While the Airbus A350-900 wasn’t STARLUX’s first widebody aircraft — that distinction goes to the A330-900neo — it certainly marked the dawn of a new era for the airline.
These are the jets that enabled Taiwan’s luxury startup to commence long-haul operations, and came equipped with all-new First and Business Class seats. Indeed, STARLUX became the first airline to offer a First Class cabin on an A350 (no, Malaysia Airlines’ pseudo-first Business Suite doesn’t count!).
I’ve waited a long time to try this flagship product, and having finally done so, I can say that STARLUX’s long-haul Business Class does indeed live up to the hype. The cabin is stunning, the seat is very comfortable, and the catering is excellent. If not for a relatively weak inflight entertainment selection and barely-usable Wi-Fi, it would easily be among the very best Business Class products in the world.
| ✈️ tl;dr: STARLUX A350-900 Business Class | |
| STARLUX offers a stellar long-haul Business Class product with excellent catering, though there’s work to be done on the inflight entertainment selection and Wi-Fi. | |
| 👍 The Good | 👎 The Bad |
|
|
| 👨👩👦 Family Feud |
|
STARLUX A350-900 Business Class
After spending four hours at the STARLUX Galactic Lounge (amazing design, so-so everything else), I headed to the boarding gate. Taoyuan airport is freezing at night, and it didn’t help that boarding was delayed by about 30 minutes.
STARLUX has a total of 30 seats in the front cabin of its Airbus A350-900, in a 1-2-1 configuration that offers direct aisle access to every passenger.
The first row of the cabin features — confusingly — four First Class seats. On other airlines this would be considered Business Plus, and perhaps sold at a slight mark-up with the same soft product as Business Class. But on STARLUX this is considered a separate class of travel altogether (review here) with upgraded amenities, food and drinks, and a separate lounge. During the brief period when STARLUX offered First Class to Singapore, they used JetQuay (which is incredibly meh). But if you’re departing from LAX you get access to P/S, the airport’s private terminal!
The seats look great in and of themselves, but I find they rather detract from the overall aesthetics, because when you look towards the front you see this odd series of monoliths towering over the rest of the cabin.
Moreover, it’s a bit hard to understand what they’re going for here in terms of strategy. This is, for all intents and purposes, a nicer Business Class seat rather than a bespoke First Class product. And while the seats have higher privacy walls, they’re still located within the Business Class cabin, so it’s not as private as a completely separate cabin would be.
Given that STARLUX generally prices First Class at 3x the cost of Business Class, I’m not sure an upgraded soft product experience — as good as it may be — justifies that kind of premium. That said, there’s an interesting interview with STARLUX’s CEO where he claims that many high-end suppliers will only deal with airlines that have a First Class cabin, so having this product is necessary for the airline in that sense.
The remaining 26 Business Class seats run from Rows 2 to 8, and feature the Collins Aerospace Elements product (for which STARLUX is the launch customer).
Further modifications were made by BMW Designworks, who call the new cabin experience “Glisten”, an evolution of the “Pure Tea” and “Sanctuary” themes used on the A321 and A330 respectively. The design leans heavily on haptic experiences, like quilted panels, woven fabric seats, leather headrests and rose gold embellishments.
As you’d expect with any reverse herringbone layout, the middle seats are better for couples. However, there’s a slidable partition between the seats that can be extended should you be travelling solo, so you’ll still have good privacy regardless.
The main piece of advice I’d give regarding seat selection is to avoid the very last row of the cabin (seats 8D/G), because you are literally in line with the lavatories.
Not only will you be constantly disturbed by people going in and out, you’re also going to get the accompanying noise of the flush.
The six seats by the window (A/K) are ideal for solo travellers, and for this flight I chose seat 5A, one of only a handful of seats with unobstructed windows.
Each seat is about 53cm wide between armrests, though the armrests can also be lowered for extra space. I found the padding to be comfortable, and the seat fabric didn’t feel scratchy like some other airlines.
The seat does narrow towards the front, as most reverse herringbone seats do, but I didn’t find it particularly restrictive. Do note that you aren’t allowed to stow things here during take-off and landing.
Opposite the seat was a 24″ 4K touchscreen, one of the largest you’ll find in Business Class. The picture was crisp and the screen was responsive, with minimal input lag.
This seat uses a three-point seatbelt. It isn’t the most popular design out there, but at least you don’t need the shoulder strap for the vast majority of the flight. Small detail, but I appreciated the small piece of leather covering the seat belt attachment point. This not only keeps it from snagging on clothing, it also helps dampen the sound during turbulence.
The seat was controlled by a digital panel by the side, with presets for full flat, full upright, lounging and Zero G, a position that elevates the head and legs slightly above the heart to evenly distribute body weight. There was also a massage function, together with buttons for lighting and a do not disturb mode.
One cool feature was the ability to control the tint of the window. STARLUX’s A350-900s are the first of the “new production standard”, which come with electro-dimmable windows that block 99.999% of light. I much prefer these to the Boeing 787’s, not just because they block a lot more light and heat, but because they use a more hygienic-feeling touch-sensitive slider instead of a grubby physical button.
You could also adjust the tint from the seat control panel.
There was a secondary set of controls with physical buttons for full upright, full flat, and lighting. These are useful when the seat is fully reclined, and keep you from having to reach forward to the touch panel.
The seat had a storage cabinet with a mirror, which lit up when opened. Inside the cabinet was a hook for headphones, wireless charging pad, power outlet and wired inflight entertainment remote. There’s a small gap at the bottom that allows wires to pass through without crimping them.
Additional storage has been cleverly built into the table itself, with a compartment that folds up to reveal a shallow storage nook. Of course, it’s not easy to access once you’ve got drinks and such on the table, so you might want to store lesser-used items here.
A further storage bin can be found by your legs.
In terms of power options, each seat had a universal power outlet, 60W USB-C port and a standard USB-A port. 60W is sufficient to charge most laptops, allowing you to leave the power brick in your bag and just use a PD-compatible cable. There is no HDMI input, so I don’t think it’s possible to project your laptop onto the big screen.
It’s very trendy to have entertainment remotes with built-in screens, but I dislike the additional light pollution and screen glare that creates. STARLUX’s remote does it just right, with physical buttons, a track pad, and a small monochrome display that shows the remaining flight time. Don’t discount that last feature. Think about how often you wake up in the middle of a flight and want to know how much time is left, but can’t do so without turning on the main screen and bathing yourself in sleep-wrecking blue light.
The tray table folded out from beneath the screen. What I liked is that you could push it away from you without having to refold it, making it easy to enter and exit the seat during meal service. However, it did flex quite a bit when you put weight on it, so some bouncing during typing was inevitable.
The suite’s sliding door was unlocked shortly after take-off, and was fairly easy to operate. When closed, it offers some privacy, though it’s only 123cm high and anyone of reasonable height could look in if they wanted to.
There is also small gap to the side, and a noticeable gap at the bottom that allows more light to leak in.
One minor annoyance is that STARLUX does not have individual air nozzles on its A350s, so you can’t adjust the temperature if you find it too stuffy.
Amenities
STARLUX provides amenity kits and pajamas on flights to North America.
The amenity kits are in partnership with Japanese cosmetic brand THREE, and include some of the brand’s most popular skincare essentials: lip balm, overnight oil serum, and moisturiser. There was also a comb, dental kit and earplugs, plus a pair of compression socks and an adjustable-fit eye mask (I wish SQ would offer this instead of the elastic band version, which puts a lot of pressure on your eyes).
Pajamas and slippers were also provided. STARLUX doesn’t have any fancy tie-up here, but these were still among the most comfortable PJs I’ve had on a plane. They breathed extremely well, and I wear them around the house occasionally. I originally received a large, but the crew soon found me a better-fitting medium (I’m svelte, don’t you know) and asked me to keep both.
Another highlight was the lovely double-sided flannel blanket, which felt like petting a rabbit.
The crew also handed out facial masks from Oneluxe, which retails for…wait for it… US$31 online.
Also waiting at every seat was a bottle of Acqua Panna still water. I know water is water, but it sure feels a lot more premium than the unbranded water you get on SQ Business Class.
Food & Beverage
The F&B has always been a highlight of my STARLUX flights so far, and I was eagerly looking forward to what they’d deliver on a long-haul service. It didn’t disappoint!
Physical food and drink menus were waiting at each seat on boarding, though you also had the option of browsing the selection through the inflight entertainment system.
Service began on the ground in TPE with pre-departure beverages and a cold towel. There’s no choice of beverage, and STARLUX does not serve champagne before take-off — so you’ll need to wait till later to get sloshed. On this flight, the welcome drink was a blend of orange and mango.
Supper would be served after departure, and breakfast before landing.
STARLUX Business Class passengers also have the option of pre-ordering their main course online, which includes some special items that can’t be found onboard. Historically, there was a technical issue where tickets booked through partner airlines could not be managed online, and hence meal selection was not possible. That’s apparently been rectified, since I booked through Alaska Mileage Plan and was able to get it done.
As this was a redeye flight, I was watching closely to see how quickly the crew could get everyone fed and into bed, and overall it was quite impressive. After take-off at 12.57 a.m, the first course arrived at 1.26 a.m, the second at 1.35 a.m and the main at 1.41 a.m. Dessert was served at 1.55 a.m, and at 2.20 a.m the cabin lights were dimmed.
The meal started with a salad featuring prawns, cold smoked duck and black olive dressing. This was served with warm bread and Isigny Sainte-Mere butter, one of my favourite brands.
Next was a creamy zucchini potato soup. I thought this was especially well-executed, a comforting, velvety blend of earthy flavors that highlighted the natural sweetness of zucchini and the heartiness of the potatoes.
For the main, I ordered the lobster linguine from the online menu. I didn’t really care for the linguine, which was supposed to be done aglio olio style but turned out to be rather tasteless. However, the lobster was excellent. The meat was fresh and sweet, and I wonder why SIA feels the need to drown theirs in brandy and cheese until you can’t appreciate the flavour of the lobster itself.
Some fruits rounded off the meal, together with a delicious sea salt milk gelato and a small square of Amedei chocolate from Tuscany.
STARLUX also has an incredible drinks selection, both for drinkers and non-drinkers.
The champagne poured on this flight was Charles Heidsieck Blanc de Blanc NV (a pricier option than the Brut Reserve NV found on ANA and Singapore Airlines).
Here’s the full wine list; note that only the Charles Heidsieck was served on this flight, and not the Bollinger Special Cuvee.
There was also a cocktail menu curated by the head of Bar TCRC (ranked the 23rd best bar in Asia for 2016). You must try the electric blue Sci-fi Cosmos at least once in your life, but since I’d checked that off my list already, I went with the Bi Luo Chun Galaxy, a mixture of gin, Bi Luo Chun tea and soda water.
Even if you don’t fancy alcohol, STARLUX has a peerless drinks selection, including Acqua Panna and San Pellegrino water, Boba tea latte, coffees from illy and st1 cafe in Taiwan, an extensive tea selection, and in-house cold-pressed juice.
At the midway point in the flight, I decided to order something from the snack menu. There were two hot items: XO sauce noodles with red oil chili wanton dumplings, and a Hutong Wagyu pineapple bun with black truffle butter. Both were delicious.
The crew also came around with a snack basket, which was a bit of a let down. Given STARLUX’s obsessive attention to detail, I do wish they had taken the opportunity to showcase more uniquely Taiwanese snacks, instead of just the usual junk food you could find anywhere.
The lights went on about 2.5 hours before landing, and breakfast served 30 minutes after that. This featured yoghurt with a choice of muesli, mixed nuts, dried fruits and Taiwan lychee-honey, a bread basket, and a starter of pistachio couscous salad (my first time having a salad for breakfast!).
For the main course, I had the Dutch mini pancakes, which were simply sensational. These were warm, wonderful balls of dough dusted with a touch of icing sugar and incredibly addictive. They paired brilliantly with the torched peach and strawberry compote.
Breakfast service ended with a fresh fruit platter.
Apart from the rather unimaginative snack basket, I’d say this was some of the best catering I’ve seen in Business Class. I was particularly impressed by the drinks selection, because it’s not every day you see an airline putting as much thought into their non-alcoholic drinks as they do their wines. This really had something for everyone.
Inflight Entertainment
STARLUX Business Class seats on the A350-900 have 24-inch 4K UHD touchscreen displays.
Each passenger received a pair of STARLUX-branded noise-cancelling headphones. I couldn’t tell who the manufacturer was, but they were comfortable and offered good sound isolation.
The system also supports Bluetooth audio connectivity, but unlike my experience on other aircraft, I wasn’t able to pair my headphones (Google Pixel Buds Pro 2). For whatever reason, it just couldn’t detect them, so I used the provided headset in the end.
The movie selection offered around 120 titles, definitely not in the same league as Emirates ICE or Singapore Airlines KrisWorld. I didn’t spot very many first-run titles, and I think this is still an issue that STARLUX is trying to work through.
It was the same story with the TV shows, which veered mostly Asian rather than Western.
Wi-Fi
STARLUX offers complimentary inflight Wi-Fi for First, Business and Premium Economy Class passengers. Economy Class passengers get a free Chat plan, which only supports messaging.
Now, STARLUX’s woes with Wi-Fi are well-documented, as the airline works to roll out enhanced connectivity with Viasat. As a result, the airline doesn’t actually sell Wi-Fi plans at the moment- meaning that if you’re an Economy Class passenger, you can’t even pay to upgrade!
STARLUX Airlines is actively coordinating with technical engineering teams to upgrade the onboard equipment successively. However, during the firmware update period, passengers may experience unstable connections or be unable to use the in-flight Wi-Fi.
As a result, STARLUX Airlines has temporarily suspended the sale of Galactic Wi-Fi data plan through the official website and will also suspend the purchase of additional Galactic Wi-Fi data onboard starting from November 30, 2024. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
-STARLUX
So it was no surprise that my experience was terrible, with Wi-Fi unavailable for large portions of the flight.
I was only able to get Wi-Fi as we approached the continental United States, but even then the speeds weren’t great. I could send emails and edit some posts, but anything more heavy-duty than that just didn’t work.
Hopefully, this problem will get resolved in time to come, but until then, I can’t recommend STARLUX if solid Wi-Fi connectivity is a must-have.
That said, I was impressed that the Wi-Fi kept working even as the plane was descending. Even when we were taxiing towards the gate, I was still able to continue browsing. I suppose this might be one of those gate-to-gate Wi-Fi systems?
Sleep Experience
Business Class seats deploy into full-flat, 2-metre long beds. The crew will help to add a mattress pad for extra padding. I found the sheets and PJ materials breathed well, so despite the lack of individual air vents, I didn’t have a problem with overheating.
As I mentioned earlier, the seat does narrow towards the front, but it will only be an issue if you’re very tall. For me (1.8m and a back sleeper), it was perfectly fine.
Service
The service on this flight was efficient, though not particularly personable. Passengers weren’t addressed by name, and I felt the crew could have been more proactive on things like drinks refills during meal service, or clearing plastic packaging.
It wasn’t bad by any means, just that flying with Singapore Airlines has probably conditioned me to expect more.
Lavatories
The 26 Business Class passengers share a total of three lavatories, one at the front of the cabin, and two at the rear (remember, the rearmost bathrooms are almost directly in line with seats 8 D/G).
These were kept spotlessly clean throughout the flight, and the terrazzo patterns and Hollywood mirrors gave them a premium feel.
As you’d expect, STARLUX has some nice flourishes here, like a flower arrangement, diffuser, Huygens lotion and Three Cosmetics hand wash. The speakers even play piped-in spa music, because why not?
But the coolest feature of all was the toilet paper, which unfurls to display a runway. Yes, a bidet seat would have been nice too, but how can you not love this?
Conclusion
STARLUX offers an excellent Business Class on its A350-900 that very much delivers on the hype. The seat offers all the comfort, privacy and tech you’d expect from a modern Business Class product, the food and drinks selection (snack basket aside) was excellent, and the amenities were every bit in line with the premium branding.
The main weaknesses here are the relatively lacklustre inflight entertainment selection, as well as the abysmal Wi-Fi connectivity. Hopefully these are issues that STARLUX can tackle in time, as it gains access to better content libraries and completes its Viasat upgrade.
It’s just a shame that STARLUX flights are so difficult to redeem with miles at the moment (Alaska Mileage Plan prices have skyrocketed to 165,000 miles each way), though that may change if the carrier eventually joins oneworld, as it’s rumoured to.
What do you make of STARLUX’s A350-900 Business Class experience?
I have very serious doubt as to the quote by the CEO of them having this hybrid First due to request by “First-only” passengers. Unless they provide a really unique experience on the ground, for instance a separate check-in, lounge, or other personal attentions, there is no way that high-end flyers would consider that “First”. My experience of nearly two decades of occasional First flying (paid/miles/free) is that such passengers value the discretion and quiet, as well as the personal touch over any vintage champagne, caviar or other amenities. This leads me to believe this First class is to be considered a Business+, akin to PE being more Economy than Business.
Honestly the product is probably worth a moderate points or cash upcharge over biz. Not 3x. Or treat it as seats to reward their top tier elites?
Too bad the apex seats wasn’t selected.
I agree that paying F passengers would value the intangibles more than the alcohol, caviar or the toiletry bag. The tangibles are already part of their non-flying lifestyle at this price point.
The alcohol, caviar is expected. And will be missed.
Hold our beers.
Taoyuan Airport is very cold, even colder between November and February
The large air conditioner at waiting area will only make the matter worse
It’s ironic how you write about the snack basket being full of generic packaged products (and not taiwanese snacks) one can find anywhere, and minutes later, go on to bemoan the lack of generic hollywood packaged entertainment (a selection that “veers asian”).
hollywood??? i want my moody german avant garde arthouse films!!!
I apologise for my misunderstanding. What was I thinking?
But honestly, as a frequent flyer, I’d love to get some non-standard fare.
TPE airport is just…. sigh….
Starlux offering is good… i agree on the lack of personal touch and lack of proactiveness of the cabin crews to go around checking especially on a long intercontinental flight. They probably prefer passengers to spam call buttons 😉
Interesting as my JX A350 experience years ago TPE-SIN had a crew that handily beat SQ J crews, even these of yesteryear. Level of attentiveness reminded me of F.
The almost empty cabin probably helped.
MH was indeed the first airline that offered First Class on the A350 in 2018. It was only rebranded to Business Suite a few months after that. First Class had a separate cabin, different seat and elevated soft product. Business Suite is just a name change and it is the same as the old First Class.
Photos are not very clear. Especially the ones with words. Takes a lot of effort to read the words.
no whisky menu? hehehe
the F&B quality do looks way better than SQ…nowadays SQ book the cook quality is a disappointment
oh i missed uploading that page, will get it fixed.
泰斯卡黑風暴單一麥芽威士忌
Talisker Dark Storm Single Malt Whisky
噶瑪蘭經典雪莉 Oloroso 雪莉桶
Kavalan Solist Oloroso Sherry Single
Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky
傑克丹尼爾老 7 號田納西威士忌
Jack Daniel’s Old No.7 Tennessee Whisky
本坊酒造 Mars 越百純麥威士忌
Mars Maltage “COSMO” Blended
Malt Japanese Whisky
Imagine paying thousands of dollars for your fare and then being seated right next to the toilet.
The loo roll is epic though.
I recalled last year during my Cathay flight from MAN to HKG, a pair of English old folks kpkb for at least an hour (30mins before take off and 30mins while cruising) when they were assigned seats right in front of the toilet… they cant go anywhere as it was a full flight.
A problem if you do not know how to select your seats earlier lol….