ITA Airways’ A350 Business Class: Bellissimo!

ITA Airways’ A350 Business Class: Bellissimo!

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Hello from Rome! I just flew ITA Airways’ Airbus A350-900 business class from Miami, as part of my current review trip. While I was ridiculously excited to fly with Alitalia’s successor, I was expecting to come away from the flight feeling lukewarm at best. Well, the whole experience was a very pleasant surprise, with exceptional food, charming service, thoughtful amenities, and a competitive hard product.

Let me share a few highlights, and then I’ll have a full trip report soon

ITA A350s have a good but generic hard product

ITA Airways managed to acquire Airbus A350s with pretty short notice, as the airline picked up planes that were supposed to go to China’s Hainan Airlines, but which the airline could no longer afford.

ITA maintained the same Collins Aerospace Super Diamond reverse herringbone seats that Hainan Airlines was supposed to have. This is a good product that you’ll find on a countless number of airlines. Is it the best business class seat out there nowadays? No. Is it competitive, and a huge improvement over ITA’s (errr, Alitalia’s) previous hard product? Absolutely!

ITA Airways’ A350 business class seat

It’s pretty funny how ITA has possibly the world’s easiest to recognize livery (well, maybe second most, after Condor’s), yet these interiors could really belong to any airline.

The outside looks a bit different than the inside!
ITA Airways’ A350 business class cabin

By the way, it’s nice how ITA’s A350s have Wi-Fi. The speeds aren’t amazing, but the pricing is reasonable, at $25 for the entire flight with a 500MB data cap (which is really high).

ITA Airways’ A350 Wi-Fi offerings

ITA’s amazing business class meal service

I love the extent to which ITA embraces its Italian roots with its inflight product, and particularly with its meal service. On this nearly nine hour flight, a massive dinner was served after takeoff.

The service began with the choice of an aperitif, so I selected an aperol spritz (I love the glassware, by the way). The only part of the meal service I found strange was that this was accompanied by flavorless walnuts. That seems like an odd pairing to me. Has anyone in the history of earth ever said “this would pair great with some walnuts?” I don’t think so… I digress.

ITA Airways business class pre-dinner drinks

Next up was the choice of two appetizers, and I selected the prawns with a potato and carrot salad.

ITA Airways business class dinner service

Next up was the choice of two primi (pasta dishes), and I selected the orecchiette pasta with broccoli sauce. Yum.

ITA Airways business class dinner service

Then there was the choice of two secondi (meat or fish), and I chose the “sanremese” style fish steak with zucchini, potatoes, and buttered spinach. This was also very good.

ITA Airways business class dinner service

Next up was a cheese course, and unlike on so many airlines, the selection didn’t seem like it was curated from Lunchables.

ITA Airways business class dinner service

Lastly there was a small selection of cakes.

ITA Airways business class dinner service

What an incredible meal! It’s especially impressive when you consider this was catered at an outstation. I imagine the food is even better when departing Italy.

ITA’s connection to Italy goes beyond the food, as the airline also partners with Italian brand Salvatore Ferragamo for its amenity kits.

ITA Airways business class amenity kit

My ITA flight had friendly, genuine service

I was curious to see what service would be like on this flight. As far as I could tell, the crews had the old Alitalia uniforms on, and if I had to guess, I’d say they had all worked at Alitalia before. This was a very senior and experienced crew, and they were fantastic.

They truly seemed to enjoy their jobs, and they actually understood service flow in premium cabins which was so refreshing, after recent flights on Gulf Air and Bamboo Airways). They completed that entire meal service within two hours of takeoff, always kept glasses topped up, proactively replaced cutlery, and cleared plates as they were finished.

This isn’t Singapore Airlines, where you’re constantly addressed by name, and service is extremely consistent. Rather these ladies really seemed to enjoy their jobs, and they performed their duties professionally.

Best of all, they did it all in a charming Italian way. For example, before the flight I asked if the plane had working Wi-Fi. The crew member’s response? “I suppose… I hope.” Hah, there was just something about the fun and informal way they communicated that brought a smile to my face.

I also still felt Etihad’s influence with ITA’s service flow (keep in mind Etihad had purchased a stake in Alitalia, and then bailed, leading to Alitalia’s demise). For example, I love how all the food is served directly onto the tray, how dishes are plated, etc.

ITA Airways was a comfortable way to cross the Atlantic

Bottom line

ITA Airways exceeded my expectations. The A350-900 felt new and modern, though wasn’t anything particularly remarkable, as you’ll find a similar product on many other airlines.

What impressed me most was the food, which I’d say is probably the best catering you’ll find in transatlantic business class, along with Turkish Airlines. I love how everything about the service is Italian, from a pre-dinner aperol spritz, to an after dinner limoncello.

On top of that, the crew was friendly and experienced, and the amenities were quite good. I’ll have a full review soon, where I’ll cover everything in more detail.

It’s just a shame that while ITA Airways is in SkyTeam, as of now there are no reciprocal mileage redemption opportunities. With Lufthansa Group allegedly nearing a potential takeover of the airline, maybe ITA flights will be bookable with Star Alliance miles soon enough… we can hope.

I’m curious what my experience is like connecting to the ITA Airways Airbus A320.

Anyone else impressed by ITA Airways’ business class?

Conversations (35)
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  1. John Guest

    AZ621 LAX to FCO Business Class. Will an international size carry-on store in the business class cubicle or will it have to be placed in overhead bin?

  2. Fred Guest

    We flew from Rome to New York in business class and the trip couldn't have been better! Great service, freindly attendents, very good food and just overall a great experience!

  3. Markus Guest

    If I had to summ up Italy in one phrase it'd be " Nothing works". That being said, I wouldn't find it charming when the stewardess tells me "Maybe, I hope". Especially when I'm paying thousands of dollars for one flight.

    1. Pascal Guest

      That’s because you are American

  4. Chapman Guest

    I flew this product a month ago and the food was very good but it was ironic with your comment about the hard product, as the seat was extremely hard and especially on bed mode it wasnt very comfortable. Allied to the fact that there was no bedding or topper

  5. Christian Guest

    Just back from miami with Ita a350 business.Seat was very comfortable,service and hostess were great,food was terrible,never eat so bad in my life,as italian i feeled ashame they couldnt even make a simple tomatoes pasta or orecchiette with broccoli,i had orecchiette and ended up eating only bread and fruit,food is much better on trenitalia

  6. MM Guest

    How did you book the flight?

  7. YULtide Gold

    @Ben,

    "primi" and "secondi" are both plurals. So you can't have "a primi"; you have "a primo". And you can't have a choice of "two secondis"; you have a choice of "two secondi".

    And you don't "top off" a glass; you top it up.

    Otherwise, loved the review.

  8. Here Hare Guest

    Just a sidebar that walnuts generally pair well with wine and with sweet wine, especially Madeira, they are a match made in heaven (so, yes, you have at least one reader who's said "this would go really well with walnuts")

  9. Oriflamme Guest

    I like the salt and pepper shakers :)

  10. Mike Guest

    500mb is not a high data cap. Disney+ uses between 1,000mb and 3,000mb **per hour...**

    It's fine for browsing blogs and reading emails, but 500mb is really not 'high'

  11. Donna Diamond

    I flew them last year and was also very impressed on both flights. I would fly them more often if they were in One World instead of Sky Team.

  12. Gio Guest

    Wonderful review. Share pic of the menu (if there was one)?

  13. T- Guest

    Your initial review gave me insight into the ITA product/experience. You stated that you’ve got a more comprehensive review coming. Just wondering, what more can you tell us? Your initial review was good enough to make me decide to try ITA out. Thanks for your consistent coverage of commercial aviation.

  14. David Guest

    Did you book this one with cash or miles? Is there an easy way to redeem miles on ITA?

  15. Pete Diamond

    Sounds like a good flight…
    But I hope the next time you ask the crew of a US carrier a question and get “I suppose…I hope” as an answer, that’ll also bring a smile to your face.
    Unlikely.

    1. Greg Guest

      It's an inappropriate remark to make, but I'll make it anyway. The exact same comment made by a (likely) attractive, (almost certainly) well dressed FA, and said with a (most assuredly) charming Italian accent (whether male, female or other), will be much better received than if it were delivered by a US flight attendant.

  16. shoeguy Guest

    Having flown on the ITA A350 and the A330 long haul in business class, I agree with you that the 350 product is top notch, from a comfort, catering, and service perspective. Yes, it's all a bit bland but it is quite good overall. The A330's all feature the legacy Alitalia product, which was pretty good a few years ago, but quite dated now.

    Unfortunately, ITA's future isn't likely to be anything but bleak....

    Having flown on the ITA A350 and the A330 long haul in business class, I agree with you that the 350 product is top notch, from a comfort, catering, and service perspective. Yes, it's all a bit bland but it is quite good overall. The A330's all feature the legacy Alitalia product, which was pretty good a few years ago, but quite dated now.

    Unfortunately, ITA's future isn't likely to be anything but bleak. It is essentially Alitalia, but slimmed down by 55%. The route structure and the hub structure don't really work. The future of ITA is likely to be a ward of Lufthansa.

  17. vlcnc Guest

    It's funny the amenity kit still has Alitalia on it lol

    1. John Guest

      I flew ITA on some domestic flights in December. All the crew were still in Alitalia uniforms.

  18. polarbear Gold

    Interesting, the 2 hr package does not have data caps. Big plus in my opinion (I hate having to remember to disable auto-updates for everything).
    Also, wondering what kind of streaming you get at "up to" 500 kbps?

  19. Ralph4878 Guest

    "...the selection didn’t seem like it was curated from Lunchables."
    Perhaps the greatest line of any of your reviews, ever, @Ben

  20. Clem Diamond

    Thanks for that review! Commuting to Europe regularly and sticking to SkyTeam when possible, I struggled to find a long haul review of ITA so this is super helpful and looking forward to the detailed report!

  21. Firsttotheleft Guest

    Have an upcoming ITA flight Barcelona to Rome and have to say worried about it. Hope Lufthansa takes over ops soon.
    I don’t trust Italian travel companies, especial gov owned. Last fall We traveled Paris to Milan Trenitalia executive class the whole route (stays in Lyon and Turin) and it was very expensive and lousy. Poor service and food, bathrooms out of service, unconcerned staff. At the stop in Turin the door in exec...

    Have an upcoming ITA flight Barcelona to Rome and have to say worried about it. Hope Lufthansa takes over ops soon.
    I don’t trust Italian travel companies, especial gov owned. Last fall We traveled Paris to Milan Trenitalia executive class the whole route (stays in Lyon and Turin) and it was very expensive and lousy. Poor service and food, bathrooms out of service, unconcerned staff. At the stop in Turin the door in exec class car wouldn’t operate, the isle was blocked with catering carts so we couldn’t get to the biz class door and train continued on to Milan. Staff just stood and watched us struggle. Conductors compensation? Said he wouldn’t charge us for the Turin-Milan leg. Appalling. Had to navigate the Milan station, buy tickets back to Turin, missed a prepaid planned tour that day.
    Fully expecting same experience on ITA, but not much choice besides ultra low cost carriers which I trust even less.

  22. Alvin | YTHK Diamond

    Not gonna lie, where does ITA find the funding to still offer such a good product?

  23. Andrew Y Guest

    I'm so glad to hear this. Despite the bad rep, all my past flights in Alitalia business class was nothing short of a beautiful experience, with a primi (pasta) and secondi (main course), aperitivo, espresso.

    The best was the price -- 48K Amex points! Let's get those awards going again!

  24. Larsen Guest

    Nice review! I wish ITA would launch a direct MIA-MXP. Seems there’s a market. AA and Air Italy used to do it simultaneously and I believe daily, now no one does.

    Of course ITA must keep up Alitalia’s tradition of underserving MXP, despite the fact jfk-mxp was like its only profitable route. Ok rant over.

    1. Alex Guest

      I absolutely agree with you. MIA-MXP is needed and will be successful, I just wonder why nobody is doing it. Lack of aircrafts I guess

    2. JB Guest

      ITA offers a connection from Rome (with many flights between MXP and FCO), and AA flies to MXP from JFK (I believe daily), and has many connections onto JFK-MIA. With AA's widebody shortage right now, I doubt it will come back this coming summer. Maybe next summer, along with AA's year round flights from MIA to CDG. Currently, AA only flies from MIA to LHR, MAD, and BCN in Europe (and CDG in the winter).

      ...

      ITA offers a connection from Rome (with many flights between MXP and FCO), and AA flies to MXP from JFK (I believe daily), and has many connections onto JFK-MIA. With AA's widebody shortage right now, I doubt it will come back this coming summer. Maybe next summer, along with AA's year round flights from MIA to CDG. Currently, AA only flies from MIA to LHR, MAD, and BCN in Europe (and CDG in the winter).

      ITA doesn't have to many airplanes right now, so they likely want to start off with their most profitable routes, and keep the existing market share that Alitalia had. I think it will be a couple years before MIA-MXP is a possibility.

  25. Miguel Guest

    "$25 for the entire flight with no data caps."

    Ben, your screenshot literally shows a 500MB data cap.

    1. Ben Schlappig OMAAT

      @ Miguel -- Whoops, good catch, thanks. Fixed the post to reflect that.

Featured Comments Most helpful comments ( as chosen by the OMAAT community ).

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Ralph4878 Guest

"...the selection didn’t seem like it was curated from Lunchables." Perhaps the greatest line of any of your reviews, ever, @Ben

6
JM Guest

Literally who cares

4
Greg Guest

It's an inappropriate remark to make, but I'll make it anyway. The exact same comment made by a (likely) attractive, (almost certainly) well dressed FA, and said with a (most assuredly) charming Italian accent (whether male, female or other), will be much better received than if it were delivered by a US flight attendant.

3
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