I recently had the pleasure of flying KLM business class on three long haul flights: Vancouver to Amsterdam aboard a Boeing 777; Kuala Lumpur to Amsterdam aboard a Boeing 787-9; and Amsterdam to Chicago aboard a Boeing 787-10. For details about how I booked these flights with airline miles, see this post.
KLM Business Class Bottom Line Review
Overall, I enjoyed all three flights. KLM doesn’t offer anywhere near the best business class in the sky, but I found the seats comfortable, the service was good, the food was edible, and the in-flight entertainment was decent.
Seats
On all three flights, seats were in a reverse herringbone configuration with direct aisle access for every seat. In every case I found the seats to be very comfortable with plenty of legroom and elbowroom. Near seat storage was minimal, but I loved how it was possible to shove my backpack under the footrest so that I always had it nearby to grab items as needed (when I laid the seat completely flat, I moved the backpack out next to my seat for easy access).
Service
Service was uniformly very good across all three flights. No, it was nowhere near the level I experienced recently flying Qatar business class, but KLM checked all the necessary boxes: flight attendants were friendly, they brought food out quickly, they cleared dishes and picked up trash quickly, etc.
One funny moment came on the nearly 13 hours long flight from Kuala Lumpur to Amsterdam. Many airlines, including AA, Delta, and United, offer mattress pads in business class on long distance flights. In some cases, though, you need to ask for them. So, I asked a flight attendant if KLM had them. She replied “No, this isn’t Emirates.” Then as she was walking away she went on to mutter to herself “Which airline is it again that does that…? Is it Emirates…?” I didn’t have the heart to tell her that it’s nearly everyone else these days.
Food
None of the food was great, but none of it was particularly bad either. It was all good enough.
777 Vancouver to Amsterdam
This flight stood out from the others mainly because it was the only one with a privacy door and a wireless charging pad. In only took a few photos on this flight because I fell deep asleep right after dinner and didn’t wake up until they announced the descent into Amsterdam. This was the best sleep I’ve ever had on a flight, bar none.
787-9 Kuala Lumpur to Amsterdam
At nearly 13 hours, this was the longest of my three KLM flights (the others were around 9 hours). On this flight, the only thing I didn’t like was that there was a gap between the side table and the wall of the plane. I was constantly wary about setting down anything valuable there lest it fall into the void.
787-10 Amsterdam to Chicago
This was my one daytime flight and so I didn’t sleep as much on this one. Like the other flights, I found it comfortable with decent service and adequate food. Fortunately, this one didn’t have the dreaded gap of doom between the side table and the wall as was found on the 787-9.
KLM Crown Lounge 52 Amsterdam
KLM’s international lounge in Amsterdam must be one of the most beautifully designed lounges in the world. The entire thing is like a work of art. Unfortunately, it can get very, very crowded. And the food isn’t great. But they do have a dedicated barista, so that makes up for everything. If you want to get away from the crowds, you can optionally go upstairs to their blue bar or restaurant where you’ll have to pay for food and drink.
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