In March 2023, SWISS officially unveiled its new first and business class, which the airline is marketing as “SWISS Senses.” I’d like to take an updated look at this, as the airline has today revealed more details about these cabins, ahead of the imminent launch.
In this post:
New SWISS Senses long haul cabin concept details
The new SWISS Senses concept is launching soon, which the airline describes as its next generation inflight experience for long haul flights. Lufthansa Group is harmonizing its premium products across airlines.
Lufthansa has named its new seating concept Allegris, and this includes new first class suites and new business class seats. SWISS will be getting exactly the same seats, except with finishes reflecting the carrier’s branding.
Here’s how SWISS Chief Commercial Officer Heike Birlenbach describes this:
“I am delighted that, with the arrival of our new Airbus A350s, we will be able to offer our customers an even more personal, exclusive and individual air travel experience.”
“As a premium airline, we aim to continue to deliver on our quality promise through our SWISS Senses concept. Our new seats are the centerpiece of our new aircraft cabins. But SWISS Senses appeals to all the senses – with its special lighting concept, for instance, and also with our new scent that has been specially created for SWISS. All in all, SWISS Senses represents the biggest product investment in the history of our company – and a further major milestone for Swiss aviation.”
Let’s look at what we can expect in each cabin. I’ve reviewed Lufthansa’s Allegris A350 first class and Allegris A350 business class, if you’re curious to get an idea of what the product is like.
SWISS Senses first class
SWISS’ new first class features closable sliding doors, a personal wardrobe, a large tray table, seat heating and cooling, a wireless charging station, and a screen display that’s as wide as the suite. While the seats by the windows are single suites, the center suite can accommodate up to two people, though I’m skeptical of the concept (especially when this gets installed on the A330, which has a much narrower fuselage).
SWISS Senses business class
SWISS’ new business class is described as being designed to meet a wide range of wishes and needs. Seating options include a double seat for passengers traveling together, and some seats with sliding doors. The business class seats feature heating and cooling, as well as wireless charging stations. All seats feature direct aisle access, with beds that are 2.0-2.2 meters in length.
SWISS Senses premium economy
SWISS Senses isn’t just about first and business class, but also includes an updated premium cabin. There’s nothing really earth shattering here, but you can expect an updated design with improved technology.
SWISS Senses economy
The SWISS Senses concept offers an improved economy experience, with each seat having a 13″ high resolution monitor, bluetooth audio, and USB ports.
Which planes will get new SWISS Senses cabins?
For context, SWISS’ long haul fleet currently consists of the following planes:
- 12 Boeing 777-300ERs
- 14 Airbus A330-300s
- Four Airbus A340-300s
SWISS has no plans to retire its 777s or most of its A330s, though the current plan is to start retiring A340s within the next year or so. Furthermore, SWISS is expected to take delivery of 10 Airbus A350-900s, which are part of the larger Lufthansa Group order.
So, what’s the plan for the new cabins being installed? They’ll be introduced starting this year:
- They’ll first be installed on A350-900s; these will be delivered between the fall of 2025 and the end of 2027
- They’ll then be installed on Airbus A330-300s; these will start to be reconfigured as of the winter 2025-2026 season, so expect the first reconfigured A330 in late 2025 or early 2026
- Lastly, they’ll be installed on Boeing 777-300ERs; the timeline for that project remains to be seen, but I wouldn’t expect the first 777 to be reconfigured until late 2026, at the earliest
The plan is for all SWISS long haul aircraft to feature the new SWISS Senses cabins by 2028, though I would consider that to be far from a sure bet.
As I’ve covered separately, the expectation is that the first long haul route for the A350 will be between Zurich (ZRH) and Boston), and that service will start by January 2026.
What will the layouts be for SWISS Senses planes?
What should we expect in terms of the configurations for the planes with the new SWISS Senses cabins? SWISS A350-900s with the new cabins will feature 242 seats, including three first class seats (one double suite), 45 business class seats, 38 premium economy seats, and 156 economy seats.
SWISS A330-300s with the new cabins will feature 225 seats, including three first class seats (one double suite), 43 business class seats, 28 premium economy seats, and 151 economy seats.
A few things stand out to me about these configurations:
- It’s not surprising that the SWISS Senses A350 will be in a more premium layout than the Lufthansa Allegris A350; SWISS A350s will have seven extra business class seats, 14 extra premium economy seats, and 45 fewer economy seats
- I am a bit surprised that SWISS isn’t adding a second row of first class on the A350, given that all SWISS planes currently have eight first class seats; rumor has it that the 777 may maintain two rows of first class, but that hasn’t been officially confirmed
- The A330 has a narrow fuselage, so I feel like these cabins are going to be a pretty tight squeeze on that plane, at least in first and business class; we already know there will be a bit of an issue with this product, as SWISS will have to install a 3,000-pound weight in the rear of the aircraft, to balance the weight of the heavy first class seats
SWISS already has an excellent first class product, and in particular, has a phenomenal ground experience in Zurich. I’m excited to see the airline take this to the next level.
Bottom line
SWISS plans to introduce a new long haul cabin concept, including new first and business class seats. This will be known as SWISS Senses — it’ll be the same as Lufthansa Allegris, except with SWISS branding.
The airline will install these cabins on newly delivered A350s, which will enter service later this year. Then as of late 2025 or early 2026, we can expect A330s to be reconfigured, followed by 777s. The goal is for all SWISS long haul aircraft to feature the new product by 2028, though we’re talking about Lufthansa Group, so we’ll see how that goes…
What do you make of SWISS’ new premium cabin plans?
STILL no air vents at each seat. So you're at the mercy of the FAs and how cold or hot they get. Will not fly ANA, SWISS, or LUFTHANSA bc of this. UA, DL, AA... thank you for keeping the cabin at 65 and cold.
Swiss should scrap the whole senses/allegris thing and just keep their old planes. F was really nice (even for the missing caviar) and plentiful. Business was ok generally especially if you got the throne and on the ground for F and Hon was great. They should re-do the soft product and plan the next upgrade and just copy Air France on the inflight hard and soft product and save themselves hundreds of millions of euros...
Swiss should scrap the whole senses/allegris thing and just keep their old planes. F was really nice (even for the missing caviar) and plentiful. Business was ok generally especially if you got the throne and on the ground for F and Hon was great. They should re-do the soft product and plan the next upgrade and just copy Air France on the inflight hard and soft product and save themselves hundreds of millions of euros and francs and humiliation. 24 years of total loyalty to LH and LX and 13 years of HON and this is the most underwhelming, overblown, over engineered and waste of money “upgrade” I’ve ever seen. Depressing to see the Germans and Swiss Germans fail at was their greatest strength: engineering. I don’t think they will see any competitive gains and resulting profits and then, finally, Spohr will have to face the music for his ineptitude.
But will there finally be caviar?
How to devalue a premium product enshittifying it with complexity.
Hard pass.
"It's crap-tacular!" - Bart Simpson.
Oh no, not another double suite disaster. I hoped that Swiss would have avoided the German bureaucratic decisions and ended up with a more functional product.
The Swiss have been doing what the Germans tell them to do for a long time
I'd rather strap into a cargo hold seat in the back of a C130 than deal with this segmented J nonsense
This must be the most long awaiting and underwhelming business class seat to date. We can talk about the new hard product on AA, but that is expected.
Lufthansa decided to make something unique that it is not remarkable at all.
It is not a game changer. It it just another business class seat that only differentiate itself from the rest by having all these different layouts. And that's it.
LH/LX really crapped the bed with this Allegris BS. From announcing it 30 years ago to to the implementation to the pricing to the reliability, all of it.
Confusing, overcomplicated (Pricing - e.g., charging for window seats for non-elites? Really? Pricing the middle seats at € 2,700, or free, depending on timing of seat assignments. Over-engineered from top to bottom. Under-engineered where it matters - letting all the galley light into the middle suites....
LH/LX really crapped the bed with this Allegris BS. From announcing it 30 years ago to to the implementation to the pricing to the reliability, all of it.
Confusing, overcomplicated (Pricing - e.g., charging for window seats for non-elites? Really? Pricing the middle seats at € 2,700, or free, depending on timing of seat assignments. Over-engineered from top to bottom. Under-engineered where it matters - letting all the galley light into the middle suites. The list goes on), rolling it out in a seemingly unpredictable manner, etc.
It's nice to think there are three first class options for flights to S. Africa - LX, LH, and EK (BA doesn't merit a mention). As of now, EK is the only reliable game in town, and their "old" suite hard product outshines LH's current first class in all dimensions.
No one has mentioned this, but those first class doors are already 1/4 beat to sh!t. When closed, the material doesn't fit together in an aesthetically pleasing way because whatever they built it out of isn't hardy enough
Let’s not forget the mess they’re making of 747-8, with Allegris on the main deck and their current “business class” seats on the upper deck. Why does anyone pay money for LH business class?
Being assigned to one of those double first class seats could be a fun way to make a new friend...
But why BOS as the first route?
Because it's a shorter route and can operate (conceivably) with one plane for the round-trip journey.
You write, that Swiss will have more premium cabin than LH because of seven extra seats in Business class...
Really? And you do not mention the meagre number of Lavatories? Only two for 47 passengers? I sense Swissness, yes...
When one toilet gets gaga, as often happens, it will be double the fun.
So they essentially just copied Lufthansa. Got it thanks.
Have you heard the news?
LH Group owns LX. LX didn't "essentially just" copy a thing; LH put identical hardware on LX as LH has on its widebodies, to harmonize the hard product.
Not a very appealing business class cabin - too many seats right on the aisle, and really nothing for couples traveling together. LH Group should exit the seat design business immediately.
Yes. Also, balkanizing the business class cabin by not giving all suites doors is petty monetization that cheapens the overall experience. Go doors or go no doors, segmenting J is classless and tacky
I've heard that the Allegris first class seats break. Ben, is that true?
I've heard that Allegris first class seats break even the strongest frequent fliers due to the convoluted setup and light pollution
Welcome change. Swiss currently has some of the hardest beds in the sky. They also tend to keep the cabin temperature too hot.