My 11-hour journey from Copenhagen to San Francisco on SAS was overall quite pleasant onboard the A330 in business class, but the lack of attention to detail in one key area was disappointing.

SAS A330 Business Class Review (CPH-SFO)

I booked my ticket from Zurich – Copenhagen – San Francisco in business class for 50,000 SAS EuroBonus miles plus government taxes. I was traveling with my kids and their tickets were only 25,000 miles each, making EuroBonus the most family-friendly program in my estimation.

After arriving from Zurich, we had a couple hours, but meandered for far too long in the SAS Lounge and then the Lego Store (both of them in Terminal 3, actually) and then had to run to the gate…which was in a gate area I had never been to at CPH (E135). It felt like running a marathon to get to that gate and we were the very last to board (“Klint, is that you?”).

SAS 935
Copenhagen (CPH) – San Francisco (SFO)
Saturday, August 16
Depart: 2:10 PM
Arrive: 4:30 PM
Duration: 11hr, 20min
Distance: 5,487 miles
Aircraft: Airbus A330-300
Seat: 4H (Business Class)

Onboard, we found our seats in the business class cabin. I had chosen three window seats for us: 2H, 3H, and 4H.

Seat

The SAS A330 has 32 Thompson Aero Vantage XL seats, which are 22 inches wide and convert into a 78-inch lie-flat bed. These seats have a small storage unit for personal items on the side and decent room for your feet. I prefer even-numbered A and H seats, which are true window seats (with the console against the aisle rather than against the window).

After lunch, I tried to sleep. Although SAS offers comfortable bedding from Dux and the cabin was not too warm (though there are no personal air vents), I was only able to sleep a couple hours…I used to be able to sleep for eight hours on flights like this.

Meanwhile, my kids eventually fell asleep…both leaving the seat upright [palm on face…]. I helped by adjusting the beds into the lie-flat position…they both slept for most of the flight.

IFE + Wi-Fi

SAS offers complimentary Wi-Fi to SAS Gold and business class passengers and it worked well…I consciously try not to work on longhaul flights, but on this flight I did manage to get a lot of work done.

Noise-canceling headphones were placed beside each seat and the IFE library (on an 18.5-inch HD screen) included movies, TV shows, games, music, and the full beverage menu. The screens have a very strong glare, which requires the windows to be shut in order to properly view the screen.

It was a beautiful day in Copenhagen:

Amenity Kit

Amenity kits have not changed in years and were a drawstring yellow-striped Dux-branded bag. Contents included:

• Verso face moisturizer + lip balm
• Swedish Stockings (high-quality socks)
• The Humble Co dental kit
• Dux-branded eyeshade
• Earplugs

Lavatories

The A330-300 has one lavatory in the front of the aircraft reserved for crew use and two in the rear of the cabin (both with windows) for passengers.

Food + Drink

Lunch was served after takeoff, snacks were available in between, and a small meal was served before landing.

Lunch

Pre-departure beverages were offered (water or sparkling wine), and drinks plus warmed cashews were offered shortly after takeoff, along with a warm towel.

To drink, I tried the “Polar Pioneer” cocktail, which included vodka, blue Curaçao, Umeshu (a Japanese plum liqueur), Champagne, and Ringi apple juice, a strong drink with an interesting flavor.

The menu:

Appetizer, main courses, and desserts are served by cart on SAS, something I like…it’s rather old school, but a nice touch.

I had air-dried Skagen ham with pickled rhubarb and a fresh green salad for my appetizer, a delicious juxtaposition of flavors.

In all my years of flying SAS, I have yet to have a bad meal in business class and I was intrigued to see “slow-cooked beef brisket” on the menu, served with red wine sauce with fermented black pepper, mac and cheese, green beans and beets with thyme butter. It was a home run…so delicious.

For dessert, I had cheese and fruit. The kids had ice cream bars.

I had ordered a kid’s meal for Clarie Marie (figuring on SAS it would not be chicken fingers or something nasty), but it was not loaded. Flight attendants were apologetic and offered her some pasta from premium economy, which she did not eat…not becuase she didn’t like it, but I suppose becuase she just wasn’t hungry. I should have ordered a second beef brisket for her and ate it myself!

Pantry

Unable to sleep, I got up and made myself a cappuccino from the onboard pantry, a feature exclusive to the A330 on SAS. The pantry also featured chips, nuts, muffins, chocolate, gummy bears, water bottles, beer, and canned soft drinks.

Pre-Arrival Snack

90 minutes before landing, a snack was offered. Although it was arguably meager for an 11-hour flight, I really enjoyed the open-faced sandwich with eggs and shrimp.

Hand-peeled shrimps with dill mayonnaise, black pepper, and eggs on Danish rye bread

Fresh cut fruit and handmade pralines from Hedh Escalante

Earlier, I had snagged a cinnamon roll from the lounge in CPH and enjoyed it (so, so good…not too sweet, but brimming with flavor) with another cappuccino before landing.

Service

The service on this flight could not have been better. Excellent service from every flight attendant. Friendly and professional.

Cleanliness

I hate to end on a down note, but I was disappointed by the poor condition of the cabin, in terms of cleanliness.

The aircraft was filthy; there was trash, food, and even utensils between the seat and the window. There’s just no excuse for such a dirty seat. My duvet also had a suspicious stain on it and my tablecloth was stained too.

CONCLUSION

We landed on time in San Francisco, pulling up next to an Emirates A380.

After clearing passport control, we flew down to LA on United. The extra stop was 100% worthwhile to secure saver business class from CPH-SFO versus premium economy on the nonstop.

I love SAS…I always seem to wind up with excellent crews in business class and think the onboard cuisine is top-tier. That said, it was very disappointing how dirty the cabin was. A clean cabin does take time and effort, but it’s such an easy thing to achieve and makes such a difference. Hopefully, next time I fly SAS, the cabin will be cleaner.