The ANA 777-300ER middle seat economy experience (SFO-HND)
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- Опубликовано: 4 авг 2023
- It’s a fairly well-known fact that ANA 777-300ER economy class is pretty darn good. But - how good are the middle seats? That’s the ultimate test of any economy class seat IMHO.
This video is a detailed summary of my experience from seat 34E on ANA flight number 107 from San Francisco to Tokyo (Haneda).
Total flying time was 10 hours and 6 minutes, and the aircraft registration was JA788A.
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Ain’t cheap, but I’d always go ANA/JAL over any of the big US carriers, even in a middle economy seat. Great video!
Thanks, and I tend to agree. The onboard service on Japanese airlines (even in economy) smokes everything else.
You clearly have never flown out of Canada. At least you have JAL option. We are stuck with Air Canada and let me tell you, it ain't cheap
Plus the restrooms are always clean in ANA!!!
@@fahad203 currently $1,100 to Tokyo from Toronto. Flow that route over 14 times and never had a bad time.
If you're doing a layover in japan, do you still have to do immigration??
ANA's new 777 interior is by far the best economy seat I've ever been in. Even better than their 787s. The service and hard product are definitely deserving of their current status as #3 airline in the world! They even tell you why an airplane is delayed, even if the delay is under 15 mins! Gotta love Japanese punctuality. (Only thing that beat it would be United's 787 when I had an entire row to myself and the plane was less than half full due to COVID.)
Thank you for sharing your experienced and preview about ANA. I will be flying internationa[ next month with them and good to get all this information. Greatly apprecoaye your input
One of most entertaining and informing video I have seen in a while. Very well made
Love your videos man , thanks for another great review, have a great weekend .
Thanks, you too!
I've flown ANA a few times and found them to be quite nice. My worst experience with them was last year, Haneda to Ohare, in the exit row. Now most would be happy in the exit row because of the legroom. However, I was in the middle seat. At 165 pounds with 34 in waist I had trouble fitting in the seat. It was the narrowest seat I have ever flown in.
Good video. I'm flying with ANA in two weeks from Frankfurt to Haneda so this video is great to set expectations.
Thanks! I hope you enjoy it!
Hi Scott Great video as always!
Hey, thanks!
Fantastic video Scott!
Thanks Ryan!
Great watch as always 🙌
Thanks Matt!
If you take ANA at midnight flight from west coast (ie SFO / LAX) to Japan, the first meal is always Sandwich due to midnight hour and the fact that many passengers are assumed to be sleeping immediately after take off. To enjoy full meal experience, I always take mid-day flight!
Also, when you depart from Japan, you may want to pre-order Japanese meal or their optional western style meal where you pay $15-$20 at their official website. The first meal that you pre-ordered will be high quality meal that is served like a business class (the second meal will be breakfast meal, which will be the same to all passengers)!
Thank you for sharing your flight. Wow!! Long-haul in that middle seat in Economy Class.
Also, was the ANA Lounge open to have some food and drinks before your flight?? Finally, you made me laugh with that facial photo of you with you eyes open like, "what did I do". That was crazy cute!! Yes, I have flown the other way to Europe in Economy Class and I have learned and gain more points in my airline memberships. So, Business Class long-haul and my knees need more space as well.
Yay excited to do the same flight out of sfo in May!!!
Glad to see you back bro
Thanks Kevin!
Fun review, thanks! After so many tiny lavs that looked quite spacious.
Thanks Kevin - glad you enjoyed it!
Those wee morning departures are a fact of life for folks in the middle east. I've had many a departure after midnight that gets me into Europe, especially LHR, at 6:30 am, or the Asian financial centers in the late evening.
Yet another great video.
Thanks again!
@@sanspotter You're welcome.
i recently flew ANA red eye flight from JFK to HND, ANA also served a snack box similar to the one from SFO right after airborne, but over experience still far better than UA, AA & DL for the same routes in my opinions
We flew with ANA years ago from Houston to Singapore via Narita 777-300 in a 2-4-3 configuration and we were very impressed. Economy seats had a very generous 34 inches of pitch with a foot rest, in seat power and a good sized IFE screen with a lot of content. Our flight departed mid morning and we were served 2 meals along with a snack similar to your box with a sandwhich and chips mid flight. Flight attendants were very friendly and proactive. They walked the aisles hourly to check on us to see if we needed anything. We paid $800 per person round trip and we booked 6 months in advance. I will say that was in 2016 and prices have definetly increased since then. I wouldn't hesitate to book a flight on ANA again.
Yeah, I fondly remember the days when it was possible to get sub $1000 round-trip fares to Asia from the US. That’s a heck of a deal to fly ANA round-trip! I also agree with you about the proactive flight attendants - seems like they never sat down, were constantly up on their feet walking through the cabin.
That is a really good way to fly economy to Japan. Thanks for the info + video!
I love this midnight flight. It is the BEST flight for me, but the worst flight for you. Sometimes, I do get sleepy, but I fall asleep super quick once on board. I hope ANA does not change this time because of your comments.
Can't wait until the next one Scott!!
Thanks! Spoiler alert: more ANA. 😄
I was on this this flight the night of August 1st, but in PE. ANA does a great job with pretty much everything. The first “meal” was just a snack and, honestly, we just wanted to sleep.
The thing I noticed boarding was the design of business class, where half the seats faced backwards. Not a fan of that, but the seat itself looked more like a loveseat. Gotta get points to fly that one day!
I'm flying ANA 777 economy window, from JFK-HND soon. However, my full itinerary is CVG-HND round trip it was 1200 booked through United as a codeshare. 2k is crazy.
I flew this trip in Comfort + on Delta before covid, which was amazing. but C+ for the same trip is like 2500 now. Since I was going with economy, it had to be ANA or JAL. ANA won out because of United's 2 free checked bag policy. Next time it'll be JAL.
The ANA round trip flight that I took was a little lack luster from my last flight five years ago. They used to give a hot wet towel for wiping the hands before serving drinks, now they just give a wrapped wet paper towel. The meals were delicate yet scrumptious, so much that I couldn’t finish. Now they skimmed on quality and spread. May be they want to cut budget in these two areas, other than that everything is superb.
It is because of COVID. It may take a while to go back to the old ways.
I was looking for the best seat on economy class ANA airlines. And I found your channel. I’m from San Diego. That will be my flight this coming January. San Diego-Haneda-Okinawa. I just subscribed. Thanks for the info. 😊
You’re very welcome! I recommend bringing your own food though - they weren’t providing much. Other than that it was great, and I’m sure you’ll really enjoy it. 👍🏻👍🏻
@@sanspotter Thanks 👍🏼😊
Welcome to Japan! I'm sure this was actually done ages ago. But enjoy your time here.
Thank you! This flight was just three weeks ago, so fairly recent. I love Japan!
I’ve flown to Vietnam once in Thailand three times in the last year, the flight to Vietnam was a split flight with United and ANA layover in Tokyo, half the flight was premium economy. The other half was economy 20 hour flight. I’ll never do that again. Next three trips were to Bangkok Thailand in business class layover in Tokyo. I guess I’m old I can’t do that long of a flight in economy anymore. Last flight out of LAX left at midnight. It worked out perfect for me.
It looks pretty comfy for coach! I was looking into Zipair out of LAX... the lie flat seems like a steal but no IFE which is fine if you've got your iPad or laptop.
Those businesses class sections you passed on the way in and out is what I flew last time. You have no idea how great life is up front.
😄😄😄
Wonderful video again! I was just in Tokyo and Hiroshima, you will love both of them; they’re great cities!
Thanks! And I totally agree - pretty much all of Japan is amazing.
This is one of the best times for flying ANA, but I fly out of San Francisco at 1 am, a little earlier. You fall asleep and arrive at 5 am in Tokyo ready to rock. Unfortunately, it does not work for you. Please fly the ANA flight or United flight at 11 am or 12 noon. But don't give this a negative review. Thank you for reminding us that you hate flying late. My advice- Do NOT fly late.
Scott, while 0145 departure time is chaotic to the system, any flight on a 777 and any flight on a Japanese carrier is good. I know $2k for a middle seat/economy is a tall ask, but I would have paid it. Everything from the ordered boarding process, spacious loo, A+ service, extra legroom, large IFE with ample content...all that adds value. The higher price also keeps you away from a more Spirit-like clientele. Bottom line is that as long as you get what you pay for, it's all good. 5 years from now you wont remember the $2000, but you will remember the great service and a nice flight.
We do the 14h LHR - HND trip once a year on the same model and generally just stay at the hotel in Haneda either side of the flights as they arrive mid-late even and depart early morning so it's just less hassle to crash at the airport than deal with getting across Tokyo. Economy is fine, but sitting for that long gives me some discomfort around my butt / lower back so take a pillow/cushion as the one provided is a bit anemic. You get two hot meals on the flight which are fine, but not huge portions so I normally grab a sandwich or onigiri to take on board.
Yep, I took that 2 am flight in April. Nothing open and when I got on the flight I passed out right away. Great review.
Thanks! I was actually surprised how popular that flight is given the inconvenient the departure time - it seems to be going out full almost every day.
@@sanspotter Same here, it was just packed at the gate. I’ve not been to many places where there were 300 people hanging out at two in the morning.
It sounds strange but i went home to Japan with ANA in 2019 and i still have those headphones in the video! They still work!
I flew NH107 back in May in the suite first class and it was one of the flights of my life. The 1:45 AM departure time is literally cheat codes for jet lag towards Japan. It’s so good if you are flying premium cabin although there is no meal service.
These days it really is a case of shopping around for the best deals as it's got so expensive. I don't mind the flights at unruly hours but it's the early check-in's at hotels which are problematic. In economy ( even premium ) , given the limited space I'd just be happy with a smoothie and some biscuits. Recently went long haul into SYD with jetstar ; i'd heard some bad things but it turned out one of the best flights I've had in years. Best wishes to you, sir.
Thanks! I have a feeling that the ultra low cost long-haul carriers are going to start thriving due to how expensive things are getting. Even United priced out really expensive for this itinerary!
You are so right about the early hotel check-ins.
Can't wait to see this on a brand new 777x!(is going to replace the 777 fleet)But economy on a plane on longhauul, is still a longhaaul. Good work!
Nice video review! Agree with you on ANA in economy (and premium economy): the service is A+, the food is forgettable (I recommend preordering a special meal instead, like Asian vegetarian). As for the Loo Review, I can confirm that ANA does an exceptional job. More than 10 hours into the flight from Tokyo to NYC, I walked into the loo and the toilet paper roll was full and its end folded in a triangle. ANA do not let up on service.
Ordering a special meal is excellent advice! I wish I would’ve thought of that.
I flied with 777-300 ANA economy recentpt and its just awesone. The best compared to others even 787 ANA itself.
Yeah the 77W (even in economy) really can’t be beat!
I like the everyman reviews in economy. 👍👍
More to come!
You should try one of the flights from Japan to Europe and give a report of it.
That IFE is much better than JAL's, ANA has really improved in that area. However JAL still has better food. The problem is both JAL and ANA are still using the 77W, and its dry air and loud economy cabin simply can't compete with the A350. On my recent longhaul A350 flights, even with horrible departure times transiting in the middle east, I was much less physically wrecked on arrival than on the 777.
The soon would be fixed when the 777x enters whit ANA and JAL would soon get the a350-1000. You can fly on Jal 787 real dreamliner experience while waiting for that 👍
@@sergiolaurencio7534 JAL 787 does not fly to US cities I travel to.
@@haroldlipschitz9301ANA 787?
Luckily departing from HNL to HND is during normal time. I also got to fly on the Star Alliance livery 777 on ANA from ORD to NRT and they had the economy seat that doesn't recline into the back row passengers but slides within the shell when reclining. It was neat but it does prevent itself from going fully back like a normal seat. UA also doesn't fly to Japan anymore from HNL so I would have to fly to SFO or LAX or DEN before flying to Japan, so to continue collecting on my United Mileage program I have to fly on ANA from HNL because I refuse to fly UA to GUM to NRT.
I fly ANA 10-20 times a year and this flight is one of the best flights out of San Francisco. I highly recommend it if you are going to Japan. The main reasons I like this-
1. Do not have to take time off work to go to airport early.
2. Go home and take a shower and double check my suitcase.
3. Eat a nice meal or skip the meal so I can eat some DELECIOUS food in Japan
4. Fall asleep right away and wake up in the morning in Japan to see the sun rise. Beautiful!
5. Even though you jump 1 day forward, you feel like you did not waste a day when you arrive in Japan.
6. Less people at the airport, so easier to go through security.
I think you want to try the other way around, HND-SFO, as the catering out of Japan I would expect to be significantly better
I’ve got a video for that coming soon (premium economy), and unfortunately the food wasn’t any better. 🙁
Lol I was on the same flight one day earlier!
As for the food you should order prior to your flight
Just booked a flight to Philippines from USA... ended up with UNITED. I have taken ANA before, and I was happy with them. My only issue with them was that they didn't come around for snacks and drinks as often as other providers AND they didn't give you a full can of pop... just a small cup. DELTA was my first trip to the Philippines, and WOW, that was awesome! They came around every hour to 90 minutes with snacks, food and full cans of pop. We'll see how UNITED does in November!
Wait! Self-serve snack bar??? Hmmm, I will have to see if UNITED does that, too!
$2000 USD round trip... wow! My recent UNITED tickets, Chicago Ohare to Manila and back (Ohare to San Francisco and San Francisco to Manila and vice versa)... $1238 / each. Just 3 short years ago, $760 each for the same flight on ANA.
I’m sorry but if ur saying deltas staff is better than Ana’s in any way I’d reckon to disagree.Ana has 5/5 staff service in every site and is known for its comfort and staff service.Nor delta or united can beat it.I have flown on Ana from Tokyo to sfo and Their staff is as good if not better than Singapore airlines
Im based near SFO so I fly out of there a lot but 2,000 dollars for economy RT anywhere is highway robbery. I flew to Vietnam earlier this year for 500 RT with United. I'm guessing this was the high fares for summer time or you booked last minute?
This was booked about two months out, so not totally last minute. I definitely paid a premium for flying at the height of the height of the the busy summer travel season. $500 round-trip to Vietnam and back is incredible!
How you survived the middle seat on this flight I'll never know, but It's nice to see a new video from you. $2000 for economy? ANA should rethink that price if their service/food has gone down.
Thanks! Let’s just say that I’m not planning on doing any long-haul flights in a middle seat anytime soon…
@@sanspotter
I can’t do middle seats PERIOD!
@@alyonapetrova694 Same
@@sanspotter I'd take the longest flight if i got the window seat.
That IFE is such a leap forward for ANA. The ones on the 787 are easily 8 years old and is laggy af. This one has a miles bigger screen, the graphics are so sharp, and that front view camera during landing, that's gotta be 4K. Their A380 and 787-10 have those same seats I think.
My next video is going to be a review of ANA 787-8 economy, I and I agree about the IFE. The system on the 77W‘s is far nicer!
Can you fly Cathay Pacific long-haul?
You are a braver man than I I don’t think I could do a middle seat on that long of a flight 😂
Having an empty seat next to me helped more than you know. 😅
Surprised economy class is so nice!
Too bad we can’t get flights like this to Florida back. 😆
Will my phone streaming apps work with wifi? Or it it laggy
4:00 why or how did u end p in the middle? 😮😮 hope u are doing well, post COVID ❤❤
Hey buddy, the ANA Dreamliner service between Kingsford Smith and Haneda is a real winner. Biggest disappointment is the second meal which is more of a snack.
Interesting you mention that, because I was talking to a guy at the Haneda airport who flies between Sydney and Tokyo a lot (and it’s always ANA). I would do the same on that route!
As expected this couldn't go wrong. The Japanese offer a high service level for customer satisfaction and efficiency.
Totally agree - Japanese service culture is on another level.
Still worth a patreon ;). Awesome video despite the 'early' flight ;).
1.45am sounds perfectly okay to me, no getting up early!
Your sleeping time is the issue here, not the flight time. Night owls represent!
0:33 And that is why many very smart countries have a 24 hour clock these days.
Level/quality of inflight meal is determined by two factors: 1) airlines and 2) place of departure. Even ANA cannot make it perfect if flight departs outside of Japan.
Unfortunately the meal I was served on the return (HND-SFO) a week later was just as disappointing.
Woohoo Scott
Hope you enjoyed the video!
This reminds me of the adage, "Glad it's you and not me". Retired pilot so? I've become accustomed to having a better seat experience. Don't want to seem arrogant.
Lucky you didn’t fly with United. You would’ve had dog food for your meal lol. And you’re right, that is a bit pricey, $2000! I look forward to seeing more videos from you Scott.❤️✈️
I’ve definitely made that mistake before, hence the reason to pay a little more for ANA. 😄 Still, $2000 for long haul economy brutal no matter the airline. Anyway, glad you enjoyed it - and there’s lots more to come!
ANA economy JFK to Haneda is the worst I have seen ever. 3-4-3 seat configuration. I sat in the middle seat in exit row (female, 5-7, 140), and the seat is so narrow that I couldn’t fit anything else (like my purse). The plane has mostly business class 2/3, one small section of economy plus, and one section of economy in the back. Plane was almost full both going and coming. Just painful and inhumane. I think the seats were even narrower than US domestic flights. Service was very good which is the saving grace. Ironically, the Haneda to Beijing flight was much more spacious, because ANA hadn’t gotten around to upgrade! The JFK route was brand new but they managed to squeeze out an extra seat per row in economy! Website was difficult to use and I had to wait for an average of one hour every time I wanted to reach customer service. However, once I got thru, the agents were extremely helpful. But they also acknowledged that no one can get thru because of staff shortage. That’s the case even in China which is unusual. Also I met an extremely incompetent ground ticketing staff trying to make changes-she didn’t know what to do but wouldn’t admit it. It took another staff member quite a bit of courage to hover around and eventually took over so I didn’t miss my flight! I heard JAL economy is much more comfortable. Won’t fly ANA again
tnx for your video!! make me do rollback to my trip lol, really when i have 18 yo i not problem with this trip, but now 25 years later i need consider this situation... I go from Mexico to SFO and next Tokio aaand next Manila please pray for me please :D
You can’t disrespect the grandma cookies, they are crazy good to me 😂
Great video like always. This has definitely made me glad I was able to snag a First Class seat with them. That for $2k is steeeeep. lol
Thanks! I first class on ANA would be amazing - I hope you enjoyed it!
Even with the seat and legroom, a 3-4-3 economy is still disappointing from ANA. I have much more respect for JAL who keeps it 3-3-3 in their 777s and 2-4-2 in their 787s.
Is this economy or premium economy ? I’m debating between the two.
Economy - I did a video about premium economy as well, so do be sure to check that out.
7:00 Cold sandwich, cookie, and banana. 🤣🤣🤣 I bet they fed the passengers pets in cargo hold better than that! 😆😆
Well people who live in CA are used to over priced items like $9 a gallon gasoline. So $2k coach seat is a steal.
Hey Scott! Nice video as always. The 777-300ER is a great plane but it is indeed starting to leave ANA. Also Scott, question, were you at LAX on Thursday morning on Southwest? (august 3rd)?
Thanks! The 777-300 is being phased out at ANA? I had no idea! I assume it’s going to be replaced by the 787? Interesting… Anyway, nope, that wasn’t me. My last flight was back on July 19th (SFO-SAN).
Some of ANA’s 777-300ERs are less than 5 years old. They were freshly delivered with this new cabin, featuring the “The Room” business and “The Suite” First class. They still have at least 7 years of useful service ahead of them.
SAN Spotter does not use a 24 hour clock 😮😮😮
Looking forward to see your videos for STARLUX airlines. Starlux is better than ANA imo
great video. Was ANA strict with checked baggage. How was the customer service
TRAVEL TIPS for ANA
- avoid buying at the airport, instead, buy beforehand
- near the bathrooms, there is a snack and drink bar that is available to you at all times! help yourself unless they say otherwise.
- when sleeping, try not to bother other people by leaning over or taking up lots of space
I think the days of getting deals on international flights are over
Sadly, I agree.
3-4-3 on a 777: no thanks, never again. legroom does not help with that shoulder space
The retrofitting cabin is fancy, watching this video makes me want to fly ANA again so much. My last ANA economy experience was in 2020, and at that time, the cabin didn't have moodlight, and the IFE was small and the system was dated. The meal on this flight wasn't as good as on mine though, as you'd said, not very Japanese
Yeah, their most recent cabin updates are a huge step in the right direction. The 77W‘s are nice! The food though… ☹️
So it seems like on a 15 hour flight, international airlines are only giving one actual meal and a snack box. How the heck is that supposed to keep anyone full? I would need like two of those snack boxes to make a meal.
Did you peel that banana with a chainsaw? Lol
In my defense, it was about two weeks shy of being fully ripe. 😅
In June I flew with ANA direct from London to Tokyo Haneda in premium economy and it was fantastic.
I got to try that on the way back to the US - and I agree that it’s much better (except for the food).
I flew NH7 back in late July in business class, long haul economy. No thank you
If I was your seat neighbor I’d be very frustrated if you chose not to move into the empty aisle seat leaving the middle empty
It’s a 3-4-3 layout (and I was sitting in the middle section)- I had no opportunity to move to an aisle seat. I definitely would have if I could.
try zip air 😀
if your final destination was hiroshima wouldn’t have flying to Kansai been better?
Kansai is very far away from Hiroshima (and so is the Hiroshima airport actually 😅).
Too bad they downgraded from 9 abreast to 10 abreast. I find 10 abreast on the 777 to be quite unpleasant. In your case you were probably OK due to the empty adjacent seat.
Well, thankfully when the 777x arrives in theyr fleet(thanks the X is more wider) the seat would be better even in 3-4-3. We just have to wait.
I would never sit in a middle seat no matter how short or long the flight is. its window or aisle for me only!
I’d bet you do it for a million dollars 😆
@sanspotter lol that's the only exception 🤣
Red eyes to Asia are tough. Especially in a middle seat. Though the ANA middle seat seems ok. I've taken redeyes on Asiana and we do get 2 full meals, though I don't know about post Covid so the meal was a bit disappointing. Way to take one for the team.
Thanks, yeah, I agree. Having all that extra legroom made all the difference - and it’s something I would much prefer to have over decent food.
how was the return leg's catering?
not bad Scott, what do you think?
Excellent seat, phenomenal cabin crew, disappointing food. I don’t even need to ask you what you thought about the meal service. 😆
Holy shit you paid $2k for that? I’m seeing flights from Chicago to Bangkok for $900 during high season right now. Why oh why would you pay that much?
Welcome to Japan Scott! That meals do not look appetizing and are disappointing. Your editing ability to make economy flight reviews look fun is amazing.
Thanks Kaz! Do you have any plans to make any new videos soon? I’ve been missing your excellent reviews!
@sanspotter Yes, I flew a handful of flights this summer, so I will be making some videos. It's been a bit difficult to book business class tickets with miles recently so I've flown economy flights a lot. But i am figuring out that making fun to watch videos about economy flights is an art. I end up watching your economy flight reviews to the end so I know you have an excellent skill😁 keep up the great videos.
Hey Scott, just wanted to say how much I love the content especially your editing style and commentary!!!
Thanks so much - I really appreciate it!
Love the "inetivable" comparison at 3:00 🙂
Scott how tall are you. I flew economy on BA and I was uncomfortable for a 6hr trip.
5’-10” - and I agree with you on how uncomfortable British Airways economy is. I did that once in 2019 and I still remember it quite vividly (not in a good way 😄).
@@sanspotter so not all airlines economy seats are the same?
What am I wondering? Leg room is leg room and I'm happy you found it to your liking... but what about 9-abreast seating vs 10-abreast on United! That is another game changer you failed to mention. I avoid 10-abreast configurations at all costs.
I actually don’t mind 10-abreast as long as the leg room is decent. I’m weird like that. 🤷🏼♂️😆
@@sanspotter I guess you enjoy eating elbows. Not me; it's the worst.
Sandwich seat in economy sucks especially crossing the pacific.
I Hate The Middle Seat In Economy Class.Great Trip Report
Thanks! ANA actually makes it tolerable (somewhat). The food needs to be better though!