RUH-FRA Saudia A320 Business Class
From Riyadh to Frankfurt on Saudia A320 Business Class
A solid Business Class product, despite the 2-2 configuration, with un updated IFE, great food and service similar to our previous flight. Great for couples!
RUH-FRA Saudia A320 Business Class
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After landing in Riyadh and enduring a subpar overnight stay at the Hayyak Lounge, we proceeded to the gate under the bright Middle Eastern sun for our connecting flight to Frankfurt. This flight was on the A320, which is considered an older model but still good enough for a journey from the Middle East to Europe.
Seats
Despite the older 2-2 configuration, the seats appeared quite refreshed! Although the manual seat control buttons (“Who even uses those now?” The modern-Gen-Z-hippy in me thinking🤣 I digress) show that the seats have been around for a while.
We were also grateful for the lie-flat bed seats! Especially the missus, who loves taking a nap after the in-flight service 😆
I also appreciated the overall wooden tones of the seat.
Features
Another indication of the seat's refreshment was the availability of USB and main charging outlets, which was a welcome addition.
Storage space is definitely limited, with only a narrow, tray table-like surface below the IFE screen that's just wide enough to hold a cell phone.
A notable observation was the varying heights of the footrests, which might affect the comfort of some individuals depending on your preference.
No such issues with the missus beside me, and while the seat divider wasn't highly private, it did an adequate job in the lie-flat position.
Amenities and Amenity Kit
Saudia offers high quality earphones for this flight, the same ones provided on their First Class flights! Pretty impressive.
A smaller clothed amenity kit was provided on this shorter flight, with the basic necessities like eye mask, dental kit, a face mask and ear plugs included. I quite liked the design on the amenity kit, eye mask and face mask!
In-Flight Entertainment
The IFE featured a modern touchscreen with a much more updated selection of movies and TV shows. I decided to watch "Ainbo: Spirit of the Amazon", an animated adventure film that follows a young girl named Ainbo who lives in the Amazon rainforest.
The IFE controller was also the newer touchscreen version.
We had some fantastic take-off views as we passed Riyadh Airport.
Wifi
The WiFi on this flight was similar to our previous one, with a code provided through e-mail during online check-in. Unfortunately, this one was not working quite as well, hence I did not get to use the onboard WiFi throughout the flight.
Dining
Breakfast was served on this flight. Since the European Breakfast ran out, I opted for the Arabic Breakfast again. This time it was less disappointing than on the previous flight, with the pita bread pairing well with the Arabic mezze. The missus did helped out with the cucumbers 😆
I let the missus have the last European Breakfast, which started with a bread assortment and a fruit plate, and the fruits were sweet. The rosti and scrambled eggs were served next. The rosti was delicious and complemented the scrambled eggs, which were perfectly seasoned.
Service
Service was great as expected, similar to our previous flight. The crew was apologetic for the lack of European breakfast, but perhaps ensuring the availability of all meal options could be improved for future flights.
We enjoyed some stunning views over the Alps (while the missus was midway through her beauty sleep 😴).
With that, we commenced our descent into Frankfurt Airport, encountering quite big rainy conditions during landing.
Conclusion
This concluded our flight into Europe and first Business Class experience with Saudia, which left a strong and lasting impression! With frequently affordable prices compared to other airlines, Saudia is a great choice for Business Class flights into Europe, particularly for their B777 Business Class cabin, although the A320 seats are also a good option, especially for couples.
We had a short economy flight from Frankfurt to Amsterdam on Lufthansa, but I didn't take many photos due to the hectic nature of the trip and, well... it's European economy class. Enough said 😆
The next post will cover our first hotel in Amsterdam: one under the IHG hotels portfolio and a new hotel brand!
