I flew on Hawaiian Airlines for the first time from NYC to Honolulu. The seat was nothing special, but the food was easily better than any other US airline.

Taylor RainsJan 15, 2024, 02:28 IST

I flew on Hawaiian for my honeymoon trip to Oahu and the food made the experience better than competitors.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

I flew on Hawaiian Airlines for the first time, trekking 10 hours between New York and Honolulu.
The flight was extremely long, but the comfortable seats and tasty food made it bearable.

During my eight years of working in the airline industry, I have managed to fly on every US carrier except one: Hawaiian Airlines.

So, for my honeymoon trip to Oahu in November, I ignored my loyalty to Delta Air Lines and booked Hawaii's namesake carrier. The Hawaiian reservation for two people in economy cost us about $1,800 roundtrip, which was cheaper than Delta's fare.

My husband being an airline pilot himself meant he was just as excited as me to experience Hawaiian. And, considering the carrier is consistently praised for its comfort and reliability, we had high hopes going in.

While the seats themselves were nothing special and had one slight annoyance, I found the 10-hour journeys between New York-JFK and Honolulu were easy thanks to Hawaiian's good food and relaxed atmosphere.

My husband and I arrived at New York-JFK's Terminal 4 at 8:00 a.m. for our 10:00 a.m. scheduled departure.

Our boarding passes.Taylor Rains/Insider

With several bags in tow, we headed to Hawaiian's check-in counter and were happy to be one of the few people in line.

The Hawaiian check in counter at JFK's Terminal 4.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

We breezed through security thanks to TSA PreCheck and spent about an hour at the Virgin Atlantic lounge.

The lounge had plenty of seating with free food and drinks.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

We boarded the aircraft about 45 minutes before departure and made our way to a pair of seats in the back of the plane.

Our seats onboard Hawaiian's Airbus A330.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

Walking through the cabin, I appreciated the light blue color scheme and the fun flight attendant uniforms.

A flight attendant onboard Hawaiian during the return flight.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

We soon made it to seats 42J and 42H. I chose this particular section because of the bigger aisle in the back of the plane.

View of the cabin from row 47 once the lights were down after the meal service.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

Rather than the 2×4×2 configuration installed throughout most of the economy cabin, rows 43-47 are in a 2×3×2 layout.

One of the rows with three seats in the aft middle section.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

With one seat gone, the wider aisle made the aft cabin feel more open — as much as it can anyway on a flying metal tube.

The grey curtain to the left blocks off the row of seats reserved for crew rest.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

Other than the change in layout, there was nothing particularly outstanding about the seats.

Flying on Hawaiian Airlines.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

As expected, the seatback pocket was just one pouch, and there were no special amenities. Still, the seats were perfectly comfortable.

The space between the cushions and the seatback.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

I was particularly happy with the padding and the legroom, the latter being pretty industry-standard.

The seats in row 38 on the return journey to New York. The red-eye included a blanket.Taylor Rain/Business Insider

My husband and I are only 5'3" and 5'7", respectively, so we felt we both had enough legroom.

The legroom onboard.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

There were also plenty of movie titles to choose from to pass the time.

The inflight entertainment system had movies, music, games, and a flight map.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

However, I had one major quip with the seatback screen — it didn't flip up.

We watched movies to pass the time.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

This meant the angle of the TV was awkward when the person in front was fully reclined.

The difference in position of the seatback when the person in front is reclined.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

It was an annoyance, but honestly, the deep recline helped me sleep and ended up being a fine trade-off.

I lost a lot of space if the person in front reclined, so everyone had to recline to make it work.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

Shortly after settling into our seats, we pushed back from the gate and took off about 20 minutes later.

A view of NYC after takeoff.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

The flight attendant soon came by with a cart full of things like headphones, drinks, and snacks for purchase.

The snack box.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

Unsure how big the complimentary meals would be, I decided to buy a snack box.

The Maui Onion macadamia nuts were delicious. Taylor Rains/Business Insider

We also enjoyed a few local Maui beers.

The Bikini Blonde lager from Maui Brewing Company was served onboard.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

About two hours into the flight, we were served our first of two meals — and this is where Hawaiian shined over its US competitors.

The first of two meals served on Hawaiian.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

The first offering was a pasta dish, and despite looking a little dry, it was surprisingly tasty.

The meal came with wine.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

The second meal, consisting of an egg sandwich, juice, and trail mix, was served about 90 minutes before landing.

You can see the difference in useable tray table space when the seat in front is not reclined.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

I thought Hawaiian's egg salad was particularly excellent.

The combination of egg and cucumber was perfect.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

On the ride back to New York two weeks later, we were met with the same standard economy seats and more good food.

The view from the plane after takeoff from Honolulu with Diamond Head in the background.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

The first meal was meatballs, rice, and veggies. Similar to the outbound meal, it was served with fruit and a pastry.

I loved the fresh fruit.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

As this was a red-eye flight, the second meal contained mostly breakfast food, including a muffin, orange, cheese, and crackers.

The second meal served with orange juice.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

Overall, I think Hawaiian provided a great start to my honeymoon, and I'd easily book the airline again in the future.

Our aviation-crazed selves beelined to Pearl Harbor's aviation museum after arriving in Hawaii.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

But, remember that even though this is a domestic flight, it's longer than flying to Europe from New York — so board prepared.

The Hawaiian A330-200 at the gate in New York.Taylor Rains/Business Insider

I put Taco Bell's wacky menu experiments to the test. Some meals should return to the lab, while crazy-good items like breakfast tater tots should go national.

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