Crossing the U.S. and Half an Ocean: We Took Delta’s Inaugural Boston to Honolulu Flight!

After months of waiting, the date finally arrived: we would take Delta Air Lines’ inaugural Boston (BOS) to Honolulu (HNL) flight!

Hawaiian Airlines has flown the route since I-don’t-know-when. But being the Delta nerds we are (for better or worse), several friends, Mrs. Carley and I decided it would be fun to take the trip.

The Leadup

Mrs. Carley and I arrived in Boston around mid-afternoon the day before. We sat in row 35 on one of the 757-200s outfitted for transatlantic and transcontinental flights. (We finished first and second for Delta One, of course.)

We used an anniversary night certificate from my IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card and spent the night at the Holiday Inn Boston Logan Airport – Chelsea. That’s where I stayed when I visited the Chase Sapphire Lounge last year.

We met some of her cousins for dinner in the city’s North End. They asked why we were in Boston. We explained we flew into town just to take a specific flight to Hawaii.

This video clip pretty much sums up their reaction:

The next morning, we met with our friends Larry and Christine at the Chase Sapphire Lounge. Here’s a quick tip if you want to visit that lounge and have carry-on luggage only: enter through Terminal C security and then take a right toward the B gates. The club is located by gate B40 — which is closer to Terminal C’s entrance than it is to Terminal B’s.

After that, we headed to the great pre-party Delta threw and then boarded the A330-300 plane. Our boarding spot was Zone 2 (after Delta One).

All of Delta’s A330s are old Northwest Airlines aircraft.

Boston to Honolulu : Getting Settled in Delta Premium Select

We used Regional Upgrade Certificates and scored confirmed upgrades to Premium Select several months before the trip, so that gave us something extra to look forward to.

We selected row 20, seats A and B (window and aisle, respectively). That’s a bulkhead and I like legroom. While this had a decent amount of legroom, it wasn’t quite as much as I’ve enjoyed in other bulkheads. But it was decent.

Awaiting us were bedding, headphones, and a couple of bottles of water. (Those served as our pre-departure beverages.)

We also received amenity kits from Someone Somewhere.

You’ll need to use Delta’s headphones or have an airline audio jack adapter for yours if you plan to use the entertainment system in these seats.

The Premium Select seats are comfortable and almost akin to domestic First Class. (In fact, I believe they are the First Class seats on Delta’s A220s.)

At least in the bulkheads, the power ports are located inside the armrests.

Our primary flight attendant was an awesome lady named Sherry. She gave us a Delta Premium Select welcome card. It explained our seats’ functions and also provided the flight’s menu.

We pre-ordered our meals the week before. (More on that in a bit.)

Just before we turned onto the runway, one of the pilots said over the PA in a Boston accent, “Flight attendants, pre-payuh faw dee-pah-chuh.” We’re unsure if he’s really from Boston or just decided to imitate the accent. In any case, it was a cool touch.

Less than a minute later, we were wheels up from a chilly, wet, gray Boston — and off to sunny, warm Honolulu! The flight time was estimated to be about 11 hours.

En Route to Honolulu

My wife and I rarely get to spend time together — just the two of us — anymore. So, long flights basically turn into dates when we can talk, watch movies, and get caught up on anything that needs to be discussed (this trip: lots of Christmas and Hanukkah stuff, Delta status, IHG free nights, an upcoming Caribbean trip).

This A330 is not equipped with Delta’s free WiFi. (You can send text messages for free, though.) Mrs. Carley and I each paid $15 for full internet access. That’s a much better price than the flight passes of a few years ago (those were around $30 or so if I remember correctly).

The internet connection was patchy and went out several times. But it was something. Here’s a map of Delta’s internet coverage (and I think it encompasses the free WiFi, too):

About 30 minutes into the flight, we were served the world’s hottest towels. Like, dripping wet and so hot we had to flip it back and forth between our hands.

Sherry and crew gave us cloth placemats and offered us our first service of the day: beverages and Cooper’s Gourmet cheddar cheese biscuits.

Mrs. Carley opted for a sparkling wine with a splash of cranberry. I opted for coffee.

When I saw “cheese biscuits,” the first thing that popped into my head was the sinfully delicious bread treats Red Lobster serves. I was so excited! Alas, that’s not what these bite-size biscuits are.

They’re still pretty good but temper your exceptions — it’s nothing like the Red Lobster biscuits. 🙂

Lunch was served not long after that. Mrs. Carley ordered the Chicken Breast in Red Coconut Sauce. I chose the Mozzarella Mezzaluna. (Except for a short rib entree that was also offered, these were the same meals served in Delta One.)

I sampled one of the chicken pieces. It was pretty good — flavorful and moist. The sauce was spicy, though. Even my wife — who loves spicy food — gave a few “Whoo!”s. Nonetheless, she enjoyed it.

The ravioli was fine. Nothing special. I’d have it again if we’re the only non-spicy option. Honestly, most frozen ravioli from grocery stores is better than this. This is definitely one of the least memorable meals I’ve had aboard a Delta flight.

The tiramisu was outstanding. Like, eyes-rolled-back-into-my-head good. It melted in my mouth and was so delicious.

A snack basket came through one or twice (at least — I took a few brief naps and might’ve missed something). Flight attendants were very good about refreshing drinks. (We mostly drank club soda with a lime or cups of coffee.)

Our cabin crew was comprised of mostly veteran flight attendants. They all seemed to really have a good time during the flight! Their service was fantastic, they interacted with passengers, and seemed excited to be part of the inaugural flight. Delta should have these flight attendants teach some of the newer, younger crew members about being proactively positive with passengers. And not hiding out in the galleys.

Speaking of the galleys, here’s a fun tidbit about our bulkhead seats: the plane’s acoustics are such that we heard almost everything on the galley. Nothing shocking, inappropriate, juicy, or dramatic happened (darn the luck!). But it was fun listening to flight attendants talk about different trips and cities, onboard meals, planes, and crew members (“Have you ever worked with so and so? Isn’t she great?!”).

We got to chatting with flight attendant Sherry and learned she’s a photographer and author. (Here’s her website.) She wrote a best-seller called Elope: A Modern Elopement Guide for the Free-Spirited and Adventurous: Planning Itineraries, Destinations, and Inspiration. It basically takes the stigma out of elopements. For example, they’re no longer solely for shotgun weddings, people whose families disapprove of their union, or spur-of-the-moment “Hey, let’s get married — tonight!” things. You don’t necessarily have to spend a zillion dollars on a ceremony and party — maybe take a vacation with your love and get married in an exotic location, with the two of you and an officiant. (And maybe a photographer.)

Her book also discusses other flight attendants who eloped, just like she and her husband did! We found all this fascinating! (Maybe we’ll elope when we renew our vows or something.)

Most of the flight across the U.S. was rather bumpy, with a deep layer of clouds below us.

There finally was a break around the Rocky Mountains and into Utah.

But the clouds returned in Nevada — and stayed with us a few hundred miles out into the Pacific.

Then the sunshine returned!

My wife watched almost the entire first season of Killing Eve. I worked and read. We both took some naps here and there.

Before we knew it, our pre-arrival snacks were served!

She decided to try the Burrata Salad (which she said was pretty good).

I was so excited to see that Delta’s Cheeseburger was one of our choices! I love the Delta Cheeseburger. No, it wasn’t the Shake Shack burger coming to Delta flights on December 1. But this was my second or third time having the burger. The meat is so juicy and tasty. My only gripe: there aren’t French fries. 🙂

Before we knew it, the plane started its descent into Honolulu! We were amazed at how quickly the time went by. Honestly, we thought only seven or so hours passed — not eleven!

Leave the Leis Behind!

We received celebratory plastic leis during the pre-departure party in Boston. Just before deplaning, one of the flight attendants made an announcement that went something like this:

We’ve received word that the leis everyone received in Boston are offensive to native Hawaiians. Please take them off. Leave them on the plane or put them in your carryons before deplaning.

I did some quick reading and discovered that plastic leis and other party favors might be seen as props or disrespectful of Hawaiian culture — regardless of their intent.

But real leis made from beautiful flowers awaited us when we entered the terminal!

So did musicians and Hawaiian dancers.

Most of our group traveling together went to the HNL Sky Club for refreshments before going our separate ways.

Final Approach

We call out Delta on their customer service faults when need be. But we also praise them when they do something well — and they did a very good job with this inaugural trip.

Aside from the tiramisu, the food wasn’t spectacular. Our meals were domestic First Class at best. If Delta is going to crow about being a premium airline, charge premium cash and points prices to match, and brag about how much money they make, they need to do better here.

The cabin crew was exceptional. Their personalities and service really helped make the trip something special.

Some of the Premium Select features (i.e., old audio jacks and electrical plugins inside the armrest) could use updating — but these are old aircraft.

I’m glad we made time to take this trip. Because it’s darn near impossible to successfully redeem upgrade certificates and we’re less and less impressed with the Medallion program each year, this could be a nice “final” trip using Medallion perks.