In the airline world, just like in the broader travel space, luxury is where it’s at these days.
Now, that’s been the trend for a while, but two big announcements this week served to underscore how much of a play airlines are making for the premium travel segment.
First, JetBlue took the wraps off its eagerly awaited BlueHouse lounge at Boston Logan Airport on Monday.
Over the past several years JetBlue has been in the process of transforming itself from what has effectively become a low-cost airline — with a few premium touches here and there — into more of a hybrid carrier with a more intentional premium focus. Its “JetForward” turnaround strategy also focuses on reconfiguring its network around the East Coast leisure market and optimizing its fleet and operations.
Part of that strategy has meant opening lounges in its two major focus cities: New York and Boston.
The New York lounge opened in December and is meant to evoke the feeling of a New York City apartment with an art deco design featuring gold trimming and eclectic decor.
The Boston BlueHouse lounge, as a point of comparison, was designed to channel a “warm, stylish New England home,” according to executives. Among other things, that means it’s bigger: it spans 12,000 square feet, compared to New York’s 9,000.
But in reality, the lounge feels like a love letter to Boston, with rooms and decor channeling famous features of the city, ranging from the Boston Public Library and a small tribute to Dunkin, to the brick buildings of Charlestown and Fenway Park. One room with a sports pub-type vibe dubbed “The Dugout” even features a replica of the ballpark’s famous Green Monster scoreboard.
Meanwhile, cocktails designed by renowned local beverage director Jackson Cannon, barista-crafted pick-me-ups featuring George Howell Coffee and local dishes such as North Shore roast beef and lobster rolls all bring the best of the region to the lounge.
The lounge is open to Mint business class passengers unless they’re flying on “basic” Mint fares, along with top-level elites and credit card holders. Lower level elites and credit card holders can purchase access for the day, based on capacity.
Then on Tuesday, United Airlines revealed its new routes for summer 2027 and offered some of the first tours of its eagerly awaited Airbus A321XLR long-range narrow-body jet.
The A321XLR features heavily in the summer network additions, with United planning to use the jet to fly to locations that are slightly off the beaten path across the Atlantic — presenting a good opportunity for clients looking to travel somewhere a little bit different next year.
The plane focuses heavily on premium, with 20 Polaris business class seats laid out in a 1-1 configuration, 12 Premium Plus premium economy seats in a 2-2, 34 extra legroom Economy Plus seats — including a row with blocked middle seats — and 84 regular economy seats. The plane is equipped with high-speed Starlink Wi-Fi, and features a self-serve snack bar at the back of the plane to make trips more enjoyable even in economy. Every seat has its own power adapter, and massive seat-back screens, including 13-inch high definition screens in economy.
The plane is undoubtedly nice. We’ve heard from travelers who have concerns about flying long-haul routes on a narrow-body jet. In our view, United has configured the plane well, and on a preliminary look (admittedly just on the ground, not during a flight), we agree with United’s chief commercial officer Andrew Nocella, who on Tuesday said: “We’re confident we’ve designed an optimal seat for this experience that takes into all considerations what flying on a narrowbody aircraft brings and making that a comfortable journey, over a journey of eight or even longer hours.”
The airline will start using the plane on Dec. 1 from Washington, D.C.’s Dulles International Airport (IAD) to Dublin and Amsterdam.
As for the summer, the new routes are as follows (routes aboard the A321XLR are denoted with an asterisk):
- San Francisco to Okinawa, Japan (seasonal, March 27 through October 27)
- Newark to Luxembourg* (year-round, starts April 2)
- Dulles to Toulouse, France* (year-round, starts April 26)
- Newark to Ljubljana, Slovenia (seasonal, May 12 through October 29)
- Newark to Olbia, Sardinia, Italy (seasonal, May 27 through September 21)
- Newark to Catania, Sicily, Italy (seasonal, May 28 through September 20)
- Newark to Ibiza, Spain* (seasonal, May 31 through October 7)
- Newark to Valencia, Spain* (seasonal, June 2 thorough October 6)
- Newark to Marseille, France* (seasonal, June 4 through October 29)
- Newark to Terceira, Azores, Portugal (seasonal, June 9 through September 5)
The routes all represent United’s ability to both judge existing demand that it can take advantage of, and its ability to drum up demand through destination marketing. It’s a recipe that the airline’s head of international network planning, Patrick Quayle, has proven successful in the years since the pandemic shutdowns, and one that offers travelers who’ve seen the big cities a chance to explore parts of Europe they may not have considered, whether because they hadn’t thought of it, or because they were less convenient than basing a trip around the larger hubs.
The emphasis on premium has also meant more capacity for luxury travelers, while still offering options at all price points.
“We are making sure that there are products on all parts of the aircraft that are viable and an alternative to all customers, no matter where they sit," Nocella said.
Notably, both JetBlue and United collaborate under their “Blue Sky” partnership which allows members of both airlines’ frequent flyer programs to earn and burn miles with each other, and offers reciprocal benefits to elite members. While there has been speculation surrounding a possible merger, United CEO Scott Kirby said in a recent interview with CNBC that he was “not interested” in acquiring JetBlue.
All of the new routes are bookable now.
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