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My review of Delta Premium Select on Boeing 767
I’m booked on Premium Select with Delta for coming back to London from Seattle. I don’t really collect Delta miles, and although they’ve partnered heavily with Virgin Atlantic you can’t use VS miles to upgrade Delta flights, so I’m stuck with no upgrade 😛
VS Gold is given Sky Priority status on Delta flights, which entitles me to the fast track lane at Seattle airport. But the airport is very quiet on this Tuesday so I didn’t take advantage of it.
Having spent some time in the Sky Club and Centurion Lounge, I take the shuttle train to terminal S to board my flight. Compared to many other airlines Delta appears to value premium passengers more, at least when it comes to boarding: Premium Select passengers board after Delta One and Diamond, but before Platinum and Sky Priority.
Pretty nice logo:
Turn right and it’s our destination: the Premium Select cabin.
Premium Select, or in more common terminology Premium Economy is a relatively new concept to Delta. If I remember correctly many of their long haul planes don’t even feature this cabin yet, but a so-called Comfort Plus which is essentially still Economy.
Premium Select is generally well regarded by the aviation enthusiasts, and some even call it Business Minus instead. My colleague was also quite jealous that I’ve got the chance to try it out, so I had high expectations.
The first impression is indeed quite positive. Boeing 767 is narrower than other wide-body planes, which means there are fewer seats in a row. In the case of Premium Select, there are two seats on the left, right and in the middle respectively, so only six seats in a row.
Although the seats are not necessarily wider, it does feel much nicer and more relaxed than the eight-seat across Premium Economy cabin on other aircrafts.
My first-row seat has two windows and HUGE legroom.
Cushion, blanket and headphone are available which is pretty standard. There’s also a very basic travel kit which is the same as what’s offered in the Main Cabin (Economy). The earbuds and eye mask look very cheap and you may prefer to bring your own.
A moment later we are up in the sky.
The dining tray pops up automatically from the left armrest with a button pressed. The control panel below the right armrest is used to adjust the seat and footrest. USB sockets are also available. The seat looks very new.
The IFE doesn’t contain that many latest blockbusters, but is super abundant and diverse. For example, all episodes of Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars and The Matrix are included. Usually IFEs are lacking in horrors and thrillers, but they’ve got Malignant, Old and Last Night in Soho here. I’m genuinely impressed by their offer.
Unfortunately the dinner is a U-turn. It is basically a “chicken or fish” situation with no dedicated menu, and I believe it’s the same food as in Main Cabin. The only difference is free alcohol drinks.
Breakfast is a bagel and fruit bowl.
This is how the seat looks like with max inclination.
I’m bad at taking photos, and the picture above doesn’t do the seat justice. One objective fact is, I slept for full five hours after taking a melatonin pill, which is probably a personal record.
Going to the bathroom is the worst experience of this trip. There are only four bathrooms in the middle of the aircraft which are shared by all Premium Select and many Main Cabin passengers. You can imagine how the queue is like after dinner.
I think very highly of the cabin, seat and IFE of Premium Select, but they could definitely make more effort in improving the food and other soft amenities. My overall experience is better than when I flew with BA or Virgin, so I’d recommend it if it falls within your budget.
My review of Delta Sky Club, Seattle
I’m finished with my Seattle trip, and will be flying with Delta for the first time. I read some good things about the Sky Club at Seattle and I’m very excited in trying it out.
The Sky Club is located at Concourse A and hard to miss. All concourses are connected post-security, so although my flight departs from Concourse S it doesn’t stop me from visiting the lounges.
According to Virgin Atlantic’s website, I’m entitled to Sky Club access automatically when flying back to the UK on Delta as a Flying Club Gold member. My boarding pass fails the scanner though, then the staff go on a little discussion before telling me Delta’s partnership with Virgin has terminated a couple of days ago?!
I’m so astonished and know that’s impossible. After exchanging a few words I realise that they are talking about Virgin Australia. Anyway they don’t seem well trained on the reciprocal benefits, and I decide to just flash my Amex Platinum instead. This time it works like a charm.
An array of lenticular cards by the entrance.
The Seattle lounge is generally regarded as the best Sky Club that Delta has. The lounge is huge with two floors, and leaves a very good first impression on me.
Seattle is one of Delta’s main hubs, but the lounge is not as busy as I thought.
Further down the line is more workspace.
A view of Delta aircrafts.
Some memorabilia of Seattle SeaHawks, an American Football team sponsored by Delta.
The second (first) floor:
The upper floor is quieter, but food is only offered downstairs.
The following hot food is on offer:
- Ivar’s clam chowder with bacon
- Spicy tofu stir fry
- Steamed brown rice
- Roasted green beans
- Teriyaki chicken
If you haven’t got to taste Seattle’s specialty Clam Chowder yet, there is one last chance! The Teriyaki chicken isn’t cooked right and tastes salty instead of sweet, but I actually prefer it this way.
A limited selection of beer and wine is complimentary, but most alcoholic drinks are payable. I read somewhere that redeeming Delta miles on Champagne is a good idea, but I didn’t check.
Desserts:
The chewy marshmallow looks very similar to a Chinese snack that I liked when I was a kid.
The bathroom might have been inspired by a few horror movies…
I want to take a look at the Amex Centurion lounge as well so didn’t spend all the time here. The Seattle Sky Club didn’t disappoint me, and is well worth a couple of hours before your flight.
Donate $5 and Earn 2000 Hilton Points & 250 Delta Miles
If you’ve ever been to the US, you must have heard of the name Lyft. Lyft is a major competitor to Uber in North America, and it has partnered with several frequent traveller programs which allows you to earn points or miles when you ride.
They have just launched a Lyft Up initiative to help those who can’t afford to travel to vaccination centres in the US. Any Lyft members can make a donation, and even better it comes with returns:
- 2000 Hilton points, and
- 250 Delta Skymiles (limit to first 15,000 members only)
The minimum donation amount is $5, and the offer runs until May 31. Even if you don’t travel with Delta, 2000 Hilton points are worth around $10 already.
To participate, you’ll need to link Lyft to your Hilton and Delta accounts first. A mobile phone number is needed to create or login to your Lyft account, and my UK number works fine.
Remember to add a credit card to the wallet before proceeding to the donation page.
It’s unclear how much time it takes for the points to post. But anyway, it may be worth spending a few minutes and $5 to bag the some points and miles.