The prospect of a long international flight changes quite a bit for the rich, powerful and lucky who are seated in the front section of the plane. The land of lie-flat beds and warm cookies may seem almost mystical or a bit mysterious to most travelers. However, Cheapflights.com is shedding light on this VIP experience with its survey of airline amenity kits.
Our team of travel experts looked through, tested, photographed and rated 48 economy, business and first-class kits from 27 of the world's leading airlines to reveal the "secrets of the VIP experience."
It was no surprise to learn that the first-class kits are stuffed with luxury brands (Loewe, Tumi, Chopard, Bulgari, Dior, Ferragamo, L'Occitane) -- and contain everything from eye masks and shoe horns to "pulse point oil" and "pillow mist."
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What's Inside: The "Goodies" from 27 First Class Airline Kits Reviewed by Cheapflights.com
Best of the Best
In total, just five of the 27 airlines achieved a six-star review, with Middle Eastern and Far Eastern airlines dominating, as kits from Emirates, Etihad, Japan Airlines, Qatar and our own United came out on top.
Lufthansa and Royal Brunei took joint top honors for the "Best Male Accessory" -- Lufthansa for its German soccer kit-themed bag and Royal Brunei for its super luxury slippers.
Polish airline LOT grabbed "Best Female Accessory" for its nail file, while Qatar was -- literally -- the comfortable winner for the "Best Kids' Accessory" with a Spongebob Squarepants backpack (in a Qatar captain uniform) that also doubles as a pillow or booster seat.
See all the airline reviews:
American Airlines: 4 Stars
Air Berlin: 4 Stars
Air Canada: 3 Stars
Air New Zealand: 5 Stars
Austrian Airlines: 4 Stars
British Airways: 5 Stars
Condor Airlines: 3 Stars
Delta: 5 Stars
Emirates: 6 Stars
Etihad: 6 Stars
Garuda Indonesia: 5 Stars
Iberia: 3 Stars
Iceland Air: 5 Stars
Japan Airlines: 6 Stars
JetBlue: 4 Stars
LOT Polish Airlines: 4 Stars
Lufthansa: 4 Stars
Malaysia Airlines: 5 Stars
Qantas: 5 Stars
Qatar: 6 Stars
Royal Brunei: 5 Stars
SWISS: 5 Stars
TAM: 4 Stars
Turkish Airlines: 5 Stars
United Airlines: 6 Stars
Vietnam Airlines: 4 Stars
Virgin Atlantic: 5 Stars
Our star rating system:
One star = Taxiing
Two stars = Approaching cruising altitude
Three stars = 35,000 feet
Four stars = High life
Five stars = Edge of space
Six stars = Fly me to the moon
Our team of travel experts looked through, tested, photographed and rated 48 economy, business and first-class kits from 27 of the world's leading airlines to reveal the "secrets of the VIP experience."
It was no surprise to learn that the first-class kits are stuffed with luxury brands (Loewe, Tumi, Chopard, Bulgari, Dior, Ferragamo, L'Occitane) -- and contain everything from eye masks and shoe horns to "pulse point oil" and "pillow mist."
What's Inside: The "Goodies" from 27 First Class Airline Kits Reviewed by Cheapflights.com
Best of the Best
In total, just five of the 27 airlines achieved a six-star review, with Middle Eastern and Far Eastern airlines dominating, as kits from Emirates, Etihad, Japan Airlines, Qatar and our own United came out on top.
Lufthansa and Royal Brunei took joint top honors for the "Best Male Accessory" -- Lufthansa for its German soccer kit-themed bag and Royal Brunei for its super luxury slippers.
Polish airline LOT grabbed "Best Female Accessory" for its nail file, while Qatar was -- literally -- the comfortable winner for the "Best Kids' Accessory" with a Spongebob Squarepants backpack (in a Qatar captain uniform) that also doubles as a pillow or booster seat.
See all the airline reviews:
American Airlines: 4 Stars
Air Berlin: 4 Stars
Air Canada: 3 Stars
Air New Zealand: 5 Stars
Austrian Airlines: 4 Stars
British Airways: 5 Stars
Condor Airlines: 3 Stars
Delta: 5 Stars
Emirates: 6 Stars
Etihad: 6 Stars
Garuda Indonesia: 5 Stars
Iberia: 3 Stars
Iceland Air: 5 Stars
Japan Airlines: 6 Stars
JetBlue: 4 Stars
LOT Polish Airlines: 4 Stars
Lufthansa: 4 Stars
Malaysia Airlines: 5 Stars
Qantas: 5 Stars
Qatar: 6 Stars
Royal Brunei: 5 Stars
SWISS: 5 Stars
TAM: 4 Stars
Turkish Airlines: 5 Stars
United Airlines: 6 Stars
Vietnam Airlines: 4 Stars
Virgin Atlantic: 5 Stars
Our star rating system:
One star = Taxiing
Two stars = Approaching cruising altitude
Three stars = 35,000 feet
Four stars = High life
Five stars = Edge of space
Six stars = Fly me to the moon