Review: Delta 767 BusinessElite Sao Paulo to Detroit

That Westin Heavenly pillow made me sleepy. Great hard product and great review (as always).

The description for Million Dollar Listing NY is for Million Dollar Listing LA. Weird.

That's been my experience with almost every delta crew in both classes of service - they're quite far ahead of other us legacy carriers. I hate to suggest it, but I can't help but wonder if it's because they're the only legacy with non union flight attendants.

Also, only Delta's 777 has the herringbone seats. All Delta's 767s are either domestic or have seats like you flew (though there are different density configs).

no skincare in the amenity kit? not even a hand creme? odd...

@Lantean, I think the light reflection obscures it but the Malin+Goetz products are in the plastic package in the upper left of the amenity kit photo

I think I said this after your intro post to this trip report, but I flew a 767 with that same configuration domestically a few weeks back, a few days after I had flown in LH's new business class. I only walked through the BE cabin because I was in coach, but the cabin felt really, really tight after being in the new LH cabin. The seats just looked really cramped, and just not much privacy.

Hi, I have been following you for more than a year. Here, I am asking you for a favor. I need 911 UR points, together with my 1089 points left to transfer to United mileage, so I can get two round way tickets before Feb 1st.

@ Sam -- Whoops, fixed, thanks. Did I totally make that up? I could've sworn at some point they had some 767s with herringbone seats.

@ Dong -- You can only transfer Ultimate Rewards points to your own or a spouse's account. I'd suggest purchasing the miles directly through United unfortunately. Good luck!

Hey Lucky,
You mentioned this was the only flight you and your friend chose the two center seats. Is it difficult to converse in those middle seats? I'm taking my mom to Paris in a couple of weeks, so I'm trying to decide which would be the better option for us.

@ hsw25 -- It's actually very easy to converse in those seats, so they're not a bad option if you're traveling with someone. Ultimately we were more interested in privacy/sleeping, though.

Delta's A332/3 and B744 also have reverse herringbone seats which are much nicer. BTW the seat guru map is wrong with respect to the seat and table config - it shows them as all having the table on the right which is simply untrue. The seats have alternating arrangement as can be seen in your photos.

"This staggered business class product is in a 1-2-1 configuration, very similar to what’s offered by Austrian, Brussels, etc."

It's like a weird hybrid between the staggered business class of Emirates, and of Austrian/Brussels (since Emirates also does 1-2-1 configuration, while Austrian/Brussels doesn't, but they do have a throne seat).

Although I fly exclusively on Skyteam (i.e. Delta), I've never flown international Business Elite. I don't go to Asia anymore, and when I go to Europe I make it a point to fly KLM (or AF if I have no other choice). I love KLM's world business seat. Are these seats fully lie flat (like parallel with the floor), or are they angled? I've gotten conflicting reports from friends and from what I can find online.

I would be open to opting for Delta if I could be sure that I was getting a fully flat seat. Thanks!

@ Garrett -- Best I could tell it was indeed fully flat.

I feel your pain on the 763/4 versions of the layflat seating. If you cannot score the 1st row of BE, which isn't as restrictive as the rest of BE, I have some advice. This works regardless if you are a side or back sleeper. Stand up out of your seat, press the zzz/sleep mode button until it is completely flat. Once it is flat, press the seat-back button "up" for two seconds. This allows for a few more inches of room and no "feeling stuck" troubles.

I got this advice from a 6'10" friend who flies DL regularly. Being five inches shorter than him, I decided to give that a try on my SEA-HND-SEA flights I did this week. And it worked like a charm.

Thanks!

@lucky - Delta on BE flights to Japan, they use the old school teapot with bamboo-type handle for tea-service. They have Western and Asian menu selections. Damn good service for a domestic airline.

Now you need to try UA again for long haul...try both a 2 cabin and a 3 cabin in business...the difference is huge.

I agree that BusinessElite tray tables on the 767s are annoying to use, since passengers must clear off the tabletop before opening the stowage compartment. When the flat bed product was launched with the 767-400s, Delta originally selected spring-loaded tray tables that deployed laterally at the push of a button. They were a but tricky to stow, however, and Delta soon replaced them with the fold-out variety seen here. I imagine the flight attendants became frustrated having to teach infrequent Delta fliers how to use them, but it really was much better not having that stupid lid to open and close.

The teapot is a nice touch, but what is the point of it if they don't put the tea in the pot while the water is still boiling?

@ Jeff R — I don't think the water was ever actually "boiling," having been prepared in an aircraft galley. I'm sure it was still plenty hot to steep tea in.

Also, Delta offers a reasonable variety of teas in BusinessElite, and the flight attendants typically present a wooden box seat-side allowing passengers to choose their flavor.

Surprisingly decent looking meal. Very nice salad - agree the old chopped iceberg lettuce with some cherry tomatoes is so 70s.

The tea service was a joke - in a tea bag. Can't anyone serve a decent tea for goodness sakes??? How about some loose tea in sachets like you get at quality tea houses like Harney and Sons?

@ Paul — Funny you should mention Harney and Sons, because that's exactly what Delta serves in BusinessElite. Or at least they used to—I'm not a tea drinker myself, but I've noticed it on the menus. Judging by Ben's experience, Delta's either dropped the H&S tea or the flight attendant mistakenly served an economy teabag.

@Paul @Mark S.

I was just on a Delta transcon in Business Elite and they are still serving Harney & Sons. I just ordered a box of the Orange Pekoe because of the flight.

I'm surprised at how solid this delta product looks, I've flown domestic with these flat beds and it was awful, the seats were fine but the crew and food were terrible, glad to see them having a solid product,

Delta has a very solid long haul biz product. Seems a bit underrated from non enthusiasts.

Stephan, I'm pretty sure those marks represent the armrests, and the space shows where the table is (between the seat and window/aisle).