When departing from Queen Alia International Airport in Amman, Jordan in a premium cabin or with frequent flyer status, there is a tremendous benefit to choosing Royal Jordanian over others: a far superior check-in and departure process.
Royal Jordanian Offers Luxurious Departure Experience In Amman For Premium Guests
After my time in Jordan, my next stop was Egypt. The flight from Amman (AMM) to Cairo (CAI) is short and is operated by both Royal Jordanian and EgyptAir.
My loyalty is instinctively to Star Alliance so my default tendency was to book EgyptAir. Furthermore, EgyptAir operated a mainline aircraft (737-800) while Royal Jordanian, a member of oneworld, used a regional jet on the route. EgyptAir was also cheaper.
Ultimately, however, I chose Royal Jordanian because the schedule was preferable and there was reasonably-priced British Airways Avios award space.
I expected lovely service onboard, but what I did not expect was such a lovely ground product for Royal Jordanian business class guests and oneworld elites status holders flying RJ. If you are traveling in business class on RJ or hold ruby, sapphire, or emerald status in oneworld, you will find a special check-in area at the far end of the terminal (door 1). British Airways and Qatar Airways flights do not qualify.
Inside, a “Royal Club” replaces a traditional check-in area. Instead of standing in line, you sit at a desk. There, you are offered Arabic coffee or water.
After checking in, you proceed directly from the check-in lounge to a dedicated security checkpoint followed by a dedicated passport control booth (you’ll have to walk through a couple of hallways).
After being stamped out of Jordan, you continue into the main terminal…but in so doing totally avoid the lines and crowds of the standard security checkpoint and passport control.
It’s a nice added benefit of flying on Royal Jordanian from Amman in a premium cabin or while holding oneworld elite status.
CONCLUSION
If you are flying out of Amman on Royal Jordanian and hold oneworld elite status or are flying in business class, stick to Royal Jordanian. The check-in experience is quite pleasant and the use of a “Royal Cub” over a traditional check-in counter makes the entire experience much more premium.
Such a short flight wasn’t worth the premium cost, we’re going to endure the crowds…
I actually think it was – the check-in was an added bonus (and I already had lounge access due to Emerald status and PP), but even on regional jet it is nice to be in a real business class seat.
This facility is only available if you’re flying RJ, not if you’re flying another oneworld carrier like BA or QR.
Then why all the oneworld signage on the door?
It’s just standard oneworld marketing. Oneworld elites flying on RJ can use this facility, but if you’re a premium/elite passenger flying BA/QR out of AMM, you have to check-in in the main hall. RJ can’t check you in/accept baggage for such flights.
Thank you – I will update my post.
So if your routing was AMM-DOH, would you still prioritize RJ over QR?
What’s with all the masks?
Were still required when I flew (last spring).
Will you review the flight itself?
That’s next. Lounge too.
This is similar to the new BA/AA premium check in at JFK, sans Arabic coffee- I like this setup and helps with getting through in a much more relaxing manner, as you pointed out. I’d love to visit Jordan someday and looks like my Oneworld elite status will help make the journey a bit nicer. Looking forward to reading about the the rest of your journey/reviews!
I took advantage of this when I flew RJ out of Amman in J. A very pleasant experience. There were no tea or dates 8 years ago though.
Just remember that, at least as of a few years ago, RJ is insanely strict about having the actual credit card used for booking ready to present at check in.
I came close to missing all three of my RJ flights as I begged them to issue my boarding passes, as the CSP I’d used for booking had been lost and replaced, so it wasn’t the same card I’d used at booking.
In JFK, I managed to talk my way through it.
On return out of AMM, it took multiple calls to Chase and me presenting multiple credit card statements and having to have them appeal it all to some internal department, to get my boarding passes issued. I thought I was going to be stuck buying a same day ticket from another carrier for sure.
Interesting. We were never asked, though BA issued our tickets. Is fraud that rampant?
That’s a different Aaron than the usual one…
Credit card fraud isn’t rampant at all in Jordan… And an argument can be made that it is so because of these strict procedures…
Also keep in mind that Aaron’s experience occurred “a few years ago”…. My guess is it was long before chipped credit cards and 2 factor authentication…
Currently, all retailers have chip enabled point-of-sale systems, and all online transactions will go through a 2-step verification process before the transaction is approved.
At Jakarta, only Garuda pax get special treatment. I was flying business with CX but had no priority through security – that was only for premium pax of the Indonesian carrier.