Even if I’m not a fan of the cramped cabin of Embraers, this flight with KLM in business class between Amsterdam and Porto was of high quality, not least because of an excellent flight attendant.

So here I am, back with KLM after so many years, with the impression that I’m about to discover a new airline, so distant are my memories. On the other hand, having always had good experiences with the staff of the Dutch airline, I hope that things haven’t deteriorated in the meantime, as was the case with Air France, even if my previous flight left me hoping for an improvement in this area.

As a reminder the air routing of this trip.

You’ll find a summary of articles about this trip to Porto at the bottom of the page.

Ground experience

My flight from Paris arrived almost 30 minutes late, so I only have 10 minutes to get to my gate. In Amsterdam, boarding gates can be really far apart, but I managed to get there just in time. Of course I didn’t have time to go to the lounge.

As the plane was an Embraer, I assumed that boarding would be by bus, and unfortunately I was right.

Boarding

In the end, boarding started 15 minutes late… it’s clear that not respecting schedules and the absence of announcements is part of the Air France-KLM culture. And since there’s only one gantry, we had to move slowly to reach the bus that would take us to the aircraft.

The cabin

It is in 2-2 configuration without seat blocking in business class.

I’m not a big fan of the colors, especially the faded light blue, which I find a little cheap, the antithesis of the Air France A220 I’ve just left.

The seat is thin and very firm, not very comfortable.

Legroom, on the other hand, is better than on the A220.

The tablet is small, but that’s to be expected given the size of the device, and the seat has a handy tablet holder.

The luggage compartments are small and my suitcase miraculously fits inside.

One thing’s for sure, it’s not the cabin that will make the difference on this flight.

The business class cabin will hardly be used on this flight, with 16 passengers in 4 rows.

The flight

Boarding will take a long time, while we wait for a second passenger bus.

A bottle of water will be brought to us during boarding.

We finally depart, and after a loop over the airport we set course for Porto.

We’re quickly brought our KLM boxed lunch.

The flight attendant serves one seat at a time, then takes drink orders, which she fetches one by one from the galley…it takes a very long time.

I ask for sparkling water, but given the small size of the glass, I finish my drink in two gulps and ask for another. To my surprise, the flight attendant offers to bring me the bottle, which I gladly accept. This way, I won’t be bothering her every 5 minutes, and I think it’s a practice that should be generalized.

It’s time to taste it all.

Sweet chill Thai noodle salad with mango and tiger prawns with lemon and ginger, garnished with spring onions.

Really fresh and tasty, a little spicy as I like it and even hearty.

Macaroons

Not bad.

Peanuts

I don’t understand their relevance.

In the end, a very good meal, which reinforces my idea that there’s nothing better on a flight than a spicy dish. If I found the tray served on Air France to be a clear improvement, I think that the taste here is clearly better.

On the other hand, I’m not a fan of recyclable wooden cutlery, and there’s a real lack of space. On the other hand, the tablet holder comes in very handy.

The flight attendant came by to clear the table and, seeing that I’d finished my bottle of water, offered to bring me a second. It just goes to show that little touches can make for a pleasant and memorable experience.

Uneventful end to the flight, watching series on my iPad all the way to Porto.

Arrival and disembarkation

The approach to Porto will be an opportunity to discover the city and take some great photos.

After a very short taxi we park next to a Transavia.

We disembark quickly and a few minutes later I’m outside waiting for my Uber.

The crew

A very pleasant and considerate flight attendant. A bottle of water makes a world of difference! What’s more, she was on hand in the cabin throughout the flight to make sure we had everything we needed.

Bottom line

Not a great cabin, but a very good meal and a flight attendant who makes the difference with a little attention that counts for a lot.

The articles about this trip to Porto

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