Finnair » Business (Short haul) » User reviews

Jacoholico flew Finnair Business (Short haul), on a A320 (03/06/2011 15:51)

Have been flying Finnair since start of 2011, mostly to Helsinki from London. The service is superb, way ahead of anyone else I have tried. Helsinki airport is the best airport I have visited.

The lounge in the non-schengen area sets a new standard in quality, while the spa just makes the place unique. I had enough time to try each sauna and steam room and chill out in the pool. Just what I needed after a long business trip. Hope other airlines would learn a bit from these guys. By the way, Moomins rule!

InternationalConsolidated flew Finnair Business (Short haul), on a A320 (04/02/2011 10:11)

London - Helsinki

Flew in business class from London Heathrow T3 to Helsinki Vantaa T2 on the early 7.20am flight, an Airbus A320. Although I checked in online and opted for the mobile boarding pass, I still chose to arrive at Heathrow two hours prior to departure, just in case. There was no need to worry as T3 wasn't busy at that time, however I was glad to have a little spare time for breakfast.

I travelled in business class, and was impressed with the service and the decent food. Upon boarding, we were offered a drink and newspapers/magazines in various languages. We were attended by two very attentive and amiable members of cabin crew (in my opinion quite a lot considering how few seats were filled, one would have done).

The breakfast consisted of sausage, egg and tomato, plus a roll with butter and preserves. It wasn't a large breakfast by any means, but tasty and reasonably fresh, and adequate on this short flight.

My seat was by the window, and the inside arm rest had been adjusted to make my seat wider. The middle seat was unsold, and instead of a passenger held an extra table which was most useful. There was plenty of legroom, and with all the table space I was able to spread my work/breakfast/newspaper out without feeling cramped.

We had departed on time, and with favourable weather conditions landed ten minutes early. As I had hand luggage only, making my way through to the arrivals hall at Helsinki was quick and painless.

All in all there was nothing outstanding about this flight, but everything was executed well and efficiently.

frustratedflyer flew Finnair Business (Short haul), on a A319 (06/09/2010 19:21)

At LHR, Finnair shares the new Cathay Lounge which is good.

Business Class passengers were allowed to board as they wanted which was very swift.

I was seated in 1C. The seats are adjusted so that the arms are close together and only seats A&C used. Seat was average.

Service was good. There were probably about six occasions that the crew came through the cabin offering refreshments.

A three-course meal service was offered with one choice of hot food (beef).

I was not hungry but the smell was certainly good!

Bollcat flew Finnair Business (Short haul), on a A320 (01/06/2010 20:59)

Check in - For some reason the on line check in was not available for my flight so we pitched up at T3 to check in at the airport for flight AY840 departing LHR at 16:10 and arriving at Helsinki at 21:05.

The Business class check in desk was empty so we were seen straight away and the whole process lasted no more than 5 minutes. As this was a journey to HK via Helsinki we were given boarding cards for both flights and the seats I had chosen when booking directly with the Finnair website were confirmed. The check in agent reminded us we could use the fast track lane through security which we duly used.

Airport - T3 at LHR has had some cosmetic work done to it in the past year or so & it is looking much better for it. There are still areas to be completed but on the whole it is a better experience than before. The security checks took no more than 10 minutes as the queues were small and fast track pax are usually a bit more savvy and prepare for the checks before they get to the scanners! As we were travelling biz class and we're BA Silver card holders we used the newish T3 BA lounge which was very good and had all the facilities you would expect. The Finnair flights were not listed on the screens in the lounge & having the Oneworld partners on the screens would have been nice.

Boarding - It was a short walk to the gates past several of the other airlines lounges but we were a bit disappointed that they didn't have a separate bizz class lane in operation. We sat for a while until most of the pax had boarded and then went through.

Seats - We were in seats 1A & 1C on the A320 used for this flight. Finnair leaves the middle seat free for their short-haul bizz class flights although the 2 seats occupied are no wider than economy and the seat pitch is also the same. If you are flying on the short-haul Finnair bizz class product on the Airbus family chose the seats in row 1 which do have more legroom as they are by the bulkhead. Had I been sat in the other rows in bizz class I would have been very disappointed by the pitch and width in combination.

Entertainment - There is no individual entertainment system on the short-haul product with Finnair.

Food & Drink - The meals were served promptly & were of good quality. The choice of drinks was wide and the crew were keen to keep you topped up.

Service - The crew were pleasant and professional throughout the flight. As we were connecting at Helsinki one of the flight attendants made sure we knew which gate we would would board the connecting flight from as well as letting us know how to get to the Helsinki business lounge which is called the Via lounge. It must be said that connecting at Helsinki is a breeze as it's such a compact airport. Don't forget though, as you're in transit, don't buy any liquids more than 100 mls at the Duty Free in Heathrow as you won't be allowed to take it through.

Baggage - The bags were through checked to HK & made them through with no problems & they came out promptly at HK thanks to the great airport there and the priority tags. Conclusion - A solid product at a good price with everything done efficiently. I would have been disappointed with a seat in anything other than row 1 but that would be my only gripe. Having done the same route with BA short-haul product I would probably pick BA if the price was equal only because I prefer the BA seat & I like T5.

lostantipod flew Finnair Business (Short haul), on a A321 (23/03/2010 18:19)

Before leaving home I checked the progress of the incoming flight from HEL and found it was 50 minutes late, which of course had the potential to delay my 0945 departure, and I was aware of the tight connections on this trip. En route to LHR I received two SMS messages from Finnair, advising me that the departure would be 50 minutes, and then 30 minutes late. I thought that was a nice proactive touch.

I arrived >2 hours before departure, and there was no queue at the Business Class check-in desk in T3, where I was energetically reassured by the clerk that I would make my 1 hour connection in Helsinki. I was told the delay was due to fog in London preventing the flight from taking off from HEL.

Through “Fast Track” security in about 10 minutes, I found my way down some corridors and up a lift to the Cathay Pacific lounge, which Finnair shares. While it is a windowless space, it is reasonably large and modern, and provides free wireless access, some internet terminals, a wide array of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, and some light food including two Chinese-style options. The lounge was quite empty at this time in the morning.

I went to the boarding gate half an hour prior to the rescheduled departure time of 10.15; while in the queue to have my BP checked, the Finnair Heathrow Service Director made an announcement apologizing for the late operation of the flight due to fog in London causing inbound delays, and he specifically assured passengers with connections that we would not miss them. The Airbus A320 departed 85 minutes late at 11.10am, with me in seat 1A, nervously wondering about my connection in HEL.

Not long after takeoff drinks were served, and my Gin & Tonic was served in a nice sturdy glass, the gin freepoured generously by the cabin crew, accompanied by cheesy nibbles. Soon followed a lunch that I felt was quite tasty and adequate in portion, with a choice of 2 or 3 mains , and a red or white wine. There was a prosciutto starter, and for main I had a salmon steak with noodles and peppers, accompanied by an Alsace Pinot Blanc, a chocolate cake trifle, warmed bread rolls, and coffee. Cognac was offered as well.

As we approached HEL, we were advised that the HKG connection was 30 minutes late , and we were given the gate numbers for all connecting aircraft. Frustratingly, we pulled up to a remote stand, but a bus quickly took us to the terminal. It was well below zero - I do wonder if the metal stairs get regularly de-iced !

Finnair are promoting their new lounge in HEL (reviews elsewhere on this forum) but as my connecting flight was already showing as “last call” I rushed to the gate. The lounge looked quite full as I hurried by.

Summary; a perfectly good intra-European business class offering , I would not hesitate to return . However, my baggage did not make my connecting AY flight , despite having nearly an hour to do so (and despite the bragging in the HEL airport magazine about their "award winning" baggage handling systems).

frustratedflyer flew Finnair Business (Short haul), on a A321 (13/01/2010 13:16)

Seat 3C from London to Helsinki. Modern plane, reasonable legroom with four rows of business class. The middle seat was kept free so spacious. There was a drinks service with nuts followed by a three course lunch (salad/hotdish (curry) and orange desert). All reasonable quality and better than most equivalent airlines short haul business food today.

terminalfive flew Finnair Business (Short haul), on a A319 (14/03/2009 21:56)

MXP - HEL. Service on FINNAIR business short haul is excellent. Good choice of decent food and a choice of the various wines and champagne. Problem is the seat which is exactly the same as economy - uncomfortable especially as most "short haul" flights are at least three hours. No real inflight entertainment which would be needed on these "longer" short haul services

terminalfive flew Finnair Business (Short haul), on a A320 (05/02/2009 22:41)

CDG - HEL. Tale of two halves - great service and excellent food for a three hour flight but a very uncomfortable, small business class seat with the same legroom as economy. Finnair's European services are short haul but as most flights (Milan, Paris, London etc) are three hour flights, premium paying passengers should benefit from added comfort

Ranerane flew Finnair Business (Short haul) (19/11/2008 16:42)

In AB 300 series seats are 3+3 but they leave the middle seat empty so the width is very good. Seat pitch however is quite narrow. Some routes they use Embraer planes where seating is 2+2. It is equal to economy class and poor value.

frustratedflyer flew Finnair Business (Short haul), on a A320 (17/11/2008 02:44)

Businesslike service but clearly a problem understanding my English accent as my request for a diet coke brought a vodka tonic and my request for a Bloody Mary mix brought one with Vodka! Otherwise an efficient service. Was sitting in 1C which has the benefit of being able to stetch your legs as the bulkhead does not go to the full width of the seats. Seat 1D-F seem to have more legroom than 1A-B