• Home
  • Reviews
    • Flight Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Lounge Reviews
    • Trip Reports
  • About
    • Press
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Award Expert
Live and Let's Fly
  • Home
  • Reviews
    • Flight Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Lounge Reviews
    • Trip Reports
  • About
    • Press
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Award Expert
Home » Reviews » Flight Reviews » Review: KLM 777 Business Class
Flight ReviewsKLM

Review: KLM 777 Business Class

Matthew Klint Posted onFebruary 26, 2024February 26, 2024 13 Comments

a person walking in an airplane

I enjoy Fifth Freedom flights and I particularly enjoy flying on KLM between Bali and Singapore, two of my favorite places. The KLM 777 Business Class product is thankfully undergoing a refresh, but the older seat did not detract from a nice overall service across the Java Sea.

KLM 777 Business Class Review

A one-way business class ticket tends to be in the $350 range, which is not bad for a two-hour flight, but my “trick” is to buy an economy class ticket for about $100 and pay another $115 at the airport to upgrade. Of course you take a gamble in doing so that there will be any seats left, but you can check availability in advance using Expert Flyer to get a general idea of how full the cabin is.

Onboard, the seat is hardly cutting-edge (a B/E Diamond Seat), but KLM has begun the process of retrofitting its 777 fleet with new business class seats that offer more privacy and closing doors.

Even so, the “old” seats are very comfortable and more than adequate for a short journey like Bali – Singapore.

Check-In

I showed up at DPS about two hours before departure and approached the ticket counter, asking about the upgrade.

people in an airport with luggage

people standing in a line at an airport

a sign in a building

The price was 1,778,000 IDR, which is currently $113. You can always expect to pay about €100 for the upgrade.

a ticket and a digital screen

a ticket and a digital timer

With the upgrade processed, I proceeded through security and passport control to the Garuda Indonesia Lounge, which I reviewed here.

Boarding was delayed due a late-arriving aircraft from Singapore, but boarding kicked off at 9:15 pm and was quite efficient. We were in the air by 10:00 pm and there was some cushion built into the schedule, because we arrived in Singapore on time.

a group of people standing in a line at a check in counter

KLM 836
Bali (DPS) – Singapore (SIN)
Wednesday, July 24
Depart: 09:30 PM
Arrive: 12:10 AM+1
Duration: 02hr, 40min
Distance: 1,037 miles
Aircraft: Boeing 777-300ER
Seat: 4D (Business Class)

Onboard, a very friendly flight attendant with a lovely smile on her face greeted me.

Seat

There’s nothing competitive about the remaining B/E Diamond seats, arranged in a 2-2-2 configuration, but if traveling with a friend or loved one you might actually prefer these seats than the new seats and 1-2-1 configuration (where even the middle pair seats aren’t exactly conducive to conversation).

a plane with seats and people in the background

a room with rows of seats and a couple of people standing in the background

a person standing in a room with computers

a row of monitors in an airplane

a row of seats with monitors on the side

a seat in an airplane

a seat in a plane

a seat in a plane

a seat in an airplane

a seat and screen on the side of a plane

a woman standing in front of a row of seats

a seat with a pillow and a white pillow on it

a seat in a plane

a group of seats in a plane

a group of seats in a room

The seat next to me remained opened and that made the entire flight even more comfortable.

A pillow was sitting on each seat, but not blankets, which were available on-demand.

Seats controls included a six-way adjustment and the seat can be transformed into a fully lie-flat mode. A fixed privacy divider provides a barrier between seats.

a close up of a device

There’s a place to store your shoes between seats and limited storage in a compartment under the monitor and on a shoulder-level shelf next to your seat (which also has a universal outlet and USB-A charger).

a blue carpet with a white object on it

a seat in a corner of a plane

a seat with a power outlet and a light on the side

a close up of a slot

Despite the lie-flat bed with plenty of room for your feet, my setmatc across the aisle got a bit too comfortable…

a person touching a screen on an airplane

Food + Drink

Before takeoff, a choice of water, sparkling wine, or orange juice was offered.

a tray of wine glasses

a glass of water on a table

Dinner was served after takeoff. Although perhaps a bit wasteful, I love that KLM prints menus for each flights, even for this two hour Fifth Freedom flight. Each menu indicates the flight date and number…it’s actually a nice souvenir of the flight.

a menu on a table

a menu on a table

a close up of a book

a white paper with a group of buildings on it

a menu of a restaurant

a menu on a table

a menu with a picture of wine bottles

a menu of wine bottles

a white sign with text and pictures of wine bottles

I tried the “Bottega Negroni Cocktail” to drink. It included:

  • Bols Genever
  • Bols Red Orange
  • Liqueur and Galliano L’Aperitivo
  • Vilarnau Cava Barcelona Brut Reserva, Spain

a glass of liquid and a glass of water on a table

I appreciate that KLM always has a nice cocktail on the menu.

For my main course, I chose lemon ravioli with mascarpone filling over “authentic style chicken satay.” That was quite a mistake. I do love chicken satay, but figured it would not nearly be as good as on Malaysia Airlines or Singapore Airlines. Perhaps it would not have been, but the pasta was my first-ever bad meal on KLM.

a food on a cart

Although it looked nice enough, the pasta was tasteless and burnt to a crisp around the edges. The “Fall foliage salad” (in March) was fine and the walnut cake was pleasant.

a tray with food on it

a plate of pasta with tomatoes and pine nuts

a plate of pasta with cheese and tomatoes

a bowl of salad with corn and lettuce

a blue and white bowl with a small round pastry on it

I think KLM has some of the best flatware in the industry, if not the best.

a silverware on a tray

Having had more than enough coffee that day, I concluded the meal with a cup of camomile tea.

a cup of tea and a packet of tea on a tray

a tea bag on a cup

a cup of tea on a tray

IFE + Wi-Fi

Each seat has a screen loaded with content including movies, TV shows, games, and music.

a screen on a wall

a screen with playing cards on it

a screen on a wall

I spent most of the flight listening to music.

Noise canceling headphones were functional.

a pair of black headphones on a grey surface

Wi-Fi was available for purchase (9EUR) and messaging was free.

Lavatory

KLM lavatories are nicely decorated with tulips and Delft Blue Houses. Hair gel and body mist from Rituals were available.

a vase with flowers in it

a wall with a shelf with a group of buildings on it

a couple of white bottles with blue and white designs on a black shelf

a sink with a soap dispenser and a soap dispenser

a toilet in a plane

Service

The crew was superb on this flight. Very attentive and kind…I appreciated the chit chat with each passenger and that glasses remained full. This would have been a great crew to fly all the way to Amsterdam with.

a person sitting at a desk in an airplane

Delft Blue House

My favorite part of a KLM flight is the souvenir Delft Blue Houses, filled with gin, served before landing. I was thrilled to score house #100!

a person holding a tray of miniature buildings

a small white and black house

CONCLUSION

We landed on-time in Singapore…this flight that always goes by too quickly.

people in an airplane with several monitors

The KLM 777 business class seat is hardly exciting, but thankfully retrofits will be compete by the end of 2024. In the meantime, enjoy the final days of this seat and note what a great deal it is to fly between Bali and Singapore on KLM.

Get Daily Updates

Join our mailing list for a daily summary of posts! We never sell your info.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

Previous Article American Queen Shutters, Stiffing Small Businesses, Employees
Next Article Emirates Flight Attendants Slam Drunken Man On Ground In Business Class

About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

Related Posts

  • a inside of a plane with lights

    Review: Korean Air 747-8 First Class

    May 27, 2025
  • Delta Air Lines A321neo Economy Class Review

    Review: Delta Air Lines A321neo Economy Class

    May 14, 2025
  • United Airlines 777-200 Polaris Business Class Review

    Review: United Airlines 777-200 Polaris Business Class

    April 26, 2025

13 Comments

  1. Jan Reply
    February 26, 2024 at 10:09 am

    This cabin is my first J experience. I paid €500 on online check in for AMS-TPE, a 13hr flight, to upgrade from an economy seat.
    I will forever be fond of this cabin

  2. Christian Reply
    February 26, 2024 at 10:20 am

    Very nice. I’ve been wanting to take this exact flight in either direction for some years now but it just hasn’t worked out. Nice to know that it’s good enough that I should keep trying.

  3. Arthur Reply
    February 26, 2024 at 11:00 am

    I really like KLM TATL business class. My experience has led me to always pick the Indonesian-style dish if one is offered, which they usually do (it is a Dutch colonial thing). Once, they had a version of a Rijsttafel on an IAD-AMS flight that was delicious, though they called it something else. I also like the cocktails. I wish they had a different beer, like a Brouwerij ‘t IJ (their brewery in an old windmill in central AMS is well worth visiting, BTW). There are lots of Dutch craft beers now, but I guess KLM gets too much money from Heineken.

  4. Cr- Reply
    February 26, 2024 at 11:36 am

    KLM is on of my favorite airlines. I never thought of taking the route that you took. Excellent idea for the next time I visit Bali and Singapore. Thank goodness for fifth freedom flights. Too bad they don’t operate within a certain large Western country. Too bad.

  5. Flieger Reply
    February 26, 2024 at 11:58 am

    Dont know what it is with KLM but their business class is pretty much never at capacity. Often you can upgrade for something like $500 for a flight over the Altantic.

  6. Aaron Reply
    February 26, 2024 at 1:27 pm

    “two of my favorite cities”

    Er, neither is a city?

    “authentic style chicken satay”

    It would have been interesting to see how that is served as a full entree when the other airlines serve it as just a canapé/appetizer…also, is serving it with soybean sauce as opposed to peanut sauce really authentic?

    Also, with regards to the seats, at least KLM is upgrading them throughout it’s fleet. Royal Jordanian is still using these seats for all their wide bodies. Hopefully the new 787-9s RJ is getting will have a upgraded seat…

    • Mrs. C Reply
      February 26, 2024 at 7:50 pm

      Perhaps they don’t serve it with peanut sauce due to peanut allergies?

      • Aaron Reply
        February 27, 2024 at 7:14 am

        Then wouldn’t SQ and MH do the same? In any case youmissed the point.

      • Kiwi Sam Reply
        March 1, 2024 at 3:00 pm

        Satay just means meat on a stick it has nothing to do with what the sauce is, peanut or otherwise so a soybean sauce is perfectly authentic.

  7. Lucas Reply
    February 26, 2024 at 2:12 pm

    Bali is south of the equator so the Fall foliage salad is indeed season appropriate.

  8. Mick Reply
    February 26, 2024 at 4:13 pm

    Had a few lovely flights in a similar cabin with wife on the old 747 in 2018 between ord and ams. Was cool to see a vintage jeep offloaded from the hull prior to one of our flights!

  9. emercycrite Reply
    February 26, 2024 at 9:00 pm

    Every time I see a picture of someone with their feet up where they don’t belong I want to take a parang to them.

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      February 26, 2024 at 10:22 pm

      Hey stranger.

Leave a Reply

Cancel reply

Search

Hot Deals for May

Note: Please see my Advertiser Disclosure

Capital One Venture X Business Card
Earn 150,000 Miles Sign Up Bonus
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Earn 100,000 Points
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Earn 75,000 Miles!
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Earn 75,000 Miles
Chase Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card
Earn $750 Cash Back
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
Earn 120,000 Membership Reward® Points

Recent Posts

  • Turkey Fine Passengers Unbuckle
    Impatient Flyers, Beware: Turkey Will Fine You For Standing Up Too Soon May 28, 2025
  • Korean Air First Class Lounge ICN Review
    Review: Korean Air First Class Lounge Seoul (ICN) May 28, 2025
  • a group of people in blue uniforms
    United Airlines’ Uniforms Get A Facelift—And A Political Filter May 28, 2025
  • Dog Diversion Delta
    Delta Flight Diverts To Care For Sick Dog. Justified? May 28, 2025

Categories

Popular Posts

  • United Airlines Polaris Lounge Chicago Review
    Review: United Polaris Lounge Chicago (ORD) May 1, 2025
  • United Airlines Refresh Polaris Lounge Chicago
    First Look: United Airlines Reopens Renovated Polaris Lounge In Chicago (ORD) April 29, 2025
  • a hand holding a blue card
    Chase Sapphire Preferred 100K Bonus Offer Ending Soon May 2, 2025
  • Aegean Airlines Feast
    A Feast Fit For A King On Aegean Airlines May 23, 2025

Archives

May 2025
M T W T F S S
 1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
262728293031  
« Apr    

As seen on:

facebook twitter instagram rss
Privacy Policy © Live and Let's Fly All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Live and Let's Fly with appropriate and specific directions to the original content.