, scanned our boarding pass. This seemed to be a good idea to allow us to board faster. But then we again had to scan just before entering the jet way so I’m not sure why they have this procedure.
When I first booked this way back in May 2023, the route was set to have an Air France 777 that has the brand new business class seats with doors but it was a few months later switched to an A350 with what you see above.
My wife and I both picked the single seat with extra space on the aisle side (in front of the one above).
I appreciated the small storage area for my headphones and the controls as well as power and USB power were simple and within reach.
I very much appreciated the large and responsive video screen with a large selection of movies to watch.
One of the best features of this seat design was the tray table. Not only did it function well but could be positioned in almost endless configurations for both comfort and adaptability when not eating.
Clearly this A350 is ready for the new seat makeover as everywhere I looked there was something cracked to loose or a bit sad.
There is one big issue with this jet – you have NO overhead air vents even on the single seat side of the jet and it was rather warm on the flight. Thankfully just under the monitor there was a USB port that my tiny fan that are only $8.99 for a four pack and yes you WANT these (that can be disassembled for transport) was just what I needed for comfort!
The amenity kit was functional but uninspiring. I have grown used to airlines cheapening kits for years but I expected a bit more from Air France.
One thing I was really excited about as an AVgeek was the tail cam for both takeoff and land but sadly it only worked for a little while at the gate. I was seeing a bit of a trend on this old bird. Now on to dinner and drink choices:
My wife and I had preselected on the Air France website the beef and I was hopeful it would be good as Delta on their international routes normally hits a home run with this selection.
The appetizer was one shrimp. Just one. It was a tasty bite I would have loved a few more. Oh the little cheese bites were equally amazing and I could have crunched many more – num!
The salad course was pleasant and would have been even more so if I had a taste for smoked salmon (not a fan). But the rest was good. Now how did the beef turn out?
Sigh. Overdone and in a pool of disappointment. While the flavors were OK this could have been done so much better.
I had both sweet and savory for dessert and both were quite pleasing and the chocolate was so rich I could only finish about half of it. Overall an acceptable dinner but not a memorable one.
After sleeping a solid 6 hours on this 10 hour flight I choose the cold plate rather than the cheese omelet. While petite it was acceptable and helped my stomach clock begin to reset for European time.
I will say the service was simply outstanding on this flight. The purser taking care of me was constantly up and down the aisle and quickly removing my service items when done and providing drink refills throughout the flight. I could not have been more pleased.
Overall it was a pleasant flight and an amazing value for just 75,000 Delta SkyPenny points and while I did not like having to fly to Mexico city first to find value for my points the outstanding service and a long 10 hour flight is just, IMO, the ideal way to both enjoy a flight in business class to Europe and still get good rest on the way! – René
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Air France inflight meals and their lounges have gone so far down hill. Amazing to me. Used to be the best. The coffee in the CDG lounge is undrinkable swill. The food, barely edible. Do they think if they put out enough croissants, no one will notice?
What I’ve noticed is the food and drinks in the lounge at CDG used by Delta is of a lower quality and a more limited selection during the morning peak departures for Delta. As soon as the peak Delta departure window is over, the champagne is put out and more food is added. This is another reason why I tend to book the 3 or 3:30 pm (whatever time it is) Air France flight to Mexico City. Not only is CDG a little quieter at that time of the day, but you can at least drink some good French wine. Last week, Air France had a 2016 red Bordeaux grand cru out as one of two free red wines.
I just did the reverse, Paris-Mexico City, last week. I had the A350 with doors. I don’t know who fills the planes but remarkably there are four flights a day between Mexico City and Paris; two on Air France and two on Aeromexico. There are also a couple Amsterdam flights. I do this trip three or four times a year as it’s great value for money. If I’m flying business-class and using my own money or points, I want the most time possible. Detroit or Chicago to Paris is just too short. Anyways, I’m always amazed by a 100% full business-class, not least because Air France doesn’t upgrade its elites. It seems like Air France has stopped flying the 777 to Mexico City, although I could be wrong. The 777 has La Premiere. Anyways, Air France is a weird airline. They have genuinely went upscale in the last few years. The food and wine is generally way above Delta and maybe only behind Austrian, Turkish, and Swiss in terms of quality. The amenity kit is pathetic for business-class. The same for the bedding. It’s inexcusable that they don’t provide a mattress pad on a 12-hour flight, especially since their blankets are so small. The lounge Air France uses in Mexico City is AWFUL. Granted, the Aeromexico lounge is pretty bad but the contracted lounge is even worse. For the life of me, I don’t understand why Air France and KLM aren’t in the same terminal as Aeromexico. It would make connections a lot easier. Last week, I breezed through Mexican passport control in 2 minutes’ time but then had to wait 1 hour for my bag. I only had 2 hours for my connection from Mexico City. It then took about 15-20 minutes to get over to the Aeromexico terminal, drop my bag, and go through security.
Try Cathay Pacific, and you will quickly forget Air France and Delta.
Pathetic.
do you really use thoses when flying? i am ALWAYS hot, and so these seem like they would be amazing, but they also seem like if I plug them in i’d get a sideways look from anyone around me….
@phil – Only looks of jealously! 🙂
The AF planes are always warm with no vents.. Last trip even in La Premiere i had to keep asking to get some AC on and had to leave the curtain open for some air.. Otherwise a great seamless experience…