Trip report: United Business Class San Francisco to Honolulu 777 Polaris
When it's time to fly to Hawaii, there is only one option - fly a big widebody jet. And thanks to a bit of a shake up in the American domestic aviation market, it's once again possible to do that - and not just in any jet, but in United's Polaris Business Class.
Polaris is of course the branding for the radical overhaul United has gone through over the past few years. Flying Domestic around the US used to mean a very dated 'First' experience, which had nothing First Class about it. Now however United, American Airlines and Delta, along with challenger JetBlue, have sharpened their premium products on the longest of short haul routes. And that means upping the ante with flat beds, and premium meals. So long as you are up the front of the aeroplane of course.
United Airlines rebranded its international business class service as Polaris, with new seats and airport lounges a few years ago now. However, faced with stiff competition, it is using some of its newest jets and its best business class seats to the competitive US transcontinental prime domestic flights between the east and west coasts, plus of course to Honolulu, which gains if not the newest of widebody jets, at least a decent offering with the Boeing 777, and up the pointy end is the Polaris business class seat.
First though, after a happy day sightseeing in the city by the bay, I wanted to see what had happened to the United domestic Business Class lounges at San Francisco. Of course, on international flights, and indeed transcontinental you can access the superb Polaris lounges if you're flying up the pointy end.
However, on a domestic to Honolulu, you get no lounge access at all. This always strikes me with an insane aspect of so-called First Class flying in the United states. You may pay over a thousand dollars for the ticket, but you're stuck out in the main part of the terminal on most flights, unless you are lucky enough to have Gold Star Alliance status, with an airline other than the one you're flying on. If you get that status with United, you can access any lounge except the airlines' own. Which makes no sense.
However with a Gold Star Alliance card, which takes some flying to get, you do get lounge access - except it just the older United Clubs, where often you have to pay for a drink. In the lounge. Yep, totally logical, that one.
San Francisco Unitedclub T3F
The San Francisco United Airlines lounge review Terminal 3 Concourse F is the oldie, and the biggie. It brought back a lot of memories for me, as it was one of the first lounges I accessed 20 years ago. At the time I thought it quite quaint, a bit of a throwback, and I was glad to visit before it bit the dust.
Sadly, it is still there, exactly the same, just much more worn, after another two decades of use. It is like flying used to be, with lots of old wooden panelling, old leather arm chairs, and a small snack bar. It is very old, quite large, yet with minimal facilities. It was also when I visited, uncomfortably packed.
I have extensively reviewed the San Francisco United Airlines lounge T3F. It really hasn't improved over the years, and the only major change is the cook to order hot meals have been enhanced out of existence thanks to Polaris.
There is a wonderful entrance foyer, with lots of space, a large clock, and lots of models of fishing boats. This is by far the best part of the lounge. The rest of the United Club has a confusing layout, with some high walls and narrow corridors.
The bar is the highlight of the lounge, and one way of getting through the experience, if you enjoy yet more wood panelling and wickerwork. Taking a seat at the bar, the only complimentary drinks were Bud-Lite, Steam Beer, or Heineken.
However, the bar staff, seeing my disappointment, told me that there was the joy this week of Corona, on promotion, now they'd reopened after the Corona pandemic. And indeed, with just a dose of Corona for $3, you could win either a pair of glasses, a hat, or even a donkey. It was however a very expensive $3, with the bar staff including tip on the credit card machine, and then charging me in my local currency 'for my convenience' at a ruinous exchange rate. My serving of Corona cost about $6USD in the end. But I did win the glasses and the hat. But no donkey for me.
Taking my healthy dose of Corona, I found a fine view over the domestic gates and runways, to the Frisco hills in the distance. There are plenty of comfortable squashy armchairs, with small tables in-between. Alas food is ever more basic, with just the basic carrots or celery with dipping sauces, plus cubes of cheese, and cheese sandwiches.
San Francisco United Airlines International G concourse Lounge
I knew however, that in the past 20 years things have changed, and you can now walk around to the international concourse. Plus, with the advent of Polaris, there has been the closure of the old First Class lounge in the International wing, and it now welcomes United Club members and anyone with Star Alliance Gold.
Alas this is a faded jewel which has been hastily enhanced to a United Club lounge: gone are the premium food and alcohol selection, shower suites, and slumber room.
Instead, all that is left is a large impressive lounge, without many facilities. There is a small pop up bar, with basic house wines and beers being free of charge. Other spirits are nicer wines are sold at usual airport prices.
The fancy First Class dining has gone, to be replaced by exactly the same sandwiches as I'd seen in the older F Concourse.
The lounge also closed early, so with nothing more to do, I headed to the gate.
Airport gates at US airports provide some excellent entertainment on occasions - certainly much more fun than the usually drab dated airports provide. If only because all the major US airline have a sport called 'getting upgraded at the gate'. In Europe, or Australia, this process is automated, and you can normally select the flights you want to be upgraded on weeks or months before departure. But in the US, if there is space up front, airlines like United will upgrade you - and publish the list, and indeed the pecking order at the gate. On holiday rich routes like Hawaii, the list went on for about 40 people, and the anguish, joy, and indeed sheer out and out begging was a wonder to behold. Thankfully I'd already purchased my Polaris seat, and after seeing yet another seemingly normal bloke berate the gate staff because he was two whole places in the honours list compared to someone who scored a big seat for free, I strolled onto the plane.
I'd deliberately chozen the new 777-300ER which flies this route, as opposed to the 777-200. Both are widebodies, but the 300ER version has Polaris, as opposed to the 200 version which has United old style of Business class with 4 recliners all facing each other over a wide aisle. I'd been on one of these 20 years ago over the Pacific, and it had kind of put me off the United experience for life.
United Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Polaris Business Class
The UK designed Polaris Business Class seat is superb. The United Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Business Class seat has a full lie-flat bed length of just over two metres, and provide each passenger with direct aisle access plus more personal space around the seat itself.
The design is a little unusual, with a combination of straight forward facing and rows at a slight angle, interleaved to allow your feet to wedge into the cocktail tray of the seat in front. Indeed, the Polaris pods are also suite-like, and there is a lot of room to work, drink, and dine. A decent stowage compartment beside the seat is also useful, and contains the headphones.
The Polaris seat is based on the proprietary Viva design from London's Acumen Design Associates, developed and styled by PriestmanGoode. Complementing the new seats, United and PriestmanGoode crafted an all-new look for the Polaris cabins, with a Polaris logo at the front of the main Business Class seating area.
On international flights there is also custom bedding from Saks Fifth Avenue with plush duvets, lightweight day-blankets and pillows. Sadly on a domestic, these were missing, despite United's Polaris Boeing 777-300ER aircraft I was on having just flown in from Japan that morning.
United 777-300ER Economy Class
I also tucked my head behind the curtain to look at the United 777-300ER Economy Class. It looked decent enough, with a 3-4-3 layout, 31 inches of pitch, and a decent, if not large, IFE seatback TV screen.
There were also 24 United Premium Plus (Premium Economy with 38 inches of pitch) and 62 United Economy Plus (34 inches). Since Premium Economy wasn't being sold on this flight, high level frequent flyers in the cheap seats were able to score themselves an upgrade.
United Polaris IFE & Service
Each seat has a 16-inch HD video screen which can be used on a 'gate to gate' basis and a clever tablet holder in the tray table.
I had a quick delve, and found that as expected the content was very US heavy, but with plenty of box sets.
Of more entertainment was the cabin. It seemed as if every single person on this flight - which was on a Friday afternoon - was off to the islands for a holiday. Needless to say there was a lot of drinking. A group of four girls, occupying the centre seats, scarcely noticed the seats I had travelled so far to have a look at, and instead, even before boarding was completed, called over the crew and started ordering cocktails.
I meanwhile was offered a welcome glass of 'sparking wine'. A real novelty on a domestic route, evening if I'm not sure if the crew pronounced it correctly. Just what is Sparking wine? An electrical brew? However the Polaris branding clearly stopped at that point, and I was offered a half full plastic cup of a fowl concoction that left it's life as a grape many years ago. At this point, I realised that elements of United's old school domestic service were clearly coming through and there was a distinct whiff of lack of quality.
Once we were aloft, there was the merry ding of crew call chimes requesting drinks. It was clear the cabin was full of upgrades, and every one was going to max out the experience. Now, I'm all for letting the bar flow, but as the trolley was going to wheel up the aisle any second, it did strike me as being a bit keen.
When the trolley did make it do me I was offered nuts, and a choice of wines, with the choice being Chardonnay or Shiraz, from an unnamed vineyard.
United Polaris domestic meals
With an early evening departure, no hope of pre-flight dining thanks to the woeful state of the Untied Club in SFO, a decent supper was paramount for each United Polaris customer.
When Polaris was launched, United proudly announced that it was moving up several notches to almost be on a par with other international airlines with seasonal menus added to with uniquely regional touches for each route, developed in partnership with The Trotter Project and its chefs such as Bill Kim of acclaimed Chicago restaurants Urbanbelly, bellyQ and Belly Shack.
So, who knows what would be the culinary delights served up to wow the party crowd on the evening flight to Hawaii, also known as Ibiza on Volcano. Well, I can't tell you what they were, because even the crew didn't know. There were no menus loaded, and the crew had to guess by reading the labels, and introduced themselves to each passenger with the cheery words 'chicken, meat, or skip the meal?' Hardly euro business worthy, and more Jetstar.
I went for the meat, which was served with rice and broccoli. It was, to my surprise, actually very good. There was a drizzle of what seemed like some cherry flavoured dressing over, well, rather unnamed meat. I think it might have been beef, but if it was beef it was unlike most beef I've had on Untied because it was soft, tender, and with extra added flavour. Plus avec.
I washed it down with a glass of the Shiraz, which was certainly better than the Chardonnay, but maybe I'm damning it too much with faint praise. Seeing my surprise at it's potent acidity, which threatened to eat it's way through the glass, the crew joked that as an Australian I had probably never tasted decent wine before. I was rather bemused, and he explained that his knowledge of Australian wines was down to one Aussie vineyard which dominates American off licences, and which is decidedly cut price.
On the side was a dry coleslaw salad, with green beans. Alas, this came with United's pot of classic Caesar dressing. Sadly, Caesar died in vain, for it was as cheap as chips dressing, just as served on my connecting fright from Chicago.
There was also a hot roll, and a rare delight of butter.
For dessert, again without a menu it was difficult to be precise, but I believe it was a raspberry sponge cake. Again, I wish I could know what it was, but it surprised me by delighting me. Maybe my expectations were set artificially low by my experience of catering on United before.
To round off my experience on United Polaris, I tried one of their regional selection of beers, with the Hawaiian Kona Longboard Island Lager. It is a crisp, pale-gold lager made with some pretty good aromatic hops. It's really not bad at all, and as we sped over the half way mark to the island, was so good I had another.
United Business Class San Francisco to Honolulu 777 Polaris review
So there we have it - a decent was of getting to the Island State in a decent seat, even if it wasn't quite Polaris as we know it. United Airlines is bringing its newest jets and its best business class seats to the competitive US transcontinental market, following the 'transcon turf war' which has seen a series of increases in domestic US inflight quality over the past few years. Goodness knows it needed it.
Of course taking pride of place at the Boeing 777's pointy end is the Polaris business class seat. It is there in all it's glory, and it's great to enjoy it on a 5 hour domestic hop.
The downside is United remains, United. The lounge are identical to what you would have experienced 20 years ago, with the exception that the food has had a downgrade.
Onboard Polaris, the soft product is inching towards what we would expect from quality airlines in Europe or Asia, but it clearly isn't there yet.
However, I was surprised by the food, which was certainly much better than I expected.
See the full Trip report: United Business Class San Francisco to Honolulu 777 Polaris video:
Lux-traveller paid its own way for this Trip report: United Business Class San Francisco to Honolulu 777 Polaris, and travelled incognito.
| Trip report: United Business Class San Francisco to Honolulu 777 Polaris | |
|---|---|
Lux-traveller.com rating:7 out of10  | |
| Seats: | 8 - Very good, all aisle access |
| Food: | 6 - OK, but somewhat mysterious |
| Service: | 5 - Fairly basic, functional |
| IFE: | 7 - IFE on demand |
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