I FINALLY Flew Philippine Airlines' STRANGE Business Class

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👬OSKAR AND DAN: @OskarandDan

🎙️ PODCAST: ON-AIR WITH DAN AND ALEX: @OnAirWithDanAndAlex

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💳 Paid: $811 one-way from Hong Kong to Dubai

FAQ:
Airline: Philippine Airlines
Aircraft: Airbus A321 & A330-300
Aircraft registration: RP-C9912 and RP-C8766
Route: Hong Kong - Manila - Dubai
Flight numbers: PR311 & PR658
Seat: 3A on both sectors
Contact for general questions and business inquiries:

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Music:
This video is sponsored by NordVPN.
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Timestamps:
00:00:00 - Potential of Philippine Airlines
00:02:16 - A Day in Hong Kong as a Full-Time Flight Reviewer
00:02:55 - The Underrated Hong Kong Airport
00:03:26 - Philippine Airlines A321 Business Class Seats
00:05:33 - In-flight Entertainment and Meal Service
00:06:43 - Manila Miracle: Smooth Arrival Experience
00:08:49 - Philippine Airlines Lounge Experience
00:09:59 - Heading to the Gate
00:12:33 - Philippine Airlines A330-300 Seat Map
00:13:29 - Philippine Airlines A330 Business Class Seat
00:14:33 - No Entertainment Screens in Business Class
00:16:21 - Welcome Drinks and Boarding Music
00:17:18 - Takeoff from Manila Airport
00:18:26 - In-flight Dining Experience
00:20:33 - Unique Bed Experience
00:21:49 - No Wi-Fi and Snack Dilemma
00:22:46 - Conclusion

About Philippine Airlines (from Wikipedia):
Philippine Airlines (PAL) is the flag carrier of the Philippines. Headquartered at the PNB Financial Center in Pasay, the airline was founded in 1941 and is the oldest operating commercial airline in Asia.

The airline's main flight operations are located at Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Metro Manila. Its subsidiary PAL Express mainly operates regional routes while PAL operates both domestic (Cebu, Davao, General Santos, Kalibo, Laoag, Manila, and Zamboanga) and international routes.

About Airbus A330-300 (from Wikipedia):
The Airbus A330 is a wide-body aircraft developed and produced by Airbus. Airbus began developing larger A300 derivatives in the mid-1970s, giving rise to the A330 twinjet as well as the A340 quadjet, and launched both designs along with their first orders in June 1987. The A330-300, the first variant, took its maiden flight in November 1992 and entered service with Air Inter in January 1994. The slightly shorter A330-200 variant followed in 1998 with Canada 3000 as the launch operator.

This video and its sound are protected by YouTube copyright, ​and any unapproved use in other videos will be reported.

[flyboy]

I'm one of the inflight catering personnel that loads meals aboard Philippine Airlines flights ex-Manila. Glad you enjoyed the meals! It's awe-inspiring to see the meals and tray-setups we count and check prior to aircraft loading get reviewed on social media in vlogs like these.

[joeypacheco]

You're right. It's the purser who sets the mood, the service level and the general working atmosphere for the rest of the crew.

[PhilippineAirlinesTV]

Hi, Nonstop Dan. Thank you for sharing about your previous trip with Philippine Airlines on your flight from Hong Kong to Dubai via Manila. While we are very pleased to learn that your airport to inflight experience from Hong Kong to Manila was smooth and delightful, we acknowledge your sentiments on your experience from Manila to Dubai.

We have taken note of your feedback regarding the aircraft change. We understand you were expecting a different seat layout particularly for Business Class, and we recognize that this change may have caused disappointments. We also took note of your feedback on the aircraft having no embedded inflight entertainment and the inflight service during the flight. 

We believe that passenger feedback is vital in helping us determine which service areas we can still enhance. We recognize how these factors greatly affect the overall journey of all our passengers, and you have our commitment that we will look over these again with the respective teams to see areas we can improve on.

We are committed to continuously improve our products and services to provide an excellent experience that all our passengers rightfully deserve. Thank you for the opportunity to communicate with you, Nonstop Dan, and we hope to serve you even better in the future.

[edsmith]

I fly PAL from Vancouver to Cebu twice a year. The Filipina flight attendants are the nicest friendliest most beautiful flight attendants on any airline. I’ve never had a bad experience flying with PAL, the ❤️ of the Filipino.

[enricomercado]

One thing I remember about flying on PAL is how smoothly their pilots take off and land their planes! Haven't had any better experience with other airlines. And, as most people say, their crew is exceptionally friendly and helpful. Even on the on gesture flights where most crews from other sirlines get tired and short.

[antonpatrimon]

I flew the same flight to Dubai in business class. I can say that the hard product is really disappointing considering that newer planes already have the new business class seats. While I was not able to sleep, I can say that the service is top-notch, cannot be surpassed by my previous business class flights in Emirates and Qatar Airways. The purser is the one attending to all my needs and she's the best. The food is great too.

[CoolPlaneKid]

I think you are one of the best flight reviewers! You are no nonsense, honesty, and makes it a real experience and not a curated one that people fall for. Thank You Dan for providing the world with amazing flight information throughout the years!

[aaron]

Christmas music because you're on the way to the Philippines during BER months so that's designed specifically for Filipinos, who really feel this and sometimes when you haven't gone home for a while really makes you emotional.

[harsharao]

I agree. Phlipinos are some of the nicest people on the earth. Much love from India.

[TheHappsters]

I flew with business class from Honolulu to Manila and the seating are not bad on that flight. I agree the food at Mabuhay lounge is mediocre, although the view while you wait for your flight there is amazing, watching all those planes coming and going. I can't wait to fly with them again. It's not the most perfect airlines per-say, but I think they are doing their best. Thanks for the video. Aloha from Hawaii

[Pohakuloa]

Hey Dan, I was really hopi g you'd get on the 309 seat 333. I am an extremely large man and so traveling has become a chore on health and pocket book (yes I'm trying out your program to see if it works for someone like me who needs a larger seat 💺 and who lives in a traditionally leisure destination where costs are not as flexibly low as most make them out to be). I've been on the Business Class in the 309 seat (1-2-1 A333) and as a large person, it is astiundingly comfortable and far larger than even I expected. The A321s and A220s have 20.5"-21" width which is very comfortable (though i fit between just barely), these A333s are 24" wide and amazingly comfortable. While the even window rows (2AK/4AK) aslre the best for privacy, if you can manage the galley area, 1ADGK has so much more room to spread out your legs and thusfar no extra premiums on the cost.

I also think the crew you got on the ME flight was a bad luck draw, it happens. My flights HNL-MNL and return have been staffed with wonderful attendants and pursers, knowing your name as you take your seat, and getting yiur furst meal order and pre-departure drinks and hot towels set almost before you are fully seated. Self-service in the galley was there, but never needed it as they checked in every 90 minutes to 2 hours if I was awake. Snd food has always been a highlight. Overnight breakfast with jumbo prawns in a coconut curry sauce and crab fat fried rice with fruit and scrambled eggs, blew my mind! 🤯 They even offered sardines and rice porridge.
And yeah, their alcohol offerings are very impressive.

I hope you get a chance to ride on that 309 seat A333. If it brings you out this way, drop a line on Instagram @cewgarcia and we can have a chat about difficulties and other potential advantages? about being out here travel wise.

- Craig 🤙🏼🏝

[LetsJamFunk]

PAL deploying its dated product to Dubai makes sense.

On this route, it doesn't compete with the Middle Eastern carriers but with Cebu Pacific. More Middle East-based Filipino diaspora tend to work blue collar or lower paid jobs. More highly paid professionals in North America and Oceania. East and Southeast Asia are somewhere in between.

If you want to try PAL's premium product, I suggest you fly one of these routes. They will deploy their most competitive premium product in markets where quality matters more than price.

[sharedsailing]

I fly USA-Manila several times per year. I love/hate PAL. Their flights are nonstop and the crew is always nice. But economy is basic and uncomfortable, food is just OK, and the flights are always full because they accept an unlimited number of OFW Filipinos on standby. I'm trying business class for the first time this fall. It was $2800 round trip which was $1000 cheaper than anyone else, we'll see how it goes! Also, I've always breezed through customs in Manila, I must be really lucky. The drive from the hotel to the terminal is the only sticky point. Thanks for your review!

[_Tripsandtips]

Glad to see you try PAL. Just a note about those dense A330s: they were meant for the Middle East, at least since nearly half of those were refurbished. The refurbished ones were once all-economy with the same 3-3-3 economy. One of the previous managers, which will soon be the operator of Manila's airport, focused on making it compete with low-cost brands like Cebu Pacific. And it was during his time the dense A330s were in.

Speaking of that manager, that same management will be operating the New Manila International Airport which would be operational in 5 years' time.

[gustaw]

last time i was at NAIA T1 I was waiting in a queue for 3h, from that point on I only fly into T3 or Clark

[ajorbista]

Philippine Airlines is basically flying a roulette. A321 and A330 have fleets with IFE, fully flat seats and well, fleets with no IFE or just streaming.

B777 also is a roulette. It’s either you get the 2-3-2 business class, or the 1-2-1 business class in the ex-Garuda 777s. Regardless both have working IFEs.

Previous owner was trying to fly cheap and trying to make it low cost. Then they’re back to being premium again because they aim to reconfigure ALL fleets with IFE.

[ryanreyes]

a Philippine airline playing Christmas music at this time of year is not surprising we kinda tend to celebrate Christmas earlier than most

[bryronify]

Glad you won the lottery with the PAL business class experience. I remember watching another youtuber have everything not working in in their business class seat - it was an older 777-300er flight from US to Manila though.

[DvleexX]

Hi Nonstop Dan!! I was born and raised in the PH and I've never had a problem passing through the international airport. I don't really get the complaints either hahaha

[cedwanders]

Same sentiments Dan. PAL really needs to be consistent on their onboard products for the price that they are asking for and for them to be competitive. Hopefully in 3-5 years they will be more consistent of being a full service carrier. For now regional and domestic I would fly Cebu Pacific(value for money! Piso Fare!), for Europe and Middle east i would choose gulf carriers and for transpacific definitely a Japanese Carrier.