Finnair A350 XWB to Helsinki

[yflyer]

Overall cabin ambience was excellent, despite it being a 100% full flight in Y.





Prior to landing, the cabin crew set the lights on demo mode to show different light/mood settings…



I watched short video introducing the Northern Lights…a phenomenon occasionally visible in parts of Finland…



I watched the landing through my window, and through my seatmate’s camera view…



We touched down smoothly in Helsinki just before dawn…



…and were at the gate after a short taxi.

[yflyer]

Overall, this was an excellent flight in almost every way. On my very first flight on Finnair, I found AY to be very impressive.

The Finnair A350 hard product was superb: the cabin ambience and décor was excellent, and seats were very comfortable, and the 9-abreast 3-3-3 layout worked well for a long haul sector like SIN-HEL.

I thought the overall service concept and execution from Finnair was superb as well, with the predominantly Asian crew on this sector providing very friendly and efficient service. And this was a 100% full flight!

With that very positive first impression of Finnair, I headed through security to the transit area to await my connection to JFK, and check out the Finnair Premium Lounge.



To be continued!

[9V-SPL]

Fantastic report! Thanks for the lovely pictures!

Great to see a full-load.

[Pinkfloyd]

Another great TR yflyer! Never flown on AY metal before and good to some insight. Heard there are a bunch of local SIN-based crew for AY doing the SIN-HEL(L) runs...

[Mlee888]

Thanks for this.

I'm tempted to use Finnair the next time I travel back to Europe. Been fortunate to stay at Hilton Vaanta near the airport a couple of times. Reached -30 when I was there.

The new J class looks fantastic and Y looks pretty good too especially compared to LH and AF.

Hope you tried Reindeer whilst you were there?

[yflyer]

Fantastic report! Thanks for the lovely pictures!

Great to see a full-load.

Thanks, 9V-SPL!...yes the flight was full on both SIN-HEL (Overbooked in fact) and HEL-SIN sectors. I asked the lady at the check-in counter on my HEL-SIN return and she said it was always full...

Another great TR yflyer! Never flown on AY metal before and good to some insight. Heard there are a bunch of local SIN-based crew for AY doing the SIN-HEL(L) runs...

Thanks, Pinkfloyd! Yes, the cabin crew appeared to be mainly local. All cabin PA announcements with a distinct Singlish accent !

Thanks for this.

I'm tempted to use Finnair the next time I travel back to Europe. Been fortunate to stay at Hilton Vaanta near the airport a couple of times. Reached -30 when I was there.

The new J class looks fantastic and Y looks pretty good too especially compared to LH and AF.

Hope you tried Reindeer whilst you were there?

Thanks, Mlee888! Finnair has very competitive pricing to Europe (And even to the USA, either on their own metal or codeshares with BA etc), and based on this experience, connecting via HEL is quite straightforward as it is not a large airport.

The J seats are based on the Cirrus seats that CX and AA use. They looked good to me too. However, I was reading TOF and some of the Finnair regulars wrote that it seemed a little more cramped in the footwell than the Cirrus seats on other carriers. Just what I read of course, no personal experience in those seats (Although I have tried, and love the Cirrus J seats on CX).

Yes, I ate reindeer and elk too. Coming up later in the TR...

-30? That's cold! Maybe at that temperature I might not go out for a run...

[yflyer]

The Finnair Lounge in Helsinki has two sections, the first is their Business Lounge, which is a very large, airy lounge, with seating, dining and work areas.

This is the main business lounge:







There is a separate, more exclusive lounge, called the Premium Lounge, which is only accessible to Finnair premium FF's as well as Oneworld Emerald. At some times of the day (Except for peak hours), it seems that they also allow Oneworld Sapphire to use the Premium Lounge.

When I presented my boarding pass at the lounge, I was given the choice of either the Business side or the Premium side. I had not done any prior research on this lounge, and at that point, the terminology was not clear to me...did they mean premium as Premium Economy? The lounge receptionist -- a very friendly lady, explained that the premium lounge was smaller but more exclusive...and based on that I chose the Premium Lounge -- a decision I did not regret.



This was a stylish, intimate lounge with top notch fittings and very good F&B to match.







There was good use of light colours, translucent curtains, and different shades of lighting to create a very soothing and restful ambience in the different areas of the lounge.





At the hour I was there, the lounge was not busy, with just a few other guests...the lounge had a very calm and serene ambience.

[yflyer]

The premium self service buffet counter was laid out for breakfast service...



Marimekko tableware and cups...



Cold cuts...



Salad and cereal...



Hot selections...



Pancakes and oatmeal...



Mixed berries...



Nicolas Feuillatte Champagne...



...served in Finnair's signature lillata Ultima Thule glassware, designed by Tapio Wirkkala in 1968, and still looking strikingly beautiful in 2016.



Some of the other wines available...

[yflyer]

Also available was a menu of premium drinks...



I was intrigued by Napue Finnish Rye Gin...I had not come across this before.

As a fan of gin & tonics, I ordered one to try. I later learned from my friends and colleagues in Finland, that Napue Gin was awarded the title from the IWSC as the world's best gin & tonic in 2015. For some of us, that may be reason enough to fly Finnair or visit Helsinki .

What makes it special? The gin of course. The story behind Napue is one worth reading (More on that here, and on the IWSC best G&T award here.)



I took a sip...wow...wonderful. The rosemary and lingonberries were perfect with this gin. I would not understate the contribution of Fever Tree tonic water either (Why isn't Fever Tree easier to find in Singapore?). [UPDATE: Fever Tree tonic water is now available at selected Cold Storage Market Place supermarkets, and also online from RedMart!]



And believe it or not, this wasn't the most beautifully presented Napue G&T I had in Helsinki (More on that later in the TR...).

[yflyer]

There were several other distinct areas within the Premium Lounge...

Up a short flight of stairs, a separate seating zone with tarmac views and a "Relax Area"...



These seats face the tarmac (It was still before sunrise at the time the photo was taken)...



The "Relax Area" has curtained-off individual recliners for resting/sleeping.



Small curtained-off work area equipped with Macs and a laser printer.



Kids' room...



Separate beverage stations were located away from the main buffet area...

Juice bar...



Tea and coffee...

[yflyer]

Tarmac views when the sun came up later in the day...



As lunchtime approached, the catering changed over to the lunch menu as well...



Small starters, which included cold smoked salmon with red onion, herring salad, roast pork with horshradish cream cheese, pulled lamb with rye bread and blackcurrent...



Salad selection...



Hot selections...







Dessert...



Overall, a selection which focused on quality rather than quantity...

[yflyer]

There are large, well-equipped showers in the lounge.









Showers aside, the pièce de résistance of the Finnair Premium Lounge must have been the sauna...



I can't think of too many other lounges in the world equipped with these!

[yflyer]

Overall, a very impressive lounge -- the Premium Lounge is a cut or two above what you would expect from a business class lounge. I liked the lounge design very much as well -- cool, nordic, almost minimalist...an oasis of calm and serenity.

The whole transit experience in Helsinki Airport that day was superb as well.

It is a lot smaller than many of the megahubs frequent travellers use, which means that one is far less likely to encounter long queues and large crowds, the way you would at large hubs like DXB or LHR.

In fact, HEL and DXB may be opposites in terms of the transit experience.

Hyperconnected DXB may be able to get you almost anywhere with one stop, but the crowds and distances involved can be quite intimidating.

By contrast, in HEL almost everything is just a short walk away, and the likelihood of queues or crowds would probably be a lot lower -- to me a much more pleasant transit experience.

And there are a surprisingly large number of destinations that you can connect to via HEL.

After my extended visit to the lounge, I headed to my gate, just 4 minutes away, to catch my flight to New York.

To be continued...

[SQ319]

Yes, the cabin crew appeared to be mainly local. All cabin PA announcements with a distinct Singlish accent !

AY hired SIN- and HKG-based cabin crew to do their SIN and HKG flights, respectively. According to a friend in the industry, after the staff were trained in HEL, they ended up not being able to work for a while (ie. no pay), as the crew union in Finland was not agreeable to this arrangement of hiring locally based crew.

Good that this was eventually sorted out. I actually also think that the SIN-based crew would provide better service than their counterparts from HEL, as previous cabin crew experience was a prerequisite when they were hiring which means they were mostly trained from the SIN based airlines or JL, CX, BA or ME3.

Anyway, great report! I love the airy feel of the cabin and the lounge! Looking forward to the rest.

[yflyer]

I actually also think that the SIN-based crew would provide better service than their counterparts from HEL, as previous cabin crew experience was a prerequisite when they were hiring which means they were mostly trained from the SIN based airlines or JL, CX, BA or ME3.

I found the cabin service on the HEL-JFK sector to be pretty good as well. Even if the style of service was very subtly different i.e. cool Nordic vs warm Asian, I felt very welcome and well looked after in the Y cabin on both SIN-HEL and HEL-JFK sectors.

Anyway, great report! I love the airy feel of the cabin and the lounge! Looking forward to the rest.

Thanks, SQ319!