Hello from Saudi Arabia! I just flew Saudia’s Airbus A330-300 business class on the 75-minute flight from Jeddah (JED) to Riyadh (RUH), as I continue my review trip. In the last installment, I covered my Saudia Boeing 787-10 business class flight from Amsterdam (AMS), which greatly exceeded my expectations.
Well, I’m happy to report that this flight was excellent as well, so it doesn’t seem that my first flight was just an isolated case of good luck. It really is amazing how high quality short flights are in the Gulf region, especially since this was a flight that departed at 1AM and arrived around 2:30AM.
On this flight I had a flat bed, and and what’s perhaps the best meal I’ve ever had on a short haul flight. Let me share some initial thoughts, and then soon I’ll have a full review.
Saudia’s A330 business class cabins are comfortable
Saudia has a fleet of over 30 Airbus A330s, and they’re primarily used for short and medium haul flights. I lucked out and ended up on a plane with the better of the two interiors, featuring 30 business class seats, spread across five rows.
Specifically, this plane had the Collins Aerospace Diamond product, with flat beds in a 2-2-2 configuration. While not ideal for long haul flights, it’s great for missions like this.
While the cabin was nearly full, I had the only two empty seats next to me, one on each side (there’s a reason I always sit in the last row!).
The entertainment selection was also large, though I primarily just watched the map feature, given the short duration of the flight.
Speaking of entertainment, Wi-Fi was from OnAir, which is not only incredibly slow, but the pricing was amusingly bad. $50 for 200MB of data?!?!? And a free messaging plan that gives you… 5MB of data?! How generous! You shouldn’t have… like, you really shouldn’t have bothered. Fortunately these planes should eventually be getting free high speed Wi-Fi, so that should be a big improvement.
Saudia’s short haul business class catering is great
I think Saudia might just have the best catering of any airline in the Gulf region (cue the people suggesting this is a sponsored post or that I’m doing PR for Saudi Arabia, rather than just sharing my honest experience).
Before takeoff, I was offered a pre-departure drink of choice (I opted for the date and banana smoothie), mixed nuts, and my choice of a warm or cold towel.
Then later in the boarding process, coffee and dates were served (don’t ask about the date being placed directly on the tray table, please, it’s a long story!).
Despite the short 75-minute flight time and 1AM departure, the food was phenomenal. This wasn’t just a snack, but instead, a full meal, and each component was excellent.
There were three different main course options, and I chose the Saudi option, with the main course being a sea bass sayadiah, with crispy onions and toasted pine nuts. I’m not kidding when I say it was one of the best and most flavorful fish dishes I’ve been served on a plane. That was accompanied by a feta salad, a mezze duo, a bread selection, and a dessert consisting of black forest gateau.
Then before landing I had a cup of tea, and that was served with a couple of chocolates.
It really does feel like much of the money that Saudia saves on alcohol goes into upping the catering budget.
Saudia’s cabin crew are top notch
On my previous Saudia flight, I was amazed by how good the service was, so I happy to see that the same was the case on this flight. The business class flight attendants were from Morocco, the Philippines, and Tunisia, and they were lovely.
Despite the short flight time, they personally greeted each passenger upon boarding and familiarized them with the seat, and then before landing they thanked each passenger for flying with Saudia. During the flight, they constantly checked on passengers to see if anyone wanted another drink, more bread, etc.
And they performed all service in a genuinely hospitable and warm way, smiling, taking their time with each passenger, etc.
Bottom line
Saudia’s A330 business class is a comfortable ride, and particularly impressed me for a 75-minute flight departing at 1AM. I had a comfortable flat bed, a very friendly crew, and an excellent meal. If you can get over Saudia’s lack of alcohol (not that this differs between airlines on domestic flights within Saudi Arabia), the carrier really offers some of the best dining I’ve had in business class on any airline.
What do you make of Saudia’s A330 business class?
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