Premium with Norwegian
Back in April, Norwegian very kindly flew my Mom and I out to Orlando in their Premium cabin which was my first experience in a cabin that wasn’t economy. I thought I’d share a few thoughts on why I will absolutely be flying premium with Norwegian again (spoiler there!)
Pre Flight
As with most premium and upper-class services, Premium had its own check-in desk at Gatwick airport. While there were people waiting in the queue to check in to the economy cabin, we breezed straight to the front and were checked in within minutes. As part of Norwegian’s premium ticket, you are allowed two hold bags per person which made packing all those outfits for Disney World a lot less stressful. The weight limit of each bag was 20kg and with mine coming in at 16kg and 14kg, I had plenty of room for souvenirs.
After checking in, you are directed to fast track security which is exactly what the title says. Rather than being in the hustle and bustle of the main security line, again we breezed straight through to the conveyor to unload our metal items and hand luggage for screening.
Post security we headed to the No1 Lounge as entry was included in the Premium ticket price. I’ve used a number of airport lounges at Gatwick and No1 are by far my favourite for a number of reasons. Firstly, the hot food is lovely. You order from a menu at the bar and it is delivered to your table. There’s also muffins, pastries, cereal, yoghurt and fruit at the buffet bar that you can help yourself to at any time during your visit. On this visit, I opted for a quesadilla while Mom had a bacon roll. Secondly – the alcohol is free. I’ve been in airport lounges where you have to pay for any alcoholic beverage on top of paying for access to the lounge and while I’m not a raging alcoholic with a desperate need for a 7am prosecco, it’s nice to be able to celebrate your holiday with a chink of glasses.
Even before this trip, I was a total airport lounge convert. I honestly don’t think there’s any other way to be if you’re going long haul. I don’t like having to find a seat in the main concourse to park myself on for hours neither am I a duty-free wonderer – I like to get in and out and relax as soon as possible.
The Flight
Again, flying Premium with Norwegian came with the usual benefit of boarding first. As there is no ‘upper-class’ on their Orlando service, Premium boards first. With only eight rows in the Premium cabin, it’s not a lot of people and the cabin is comfortable. There are two sets of two and a set of three seats in each row. The first thing I noticed was just how much leg room we had. I’m only 5’7 but I could stretch out fully without touching the seat in front of me. Now, let’s talk about the seats…
They recline backwards and forwards…
IT WAS THE DREAM!
I’ve never flown so comfortably in my life. One thing to note however is that while blankets are provided in Premium, pillows are not so don’t forget your neck pillow if you want something extra squishy to lay your head on.
Onto the actual plane itself. It is probably the most high-tech plane I have ever been on and considering Norwegian are a ‘low budget’ airline, it puts other airlines to shame. The planes are all brand new. I was on a 787 Dreamliner which included:
- No window blinds – instead each window had dimmer buttons and you could make the window blackout by dimming it (somehow done by a really cool piece of tech that runs an electrical current through the window pane causing it to change colour!)
- Ordering from you seat – The TV screens were not only for entertainment but could be used to order anything from their complimentary drinks service which would then be delivered directly to your seat. You could also call the cabin crew using the entertainment system rather than a button on your seat.
- Mood lighting and cabin pressure optimised for minimal jet lag the other end – I’ll admit I scoffed at this one, but when we landed the other side, neither of us felt sleepy or like we’d just spent all day travelling. The Dreamliners are some of the most modern planes out there and a lot of insight has been used to make them as comfortable as possible.
- Modern toilets – We all hate aeroplane toilets (ain’t nothing gonna change that) but the Dreamliners are spacious and had automatic flush -fewer germs to touch – WIN!!
Food wise, Premium on Norwegian offered a few choices at mealtime. Your meals are included in your Premium ticket (unlike in economy where it’s an optional extra at an additional cost). I went for chicken and mash as my main meal and then about an hour before landing we had a small afternoon tea offering with salad, meat, cheese and crackers.
Post Flight
The top perk of flying in Premium with Norwegian – being allowed off the aeroplane first and having less of a wait at security! BOOM!
To add to that, the 10:10am Norwegian flight from Gatwick to Orlando International is only behind one other international flight meaning security lines are smaller than later on in the day.
Would I fly Premium with Norwegian Again?
Absolutely!
The journey was comfortable, the plane was modern and the ticket prices are really reasonable plus Norwegian’s Premium cabin comes in at a much lower price than other airlines that fly the same routes – sometimes even near the same price as others economy cabin! Yes, it may be the low budget version of Premium (sans pillow) but the modern planes more than made up for that. The crew couldn’t do enough for you and the food was decent enough. My Mom and I were really impressed and I hear so many people have raved about the long haul offering. They also have a reward programme called ‘Norwegian Reward’ so you can clock up those air miles all over the world!
For more information and prices, please visit Norwegian’s website.
**Complimentary return flights provided my Norwegian.
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