JetBlue Mint Business Class: My Favorite Way To Fly Domestically

Yes, Jetblue crewmembers and buddy pass riders can occupy a Mint seat.

JetBlue employees can non-rev in Mint. There used to be a $75 fee which was removed ~2018 or so.

"When JetBlue can operate its schedule on-time"

LOL

As an NYC based flyer, I really wanna like mint. But one of the dealbreakers is no lounge access. This hurts especially when compared to AA where, if I’m flying transcon J, I get soho lounge access. If B6 ever opens lounges, I’ll 1000% switch to them for transcons and even tatls to LHR

Yes, fully agree. Weren't they hiring a lounge position last year?
@ Lucky, do you know what happened with that?

The amenity gift in mint was sparser than any other airline business class, e.g. no hand lotion, there was no hand lotion in mint toilet. I am 5’2” and couldn’t reach the screen with my seat belt on. We were flying to Paris and I wanted to watch a movie in French with English subtitles. I had a hard time finding one and finally found an older American movie, dubbed in French with English subtitles. The wifi was inconsistent, the lie flat cell phone charger wasn’t working. I had been looking forward to this Mint flight but was disappointed.

So you book a first class seat and pray that one of the 4 solo seats remain available ?

I anecdotally know a JetBlue employee who with a friend nonrevs in Mint (including to/from Europe), but their HQ being in NYC, there’s probably much less likelihood of their employees being on MIA-LAX

This is why I've never tried JetBlue and am unlikely to do so. I'm sure it's just as good as everyone says, but getting the plane in the air kind of sort of often on time are table stakes for most of my trips. Maybe when I'm retired and widowed and have nothing better to do with my time?

Ben, why did you not take coach class for this flight? I think that you are paying 400 or 500 more for first class?

Also, why not re-name this Blog to ONE LUXURY MILE AT A TIME,

As your writing does not speak to me the way you travel, I cannot afford to fly Emirates First Class, or whatever carrier you choose or stay at the Four Seasons for 1,000 on up per night, why don't you write more for the common man or woman, instead of the 1 %? I do not think that the majority of your readers can afford all of these luxuries, perhaps more readers are like me.

Thank you. I doubt if you Ben will answer me.

So you trade an enjoyable experience flying for a few minutes in a lounge. Interesting.

Yes on @John.
I have stopped my clicks due to self richness.

You can also fly FLL-SFO in mint which I'm sure you're aware of.

I thought transcon J would only get you Greenwich (the previous FSL location) access while Soho is for EMDs travelling int'l, unless the policy changed lately.

Susan,

Are you sure your name isn't actually "Karen"? (jk) 🙂 Those gripes you mention are really really minor and I'm sorry to hear that they left you disappointed in Mint.

As Morgan mentioned, those are extraordinarily unique issues, putting you far and away in the minority. Outrageous complaints there.

This blog isn’t for you. All the pertinent info that you need can be found at www.spirit.com

I think the strategy is to show what is available with credit cards points and airline miles. After all, Ben makes a living by advertising for these programs. No one is excited to redeem points for a basic seat. That is, the point of this blog is “inspirational” travel i.e luxury.

Also, Ben probably has so many points and miles that I doubt he pays much of the travel you see with cash.

@John
I am more like you than Ben --I can't afford most of the luxuries reviewed in this blog. That's why it's most important to me to get detailed reviews about top-of-line hotels and airlines so I can pick the ones that are truly worth it.

...and usually are the most expensive (rightfully) vs AA and UA (both from FLL and MIA) for the premium cabin on this route.

JetBlue non-revs in Mint are some of the most ill-behaved I've ever experienced. I wouldn't fly it again if I knew it was a non-rev heavy route.

Actually we read this blog for luxury options. Take your peasant self elsewhere - plenty of gen pop options to read for your kind.

Transcontinental F gets you Soho, no?

@John, That's the point of the blog -- aspirational travel. Some use their points and miles for it and some pay cash. If you're not interested, definitely find another blog.

Their performance is a hot mess.

Also... baggage handling. I flew SFO-BOS non-stop, arrived at the airport 90 minutes early and they didn't get my bag on the plane. I mean, where did the lose it for 90 minutes? They did get the case of wine that I checked at the same time on the plane though, so I was all set.

I loved the trip in the throne seat but it was a PITA to get my bag before heading to Martha's Vineyard the next morning.

So, I too, want to love jetblue, but can't.

@Ben You did great finding a Mint ticket for $619. I fly JFK-LAX, and have never seen a price that low. Three big problems with JetBlue:
1. No Lounge - At JFK, I get access to the Greenwich Lounge which is comfortable to spend an hour and much nicer than sitting in T5. I can also take a shower when I land and grab something to drink.
2. I do not trust B6 to fly me on time. American has a much more reliable operation.
3. For the JFK-LAX route, JetBlue pricing isn't any cheaper than AA's. For a non-legacy airline, they are not differentiating on price.

I don't find the 2x2 in older Mint planes to be much different than J on AA's A321T.

I spend an hour in the Greenwich Lounge getting some food and using a clean bathroom. It is a much nicer place to avoid the craziness of T5. If you are driving in traffic to JFK, you are not going to arrive to the airport a few minutes before the flight. When you land, you can also grab a shower if you need or a snack before heading out of the airport.

The flying product isn't that much different between AA and B6. Both have lay flat seats, large screens, meal and drink services,...

+1.

I've had several instances where jetBlue had the best schedule and a competitive fare on routes I've needed, but because those domestic US flights often correspond with positioning from secondary US cities to LAX/SFO for an international flight on another ticket to/from Australia, I've never dared.

With no meaningful signs of improvement, I continue to avoid them, which is a shame.

Haha that was my thought too, you do the name Ryan proud. 🙂

Sorry you're short, Susan.

“American has a much more reliable operation.”

This made me belly laugh. I’ve had more AA flights delayed and canceled than any other airline I’ve flown. It got to the point where I refuse to ever fly them again.