Review: Lufthansa Boeing 747 First Class, Vancouver-Frankfurt


Lufthansa Boeing 747-400 bound for Frankfurt

Originally posted in August 2014

Flight: LH493
Departure in Vancouver: 16:10
Arrival in Frankfurt: 10:50 (+1)
Equipment: Boeing 747-400
Flight duration: 9h 40m
Date of flight: June 2, 2014
Seat: 81C (upper deck)
*This is an award travel, First Class flight #19

Check in


Vancouver Airport Lufthansa check in counters


Since the check in desks were still closed, I decided to head to one of the check in kiosks to have my boarding pass printed.


Vancouver Airport

Lounge


After clearing security, I headed to the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge, a review of which you can find here.

Aircraft


Lufthansa Boeing 747-400 bound for Frankfurt

Boarding, gate 55


Boarding started on time at gate 55 and as a first class passenger, I was one of the first ones to board.

Cabin, upper deck


Lufthansa First Class upper deck


The first class cabin on the 747 of Lufthansa is located on the upper deck with a total of 8 seats. As far as I know, the Boeing 747 is the only aircraft and Lufthansa is the only airline offering a separate seat and a bed to their first class passengers so kudos to them!

Lufthansa First Class cabin on the 747

Seat

My seat was 81C, with a separate seat and a bed. Who could ask for more ๐Ÿ˜Š

My seat 81C

Lufthansa First Class personal screen

Lufthansa First Class entertainment controls located on the left side of the seat

Lufthansa entertainment controls and Bose headphones

Lufthansa First class storage compartment

Lufthansa First Class inflight magazine

Lufthansa First Class hotspot sign

Lufthansa First Class personal screen

Lufthansa First Class bar trolley

Amenity Kit

Lufthansa First Class amenity kit consisting of pajamas, slippers and an Escada bag with toiletries

The contents of the Escada bag (which actually can be used as a tablet case) included La mer moisturizing cream, a toothbrush and Pearls & Dents toothpaste, eyemask, socks, comb and earplugs.

The first class pajamas and slippers were nice but not among my favorites.

Pre-departure beverage

A glass of bubbly, water and some macadamia nuts

Post-departure beverage

As for my departure beverage, I settled for a glass of guava juice.

I was also given a hot towel afterwards.

Dining

Lufthansa First Class menu card and wine list

The menu read as follows:

Lufthansa First Class menu

Lufthansa First Class menu

Lufthansa First Class breakfast menu

Lufthansa First Class amuse bouche which was some sort of salmon ๐Ÿ˜‹

Lufthansa First Class caviar

Lufthansa First Class Appetizer

Fresh Maine Lobster Claw with Mango Salsa

Lufthansa First Class Main Course ๐Ÿ˜‹

Bacon Wrapped Tenderloin of Beef served with Tomato Concassรฉe, green Beans, Baby Squash and Lyonnaise Potato

Lufthansa First Class Dessert

Mango Sauce with Fresh Strawberry

Lufthansa First Class green tea and some pralines

Time to sleep

Lufthansa First Class bed

Lufthansa First Class, view from my bed

Breakfast

Lufthansa First Class bread, fresh orange juice and green tea

Lufthansa First Class Cold Specialty

Smoked Salmon, Honey Ham, Capiccolo Ham, Genoa Salami, Brie, Cheddar and Cream Cheese with Chives

Lufthansa First Class Hot Specialty

Scrambled Eggs freshly prepared with choice of Bacon

Arrival in Frankfurt

Frankfurt Main Airport

We landed on time at Frankfurt Airport and as a first class passenger, I was one of the first ones to leave the aircraft. Moments after, I was on my way to the Lufthansa First Class Terminal, one of the most popular first class lounges in the world.

CONCLUSION

So here it is, my first time flying on Lufthansa in first class! I have read a lot of good things about the food and the service and that for this special flight, they are using the Boeing 747-400 which means that there is a separate seat and bed, so I was really soooo looking forward to this flight ๐Ÿ˜‰ Actually, the flight was okay although I have to be honest and say that I was not that impressed with the service. I am used to the friendliness of the flight attendants of the various Asian carriers I have flown with in the past, and the first thing they do after I've changed into my pyjamas is to ask me if they could hang my pants and shirt and keep it in the wardrobe. On this flight though, the flight attendant never asked me if she could hang my shirt/pants so for the whole flight, my clothes were on my bed when I was seating on my seat, and on my seat when I was lying in the bed. I can not say she didn't notice it either because she had been passing by my seat a lot of times, aside from the fact that it is part of her "job" to make sure everything is taken care of. It doesn't even have to be a first class flight for this thing to be a routine since I know that most Asian airlines (specially ANA) are very good in giving this service to their business class passengers (hanging the coats, etc). A few more things which I thought were not really first class service: the salt and pepper shakers which have the Lufthansa logo were not facing the passenger so I guess it's about time to learn from their colleagues from Singapore Airlines ;) Also, the side of the butter which has the words First Class on it was facing down.

On the other hand, I thought the food from the caviar up to the dessert was very good and that the movie selection on the IFE was extensive. I would have preferred the Rimowa kit they used to give to their first class passengers in the past but I guess the new Escada bag which you can use as a tablet case is not that bad either. And of course, the separate bed was just unbeatable. Overall, it was a good flight and could have been a perfect one if only the service had been just as nice as the hard product.

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