The Best First Class Flight I’ve Ever Had: Air France La Première From São Paulo to Paris

Airline: Air France
Aircraft: Boeing 777-300ER
Flight No.: AF459
Route: São Paulo (GRU) to Paris (CDG)
Date: February 27, 2024
Duration: 11 hours, 3 minutes
Cabin and Layout: 1-2-1
Seat: 1L
Cost: It’s complicated

With Air France’s polished service, chic design, and exquisite gastronomy, La Première is about as exclusive as it gets when it comes to first class cabins.

The reasons are twofold: Points redemptions are reserved strictly for Flying Blue Platinum or Ultimate members, and round-trip tickets to or from Paris to anywhere don’t get much lower than $11,000.

There is, however, a third way to book, and that’s how I managed to lap up the luxury of La Première.

Booking Air France La Première

Let’s start at the beginning.

Flying La Première from São Paulo (GRU) to Paris (CDG) is not something I’d imagined myself doing.

I booked my round-trip business class ticket to Brazil via Paris starting in Barcelona (BCN) for a very reasonable £1,674 ($2,088). Being based in London, I’m close enough to so many other cities in Europe from which it’s often cheaper to start a long-haul round-trip in business class.

Even with the additional costs of getting to Barcelona and back, I prefer added comfort and an overall more premium experience for an extra few hundred pounds than if I’d taken a nonstop return from London in economy with British Airways, which can often cost more than £1,000 ($1,247)!

So, how did I manage to fly La Première on a business class ticket? Well, the third option for booking a La Première ticket is upgrading via the Air France website or leaving it until the last minute at check-in.

I checked the Air France app a couple of days before my flight, and there was an offer to upgrade to La Première for $1,800. I thought this was steep, as I was sure I’d read online that offers can go below $1,000. Hedging my bets, I waited to see what they’d offer me at the airport.

Lo and behold, I was offered the same price at the airport that I’d seen online: $1,800. At this point, I’d convinced myself this would be an incredible experience that I might not get again and that it would result in a great review for Upgraded Points.

The deal was sealed. I paid using my U.K. version of The Platinum Card^® by American Express. Using the U.S. version of this card would have earned me 5x points per dollar spent on flights purchased directly with the airline or with AmexTravel.com (up to $500,000 per year) — that’s almost 10,000 points!

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The Platinum Card^® from American Express

The Amex Platinum reigns supreme for luxury travel, offering the best airport lounge access plus generous statement credits, and complimentary elite status.

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Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards^® Points after you spend $8,000 on eligible purchases on the Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.

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When it comes to cards that offer top-notch benefits, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better card out there than The Platinum Card^® from American Express.

Make no mistake — the Amex Platinum card is a premium card with a premium price tag. With amazing benefits like best-in-class airport lounge access, hotel elite status, and tremendous value in annual statement credits, it can easily prove to be one of the most lucrative cards in your wallet year after year.

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• The best airport lounge access out of any card (by far) — enjoy access to over 1,400 worldwide lounges, including the luxurious Amex Centurion Lounges, Priority Pass lounges, Plaza Premium Lounges, and many more!
• 5x points per dollar spent on flights purchased directly with the airline or with AmexTravel.com (up to $500,000 per year)
• 5x points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels booked with AmexTravel.com

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• $695 annual fee (rates and fees)
• Airline credit does not cover airfare (only incidentals like checked bags)

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• Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards^® Points after you spend $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
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• $200 Hotel Credit: Get up to $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts^® or The Hotel Collection bookings through American Express Travel using your Platinum Card^®. The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay.
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• The American Express Global Lounge Collection^® can provide an escape at the airport. With complimentary access to more than 1,400 airport lounges across 140 countries and counting, you have more airport lounge options than any other credit card issuer on the market. As of 03/2023.
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When using cold, hard cash instead of points for travel like this, we recommend using a travel rewards credit card to earn as many rewards as possible for your buck. Want to use points? We’ve got you covered with this guide to booking La Première with points.

São Paulo Guarulhos Terminal 3

My journey started with a connecting Azul Airlines flight from Rio de Janeiro (GIG), where I’d spent the last few days of my trip.

Azul uses Terminal 1, the worst terminal at Guarulhos, and Air France uses Terminal 3.

The only way to transfer to Terminal 2 or 3 is via a bus that connects the terminals rather infrequently. It’s also used by airport employees and gets very busy with little to no space for luggage.

There’s construction currently underway for a dedicated people mover between terminals, which should hopefully mean that I won’t have to catch this bus the next time I’m in São Paulo.

Checking In

As mentioned in the booking section, check-in is where the upgrade magic happened.

I went to the regular Sky Priority check-in desks, of which there were 3 or 4. The aptly named Sol (“sunshine” in English), was the superfriendly check-in agent who happily let me know that there were seats available for an upgrade and that there was even a special offer.

I did a few laps of Terminal 3 while I weighed up the pros and cons of making the upgrade before I decided to take the plunge and headed to the single La Première check-in desk.

Even at an outpost in South America thousands of miles from Paris, the deep red carpet with a single white stripe at the La Première check-in desk paves the way for the elegance and level of chic that I was about to experience.

Once my seat had been confirmed by Cintia and Toni at the desk, Cintia escorted me to a separate Air France-KLM desk to make the purchase.

With my exclusive, red envelope holding the key (my boarding pass) to heaven at 33,000 feet, Cintia then escorted me to security and passport control.

Air France La Première Experience at São Paulo

I was intrigued to see how the La Première ground experience would fare at an outpost, considering how amazing it’s supposed to be in Paris.

It’s worth mentioning that the only part of the whole ground experience that wasn’t premium was having to wait around 10 to 15 minutes to complete emigration and security. But this is out of Air France’s hands, as priority lanes for business and first class passengers simply don’t exist at Guarulhos (and much of the rest of South America, for that matter).

Cintia used the staff lane and was waiting to escort me to the W Premium The Pier Lounge, which Air France uses for its premium passengers.

The W Premium Lounge — The Pier

The lounge is also used by passengers flying in premium cabins with other airlines, as well as passengers with certain Brazilian credit cards and lounge access memberships such as Priority Pass and LoungeKey.

However, there’s a separate section of the upstairs level that is reserved exclusively for La Première passengers.

On my visit, the small space had 8 chairs, which is double the capacity of Air France’s La Première cabins.

La Première guests had a menu of exclusive dishes made fresh to order by chefs at the lounge. My options were:

• Grilled salmon fillet with béchamel sauce and roasted root vegetables
• Grilled salmon fillet with asparagus, pumpkin purée, and coconut rice
• Filet mignon in demi-glace with sautéed vegetables
• 7-grain rice with balsamic vegetables and asparagus

I knew I’d be in for a feast on board, but I was pretty hungry, so I ordered the salmon with coconut rice with, of course, a glass of Champagne.

I enjoyed the first meal of my La Première culinary experience while watching the sunset spectacle unfold in the distance with the Air France 777-300ER that would take me to Paris sitting front and center.

Given the quality of the food and the proximity to the gate where Air France departs, I could see why Air France chose the W Premium Lounge to host La Première passengers.

In an ideal world, and to better mirror the experience on the ground in Paris, I think a private space would be more suitable rather than a cordoned-off section of a larger lounge. However, given only 1 daily flight with La Première departs per day, this is a perfectly adequate offering for an outpost like São Paulo.

Complimentary Massage

After polishing off the delicious salmon dish, I walked for around 5 minutes back in the main part of the terminal to enjoy a complimentary massage as part of my La Première ground experience.

Clinica Oriental is upstairs on the second floor in the same place you find most of the terminal’s lounges.

I was entitled to a 30-minute massage of my choice. My go-to is reflexology, which was a great choice given the sensational skills of Elisangela, my masseuse. Muito obrigado!

With not much time to spare before my scheduled departure time, I hot-footed it back to the lounge where Air France’s Toni was already waiting to escort me to the aircraft.

Boarding

La Première passengers didn’t have to adhere to boarding groups and could therefore board at their leisure.

This was thanks to 1 of the 2 jet bridges reserved for La Première passengers. When you were ready to board, you could bypass the regular line and walk straight onto the aircraft.

On Board Air France’s Boeing 777-300ER

What was already a special occasion for me flying La Première for the first time became even more special at the boarding door. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I was welcomed by Madly — an Air France flight attendant who’d wowed me with her service on my business class flight to São Paulo 5 weeks earlier.

I arrived at my seat to find a bottle of Evian water, an expensive-looking red amenity kit, and a personalized welcome note from Madly.

Quickly to follow was a glass of 2006 Champagne Pommery Cuvée Louise Edition Parcelles. Warm nuts simply wouldn’t be good enough for La Première, oh no. My glass of bubbles was served with a selection of appetizers consisting of smoked salmon and curd cheese with dill, smoked duck breast and pineapple chutney, and roast scallops and prosciutto. Yum.

Thirty minutes later than scheduled, I was looking down in awe at the sprawling metropolis of São Paulo that seemed to go on forever.

La Première Cabin

The La Première cabin comprised just 4 seats in a 1-2-1 configuration.

The open-plan nature of the cabin was pleasantly misleading.

Once airborne, floor-to-ceiling curtains could be drawn, creating an ultra-private space.

Window seats 1A and 1L were best for solo travelers.

If you were traveling with a companion, middle seats 1F and 1E would’ve been best. If you were seated next to someone you didn’t know, a divider could be raised to the height of the top of the headrest.

La Première Seat

One of the things I love most about La Première is its simple, elegant, and functional design.

From the wood-effect paneling and finishes to the fabric on the seat, the light shades of browns, grays, and creams gave a sophisticated and effortlessly luxurious look that I rated highly.

The addition of Air France’s signature navy blue and royal red on items like the menu, pajama case, and amenity kit added welcome pops of color.

When the seat was in the takeoff and landing position, I was able to reach the footrest. It’s always a bonus to be able to stretch out and get comfy when your seat has to be upright.

The position of some individual elements of the seat, such as the leg rest, could be changed independently from the rest of the seat rather than remain fixed.

Controls to move the seat backward or forward, raise or lower the leg rest, recline the seat, and move the lumbar support were inside a storage compartment and within easy reach.

An additional 3 buttons outside of the storage space offered the set positions for takeoff and landing, half reclined (relax mode), and fully flat.

This is also where I found buttons to control the window blind and window shade. They could be adjusted individually to exactly how much you wanted to block out the light.

Speaking of storage, this seat had it in abundance.

There were 2 large storage units in the side console of the seat, a huge drawer under the ottoman (note the pop of rich Air France red), and a sleeve to hold the menu and safety card.

The black bag inside the drawer was for passengers to stow their shoes.

In addition to the seat controls I mentioned earlier, inside the main cubby were the remote for the IFE, a small bottle of water, a USB port, and a universal power outlet.

I also found the noise-canceling headphones in here.

The second compartment in the console was next to the ottoman, where a fellow La Première passenger could join their travel companion to dine or hang out.

It was probably large enough to fit a purse and featured an additional universal power outlet.

The table popped out easily from the side console and was plenty large enough for 2 passengers to dine together.

Despite only getting around 3 to 4 hours of sleep (I was maximizing my time awake enjoying La Première), this was, without doubt, the comfiest airplane bed I’d ever slept in.

What took the comfort to the next level was mainly the sumptuous mattress topper, which at around 2 inches thick, could probably be considered an actual mattress rather than a topper.

When you factor in not 1 but 2 huge marshmallow-like pillows, sweet dreams really were made of La Première.

Tall flyers need not worry: When fully flat, the bed stretches out to over 6 feet.

The quality and feel of the crisp, white, hippocampus-embossed bedding was of 5-star hotel quality. The addition of the nightlight (also featuring the hippocampus/winged seahorse motif) brought an added level of coziness that you wouldn’t have expected from a metal tube at 33,000 feet in the sky.

I found the hippocampus motif etched elsewhere, like on the headrest of the seat. I found this unmistakable La Première branding to be so sophisticated and classy.

Bathroom

There are 2 bathrooms at the front of the aircraft exclusively for La Première passengers.

The larger of the 2 was spacious enough for me to get changed without banging into things.

Sisley amenities available to use were hydrating cream and make-up remover, along with small hand towels.

I thought having bath and shower gel was an interesting addition without having a shower to use it in.

And there were extra dental kits and bottles of water for passengers to brush their teeth.

Amenities and IFE

I spent the entire flight eating, creating content, and sleeping, so I didn’t watch a single show or film on the 24-inch screen.

While you’ll find bigger screens in other airlines’ business class cabins, it didn’t seem small to me.

When I was awake and it wasn’t dark outside, I made the most of the camera showing outside the plane. These are usually only found on more modern aircraft, like the Airbus A350.

I used the super responsive handheld remote to control the IFE, as the screen itself was over 6 feet away. The screen on the remote let me keep an eye on my journey with the moving map while I watched my favorite show or film on the main screen.

You can add La Première’s Denon headphones to the list of airplane headsets that are actually noise-canceling.

Presented underneath the screen were 2 elegant, navy pouches with white piping containing a set of pajamas and slippers.

I chose the image below in part to show the world the most handsome cabin crew actor I’ve ever seen in a safety video. Which, by the way, was filmed and edited in the most chic Air France way possible.

The only image I have of the pajamas is this one of me looking very pleased with my breakfast feast.

Opening the amenity kit was like opening a gift on Christmas morning. The hard shell Air France red sleeve — complete with hippocampus logo — slid off to reveal Sisley beauty products, a hippocampus-branded pen, an eye mask, flight socks, earplugs, and a sustainable wood toothbrush.

La Première passengers got complimentary unlimited streaming access for the whole flight — a perk you’d expect as standard given the price of a ticket.

Food and Beverage

I’ve been lucky enough to dine in some of the world’s most esteemed cabins, such as Qatar Airways first class and QSuites and the famous Singapore Airlines Suites, so I couldn’t wait to see how La Première would compare.

Not that size matters, but we got off to an impressive start with the biggest menu I’d ever been given on a plane.

The menu was printed in French, Portuguese, and English.

Madly took my order before we left São Paulo and was quick to get the service started so I could maximize rest on this overnight flight.

The table was dressed with the same detail and care that you’d expect from a fine dining restaurant.

The omnipresent hippocampus took center stage once again with the table setup.

And she even adorned the glassware and coffee saucers to complete the set.

Instead of the hippocampus, the salt and pepper mills in La Première were branded with the logo of automobile manufacturer Peugeot — a nod to the 1800s, when Peugeot invented the pepper grinder. The things you learn …

The next surprise was finding each course served on a silver platter complete with matching cloche. This was the first time in all my flying experiences that my meal was served this way.

I had 2 options to start with:

• Lightly smoked Brazilian-style beef sirloin cap carpaccio and sweet and sour condiment
• Pan-fried shrimp and fresh mango with sauce vierge

I’m a huge fan of fruit being used in savory dishes, so I went with the shrimp. It was perfection.

French bread culture was taken to the next level in La Première, as passengers are served not 1 but 2 types of Isigny butter.

I had 4 options to choose from for my main course:

• Grilled filet of beef and green pepper sauce, dauphinoise potato gratin, snow peas and pan-fried enoki mushrooms
• Seared chicken supreme, truffle and black garlic sauce with a lentil and spicy sausage ragout, mini zucchini, and pearl onions
• Hake with lemon butter and capers, creamy polenta
• Zucchini and carrot roll filled with creamy quinoa, pistachio and parsley gremolata, and cherry tomatoes

As fish can be a difficult dish to get right in the air, I often choose it as a test of how well an airline can pull it off.

Air France passed the test with flying colors as this was, without doubt, the best-cooked fish I’d ever eaten in the sky.

Needless to say, I didn’t need much convincing when Madly suggested I try every dessert on the menu.

She served me 4 beautifully presented desserts: fresh fruit salad, strawberry and frangipane tart, crunchy vanilla and Grand Marnier cream puff, and royal chocolate cake.

I’m not sure what made it royal, but the chocolate cake was heaven on the palate. In close second was the strawberry and frangipane tart.

After failing to finish every bite of my 4 desserts, I was presented with this curated cheese plate. The Comté was a particular hit and one of my favorite cheeses.

To accompany the Michelin-starred-restaurant-quality food was a top-tier wine list chosen by world-famous sommelier Paolo Basso.

I didn’t need much encouragement from Madly when I pondered trying each of the wines on the list.

She simply said: “C’est un seul soir, demain c’est un autre jour,” which means “It’s just 1 night. Tomorrow’s another day.”

And here they were in all their glory: the 7 wineglasses, each holding a fancier wine than the next.

Note the slightly indented surface where I moved my collection of glasses during turbulence to stop them from sliding off my tray table.

To complete the set was a sweeter-than-sweet Sauternes dessert wine that proved a bit much even for my sweet tooth.

I enjoyed a few hours of rest after dinner before waking up to a breakfast banquet.

Determined to ensure I had the full La Première experience, Madly insisted I try everything on the menu. How could I have possibly refused?

A continental breakfast of pastries and jams, fresh fruit, cereal, and yogurt was laid on first.

Next up came an omelet with roasted tomatoes, sautéed white mushrooms, and grilled poultry sausage with a side of caramelized French toast-style orange pancakes.

No matter how many thousands of dollars your ticket might have cost, breakfast eggs are usually nothing short of inedible. But after a couple of bites of the perfectly cooked omelet, I could confirm such was not the case in La Première.

Not pictured are the 2 excellent-quality double espressos that I downed quicker than I could take a photo of.

Sweet and savory (but mainly sweet) snacks could be requested throughout the flight. These included La Maison du Chocolat chocolate, biscuits by No1, tomato and basil savory snacks, and extra dark chocolate with cocoa nibs by Le Chocolat des Français.

Service

The cherry on top of this unforgettably exquisite La Première experience was the service. I was truly wowed from the moment I upgraded my ticket in São Paulo to when I got on my connecting flight to Barcelona.

A special mention goes out to Madly. It was absolutely meant to be that she was working my outbound and inbound flight. It was a real honor getting to know her throughout the flight. She went over and above to make sure my first-ever (and maybe last) La Première experience was magical.

If you look close enough at this picture you can almost see our teary eyes after we got a little emotional saying goodbye before landing. If you’re ever on an Air France flight and Madly is on board, rest assured you’ll be taken well care of.

Here are a couple of examples of the service being next level.

I came back from the bathroom after freshening up in the morning to find she’d remade the bed immaculately.

I hadn’t noticed that one of the window blinds wasn’t working properly as I went to sleep in the dark. When it started to get light outside, she proactively inserted this padding, which stopped me from waking up.

After breakfast, I was about to head to the bathroom to get changed when Madly provided me with an alternative. As the 2 middle seats were unoccupied and the curtains could be drawn on both sides, she laid out my clothes for me so I could get changed in privacy without leaving the cabin.

I’d also like to shout out to Denise — one of the 100 or so La Première ground team who look after passengers on the ground in Charles de Gaulle. More on this experience coming right up.

Arrival at Paris Charles de Gaulle

We touched down at a cloudy Charles de Gaulle Airport at 12:14 p.m., 1 minute earlier than scheduled.

Part of the La Première experience was being chauffeur-driven to and from the plane. This meant leaving the aircraft via stairs and being escorted by the lovely Denise.

The Porsche Cayenne was stocked with water for that all-important postflight hydration.

It didn’t feel real being whisked around the aprons of CDG in my own private Porsche.

Paris to Barcelona

After a quick 90 minutes or so in the lounge (more on that coming separately), Denise was ready to chauffeur me to my next flight to Barcelona.

Filled with gratitude yet groggy from the jet lag, I took my row 1 seat on the Airbus A321 bound for Barcelona.

There’s no first class on short-haul flights, but I think there must have been a note on the booking to say I was connecting from a La Première flight, as the purser was attentive from start to finish.

I could be wrong, but in addition to the standard small pillows that are handed out on short-haul business class flights, I think was the only person to be given a blanket, too. This is likely thanks to having connected from a La Première flight.

Final Thoughts

Over the last 5 years of calling this my job, I’ve been fortunate to have a lot of unforgettable experiences. And my first-ever La Première flight is definitely in the top 3.

Judging the hard product is subjective, as I know a lot of people might prefer first class cabins where suites are fully enclosed from start to finish with hard floor-to-ceiling walls and doors rather than Air France’s curtain.

I actually prefer the softness of the curtain, which makes for a cozy atmosphere more akin to being in a bedroom than in a metal tube in the sky.

As for the food and service, La Première truly blew my mind.

If you ever get the chance to fly La Première, I guarantee you will not be disappointed.