Hello from London Heathrow! I recently shared my initial thoughts on my Icelandair Boeing 737 MAX 8 Saga Premium flight from New York (JFK) to Keflavik (KEF). After then spending several days in Iceland, I continued in Icelandair’s Airbus A321LR Saga Premium on the 2hr50min flight from Keflavik to London (LHR).
The A321LR is only a recent addition to Icelandair’s fleet, breaking the carrier’s practice of operating an all-Boeing jet fleet (The A321 family is just more capable in terms of range, and Icelandair needs that incremental range for some flights). So I was looking forward to trying the carrier’s new plane, and also to see how Icelandair’s service works on the shorter hops between Icelandair and other points in Europe.
In this post, I’d like to share my initial impressions, and then I’ll have a full flight review upon returning home, as usual.
In this post:
Icelandair’s A321LR Saga Premium seats offer superior comfort
Icelandair’s Saga Premium is most comparable to domestic first class within the United States when it comes to the hard product. However, it’s elevated a bit beyond that, and on top of that, the A321LR sets a new standard in terms of comfort, beating out the 737 MAXs.
Icelandair’s 321LRs have Geven Comoda recliner seats, in a 2-2 configuration. The cabin has 22 seats, making it quite a bit bigger than the 16-seat premium cabins that Icelandair has on its 737 MAXs.
Seats are roughly 21″ wide and have 5″ of recline. On top of that, seats have little foot bars, which make it easy to get more comfortable. The seats also have privacy widgets along the head rest, which are also nice to lean against if you’re looking to get some rest.
Icelandair also has AC and USB-C outlets, so while the 737 MAXs have AC and USB-A outlets, it’s nice that these planes have the more modern plugs. In terms of comfort, it’s worth mentioning that Icelandair offers a pillow and blanket on Europe flights, though the bedding isn’t quite as good as on North America flights (and there also aren’t amenity kits).
So yeah, these are pretty great seats, if you ask me. Competitively, it’s of course tough to know how to judge these. When flying Icelandair between Iceland and points in Europe, this is the best product you’ll find, as it’s so much better than intra-Europe business class.
Meanwhile if flying this plane on some of the eight hour flights from Iceland to the United States, you might have a different impression (though in terms of pricing, Saga Premium is often more like premium economy than business class, and this would actually be among the best premium economy seats out there).
Icelandair’s A321LR entertainment & Wi-Fi are solid
Icelandair’s A321LRs have 16″ 4K OLED touchscreen monitors, which are beautifully crisp, and don’t have much glare. Those are huge screens — for context, Delta’s new A321neo domestic first class has 10″ screens, so these are way bigger.
While not the biggest selection you’ll find in the sky, Icelandair has a solid library of entertainment options, with movies, TV shows, and of course my favorite feature — a customizable map.
There’s also bluetooth audio, a nice feature you won’t find on the 737 MAXs.
For those who don’t want to use their own headphones, proper headphones are distributed as well, the same you’ll find on flights to the United States.
Much like on the 737 MAXs, there’s also Viasat Wi-Fi, and it’s complimentary for Saga Premium guests. The speeds were excellent, as you’d expect.
Icelandair’s Saga Premium food is okay, drinks are good
Icelandair generally serves three course meals on its North America flights, and two course meals on its Europe flights. I was actually impressed about the catering on the flight from New York, while I was a little less impressed by the catering on this flight. Admittedly it was a breakfast flight, and that’s a meal that rarely delights on airplanes.
There were two options, but by the time they got to my row, only one option was available (I should’ve pre-ordered, probably). It was interesting in the sense that there wasn’t really a main, but instead, a bread roll was plated as one.
Beyond the bread roll, there was a small warm mushroom crepe with tomatoes, as well as a side of turkey, tomato, and guacamole. I guess between that and the bread roll, it was intended to be a “build your own sandwich” setup, or something. It wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t good in any memorable way either.
When it comes to drinks, I enjoyed the coffee, and it’s cute how they serve it on a tray, with a chocolate on the side (though the cups could be deeper — I realize this is likely about saving space in the galley in terms of stacking).
On the plus side, the drink selection was identical to what you’ll find on North America flights, with everything from sparkling wine, to two reds, to two whites, to the carrier’s signature gin selection, with six different Icelandic gins to choose from. Since this was an early morning flight, I didn’t partake, but on an evening flight, that would certainly set this apart from other European airlines.
The crew on this sector was quite friendly, and checked on passengers throughout the flight. With two flight attendants working the cabin, the staffing ratio was also quite good, despite the large 22-seat cabin.
Bottom line
After flying the Icelandair Boeing 737 MAX in Saga Premium from North America, I’m happy I could connect onto one of the carrier’s brand new Airbus A321LRs. I’d say these planes offer an even better Saga Premium experience, with slightly more comfortable seats, and upgraded technology.
Ultimately Saga Premium is a unique product when you consider the position in the market. Your perception will also likely differ based on whether you’re simply connecting through in Iceland between North America and Europe, or whether you’re actually traveling to Iceland.
Saga Premium is an excellent value product that’s a step above domestic first class within the United States in terms of hard product, with a nicely elevated soft product as well. In particular, I appreciate the seat back entertainment, free Wi-Fi, and drink selection.
Icelandair runs an excellent operation, and I’d happily fly with the airline again. My favorite thing is the carrier’s free stopover policy in Iceland, since I already want to return to Iceland… it’s such a unique and beautiful country.
What’s your take on Icelandair’s Saga Premium product?
I would love that breakfast!
Is that butter next to the bread roll? And if so, what's the black stuff on top?
I wonder if you bumped into Dennis Bunnik by any chance as he was just there!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fwi9aBemKGs
You mention 16" on Icelandair vs 10" on Delta which is a big difference but to put things into much better perspective is to add that 16" screen area is roughly 170% bigger than 10" which makes the difference even more pronounced.
It’s not always about size, it’s what you do with the size (talking about the great IFE of DL ofc). Remember, one is more premium as well xD
Good name but bad math :) 16/10-1=0,6=60% bigger. 100% bigger than 10” would be twice the size ie 20” and 170% bigger 27”.
Lukas another the dimensions are diagonal eg from top left to bottom right. The diamond Lukas clearly said "screen area", so maybe your comprehension needs some work. Hopefully you can redo the maths on how the diagonal dimensions can be used to deduce the area
My family of five flew Icelandic from Ord to Reykjavik to London with a two day stopover in 2022. Was such a good experience.
Late departure from Ord meant everyone ate and went to sleep. Not much jet lag and a great time in Iceland. Then short hop to London. Great way to travel with a young family.
We were in economy and the pre ordered meals were delicious. I had the keto option which was fantastic. Would def fly them again.
My husband and I were on this flight as well. We saw you on the bus to take us to the plane, but I wasn’t sure if it was you so I didn’t want to say hi. I agree with you that this is a solid product in general, especially for intra-Europe, though it wasn’t as comfortable coming from PDX. Looking forward to your review!
How did he manage to be the first one to board if it was a bus gate?? He wouldn't have even know which side of the bus doors would open!
@ chris w -- Excellent question, bus gates stress me out, heh. When I got on the bus, I asked the friendly driver what doors open first, and he said all the doors on the right side open at the same time. So I figured positioning myself at the forward right door would be the best bet.
Sure enough, the bus stopped near the wing, and then there were forward and rear stairs. So...
@ chris w -- Excellent question, bus gates stress me out, heh. When I got on the bus, I asked the friendly driver what doors open first, and he said all the doors on the right side open at the same time. So I figured positioning myself at the forward right door would be the best bet.
Sure enough, the bus stopped near the wing, and then there were forward and rear stairs. So I walked really fast toward the stairs and up them, and managed to be first. I know other passengers probably thought I was nuts, but you gotta do what you gotta do!
@ David F -- Sorry to have missed you! Agree, on an overnight flight of that length, I'd find this to be much less comfortable. Ford flew the same plane back KEF-MIA, which is a very long journey, but at least that's a daytime flight.
That's why I always admire Ben's work ethics and how much effort he puts in behind the scenes.
Curiously, I also flew Icelandair recently through Reykjavik to London and had read your reviews and thought I may see you in Reykjavik.
On the flight from Reykjavik to London, the breakfast menu included both the bread roll and the crepe but we were only served the bread roll (and ham, guacamole). I assumed the menu was a choice that we weren't offered but now I see that we were just short-changed! I was unaware...
Curiously, I also flew Icelandair recently through Reykjavik to London and had read your reviews and thought I may see you in Reykjavik.
On the flight from Reykjavik to London, the breakfast menu included both the bread roll and the crepe but we were only served the bread roll (and ham, guacamole). I assumed the menu was a choice that we weren't offered but now I see that we were just short-changed! I was unaware that it's possible to pre-order non special diet meals.
In other regards, I enjoyed the flights, found the seat comfortable, the service good, Internet good but the in-flight entertainment disappointing.
@ Daz -- Indeed, the menu is a little confusing. On North America flights you get a proper menu in advance with all the options, while on Europe flights you get a menu that just shows what's on the tray, presented with the meal. It does indeed seem like you were short changed!
I notice this happens to you every now and then…why don’t you always pre-order when it’s an option? I always do, too much anxiety not to
@ Andrew Reiser -- Fair question. On airlines I'm familiar with and fly frequently (like American), I almost always do. However, on new airlines I often don't. That's partly because I sometimes just don't have strong preferences, and partly because I'm curious to see what approach they take when it comes to how many meals they cater.
I believe the other option was scrambled eggs, so to be honest, I'm not even sure I would've...
@ Andrew Reiser -- Fair question. On airlines I'm familiar with and fly frequently (like American), I almost always do. However, on new airlines I often don't. That's partly because I sometimes just don't have strong preferences, and partly because I'm curious to see what approach they take when it comes to how many meals they cater.
I believe the other option was scrambled eggs, so to be honest, I'm not even sure I would've selected that, since that's also hard to get excited about.