Eugene’s First Business Class Experience By Christina
My husband’s very first business class experience—flying with Alaska Airlines and STARLUX Airlines—remains a cherished memory for him to this day; so, we decided to kick off this post with that very journey. However, I must first offer a massive (and perhaps a tad sycophantic) shout-out to all the unsung heroes behind the "North American Chinese Miles & Points Exchange" community. Thanks to you all, many of us—folks from the modest-income or middle-class brackets—are able to redeem luxurious travel experiences at surprisingly affordable rates. And, of course, a special thank you goes to all the fellow members who generously devote their time to sharing their knowledge without holding anything back. If it weren't for you guys, I’d probably just be sitting around all day binge-watching TV dramas—perpetually fantasizing about "swapping out" my husband for a new one! But enough chatter; fasten your seatbelts—we’re about to take off!
My husband’s inaugural business class journey took place on Taiwan’s very own STARLUX Airlines, flying the route from Ontario, California, to Taipei. From the very second he stepped onto the aircraft, he was completely charmed—or perhaps "seduced"—by the simple act of being addressed as "Mr. Chiang." Naturally, the cabin crew’s service, along with the aircraft’s hardware and amenities, left him absolutely raving with praise. Anyone who has flown business class knows the drill: passengers are addressed formally as "Mr. [Last Name]" or "Ms. [Last Name]." It’s that simple—yet just like that, my husband’s heart was completely won over. Since there were very few business class passengers on that particular flight, my husband practically had the lavatory all to himself. He told me he downed quite a few cocktails and polished off plenty of meals (it was essentially an "all-you-can-drink, all-you-can-eat" free-for-all), so having a restroom almost exclusively to himself—allowing him to "relieve himself" whenever nature called without having to wait in line—was an absolute godsend. I had previously flown business class with EVA Air; for me, the standout highlight of the STARLUX experience was finding a facial sheet mask included in the amenity kit. Later, while swapping stories about our business class adventures with friends, we arrived at a shared conclusion: while a top-tier business class experience can truly transport you to "traveler’s heaven," your overall impression of an airline ultimately hinges on the specific aircraft model and the performance of the cabin crew on that particular day. (This was a conclusion we reached after subsequently comparing our experiences on Singapore Airlines and ANA.) Most people online swear that the business class offerings from those two carriers are absolutely superb—and I certainly won’t deny that—but after taking several such trips, I personally feel that STARLUX and EVA Air hold their own and are every bit their equals. (Now, we’re just waiting for the opportunity to give China Airlines’ business class a try!)
Since I don’t want to hog too much space here, I’ll just quickly breeze through the highlights of this trip—a journey that was super, super, super awesome! (Yes, it really deserves to be said three times!) Aside from flying from Ontario to Taiwan to visit family, we decided to spice up our return journey: we stopped in South Korea first to do some grocery shopping, then headed to Hawaii to indulge in some poke, and finally took Hawaiian Airlines back to Southern California. To our pleasant surprise, the meals served in Business Class on this Hawaiian Airlines route were actually delicious! If anyone else has had a similar experience, we’d love to hear about it.
Bonus Section: Two years ago, we had the opportunity to attend a TripPlus mileage seminar, where we met Ryan and "Brother Bulaidi" (the one who "doesn't want to go to work"). Their good looks are truly undeniable—I just have to fawn over them a little bit more! Thank you both for selflessly sharing your travel expertise, and for putting so much care and effort into organizing these meetups. Coincidentally, just as I was publishing this post, we had returned from a trip to Northern California; while there, we met up with a couple we had originally connected with at that very seminar, and we spent some time swapping fun travel stories. I firmly believe that when a person acts selflessly—whether by using miles to take their family on trips or by sharing their travel hacks with others—it truly makes the world a better place.
Thanks for reading!
Original Blog
老公人生中的第一次商務艙 (Alaska - 星宇航空) 體驗至今仍讓他念念不忘，所以我們決定用這段旅程開啟這篇文。不過，我先要大力感謝 (狗腿) 一下 北美華人哩程交流討論 的所有幕後英雄。因為有你們，我們很多小資/中產階級的人，得以用比較輕鬆的價格，換取奢華的旅程。當然，還有花時間不藏私的版友。要不是有你們，我整天會在追劇，一天到晚演換老公劇碼。話不多說，繫緊安全帶，我們要起飛了。
老公人生中的第一次商務艙的體驗是搭乘台灣自家星宇航空從安大略飛往台北的航線。從一踏入飛機的那一秒開始，他就被 “蔣先生” 這個名稱灌了迷湯。當然，空服的服務和飛機的軟硬體設備更令他讚不絕口。搭過商務艙的人都應該知曉，旅客是被 xx先生/小姐稱呼的，就這麼簡單，我老公的心就這樣被買走了。因為當天商務艙乘客不多，所以老公幾乎是獨自使用洗手間。他說他喝了很多雞尾酒、 吃了很多餐點 (無限暢飲無限點餐的概念)，所以有一間幾乎是獨享的空中洗手間，讓他隨時可以解放是很重要的 (不用排隊)。我先前有搭過長榮商務，星宇對於我最有亮點的是過夜包中有面膜。事後和朋友分享商務艙體驗時，我們結論就是 - 航空公司商務艙好的可以讓你上天堂，但最後還是飛機型號及當天服務團隊會影響你對這家航公司的觀感 (這是後來我們搭過新航及ANA比較之後的結論)。網路上大部分的人都說這兩家商務艙非常的好，我不否認，但是這幾趟下來，我自己覺得星宇和長榮不相上下 (我們在等待中華航空商務的機會)。
因為不想占掉太多版面，我就快速帶過我們這趟超超超爽(得說三次)的旅程。除了從安大略飛台灣看家人外，我們回程還選擇先去韓國買菜，再去夏威夷享受poke，最後再搭夏威夷航空回南加。很意外的是，夏威夷商務艙這班航線的餐很好吃耶！如果有相同體驗的人，也歡迎分享。
彩蛋篇 : 兩年前我們有機會參加了TripPlus哩程說明會，見到Ryan和不想上班的不來弟。他們的帥的確難以檔 (再來抱一下大腿)。謝謝你們無私地分享旅遊經，也謝謝這麼用心地舉辦見面會。說來也巧，再發布這篇文的時候，我們剛從北加回來，也和說明會上認識的一對夫妻見面，互相分享了旅遊的趣事。我深信當一個人無私地做一件事時 (用里程帶家人旅遊和其他人分享招數等)，這個世界會更美好。
謝謝你的閱讀！