Flight Review: EVA Air (777-300ER) Business Class – Vancouver to Taipei

EVA Air Business Class Vancouver To Taipei Introduction

I’ve flown EVA Air business class on the Boeing 777 in the past from Taipei to Vancouver and Singapore to Taipei, and so has Brad from Los Angeles, and we both agree that it’s one of the world’s best overall business class products. While the seat is similar to what you might find on Air Canada or Cathay Pacific in business class, the service and catering really stand out as extraordinary, and on-par with most international first-class products (and much better than Air China first class).

Best of all, EVA is quite generous in releasing both advance award seats and last-minute availability and doesn’t impose fuel surcharges like Air Canada or ANA for travel to Asia.

As an aside, I booked this flight as part of an Aeroplan mini round-the-world trip in business class, which cost a total of 155,000 miles and included stops in Jakarta and Paris. If you’re interested in earning enough miles for a mini-RTW, considering the following:

• New Platinum® Cardmembers, earn Welcome Bonus points
• Refer yourself for a Business Platinum card and earn 15,000 Membership Reward points as a referral bonus, plus an additional Membership Reward points as a welcome bonus.

Total points earned = 115,000 American Express Membership Rewards!

EVA Air uses the Plaza Premium Lounge at YVR for business class passengers, and I found the space to be good enough for the short time I was there. Keep in mind these lounges are part of Priority Pass also, so applying for either of the above Platinum Cards will also provide access to this lounge, and 1,200 more worldwide regardless of cabin class flown.

I was only in the lounge for about 20 minutes or so before heading to the gate. Boarding was scheduled to begin at approximately 00:10, which it did, beginning with passengers requiring special assistance, followed by business class.

The Flight – EVA Air Business Class Vancouver To Taipei

EVA Air 9
Vancouver (YVR) – Taipei (TPE)
Thursday, January 25, 2018
Depart: 12:33am
Arrive: 5:50am (+1 day)
Duration: 13hr17min
Aircraft: Boeing 777-300ER
Seat: 9A (Business Class)

I was greeted at the door by one of the charming cabin crew who insisted on walking me to my seat. She reminded me there was no floor storage during taxi, take-off, and landing, but said she would be happy to help me get my bags from the overhead after we were in the air (either great service or she thought I needed the help). She asked if I would like a pre-departure beverage, offering the choice between water, juice, or champagne (I think you know which one I picked).

EVA only recently started flying the 777 to Vancouver, and seem to operate their refreshed fleet on the route. While functionally unchanged, the colours are now lighter than the older aircraft and feature a nicer upholstery for the seats. EVA Air business class is split into two cabins, with the forward section having a couple of additional rows of seats. The reverse herringbone layout is recognizable and features direct aisle access from each seat with a decent amount of privacy.

This was one empty flight, with only a couple of other passengers occupying window seats on the opposite aisle in the rear mini-cabin! Boarding was quick, as is the norm with Asian carriers, and we took off right on schedule!

The seatbelt sign was turned off about 15 minutes after takeoff, with meal service beginning shortly after. Given the late departure time, I was a bit worried service would be ‘light’, but nothing seemed different compared to a normal dinner service, other than the pace seemed a bit quicker.

EVA Air business class has one of the best food/beverage menus, in my opinion, and read as follows:

Meal service began with a glass of Veuve La Grande Dame 2006 and a small appetizer.

Next, the table was set, and a salad with seared scallop and foie gras was served (I don’t like foie gras, but the rest of the dish was nice) along with a selection of bread.

For my main, I went with the pan-fried Chilean sea bass with vegetables and black olive gnocchi. What it lacked in presentation it made up for with flavour!

I was stuffed at this point, so decided to skip dinner and use the lavatory to get changed for bed. EVA Air business class provides pyjamas on all long-haul routes, and they are comfortable and stylish. I’m always worried about cabin temperature with Asian carriers, but the pyjamas were lightweight and really nice to sleep in!

The lavatory was fairly standard and clean for the entire 13-hour flight.

The seats offer a great amount of personal storage while in-flight, though everything must be stowed in the overhead bins during taxi, takeoff, and landing, which I always find a bit annoying.

EVA used to give out Rimowa amenity kits on all long-haul flights, though that recently changed and they’re now only available for flights departing from Taipei. On this flight, I received a nice grey version – a great addition to my growing collection!

I decided to relax and watch some in-flight entertainment before getting some sleep. The reverse herringbone seat is easy to function, and it wasn’t difficult to find a comfortable position to watch a movie, unlike the similar seat offered on Japan Airlines.

EVA Air offers ‘Thunder’ noise-cancelling headphones in business class, which are really quite decent. The entertainment can be controlled via the remote located near all of the seat power plugs and is simple to use without any lag. EVA Air offers a wide variety of movies and television shows, and there was no shortage of choices for this long transpacific flight.

I ended up watching American Hustle, which seems to be a movie I watch often when flying.

Similar to storage, the screen must be stowed during takeoff and landing.

Once the meal service was finished the cabin lights were dimmed and most people seemed to go to bed. I love that EVA Air has stars in the sky on their Boeing 777’s – it’s a nice touch.

Cabin crew offered the bed to be turned down, which features a very comfortable but thick (read: warm) duvet. I managed to get about halfway through my movie before falling asleep and ended up getting about 8 hours on/off, which is pretty good for me.

The sleeping surface isn’t quite as spacious as forward facing seats, such as the Turkish Airlines Boeing 777 business class, but at 5’8 I didn’t have a tough time getting comfortable. The armrest lowers if you want more space, or can stay raised to offer a bit of a shield from the aisle.

I normally skip breakfast on overnight flights, as I usually don’t feel too hungry when I wake up, but I had a long connection in Taipei and remembered the food selection to be kind of sad in the EVA Air lounge.

I went with the western option, which consisted of a chorizo omelette and potatoes with turkey sausage, in addition to a variety of juices, fruit, and pastries. While everything tasted good, the presentation left a bit to be desired, especially the colour of the sausage, which looked particularly cadaverous.

By the time breakfast service finished, we were about an hour outside of Taipei, at which point I just relaxed and started watching the third season of Fargo (didn’t seem as great as previous seasons)!

We touched down slightly ahead of schedule and made a quick taxi to our gate. Every cabin member working business class was warm as we deplaned, thanking everyone for flying with them.

EVA Air Business Class Vancouver To Taipei Bottom Line

Another great flight with EVA Air! This is an airline that’s really tough to fault, from their fantastic service to the enhanced amenities often saved for first class, they really are a world class airline!

Things I loved about this flight:

• Comfortable and spacious reverse herringbone seat
• Luxurious amenities, including a Rimowa kit and comfortable pyjamas
• Terrific food/beverage options, with Veuve La Grande Dame champagne
• Friendly service from all staff

Things I didn’t love about this flight:

• I feel the food presentation could have been better
• Lounge offerings, both in Vancouver and Taipei aren’t reflective of the otherwise luxurious and industry-leading business class product

 

Perhaps best of all though is the ease in booking. EVA Air is quite generous with releasing award seats, both in advance and (particularly) last minute. It isn’t uncommon to see 4+ business class seats available on routes from North America, which takes a lot of the pain out of planning travel for a family. Also, Aeroplan doesn’t impose fuel surcharges on EVA flights, which makes one of the world’s best products available for some very minimal taxes and fees.

Want to boost your points balance fast to earn enough points for a flight with EVA Air? Consider applying for an American Express card now to earn Membership Reward points that can be transferred to Aeroplan!

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Have you flown EVA Air business class before? How did your experience compare with mine? Let us know in the comment section below!