Tokyo to Seattle
Flight NH178
Route NRT-SEA
Time 17:30 - 10:50 (9h20m)
Distance 4,762 miles
Aircraft Boeing 777 (JA735A)
Cabin Business
Seat 8A
So, after getting off NH824, I followed the signs for transiting passengers and was led to a security check. Thankfully when I reached the area, I was the only passenger there. Good to see that the *A Gold Track signage is up and in use, even if I didn't need it. After a couple of minutes with the politest security screeners I've ever encountered, I was back airside. The NH lounge is actually directly after transit security, but since I'd never been to NRT, I decided to wander around the terminal for a little while and check out the shops. With nothing tickling my fancy, I headed back to the lounge.
The first part of the lounge I noticed was a bright, light room with wonderful tarmac views. ANA have wisely set up a bar that follows the windows, so I picked up some snacks and set myself up at the window.
The view from the lounge
Another benefit of the bar/bench set up is the plentiful power plugs along the length of the bench. Wifi in the lounge was also easy to connect to and speedy. One issue may be that as it came time for the US flight departures, the repeated announcements in the lounge became a bit much. Would be much better if there were more screens with clear instructions (e.g. It shouldn't say "Go to gate" if boarding hasn't started yet!). With it hard to concentrate on my computer with all the announcements and boarding time approaching anyway, I decided to head down to the nearby gate. One other slight flaw with the lounge was that I got lost trying to find the exit. Instead I found myself in a darker lit area that looked like it might be a more formal dining area (can anyone confirm?).
Boarding was quick and painless, probably because the business cabin was about a quarter full. The cabin was arranged in a 1-2-1 formation with the seats staggered to use a footrest to make a long lie-flat bed.
The ANA website has a good picture of the seat. For solo travelers, it is very private with the seat casing wrapping all around the chair. I could imagine that this style could be an issue for couples as the shell and the staggered formation would make communication difficult. There wasn't much storage space around the seat to store an iPad or book, but the side table is quite useful otherwise. The space under the footrest could also be used to store a small bag.
The side table with a takeoff glass of champagne
Footroom shot
Preparations for the dinner service began soon after reaching cruise and due to a combination of professional service and a light load in J, was quite prompt without making one feel rushed. The meal was four courses.
Amuse
Appetizer: Beef, sea bream, persimmon and turnip
Main: Beef with porcini sauce and potato gratin
Desert: White chocolate mousse with blueberry jam and waffle
Afterwards I ordered a cup of coffee, which came with a lovely chocolate truffle. Overall, the food was delightful, although some of the amuse options were a little peculiar. Also, it would have been easier to eat the beef with a proper steak knife, but I suspect that that was something out of ANA's hands.
Once again, the IFE options seemed limited and nothing particularly interested me, so I played some games on my iPad while listening to podcasts. As I tired myself out, I decided to set up my bed. Apart from the seat controls which converts your seat to a lie flat bed automatically, ANA also provides a pillow, blanket and a comforter that you lay on top of the flat seat. One side is rubber to stop it slipping. Overall, it's pretty comfortable for something that's not an actual mattress and I couldn't feel any lumps or joints in the chair. Overall, I got about four hours of quite good sleep, which is pretty good for me.
Within seconds of waking up, a flight attendant had made her way to my seat and offered me breakfast, an offer I happily accepted. Breakfast is a single tray, all in one effort. It too was quite good. I was very pleased that the eggs were poached rather than the mystery scrambled egg/omelette effort I usually get back in economy class.
Breakfast
After breakfast, there was about an hour left until landing, by which time there were some great views of the coastline of Washington state. I couldn't get any good photos of it though. Upon landing, having already filled in my migration form on the plane, I had the great fortune of being first in line at immigration and after a few questions, was through in about a minute. Almost SIN-esque. My bag came out soon after and after passing quarantine, I took the light rail to my AirBnB property.