After 3 1/2 years of anticipation, the time finally came to take this flight. I initially dreamed up the idea of a round-the-world trip centered around EVA Air B777-300ER Business Class back in 2019. Though initially scheduled on the longer overnight route from Houston, I ended up rescheduling on the daytime flight from San Francisco. EVA Business Class ranks up there in the hype machine when it comes to J products. This one delivers in the soft product, though the hard product is dated at this point. I used 85,000 LifeMiles plus $51.70 in taxes to book this flight.
Note: this is part of my trip report series covering my around-the-world trip to Taiwan in January, 2024. Click here for the trip report index and introductory post.
EVA Air (BR) Flight 7
- Thursday, January 25, 2024
- Depart: San Francisco International Airport (SFO), Terminal I, Gate A9, 12:30, 10m late
- Arrive: Taipei Taoyuan International Airport (TPE), Terminal 1, Gate B9, 18:10 (+1), 10m early
- Duration: 13 hours 40 minutes
- Seat: 2A
- Equipment: Boeing 777-300ER
Check-In and Boarding
I had a bit of a scare a couple of weeks before my trip. When I went to the EVA website to check on my booking, it showed “unconfirmed”. Ruh-roh. Fortunately, a quick call to LifeMiles the next day took care of the problem. There was a very piddly schedule change – as in, the arrival time changed 20 minutes. And so they just had to refresh the ticket. Though I braced myself for a painful process, it took less than 10 minutes.
I arrived at the terminal quite early, arriving just as the check-in desks opened at 9:20. There were 2 or 3 other Business Class passengers in front of me, and I was checked in quickly and efficiently. The agent then gave me a pass to the Air France Lounge, and away I went to security. After the lounge, and before heading to the gate, I enjoyed some planespotting from the A gates. First up, a Korean Air 777…
…then a Japan Airlines Dreamliner next door…
…and finally, a China Southern 777 in a special livery.
As is frequently the case at SFO, boarding for this gate occurred downstairs. Boarding took awhile to get going, and started about 20 minutes late. However, when ready, the gate agent directed Business Class passengers to line up first. And aggressively shooed away those who didn’t belong. While waiting, I did grab a couple of photos of the 77W set to take us on the long journey to Taipei.
EVA Air B777-300ER Business Class – Seating & Interior
Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing bad about EVA’s interiors in Royal Laurel Class. Business Class on the 77W consists of 39 Saffran Cirrus seats in a 1-2-1 configuration. There are actually two mini-cabins in business, with 23 seats in the forward cabin, and 16 in the aft cabin. Purely from a design perspective, these aren’t the most cutting edge seats out there. It’s a standard reverse herringbone with rather boring finishes. On the other hand, the pillow and blanket are both quite robust. More on that when I talk about the bed later.
Additionally, the seats are a phenomenal 26″ wide, with 81″ of pitch. That seat width beats pretty much any Business Class product out there. Qatar’s top-rated Q Suites, as a point of reference, measure 21.5″ wide. This makes these seats feel very spacious, despite the dated design.
The common complaint about reverse herringbones also applies here. If you’re traveling together, and want to converse, there are no real good options. Though the center seats do sort of face each other, you still have to lean forward awkwardly to see your seatmate. The seats definitely cater to those who value privacy, in other words. Indeed, even though EVA’s seats don’t have doors, the window seats, facing away from the aisle, feel cozy and private.
The cabin does feel airy and spacious, though, and features some nice touches. Notably, the simulated starry sky on the ceiling, accentuated by the new mood lighting.
These seats to include a footwell, and while in seated position at least, it feel reasonably spacious..
Storage, meanwhile, was adequate. With the seat facing diagonally towards the window, there is an oversized armrest/window storage area.
There’s also a book/magazine holder that doubles as a storage area for small personal items.
Finally, there is a water bottle holder and storage area for personal items next to the IFE controller. It’s plenty large enough to hold a tablet, or even a small purse.
Seat controls are just below the IFE controller and water bottle holder. While I found the control pad easy enough to use, the lumbar adjustment didn’t seem to work. Not that I really found it necessary; the seat’s quite comfortable in the default position.
When you’re ready for bed, the flight attendants will set up your mattress pad and duvet. I’ve not seen this before, but they initially set everything up with the seat upright.
Rest assured, though, it’s fully flat once in bed mode.
Bed length is fine, but while the footwell isn’t terribly narrow, the design of the TV housing makes the foot area feel constricted.
Overall, despite the dated design, I found the seat and bed quite comfortable, whether in upright or bed mode. After lunch, I slept well for about four hours. The large pillow and comfy mattress pad and duvet actually made it tempting to sleep much longer. But with this a daytime flight, I spent much of it awake in relaxed mode. And I made it to Taipei feeling pretty good, with no pain points. At the end of the day, that’s really more important than a somewhat old design.
As far as amenities go, all Business Class passengers receive a Giorgio Armani amenity kit. The kits feature separate his and hers cases, but the contents themselves are basically the same.
A few minutes after boarding, the FAs also handed out slippers and pajamas designed by Jason Wu.
There’s also a couple of other nice small touches in the Business Class cabin. First is a flower portrait on the bulkhead.
The other is a Taiwanese travel-related poem waiting at your seat when you board.
In the lavatories, meanwhile, the FAs stock them with disposable toothbrushes and mouthwash, along with a full set of face, hand, and body creams from 4711 Acqua Colonia. Interestingly, these are different from the items in the amenity kit, which features MALIN+GOETZ products. Additionally, the FAs kept the lavs spotless the duration of the flight.
Note that the 77W features three lavatories in the Business Class cabin. One is at the forward galley, one by the cockpit door, and one in the middle galley. The lavatory in the middle galley is noticeably larger than the other two, if that matters to you.
EVA Air B777-300ER Business Class – In-Flight Entertainment
Like most Business Class products, EVA offers both 110v and USB-A ports at each seat. Both are conveniently located next to the IFE controller. I did appreciate the location of the power port. It allows you to set your laptop on either the tray table or window armrest and keep the cord out of the way. It also makes it easy to charge your phone and put it in the storage bin while sleeping.
Though the IFE controller is an older type without a dual display, it does at least show your seat number.
I found the controller easy enough to use, but unfortunately, I found it slow to respond at times. The direction arrows in particular were difficult to modulate, making it hard to select programs on the screen.
EVA provides “Thunder” noise-cancelling headphones in Business Class for use with the IFE system. I found these good quality, as they both kept ambient noise at bay and were comfortable on the ear.
Speaking of the IFE screen, like the seat, it’s fine, if not cutting-edge. The screen, while big enough, isn’t as large or high definition as on newer Business Class products. For example, compare this unit to Virgin Atlantic’s on the new A330-900neo. Of course, “Comfortable and Pleasant” does quite accurately describe the in-flight experience, at least.
Shortly after pushback, the FAs played the safety video, which I found…interesting, to say the least. I couldn’t help but think of it as a very zen version of Kill Bill.
I’ve seen some criticism of the “STAR Gallery” IFE selection on some forums, but overall, I found it fine. No, it isn’t Emirates’ ICE system, but there’s enough to keep you occupied on these long flights. My main complaint is selections tend to duplicate in several categories, making it difficult to tell exactly how many there are.
The movie selection does tilt more towards Asian selections, though with many Western selections also available.
Along with an odd obsession with Tom Cruise…
The TV selection, meanwhile, featured a lot of content, though little I was particularly familiar with.
I ended up zeroing in on a couple of Taiwanese travel/food shows. The first looked at one of Taiwan’s signature dishes, braised pork rice.
Later, I found “We Are Big Eaters”, a rather humorous take on “Man vs. Food”. This series follows three (very petite) Taiwanese girls who seek to eat as much as humanly possible.
Yes, in each episode, they eat…a lot…of food.
Twenty years ago, maybe I would’ve challenged them to a contest in the night markets in Taipei. In my middle age, though, not happening. One of the episodes did inspire me to seek out bubble tea, though, which I did get the next day.
There is a decent game selection on the IFE, including arcade and board games.
And of course, there’s the moving map. I thought the map was OK, though a bit hard to customize.
I forgot to screenshot the options, but EVA does provide WiFi on these long-haul flights. Prices range from $4.95 for a metered (30MB) messaging plan, to $39.95 for an unlimited flight pass. I needed to get a little work done, so I just ended up buying the full flight pass. Speeds were reasonably good, and the connection remained stable while I used it. Note that if you register an account when purchasing, you can switch between devices. I definitely took advantage of this to switch between my phone and laptop as needed.
Food, Beverage, and Service
Simply put, it’s this part of the experience that really sets EVA Air Business Class apart. I dare say that EVA’s Business Class rivals many First Class products in terms of quality. Many years ago, July 2007 to be exact, I flew EVA Business Class. I still remember the meal being particularly excellent, and thankfully, that hasn’t changed.
The excellent service began as soon as we sat down, with a friendly FA offering an overview of the seat and service for first-time EVA flyers. Shortly thereafter, the FA offered a pre-departure beverage of still or sparkling water or champagne. As per custom, I took a flute of champagne. Previously, EVA served Krug in Business Class. That’s no longer the case, but this flight featured Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle, arguably an even better option.
And of course, I took the obligatory champagne selfie.
The FAs then handed out menus for the flight. Note that EVA allows you to “book the cook” in advance, which gives you access to a larger main course selection. I pre-ordered the “lobster claw and tail with cannelloni”, which the FA confirmed as she took meal orders.
I already mentioned the Laurent-Perrier, but the wine menu in general is decent. None are particularly pricey, but the Chateau Chantegrive and Crozes-Hermitage both rate highly.
Even the digestif menu is impressive for Business Class. Kavalan single malt and Johnnie Walker Blue both rate as First Class-level options. (A bottle of Kavalan retails for about $80 in Taipei.)
As you might expect on an Asian airline, the menu also features an extension selection of teas. There are also espresso drinks if that’s something you fancy.
About 30 minutes after take-off, the FAs came through to set the tables.
A couple of minutes later, an amuse bouche was served, a tuna salad with cucumber roll, along with a cheese tart.
The FAs also offered the first drink service at this time. I ordered the white Bordeaux. It’s a little on the tart side, with some notable citrus notes, but also an oak/vanilla finish that contrasts nicely. It did go quite well with the lobster main course.
About 5 minutes later, we received the starter of salmon with smoked duck and potato salad. This was quite good, the salmon in particular, which was fresh and tender. Accompanying the salmon were assorted breads. I took the garlic bread, which I found excellent, with a crisp, flaky crust and chewy center.
Next up, a cream of broccoli soup. It did take a bit to move on to this course, about 20 minutes after the appetizer. A small portion, but again, excellent, with the dollop of cream making it extra rich.
About 10 minutes after that, we received a side salad with blue cheese dressing. Not much to say here, but I did find the veggies crisp and fresh. And more importantly, properly chilled.
The main course appeared pretty quickly after the salad. As mentioned earlier, I pre-ordered the lobster with cannelloni.
The main course receives a minor demerit. On the one hand, I found the cannelloni very good, perfectly cooked and with a delicious cream sauce. The asparagus and mushrooms also came out incredibly nicely done, especially from an airplane oven. They had the proper texture, and avoided the burnt flavor common with airplane convection ovens. The lobster, though, was overcooked and chewy.
After lunch, I decided to pass on dessert, and ordered a cheese plate instead. Well, I doubt it’s really any healthier, but at least I skipped the sugar. I enjoyed the cheeses, though the garlic cheese was a bit on the strong side.
Finally, I capped things off with a Johnnie Walker Blue.
From start to finish, the meal service took around an hour and 15 minutes to complete. I found that appropriate for a daytime flight. While the meal scored highly in terms of quality, I guess I was a little surprised at the lack of Taiwanese options. Only one meal on the printed menu and one on the online menu fell in that category. Personally I enjoy trying local specialties onboard. If nothing else, it gives me an idea of what to try at my destination.
After waking up from my nap, I ordered an oolong tea as a pick me up. I debated ordering some noodles, but I still felt pretty stuffed from lunch earlier.
About 2 hours before landing, the FAs began breakfast service. I again pre-ordered a meal, this time the plain congee. The dish came with assorted condiments and side dishes, along with a small plate of fruit.
Congee is an acquired taste, to say the least. Or more precisely, congee by itself doesn’t have much taste. In southern India, though, a rice porridge of the same name is a common breakfast dish (the word “congee” actually derives from Tamil). My mother used to make it for me occasionally as a child. And so I decided to have some for old times.
Service-wise, it was pretty close to flawless, mainly for the little things the FAs did right. After awakening from my nap, it didn’t even take the FA a minute to notice and ask if I needed anything. And since I woke up a good 6 hours before landing, she came by several times to check on me. On one visit, she was genuinely surprised to find out an American tourist planned to stay in Taiwan, and was nice enough to tell me about a couple of things to see near my hotel. Overall, it’s the proactiveneness that really sets the top Asian carriers apart. It wasn’t ridiculously over-the-top, but just attentive from start to finish.
Flightseeing
The one downside to a long Transpacific flight – there’s very few opportunities for flightseeing. You get a few shots on takeoff, then nothing for half a day until you reach Asia.
While taxing in San Francisco, I did get in a little planespotting. Next door to our gate was an Avianca A320neo.
Then, there was quite a tail parade as we headed to the main taxiway. Front and center was a China Southern 77W in “World Skills Shanghai 2022” livery, with JAL and Emirates photobombing.
I guess there’s nothing particularly fancy about a Frontier A320, but I always liked the tail animals. This time, I bumped into Watson the Key Deer.
And finally, as we inched towards the runway, a gorgeous Fiji Airways A359 arriving from Nadi.
As we turned onto the runway, the fog-free midday revealed a great shot of the San Francisco skyline.
As we took off to the north, the marine layer lurked over the hills to the west.
And that was it until flying over Japan a good 11 hours later.
EVA Air B777-300ER Business Class – Final Thoughts
No, the hard product isn’t cutting edge. But on an overall basis, EVA’s Royal Laurel Class acts and feels a lot more like a First Class product than Business. Yes, the soft product is that good. If you can find Saver space (BIG if), it’s a fantastic premium points redemption.
