You Trip Report

	DATE	FLIGHT NUMBER	SEAT	AIRCRAFT
25 Apr 23	HA 44	2B	A321
CLASS	VIEWS	LANGUAGE	AUTHOR
First Class	15478	English	jetsetpanda

Prologue:

Welcome to the return segment of this Hawaiian trip.

When we were ready to buy the return portion on HA back to SFO the fares jumped all of a sudden. I was fixed on flying HA so I checked the other Bay Area destinations and the fare that we intended to buy was still available into SJC. Besides the distance from SJC to my place was about 30-40 min. so it wasn't that bad.

Arrival into HNL was uneventful and we were soon directed to the self check-in kiosk to issue the boarding passes and bag tags. A very nice agent assisted us throughout the transaction. The line to the Premier counter was long with 1 agent working. Most of the HA counter in HNL is populated by self check-in kiosks these days.

HNL has an open layout and plane spotting is great.

We departed from a newly built section of the terminal that I have never seen before.

Pretty spacious gate area.

Our A321neo at the gate.

Boarding commenced. 2 FA's were positioned by the door greeting pax with a smile. A prelude to a great flight.

F cabin.

FA helped pax store their bags and get settled. Very proactive on their part.

Magazine safety card and waste bag in the pocket.

Footrest.

Recline button.

USB ports.

Here's one thing that differentiates HA from all the others - Pre-dept. drinks were offered while the plane was sitting at the gate. It was offered with a smile and I chose the "Mai Tai".

Interesting sign with the figures wearing "local" outfits.

Printed menus and a bag containing pillow and blanket were placed at each seat.

Menu.

Taxiing out.

Bye HNL.

After take off FA's distributed entertainment pads and laid out the linen on the tray in preparation for the meal service. Linen??? I haven't seen any domestic airline do linens in F for a long time.

The selection of movies was decent and there is a bit of something for everyone.

Unfortunately you cannot pre-order on Hawaiian and main dishes are limited to 2 choices - vegetarian and non vegetarian. This is the only area that I see where HA can improve.

Drinks served with macadamia nuts before the meal.

Everything is served at once on the tray.

Salt/pepper. Nice local touch.

Coffee or tea were offered after the meal along with digestifs and liquors.

Never seen this before. Part of the tray is magnetic. I used a spoon to test it and it stood by itself.

WC was clean and decorated with Hawaiian motif.

Midflight we received a drink service and pack of snack.

Before arrival FA's distributed macadamia chocolates.

Ala Moana Food Court

Truffled risotto at a mall? I'm impressed!

Leonard's for malasadas.

Ginza Bairin for some delicious "tonkatsu".

Rainbow Drive-Inn for local plate lunches.

Chicken with gravy.

Chili

Loco moco - hamburger patty over rice with gravy.

========== Honolulu Intl (HNL) - ==========

Security/Immigration efficiency: 8/10

Access and parking: 9/10

Services and activities: 9/10

General cleanliness: 10/10

========== Hawaiian Airlines - Airline ==========

Cabine comfort: 10/10

Crew: 10/10

Entertainment: 10/10

On-time performance: 10/10

Appetizer: 8/10

Starter: 0/10

Main Meal: 7/10

Main Meal-2: 0/10

Cheese: 0/10

Desserts: 9/10

Alcohols: 0/10

Mid-flight snack: 9/10

Breakfast or light meal before arrival: 0/10

========== San Jose Intl Arpt (SJC) - ==========

Security/Immigration efficiency: /10

Access and parking: 9/10

Services and activities: 8/10

General cleanliness: 9/10

Summary:

It was a pleasure to fly HA and see that certain aspects of F service are still intact despite the trend to cut costs that many of its competitors have implemented.

Little things that make a flight more comfortable such as pillows and blankets should be provisioned in a F cabin especially for a flight of this length. Printed menus, pre-dept drinks and linens somehow elevate the experience and when you have a crew that is professional and friendly you can't ask for better. That's the cherry on the cake.

The only area that leaves room for improvement is catering. For starters the ability to pre-order meals would be a huge positive. If AA and AS allow their F pax to do this why not HA who excels at everything else? Also offering a third choice for regular meals would be desirable for variety's sake.

Overall I was extremely satisfied with my flight on HA and would gladly pay for this service again.

14 Comments

Thomas — Jun 22,2023

Thanks for your TR my friend, it does not look that bad, HA outplays AA.
Reply

jetsetpanda — Jun 25,2023

HA is the best out of the Hawaiian market in my humble opinion.
samlecorsaire — Jun 22,2023

Thank you for sharing this great flight
I liked the TR but also the bonus!!!!!
Bye
Reply

jetsetpanda — Jun 25,2023

It's easy to gain weight in Hawaii. :P
Bibopaul — Jun 23,2023

A good report Adan, thanks a lot.
Reply

jetsetpanda — Jun 25,2023

Thanks for visiting.
saraoutou — Jun 25,2023

Una milanesa no lo puedo creer!
Reply

jetsetpanda — Jun 25,2023

El multiculturalismo en plena evidencia. :)
Capoune — Jun 27,2023

Hi my friend!!!
HA is much better than AA!!! Too bad to not have had the 330 but in the end it's a very good flight and that's the main thing!
Another great bonus!
Thank you Adan!!!
Reply

jetsetpanda — Jun 27,2023

Hi mon Seb,

In my opinion HA is the best of all the domestic airlines flying to Hawaii. Even in Y they give you a hot sandwich which is more than what the competitors do. I need to get on a A330 upfront with them before they introduce the 787's. :)
Casper — Jun 30,2023

Fares are going through the roof, I have a 1000 usd to get to IAH in Y from columbia.
A good way ro remain home instead.
Gracias amigo!
Reply

jetsetpanda — Jul 01,2023

It's incredible how fares have skyrocketed this summer. Thankfully I have a few tricks in my pocket and was able to get a J award from Europe to SFO for 55.000 miles + $172. ;)
Emile — Jul 05,2023

Very good report Adan, thanks a lot for sharing with us.
Reply

jetsetpanda — Jul 10,2023

Thanks for visiting Emile.