• Home
  • Reviews
    • Flight Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Lounge Reviews
    • Trip Reports
  • About
    • Press
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Award Expert
  • Advertising Disclosure
Live and Let's Fly
  • Home
  • Reviews
    • Flight Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Lounge Reviews
    • Trip Reports
  • About
    • Press
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Award Expert
  • Advertising Disclosure
Home  >  Flight Reviews • hawaiian airlines  >  Review: Hawaiian Airlines A330-200 First Class Los Angeles To Honolulu
Flight Reviewshawaiian airlines

Review: Hawaiian Airlines A330-200 First Class Los Angeles To Honolulu

Matthew Klint Posted onMarch 1, 2019May 10, 2020 18 Comments

Hawaiian Airlines offers a friendly, comfortable product onboard its A330-200 in first class.  My flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu certainly put me in the Hawaiian mood.

I used points to book my ticket. The ticket was $500, which equates to 50,000 American Express Membership Rewards points. But since I burned them via my Business Platinum account, I will receive a 35% rebate, meaning the trip will actually cost 32,500 miles. That’s not too bad for a six-hour flight with lie-flat beds that will also earn miles and elite credit.

Hawaiian departs out of Terminal 5 at Los Angeles International Airport. Unlike in Honolulu, first class passengers do not have lounge access prior to their flight. I had checked in online and was traveling with hand baggage only, so I proceeded straight to the PreCheck line to clear security. Boarding began 45 minutes prior to departure.

Hawaiian 001
Los Angeles (LAX) – Honolulu (HNL)
Monday, February 18
Depart: 07:00 AM
Arrive: 11:26 AM
Duration: 06hr, 00min
Aircraft: A330-200
Seat: 3J (First Class)

I was first to board and was warmly and enthusiastically welcomed by a flight attendant standing at the door. She directed me left to my seat in first class.

Hawaiian Airlines A330 First Class Seat

Hawaiian Airlines’ A330s features three rows of 2-2-2 seating in first class, totaling 18 seats. The seats are a bit narrow and not found on any other U.S. carrier, but I found them to be comfortable for the 5.5 hour journey to Honolulu.

I spent the majority of the flight in the lie-flat mode and slept well despite the poor bedding onboard. Hawaiian offers what amounts to an economy class pillow and premium economy blanket on its flights between the Mainland and Hawaii (with the exception of the flagship New York JFK to Honolulu route). Longhaul international routes do offer better bedding in the premium cabin.

If traveling alone, a privacy divider can be extended between you and your seatmate.

I was sorry to see that Hawaiian has not done a great job of maintaining these relatively new seats. There were all sorts of dents, cracks, and abrasions all over the seat and tray table.

There’s a small area for storage at the bottom of the seat in front of you and each seat has a power outlet.

Hawaiian Airlines A330 First Class Meal

Prior to takeoff, passengers were offered a choice of guava juice, water, Prosecco, or Mai Tais in real glasses. I know it is nothing but sugar water, but I enjoy guava juice when flying on Hawaiian…it puts me in the Hawaiian mood.

Menus were distributed just before takeoff and orders taken takeoff. Drink orders, that is. The menu did not offer a choice of breakfast. Here’s the full menu:

Despite the 7:00 AM departure time, Hawaiian served brunch onboard. The meal began with salted macadamia nuts.

Next came a small fruit plate with a side of croissant, served warm. The meal came on a faux-wood tray table similar to what both Alaska and Delta use. With the exception of the honeydew, the fruit was ripe and sweet.

The main course was a quiche with eggs, cheddar cheese, mushrooms, and sundried tomatoes served with Portuguese-sausage on the side. It was attractively served, piping hot, and hit the spot.

Next came chocolate cake, which seemed totally unnecessary but I suppose completed the brunch. I just had a few bites with some coffee.

Hawaiian uses Lion Coffee, grown in Honolulu, which was just okay…not great but not bad.

After my three-hour nap, I ordered a Mai Tai, which was served with snack mix. The Mai Tai is very sweet and could have used a lot more rum and a lot less juice.

Thus, I switched to the “Tropical Landing” cocktail, which was guava-juice based, prior to landing. It was served with Maui sweet onion potato chips. You may be best just sticking to water.

Overall, I very much enjoyed the brunch on Hawaiian. I also appreciate that economy class still receives free meals.

Hawaiian Airlines A330 First Class Service

One thing I appreciated so much about Hawaiian was the kindness of the flight attendants. They were kind and friendly, which makes such a difference. The two female FAs working the first class cabin were native Hawaiians and were also quite attentive. Throughout the flight, they would take turns monitoring the cabin for beverage refills.

Hawaiian Airlines A330-200 First Class Lavatories

Two lavatories located in front of the cabin were decorated with banana leaves and flowers. Hawaiian-branded coconut soap was offered.

Hawaiian Airlines A330-200 First Class IFE + Wi-Fi

Hawaiian Airlines does not have built-in IFE aboard the A330. Each passenger in first class was offered an iPad loaded with movies, games, and TV shows while the same tablets were available to rent (for a fee) in economy class.

The noise canceling headphones were not great at all but did the trick.

It really takes some maneuvering to get the little stand out of the center console to support the seat. I would not call it a design flaw, but it took some serious force to push down the round button to release the metal arm that would support the iPad.

The iPads were fully charged and no charging cables were distributed with them. FAs picked them up about 45-minutes prior to landing.

Hawaiian Airlines does not offer wi-fi onboard.

Hawaiian Airlines A330-200 Journey Pictures

It was an absolutely beautiful day from Los Angeles all the way to Honolulu. Here are some pictures I sanpped out of my window during the journey.

CONCLUSION

I like how Hawaiian puts you into the Hawaiian spirit. The pre-boarding Hawaiian music, flowers in the lavatory, and Aloha spirit of the flight attendants made for a pleasant flight.

We landed ahead of schedule in Honolulu and it was not even 11:00AM yet: the whole day was ahead of me.

Previous Article Yes, Passengers Are To Blame For Poor Airline Service
Next Article Review: Hawaiian Airlines Plumeria Lounge Honolulu (HNL)

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

  • Qatar Airways Al Safwa Lounge Review

    Review: Qatar Airways First Class Al Safwa Lounge

    January 25, 2023
  • chatgpt

    What Are The Effects Of AI (ChatGPT) On Travel Blog Writing?

    December 11, 2022
  • thanksgiving in manchester 2022

    Celebrating Thanksgiving Abroad: Why We Do It

    November 27, 2022

18 Comments

  1. Garrett Reply
    March 1, 2019 at 12:59 pm

    I don’t care about spelling errors (some of the most successful people I know send emails that look like a third grader wrote them), but given your post about the spell check thing the other day, this made me laugh (like laugh out loud): “stsausageuage.” LOL WHAT!? hahaha 🙂 Happy Friday!

    • Matthew Reply
      March 1, 2019 at 1:38 pm

      I’m quickly finding that Grammarly is missing a whole lot.

    • Peter Reply
      June 17, 2019 at 2:10 pm

      Why not just ask the flight attendant for a little bottle or two of the complimentary rum that you could add to the weak Mai Tai? I also like to add extra lime to counter the sweetness.

  2. Michelle Lee-Chin Reply
    March 1, 2019 at 2:53 pm

    I don’t see them monopolizing flights to the Hawaiian Isamds much longer with all the issues and bad publicity they’ve been getting in the news lately! It seems everyday you turn on the news or read the newspaper something has happened. Passengers are not going to be very happy with having to lose a day or 2 of their vacation and making adjustments!!!! Can’t wait for Southwest to start selling tickets and have the price fare wars begins amongst the airlines!! This may be the beginning of the end for Hawaiian

    They’ve ALREADY lost me as a customer after my attempt to fly home with my family out of Kona and they locked me out of the plane with my family and 4 kids on board! The most messed up part I was AT THE GATE the entire time trying to wait for an answer to see if the gate agent could take my car rental keys. They never knew about “will call” at check-in and neither did I. That 10-15 wait cost me getting onto to plane!!! #hawaiianairlines has STILL to respond to me even after numerous emails and postings to their website!!!! 6.5 months without a response is pretty bad!! In my book I don’t think they really care too much about Ohana nor have much Aloha…..

    • Jonathan Reply
      March 2, 2019 at 4:12 am

      I don’t think its Hawaiian Airlines issue that you were late for your flight. When booking flights there is a disclosure on all airlines on how much time you need to check in for your flight. I feel its not a gate agent’s responsibility to take your car rental keys. Those employees are already under a lot of stress, the last thing they want to worry about is your car rental keys. When signing the rental agreement form, you are solely responsible for returning all property to the rental car agency, not a gate agent. Hawaiian Airlines states on their website that you are advised to check in 1.5 hours on all Neighbor Island flights. And as far as bad publicity, every airlines has had their share of mishaps. Hawaiian Airlines may have lost you as a customer, but they have been the only airline in business to survive in this neighbor island aviation business. Good luck with your future travels.

    • Island Miler Reply
      March 3, 2019 at 6:20 pm

      Hawaiian Airlines is horrible at communicating ANY information to its customers, especially during delays. A friend of my recently experience a cancellation with them and they promised a hotel room would be ready for them if they went to the specified hotel. At the hotel, they found out Hawaiian hadn’t even made contact with the property. Hawaiian is now saying to send them their receipts for reimbursement, but I’m not holding my breath for them. Heck, my wife canceled a flight she paid with gift cards, and it took them about 2 months to put the balance back on her gift card after initially saying it would take 7-10 days. And every time she’d call, it’s always the same response.

      • Jonathan Reply
        March 4, 2019 at 1:15 am

        That is unfortunate that happened to your Wife and friend. I’m hoping Hawaiian Airlines got word of all this mishap. Then again what can you expect from an airline that pays their gate agents $10.92 an hour. Hopefully they will respond soon to all your inquiries. Safe travels.

        • Island Miler Reply
          March 6, 2019 at 2:56 am

          Right? But they don’t seem to care anyway. Heck, their cancellations seem like they’re becoming more frequent too, so ‍♂️. Thanks for the concern, by the way. At least my wife got her money back. Eventually.

  3. Tennen Reply
    March 1, 2019 at 3:03 pm

    @Matthew, nice review! I may be wrong, but Economy Class has built-in IFE on HA’s A330s. It’s so odd (not to mention cheap) for them to hand out tablets in F. :-/ Also, it’s too bad that they have a single choice for the main course. Do they at least offer special meals?

    It’s unfortunate that Grammarly isn’t really working out. You’d think it would catch something like that. 🙁

    • Matthew Reply
      March 1, 2019 at 3:56 pm

      You are right about the IFE. Odd indeed.

  4. D Reply
    March 1, 2019 at 7:15 pm

    Well sanpped!

  5. Moises Reply
    March 2, 2019 at 4:19 pm

    Those two economy seats right behind the first class bulkhead and immediately in front of the bulkhead for doors 2L and 2R! Those seats seem to be the better Y seats onboard. Semi-private, no seats in front or back of you. That’s all I could see when viewing the cabin photos.

  6. FNT Delta Diamond Reply
    March 5, 2019 at 10:03 am

    Hawaiian is overrated.

    The frequent flyer program sucks.

    The international business-class product is uncompetitive with the 2x2x2 configuration, especially with premium Asia–Hawaii routes and even Australia.

    Catering is very weak; especially wines.

    PLEASE ADD A SUBSCRIPTION BY EMAIL OPTION.

  7. David R Reply
    March 15, 2019 at 9:18 am

    Hi Matthew,

    Does’ HA First Class have premier security line at LAX? Will be flying from LAX to HNL tomorrow afternoon and just wondering.

    Thanks!

    • Matthew Reply
      March 15, 2019 at 10:07 am

      I did not see it. I had PreCheck, but there did not appear to be special line.

      • Jim Reply
        June 7, 2019 at 8:41 pm

        We have flown HA from LAX to Honolulu and Kahului four times this past year and every time we are directed to the line on the left for TSA Pre-check. Next flight is Wed. 6-12-19. Will give you an update.

  8. Aidan Reply
    March 25, 2019 at 1:15 am

    I can’t wait to board this plane type in first from SFO-OGG, later in the year.

    Originally had booked economy extra comfort, but got it changed. I think your review helped ‘justify’ my decision .

    Seems to be a fairly comfortable way to spend a 5.5 hour flight and arrive rested.

    • Matthew Reply
      March 25, 2019 at 8:58 am

      Enjoy your flight!

Leave a Reply

Cancel reply

Search

Recent Posts

  • Waldorf's take on eggs Benedict with truffle sauce and caviar
    Extending Hilton Diamond Status For Three Stays (Or Less) January 29, 2023
  • Review: Kempinski Hotel Ishtar Dead Sea January 28, 2023
  • American - Delta JFK Incident Pilot Analysis
    A Veteran Commercial Airline Pilot Analyzes American – Delta Runway Incident At JFK January 28, 2023
  • Pre-Boarding With Children: How Old Until They Are Too Old? January 27, 2023

Categories

Popular Posts

  • Casting Couch? Kuwait Airways Forces Prospective Flight Attendants To Undress For “Research Purposes” January 4, 2023
  • Spirit Airlines Captain Runs Out Of Cockpit After Woman Yells “I Hope Y’All Crash And Die!” January 17, 2023
  • SWISS First Class Awards Bookable With United Airlines MileagePlus January 5, 2023
  • United Airlines 2023 Status Extension
    United Airlines Quietly Extends MileagePlus Premier Status…Again January 14, 2023

Archives

January 2023
M T W T F S S
 1
2345678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
3031  
« Dec    

As seen on:

live_and_lets_fly

The new United Polaris Lounge at Washington Dulles The new United Polaris Lounge at Washington Dulles is the most beautiful of all Polaris Lounges. Stay tuned for a detailed look and many more photos on the blog tomorrow. Well done @united.
@malaysiaairlines just announced it would retire i @malaysiaairlines just announced it would retire its A380 fleet. While not surprising, it is sad to see the growing list of carriers retiring this superjumbo jet. On Malaysia Airlines, I flew the #A380 once from Kuala Lumpur (KUL) to London (LHR) and had the entire first class cabin to myself (full review on the blog). It was a beautiful flight that I will always remember.
Welcome to @fly_bur @aveloair! I am so excited tha Welcome to @fly_bur @aveloair! I am so excited that a new carrier, Avelo, has launched, especially from an airport just 12 minutes from my home!
I greatly miss the @lufthansa #747-8 at @flylaxair I greatly miss the @lufthansa #747-8 at @flylaxairport. Hopefully this summer it will return.

.
.
.
.
#Lufthansa #FirstClass #747 #747-8 #StarAlliance #Miles #Points
I recently spent a weekend at the @ventanabigsur. I recently spent a weekend at the @ventanabigsur. This is not only a lovely, all-inclusive resort, but one of the best properties to use your @hyatt World of Hyatt points.
.
.
.
.
#Hyatt #BigSur #California #WorldofHyatt #CA-1 #Points #Hotels
In terms of a spacious first class product, the @E In terms of a spacious first class product, the @Emirates suite on a 777-300ER is hard to beat. My preference is Suite 2K.

.
.
.
.
#Emirates #777 #firstclass
Nearly five years ago, I took a “break” from I Nearly five years ago, I took a “break” from Instagram ahead of the birth of my first child. Goodness, how time flies. While I’ve enjoyed catching up on others over the years, now it is time for me to return to Instagram. In this first post, I highlight two joys in my life, my two children, whom I trust will grow up to be prolific travelers that circumnavigate the globe as ambassadors of love and respect.

.
.
.
.
.

#travel #airplanes #airlines #miles #points #familytravel #human #integrity #honor
United Airlines' new Polaris seat is a huge improv United Airlines' new Polaris seat is a huge improvement over UA's current business class seat. Check out my blog at liveandletsfly.com for 70+ photos of how @united is transforming its entire business class experience starting this December!
The perfect @flysas name tag for #Longyearben! The perfect @flysas name tag for #Longyearben!
Spotted four #polarbear outside of #longyearbyen - Spotted four #polarbear outside of #longyearbyen -- oh, and I love 40°F summer weather!
One of the best crews I have ever had the pleasure One of the best crews I have ever had the pleasure of flying with in all my years of flying. Thank you @flysas SK940 on 11 Aug 2016
Next stop ARN! But dear @flysas , next time if I a Next stop ARN! But dear @flysas , next time if I assign a window seat months in advance, don't move me to a center seat "for my convenience" with no way to get my original seat back... 😞
Ready for #PIA from #MAN to #JFK -- we will be rac Ready for #PIA from #MAN to #JFK -- we will be racing the #Delta flight to JFK at the gate next to us, which also departs at 12:45p. With @onemileatatime
Another room with a beautiful view... #hyattregenc Another room with a beautiful view... #hyattregencycasablanca #cassablanca #hyatt
Enjoying #shanghai with @onemileatatime from the i Enjoying #shanghai with @onemileatatime from the inside of the @grandhyatt_shanghai ... It is 40°C outside! 😓
From my front gate to my boarding gate in 15 minut From my front gate to my boarding gate in 15 minutes flat. I ❤️ #bur #burbankairport
@malaysiaairlines #747 out of retirement and in se @malaysiaairlines #747 out of retirement and in service at #kul -- beautiful livery!
View from my 61st floor room at the beautiful bran View from my 61st floor room at the beautiful brand new @parkhyattguangzhou -- look for a full review coming soon on the blog #hyatt #parkhyatt #guangzhou #parkhyattguangzhou
Will miss the @united #globalfirstlounge at #ord, Will miss the @united #globalfirstlounge at #ord, which closes tomorrow and the Queen of the Skies #747 which will be retired in 2018.
The colonial #architecture of #mumbai is stunning. The colonial #architecture of #mumbai is stunning. If you're ever here, get up at 5am and have a walk around the city before it gets busy. You can hear the birds instead of honking horns.
Load More... Follow on Instagram
facebook twitter instagram rss

This site is for entertainment purposes only. The owner of this site is not an investment advisor, financial planner, nor legal or tax professional and articles here are of an opinion and general nature and should not be relied upon for individual circumstances.

 

Advertiser Disclosure: Some links to credit cards and other products on this website will earn an affiliate commission. Outside of banner ads published through the Boarding Area network, this compensation does not impact how and where products appear on this site. While we do try to list all the best miles and points deals, the site does not include all card companies or credit card offers available in the marketplace. Please view our advertising policy page for additional details about our partners.

 

Editorial Disclosure: The editorial content on this page is not provided by any entity mentioned herein. Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.