Juneyao airlines ๅ็ฅฅ่ช็ฉบ received it’s first dreamliner boeing 787-9 and I was the first avgeek to fly it in business class! (not sponsored, more on how I booked it below)
And with some ambient dreamliner cabin light on, I could get this wonderful view ๐
Chilling in a full flat bed in a 2 weeks old airplane is always fun but I also worked hard and took loads of pictures to be able to share a proper review with you guys ๐
Let’s talk about the seat
As I have just flown Singapore Airlines double First class suites I am a bit spoiled but I was still impressed with Juneyao’s new dreamliner seats! All seats have aisle access and that’s simply a must for real business class in my opinion. For the geeks, it’s a 1-2-1 configuration with 180-degree lie-flat Thompson Vantage XL seats.
The footrest of each seat is alternating left and right on each row. Ideally you choose a seat as close to the window as possible to have maximum privacy (like in the picture below)
The seat itself is not a throne but still nice and comfy. To find the ideal position I played around with the different buttons to transform the seat into a lounge chair and a full flat bed. Nothing beats watching a movie with a glass of wine at cruising altitude.
All those slick buttons put a smile on my face. After adjusting the seat position and the multi functional light source I discover the coolest function. Do you see that icon below the light? Yeah that’s right, there is even a gentle massage button. Boom! bye bye stress.
Let’s concentrate on some other areas of this seat. What about the mirror for example, check the flower pattern, the attention to detail is just amazing. Kudos to the designers of this seat!
Interesting fact: the flower is the โChinese Peony”, the national flower of China which symbolizes grace and elegance.
And here is another angle to get an idea about all the other seat functionalities.
Next to the mesmerizing mirror there is an Evian bottle of water to keep you hydrated, a headset, a remote control, an audio plug, usb and power socket.
Oh for those who are not familiar with dreamliner, there are no window shades but fancy Instagram-like filter buttons below the windows to darken or lighten your view on the outside world.
Juneyao In Flight Entertainment
No complaints about the screen and the headset. Although I can’t spot any brand like Bose or B&O it does the job and the audio quality is perfectly alright.
For this less than 2 hour flight there was definitely an overload of entertainment. On a 12 hour flight it might be a bit boring for a frequent flyer however. Still there is a good variety of movies, series, documentaries, games etc. And a nice touch for non Chinese speaking travelers: there are also Hollywood and International options available next to the Chinese movies. Talking about Chinese movies, I have seen some epic movies while living in China so make sure to try that Chinese section! Juneyao is going to be a competitor on the route to Finland from June next year so it’s very smart to target passengers from all nationalities.
One of the things I tested as a digital nomad is the responsiveness of the touch screen and I have to say it’s sweet. I have been swiping quite a bit and movies always followed my finger so that’s pretty cool. Long gone are the days you have to poke the screen – and annoy the passenger in front of you – to play a movie in the sky.
Well and even If you are not a touch screen fan then you can still use the remote control to enjoy a popcorn moment. (there is no popcorn on board, but thinking about it, that would be freaking awesome right!?)
Is this picture a bit too dark for you? Well, guess what, I took a few more pictures to show you how the remote control looks by day light. The crew must have been thinking I was going crazy with the amount of filming and photo’s I was taking.
Now that you have seen the remote control from all angels, it’s time to jump to the next topic.
Juneyao’s full flat bed + awesome pillow!
How could I not talk about this pillow? Honestly, I think it’s one of my first flights I see and feel such a proper thick pillow. The purple pinkish and gold Peony flower design matches perfectly with the rest of the seat. And most importantly it’s a really comfy head rest when you are in full flat bed mode.
I don’t care if it’s just a 2 hour flight, I need to try the bed ๐
If you wonder if there is enough space to stretch your legs. Well I am pretty tall (1m 85cm) and this is a picture of me stretching.
To get a better idea it’s good to see some more angles, check that space. (don’t read this post if you are flying economy at this moment)
What’s the food like in Business Class?
Time to be completely honest. I was a bit disappointed on the afternoon flight form Shanghai to Shenzhen, there was no food & drinks menu and in the end I got some fruits, cake and small sandwich with butter. But this was only Juneyao’s first week on the dreamliner so I gave them a second chance on the return flight, 2 days later in the evening.
And to my surprise there was a menu! It’s as if they read my comments on social media! Things move fast in China! It’s just stupid simple but giving a menu makes a huge difference in impression. And I even had 2 meal options to choose from. The only thing I missed on the drinks menu was sparkling wine or Champagne, that’s always a niceย extra touch in Business Class for me. First World problems. On the other hand there are quite some tea options that would be hard to find on western airlines.
It’s always nice to show the passengers some love.
This is what the light meal menu looks like: “fish or chicken?” but in a more fancy way.
And here is the drinks menu, check all those teas and juices.
Is there an amenity kit?
On both of my less than 2 hours flights I got
- a blanket
- slippers
- eye cover
Here you can see the slippers, I nicely presented them on the table (which can be stowed if you don’t need it)
And here is a shot of the eye cover package.
The safety card
This one is just for the avgeeks reading this post:
If you don’t get excited by these kind of pictures, don’t worry, I will be talking about the onboard service soon.
How is the service on board Juneyao?
Again there was a lot of improvement on my return flight compared to my initial flight. On my return flight from Shenzhen to Shanghai the crew asked if I wanted another glass of juice. These things sound really stupid but that’s really what makes the difference. Business class service is about paying attention to little things like a passenger’s empty glass and walking around with a genuine smile, making the job seem effortless (although we all know it’s very hard work). Again I am spoiled having just flown one of the world’s best Business & First Class products in the world on Singapore Airlines. Nevertheless I always like to share this feedback as enhancing the personal service does not cost anything but can make a huge difference in the travelers’ experience.
But I was really impressed to see improvements in just 2 days and I am sure that if Juneyao continues like this that their service will be up to speed with their new epic product very soon. Also remember that this was only the second week flying their first dreamliner.
On the way back I asked if I could take a picture with the crew. The pilot was kind enough to do so and I congratulated all the crew members with their fantastic new product and wished them good luck on the new adventures with the dreamliner.
How and why did I book this flight?
I flew Juneyao last year on a domestic trip in China and before that I never even heard of them to be honest. A few weeks ago I saw massive ads in a Shanghai metro station and as an aviation geek I was intrigued to see such nice business class seats on those posters.
After some research I managed to find out on which routes this new airplane would be used. And I took a chance and booked a return trip.
HO1111 SHA0735 โ 1005SZX 787 D
HO1201 SHA1455 โ 1735SZX 787 D
HO1112 SZX1120 โ 1340SHA 787 D
HO1202 SZX1900 โ 2115SHA 787 D
It’s always exciting as you never really know for sure if the new airplane will already be in use but I got lucky twice on the route between Shanghai Hongqiao and Shenzhen Bao’an.
How much did it cost?
Good news, if you don’t want to break the bank and still experience business class once in your lifetime then the Shanghai – Shenzhen route is perfect for you!
For just $100ย USD more than economy you can try Business class! Just make sure to only book the flight times mentioned above so you have the dreamliner airplane with full flat beds!
From $248 usd you can try business class and that’s an epic deal for a full flat bed! Seriously.
The Juneyao Business Class Review Summary
Travelers who don’t know Juneyao will know about them once they fly long haul routes to China. In the next months they will receive a few more dreamliners for domestic routes between Shanghai – Sanya, Chengdu and Chongqing. Next year there are flights planned to Helsinki and who knows what’s next? Having proper full flat beds in the sky will certainly help to sell. There is still room for improvement on the service side. But I have seen it evolving in a good way in just 2 days so I hope the service raises to the same level as their new dreamliner and then Juneyao will be a major competitor on long haul routes. So remember this name for the future!
Just 2 hours is too short for a proper Business class review but I feel this airline has a lot of potential. Juneyao will certainly be on my list once they fly this dreamliner to Europe.
Let me know if you have any questions?
If you guys have any questions about Juneyao or flying Business or First Class just leave a comment and I will be happy to answer ๐
Update: check my video of Juneyao Business Class review and all info about the first long haul route between Shanghai and Helsinki