Last weekend I did a mileage run from Los Angeles to Denver and back via Cleveland on Continental. The fare was something like $160 r/t including taxes and gave me a chance to get some work done in the air and further test out Continental’s domestic premium product. Surprisingly, all of my upgrades cleared five days before travel and onboard service was outstanding. This was my first interaction with CO’s CLE-based flight crews and I must be frank: compared to the Houston and Newark crews I have dealt with this on multiple flights this year, I was very pleasantly surprised.
Flight #1
CO172
LAX-CLE
737-900
11:30p-6:47a +1
I generally find CO’s larger, but more boxy domestic first class seats less comfortable than United’s, so I wasn’t sure if I was going to get any rest…especially with free DirecTV onboard.
The purser welcomed each passenger onboard and quickly came by to offer me my beverage of choice when I sat down.
Once we took off, a deli/cheese/fruit plate was offered. I was hoping for a hot option, like CO’s hamburger, but apparently hot meals on redeyes are only served on transcon flights. After a beverage service and bag of nuts, the snack tray came out and was pretty tasty. The cheese wasn’t great, but I love salami and the single sun-dried tomato slice was a nice garnish. The fruit wasn’t overly ripe, but certainly better than no fruit at all.
In comparing first class redeye snacks on United and Continental, I must admit that UA clearly outshines CO. Not only is United’s pannini + salad better than CO’s fruit/cheese/deli plate, but on United you can order very tasty special meals. But, I was thankful for what I got.
I chose to watch Inception and became completely engrossed by it. If you have not seen the movie, I highly recommend it–director Christopher Nolan is a genius. Just writing about it makes me want to watch the movie again.
After the movie, I was able to get about an hour and a half of shuteye before landing at Cleveland Hopkins International. The flight was great–it went by quickly, service was good, and the snack was adequate.
dawn in Cleveland
I spent about 1.5 hours in the President’s Club (I hate how CO IDs you when you go into their clubs) before boarding my flight to Denver.
Flight #2
CO1421
CLE-DEN
737-800
09:00a-10:25a
Continental boarded this flight very early and I received a “last call” page for this flight at 8:35a in the President’s Club.
A very cheerful flight crew greeted me onboard and offered me a choice of beverage. Someone was in my seat when I boarded and I thought it might be a poacher. Nah, he just thought row two was row three. Before I could tell him to just stay in his seat, he got out and promptly smashed the glasses of the passenger in 2E. I blame both passengers–who sets their glasses on the floor of an airplane?
Once airborne, breakfast was served and was very tasty. I should add, last names were used when breakfast orders were taken: a first for me after many flights on CO. The choices were a mushroom omelet or Honey Nut Cheerios. Both were served with fruit, yogurt, and bread. Continental does breakfast much better than United. I love the cheesy potatoes and cinnamon rolls on CO. Plus, serving yogurt in a cup rather than in a plastic container is much more aesthetically pleasing.
After the breakfast dishes were cleared away, the purser and two other FAs kept close watch on the first class cabin for the remainder of the flight, insuring that glasses were full.
We landed early in Denver.
Flight #3
CO720
DEN-CLE
737-800
11:15a-3:52p
The same crew was surprised to see me back. One commented, “You must fly as much as we do.” If she only knew!
Again, pre-departure beverages were offered and DirecTV was available immediately, allowing me to get caught up on the latest news before returning to my school work.
Last names were again used when taking meal orders and the lunch choices were a chicken fajita wrap or a salad with a cold chicken breast on top. I went with the salad and was pleased with the size of the portion, as well as the spicy corn/tomato bisque soup that was served with it. United’s lunch options are similar, but I think UA wins out because of the hot nuts and hot chocolate chip cookie they serve with the meal. Nevertheless, the CO meal was very satisfying.
Flying over Cleveland
I assured the crew I wouldn’t be joining them for the next leg of their journey, but they were done for the day. I still had to get back to Los Angeles.
First CO-Express plane I have seen in new paint scheme
Flight #4
CO535
CLE-LAX
737-900
5:30p-7:15p
The last flight turned out to be my favorite of the four. The crew was VERY GOOD on this flight–constantly monitoring the cabin literally until minutes before touchdown at LAX.
Dinner orders were taken by name and I foolishly ordered the chicken breast instead of the spinach cannelloni. Actually, the chicken was tasty, but the portion was more like a sample than a meal. Passengers who ordered the pasta received four large cannelloni tubes packed with spinach. The salad and minestrone soup were nice complements to the main course. The cheesecake dessert wasn’t great, but I ate every crumb of it.
About 45 minutes prior to landing, hunger set in again and I asked the flight manager if there was any cannelloni leftover. There was and it was delicious–don’t hesitate to order pasta next time you fly on Continental. There were no plates or silverware leftover, so I had to eat the snack out of the heating container with a spoon, but that didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the meal.
—
All four flights on Continental were outstanding. If EWR and IAH crews always were as professional and attentive as the CLE crews I had last weekend, I would be much less pessimistic about the future of United. CO’s in-flight catering is above average and beats out United on most routes (with redeyes perhaps being the only exception, as mentioned above). It would be very encouraging if we got news that Continental’s Chelsea Catering division will start supplying food for United (but don’t even think about eliminating hot nuts on United…).
Awesome report, Matthew. What’d you think of Cleveland airport? I’ve never been (yet), but will certainly take a visit next year.
@Darren: Hopkins isn’t bad. It looks a bit dated–a bit like STL or the Terminal B at EWR, but it was clean and the President’s Club was nice.
glad you enjoyed your trip. i am a 16 year purser with continental, ewr based and i can only say that due to the size of cle vs iah and ewr….by default cle is nicer as they are not as over worked and “under paid” as the ewr crews. the iah crews…well there is no excuse for them. try an ewr international flight or one south of the boarder with ewr crew to see how that goes. would be interested to know what you think of our spanish speakers!!! happy and safe travels!! karolanne
There are two kinds of airline food: digestible and undigestible. The best meal I have ever had on a plane is not even comparable to a mediocre meal in a good restaurant. I have had some nice wines though. In general the meals in first are better than the meals in coach. If eating better than someone else makes people happy then good for them. Airplanes and airports are not places one goes to eat good food. For me, I eat at these places because I do not have time to eat some place else.
If I were sitting in coach and had the option to get just the same food service as first I do not think I would pay for it. How much would you pay?
What would be interesting to me and help me to earn status would be an article as to how you found and booked your flight. You know a “Shortcut to first class travel” kind of thing. I am really happy that you found such a deal but just knowing that you did it doesn’t help me or anyone else obtain similar deals.
@Karolanne: Thanks so much for weighing in. I shouldn’t have been so hard on EWR-based crews. While I haven’t been overly impressed by some domestic flights to/from EWR, I found service much better on a recent Newark-Brussels trip.
http://upgrd.com/matthew/brussels-to-newark-in-continental-airlines-economy-class.html
But we agree–no excuse for the IAH crews.
@Michael: Once you are spoiled in international first class, you might agree that airline food can be very, very good.
Check out our Live from LA videocast where I go through how to book a mileage run.
http://upgrd.com/upgrd/upgrd-60-los-angeles.html
Be sure to check out farecompare.com/flyertalk to find great deals from your city.
A very timely post indeed.
This morning I was very close to pulling the trigger on IAD-LAX-SEA-ANC-SEA-SFO-IAD. I would have last night actually until I realized the SEA-ANC-SEA legs made it inelgible for my $150 e-cert, thus leaving me with the specter of paying the full $470 for it. Also, the 9k EQM would leave me nearly 4k short of 1K, requiring me to drop a boatload of RDM on ‘Choices’ EQM.
So… it was a good thing I saw your post! I picked up LAX-CLE-DEN-CLE-LAX for $156 ai, and then positioning flights on UA of BWI-ORD-LAX-ORD-BWI for another $170 after my e-cert. 2.8c/eqm total.
I am hoping for at least one segment upgrade on CO as I’d like to try out their product. I know it is a bit of a longshot as a 1P, but stranger things have happened.
I should make 1K for the first time ever in late Dec when my last IAD-LHR-IAD posts, and (barring any rebookings in Y/C/F) I redeem 2k choices.
-Dan (smashr)
@Dan: Glad you got in on this deal! I really enjoyed the flights. A UA Premier was upgraded from CLE-DEN, so I think you’ve got a good shot.