The Definitive Guide to Aer Lingus’ Direct Routes From the U.S. [Plane Types and Seat Options]

Key Takeaways

• Aer Lingus operates routes between the U.S. and Ireland using the Airbus A330 and A321neo.
• The airline offers 15 routes connecting cities such as Boston (BOS) and New York (JFK) to Dublin (DUB) and Shannon (SNN).
• Aer Lingus does not offer a first class product on its routes between Ireland and the U.S. However, each aircraft has business class seating with lie-flat beds.

Aer Lingus, the flag carrier of Ireland, has in recent years taken advantage of a favorable geographic location that’s easily accessible from the U.S., and as a result, has added numerous flights to the North American continent. This is especially true for the East Coast of the U.S. As the second-largest airline in Ireland, you should have no trouble finding an Aer Lingus flight from the U.S.

In this guide, we’ll be analyzing all of Aer Lingus’ nonstop routes between the U.S. and Ireland. We’ve got a bit of ground to cover, so let’s begin.

Seat Options by Aircraft Type

Aer Lingus is generally reliable when it comes to operating its aircraft on specific routes. In addition, Aer Lingus’ Dublin base makes for a relatively short flight between Ireland and much of the U.S., so we won’t be seeing high-capacity aircraft such as the Boeing 777, 747, or 787, or the Airbus A380.

Instead, Aer Lingus operates using a mostly point-to-point model to connect cities across the U.S. to Ireland.

Ireland acquires most of its air passengers from tourism, which is why the aircraft operated are smaller than, say, British Airways, which routinely uses the Airbus A380 and Boeing 777.

Check out the table below for the complete Aer Lingus route guide for flights between Ireland and the U.S.:

Now, let’s talk a bit about the different ways to fly Aer Lingus using points and miles.

Best Points for Flying Aer Lingus

Aer Lingus happens to be owned by the same parent company as British Airways and Iberia. Both of these carriers are members of the Oneworld Alliance, but Aer Lingus is currently not a formal member.

You can redeem United MileagePlus miles (through North American gateways only), Aer Lingus Avios, British Airways Avios, and Cathay Pacific Asia Miles for travel on Aer Lingus.

Aer Lingus doesn’t have many partners you can redeem miles with, but you’ll still have a few options to use points for flights on Aer Lingus.

• Aer Lingus, British Airways, and Cathay Pacific are American Express transfer partners
• Aer Lingus, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, and United are transfer partners with Bilt Rewards
• Aer Lingus, British Airways, and United are transfer partners with Chase Ultimate Rewards
• British Airways and Cathay Pacific are transfer partners with Capital One Miles
• Cathay Pacific is a transfer partner with Citi ThankYou Rewards
• United, British Airways, and Cathay Pacific are transfer partners with Marriott Bonvoy

Hot Tip: Check out our Transfer Partner Calculator to weigh all of your options by loyalty program!

Aer Lingus First Class Options

Unfortunately, Aer Lingus doesn’t currently offer any first class options on its routes between Ireland and the U.S.

Aer Lingus Business Class Options

The goal of business class is to enjoy a lie-flat bed, good food, and a peaceful flight to your destination.

Aer Lingus doesn’t disappoint in this regard, as long as you pick the best seats. In business class, you’ll enjoy a cheerful inflight experience, decent award redemptions, and good food and beverage selections.

Here are the planes that you can currently fly business class between the U.S. and Ireland — there are both narrow- and wide-body aircraft that Aer Lingus uses for these flights:

• Airbus A330-200
• Airbus A330-300
• Airbus A321neo LR

Aer Lingus A330-200 Business Class

The Airbus A330 is a wide-body aircraft that’s spawned a number of different versions since the jet has been in production, with the -200 variant being among the older ones.

As far as the seats themselves go, there are 23 total in the cabin. These Thompson Vantage XL seats all lie completely flat, though they’re on the small side, with just 21 inches of width and 58 inches of pitch.

Here’s what the seat map looks like:

The best seats in this cabin are 3K and 5K, which are both so-called “throne” seats. If you can’t reserve those, the next best seats are the window seats at 3A and 5A.

While it’s harder to find the Aer Lingus A330-200 these days, you may still find it flying the following routes:

• Los Angeles (LAX) – Dublin (DUB)
• Miami (MIA) – Dublin (DUB)
• Newark (EWR) – Dublin (DUB)
• Orlando (MCO) – Dublin (DUB)
• San Francisco (SFO) – Dublin (DUB)
• Seattle (SEA) – Dublin (DUB)
• Washington, D.C. (IAD) – Dublin (DUB) 

Learn about how you can find and choose the best seats in your cabin with our ultimate guide to SeatGuru!

Aer Lingus A330-300 Business Class

The next product we’ll look at is found on the Airbus A330-300, a larger variant of the A330. The cabin itself is larger — you’ll find 30 seats instead of 23, making it 30% larger than the cabin on the -200 variant.

Otherwise, the seats themselves are identical to what you’d find in the -200, with 21 inches of pitch and 58 inches of pitch.

Here’s what the seat map looks like on this aircraft:

As we already discussed, the most preferred seats are the “throne” seats, of which there are 3 in this cabin. These are 3K, 5K, and 7K. You would want to pick 5K first, followed by 3K and 7K last, based on distance from the lavatories.

If the throne seats are all reserved — a very strong possibility — the next-best options are 2A, 4A, and 6A. These are true window seats and are much more private than aisle seats in 3A, 5A, and 7A.

You can generally find the A330-300 flying on the following routes:

• Boston (BOS) – Dublin (DUB)
• Chicago (ORD) – Dublin (DUB)
• Los Angeles (LAX) – Dublin (DUB)
• New York (JFK) – Dublin (DUB)
• Newark (EWR) – Dublin (DUB)
• Orlando (MCO) – Dublin (DUB)
• San Francisco (SFO) – Dublin (DUB)
• Seattle (SEA) – Dublin (DUB)

Aer Lingus A321neo LR Business Class

Finally, there’s Aer Lingus’ relatively new, narrow-body Airbus A321neo LR. The business class cabin on these planes has 16 lie-flat seats in an alternating 2-2 and 1-1 configuration.

Each seat measures 20 inches wide, extends to a bed that measures 78 inches long, and offers 45 inches of pitch when upright.

For context, this seat and configuration most closely resemble JetBlue’s original Mint product, whereby there are throne seats (the best options), and seats without direct aisle access.

Here’s what the seat map looks like:

The best seats (especially for solo travelers) are 3A, 3K, 5A, and 5K. These are throne seats that provide tons of space all for yourself. Of course, you won’t have a seatmate to worry about, making it ideal for solo travelers.

You’ll find this single-aisle aircraft on the following routes:

• Boston (BOS) – Shannon (SNN)
• Cleveland (CLE) – Dublin (DUB)
• Hartford (BDL) – Dublin (DUB)
• Newark (EWR) – Dublin (DUB) 
• New York (JFK) – Dublin (DUB)
• New York (JFK) – Shannon (SNN)
• Philadelphia (PHL) – Dublin (DUB)
• Toronto (YYZ) – Dublin (DUB)
• Washington, D.C. (IAD) – Dublin (DUB)

Aer Lingus Premium Economy Class Options

Unfortunately, Aer Lingus doesn’t offer a premium economy product to flyers.

Aer Lingus Economy Class Options

Aer Lingus is known for offering some of the most affordable economy tickets to Ireland and onwards to Europe if you’re willing to take connecting flights.

The seats aren’t the biggest economy seats in the world, but you can make your ride more comfortable by reserving the right seats on the right plane.

Our economy class ranking is as follows:

• Airbus A321neo LR
• Airbus A330-200
• Airbus A330-300

Aer Lingus A321neo LR Economy Class

The A321neo LR has the largest economy seats of all these aircraft. They’re arranged in a 3-3 configuration with a single aisle, and each measures 18 inches wide and offers 32 of pitch.

The seat map looks like this:

The best seats are in row 15, thanks to the exit row. Also, rows 13 and 14 have limited recline, so be sure to avoid those when you can. You’ll also want to avoid rows 13, 14, 25, and 34 if you can due to the restrictive recline, lack of windows, and proximity to lavatories and galleys.

That being said, snagging a seat in row 15 can make the difference between feeling constricted and feeling more free to move around. You’ll find the A321neo LR flown on these nonstop Aer Lingus routes:

• Boston (BOS) – Shannon (SNN)
• Hartford (BDL) – Dublin (DUB)
• Newark (EWR) – Dublin (DUB) 
• Philadelphia (PHL) – Dublin (DUB)
• Washington, D.C. (IAD) – Dublin (DUB)

Aer Lingus A330-200 Economy Class

The A330-200 has a total of 243 seats in economy. Each of them is 17 inches wide and offers 31 to 32 inches of pitch. The economy cabin is arranged in a 2-4-2 configuration as shown here:

The exit row seats are located at rows 11 and 29. Row 11 seats are the best in this case, specifically seats 11A and 11C. This is because the seats are located on the opposite side of the lavatory. Instead, there’s only a galley near 11A and 11C.

If you can’t reserve 11A or 11C on Aer Lingus’ A330-200, you can try aiming for the bassinet seats at 11D/E/G to avoid the lavatories. If those are taken, we suggest you choose 11H/K, followed by seats in row 29.

You can find the A330-200 on these Aer Lingus routes to and from the U.S.:

• Los Angeles (LAX) – Dublin (DUB)
• Miami (MIA) – Dublin (DUB)
• Newark (EWR) – Dublin (DUB) 
• Orlando (MCO) – Dublin (DUB)
• San Francisco (SFO) – Dublin (DUB)
• Seattle (SEA) – Dublin (DUB)
• Washington, D.C. (IAD) – Dublin (DUB) 

Aer Lingus A330-300 Economy Class

Our last choice would be the Aer Lingus A330-300, which is essentially a more-crowded version of the A330-200. The seats are the same design and size, but there are more of them.

Aer Lingus’ A330-300 has 287 economy seats, whereas its A330-200 has 243. The 2-4-2 configuration remains the same, but the positioning of the lavatories and galleys is the main difference.

Check out the cabin configuration below:

The best seats in this layout are in rows 8 and 30. Fortunately, there are no lavatories near row 8, and the lavatories near row 30 are significantly further from the seats than is typical.

Those traveling as a couple should pick 2 seats on a single side of the aircraft in the exit rows to maximize comfort.

You’ll be able to find the A330-300 flown by Aer Lingus on these routes between Ireland and the U.S.:

• Boston (BOS) – Dublin (DUB)
• Chicago (ORD) – Dublin (DUB)
• Los Angeles (LAX) – Dublin (DUB)
• New York (JFK) – Dublin (DUB)
• Newark (EWR) – Dublin (DUB) 
• Orlando (MCO) – Dublin (DUB)
• San Francisco (SFO) – Dublin (DUB)
• Seattle (SEA) – Dublin (DUB)

Final Thoughts

Aer Lingus provides great options for travelers to get to Ireland without requiring positioning flights, especially in the Northeastern U.S.

For example, its network in cities like Hartford (BDL) and Philadelphia (PHL) allows flyers to avoid a connection in larger, busier airports like Boston (BOS), New York (JFK), or Washington, D.C. (IAD).

There’s a clear hierarchy of seats on any given Aer Lingus aircraft, and it will always be in the solo traveler’s best interest to book the business class throne seats. Keep in mind that these are competitive, and window seats are a decent consolation prize.

As far as coach goes, the design of the economy section goes a long way in dictating which rows of seats are best for travelers.

Now, you have the insider’s guide on Aer Lingus’ U.S. routes.