I spent 5 hours in Alaska Airlines' first class. There were no lie-flat seats or other frills, but it was pretty great.
- I recently spent about five hours in Alaska Airlines' first class.
- The seats didn't lie flat but they were comfy and my in-flight snacks and meals were tasty.
I fly often, which means I sometimes get upgraded to first class. Recently, I moved up on my nonstop Alaska Airlines flight from Chicago to Portland.
Since I have MVP Gold status with the airline, I was able to get a complimentary upgrade to first class for my almost-five-hour flight.
Here's how the flight went.
I had plenty of legroom even though I was in a bulkhead seat.
Shortly after boarding, I settled into 1C, which was right behind the bulkhead.
My reclining seat, which had about 41 inches between it and the one in front of it, was very comfortable and had plenty of legroom.
I'm 6-foot-2 and was able to comfortably cross my legs in my seat, which is just over 20 inches wide.
It had the standard center armrest with an extendable drink shelf and USB and power outlets in the front. The tray table was on my right armrest, but I missed having a storage pouch in front of me.
The bulkhead tapestry looked like it hadn't been changed in years, but I still liked it.
This 737 had the bulkhead tapestry pattern commonly associated with older planes.
The top and bottom rows of the design have always reminded me of a 1980s computer lab. It looks dated, but I like that I instantly know what airline I'm on when I wake up during my flight.
The complimentary food and beverage items were tasty and presented well.
There was no drink service while on the ground. About 25 minutes into the flight, an attendant came by to take our drink and dinner orders.
Moments later, I was sipping a complimentary Sierra Nevada Summerfest lager and snacking on a warm snack mix of pretzel twists, almonds, and cashews. It was a tasty surprise.
Dinner was served about 10 minutes after my snack.
First-class dinners are usually served on real plates, but a crew member apologized and told me they'd run out and had to put my meal on a foil tray. It made no difference to me.
I ordered the Tillamook cheeseburger entrée. The burger was hot, and the portion size was good. It came with chips, a roll, and a salad and tasted like it was from my favorite roadside burger joint.
The meal ended with a fantastic berry cheesecake.
The snacks were plentiful.
An hour later, a flight attendant brought around another tray of snacks. I passed on the Kind bars, turkey jerky, Chex mix, and cookie and chose my favorite: Lesser Evil popcorn.
I snacked and relaxed in my comfy seat until the flight landed.
Overall, I can't wait to fly first class with Alaska again.
Alaska Airline's first class doesn't offer silky pajamas or lie-flat seats, but it provided me with a comfortable seat, tasty food and drinks, and excellent service that made my short flight plenty enjoyable.
My first-class upgrade was free, but it can cost about $230 more than economy on this route — and I think it would've been worth paying for.
I look forward to flying in Alaska's first class again.
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