The best seats in business class on Lufthansa's Airbus A321
By John Walton, August 15 2012
Flying in European business class on Lufthansa's Airbus A321? We've got on-the-plane recommendations for the very best seats to pick on the plane in Lufthansa's "Eurobusiness" style business cabin.
The plane and the cabin
The A321 is Airbus' stretched version of the venerable A320 short-to-medium range aircraft, and Lufthansa plans to have 60 of them in its fleet.
With a single aisle and only one style of economy seating on board, it's similar to what you'll find on board Jetstar or Air New Zealand's smaller planes closer to home.
Yes, that's right, economy seating. Like many European airlnes, Lufthansa's business class on anything less than an intercontinental flight is just economy with the middle seat blocked off. All you get on board for your fare is that middle seat and a meal.
The best seats on the plane
1A, 2F: Want to get some serious work done? these seats have tables that fold down in front of them, which are absolutely fantastic for getting some work done with your laptop. (More airlines should have these in their economy seats, especially in bulkheads. They're much better than the tables that fold down from the seat in front or that come up from inside the armrests.) Since there's a wall in front of you, your feet can't stretch out as far as in rows behind, but that's made up for with extra knee-room.
1C, 2D: if you're tall, the bulkhead walls in front of these seats only stretch halfway in front of these seats, so you have heaps of legroom to stretch out: perfect for tall passengers. However, that means that your legs and feet (not to mention shoulders) might be knocked on the way past.
The worst seats on the plane
The last row in the cabin: since the Eurobusiness style of seating means that the business cabin can stretch as far back as row 8 depending on demand, there's no row that's always the last row in business. But whatever it is, you don't want it: it's immediately in front of the first row of economy, and there's a curtain above and behind your head that has a habit of falling over the top of the last row.
Also in our series of Best Seats guides…
- Club Europe (European business), British Airways Airbus A319
- Business class, Qantas Boeing 737-800
- First Class (domestic business), United Airbus A320
- Business Class (old Star Class), Jetstar Airbus A330
- Business Class, Virgin Australia Boeing 737-800 (refurbished)
Aviation journalist and travel columnist John took his first long-haul flight when he was eight weeks old and hasn't looked back since. Well, except when facing rearwards in business class.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
09 May 2011
Total posts 362
Jetstar actually operate the A321 in Australia aswell
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
28 May 2012
Total posts 76
yes you are correct aklrunway, and they cram 220 PAX in them
05 Jun 2012
Total posts 31
Having flown the LH A321s three times in the last fortnight, I'd suggest that the best seats in the plane are the emergency exit seats in rows 10/11 (and 25/26, if I'm not mistaken). Due to the way they're laid out, most of these seats have no seat in front of them, equalling heaps of legroom. Given that the actual seat is the exact same as in Business, I would think that the emergency row (for those suitably qualified, of course!) would be much superior. Added bonus for me was that one of my flights was half empty so I had the whole row to myself to lie in. Try doing that in European Business class!
LH, much to their credit, still don't charge extra for these rows. Just check in online 23 hours before departure (which is when seat selection opens) y and pick from the clear and correctly drawn seating chart. Seats A, B & C all have a clear aisle infront of them, while E & F also have this, although E has a jumpseat off to its side (seat D doesn't exist in the emergency aisles).
Given that I already had *A Gold status, I couldn't figure out why anyone would pay (out of their own pocket at least) for a business class seat on a LH A321 when there are far roomier seats down the back. For those flights, I was glad that I didn't get an "op-up".
Lufthansa - Miles & More
26 Oct 2012
Total posts 9
I like the information given on this site.
May I add 2 small details?
1. The business class is not always until row 8 at a maximum. There are several flights where business class is until row 14 or even behind! I consequence there are flights where row 11 is still business class. So I suggest you to check this and make a reservation for row 11 if possible!
2. One more detail: Try to avoid row 2 and 3. There is no real middle seat in these rows but a metal table on the middle seat, which is not removable. So there is less space for storage and you can not remove the armrest in order to have some more space!
Whats more, LH even uses A321 on routes to TLV and CAI. That is crazy given the fact that these flights are 4+ hours. Try to book yourselves onto a codeshare flight like Egypt Air! They have far better seats than LH 321!
Hope this helps you guys!
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