Background + Booking:
I’ve always wanted to fly on the JetBlue Mint “Throne” seat, and I had a credit that was set to expire later this year. I booked this flight from Newark to San Diego for a price of $515 one way on my recent trip. On my flight to New York, I was able to sample the new Mint Suites product. If you’re interested in seeing the brand new Mint Suites from my flight to New York, you can check it out here.
JetBlue’s original A321 Mint product features 16 total seats in the cabin. There are 12 lie-flat seats plus four suites spread out over five rows. Rows 1, 3 and 5 have a 2-2 configuration and rows 2 and 4 contain suites with closing doors in a 1-1 configuration. The best part is that JetBlue doesn’t charge extra for the seats with closing doors, and the earlier you book, the better chance that someone hasn’t snatched it up yet. These “throne” seats provide additional storage, much more elbow room, as well as added privacy.
Flight Details:
Newark (EWR) to San Diego (SAN)
jetBlue Flight 1045
Date of Flight: September 2021
Seat: 4A- Mint
Aircraft: Airbus A321
Plane: Fly In Mint Condition
Status: On Time
If you would like the shortened version of this review, you can check my Takeoff Points for this flight that I posted here.
At the Airport:
My JetBlue flight left out of Newark Terminal A, and the flight left at 8am on Labor Day. The airport was quite empty, and I got past TSA within a few minutes. Flying in Mint does grant you Even More Speed, this lets you use the priority security lane at the TSA Checkpoint, which can come in handy on crowded airport days. JetBlue doesn’t provide any lounge access which is the (only) negative of flying in Mint in my opinion.
The Terminal A at Newark is under construction, and I think I read that the gate I left from has been decommissioned just a few weeks ago to make way for the renovations. Thank goodness they are renovating because that Terminal is very outdated. For those of you who fly out of Newark, it says that the new Terminal A is slated to open its first gates in spring 2022, with a full completion on target for late 2022.
Boarding:
I boarded with the rest of the Mint passengers, and arrived at my seat, 4A.
The first thing I noticed was how much space the seat provided, compared to the more narrow Mint Suites. But, it definitely was more outdated than the Mint Suites.
Surprisingly, the flight was quite empty, with all 4 seats in the last row of Mint flying out empty and 3 seats empty in row 1. So only 9 out of 16 seats were taken.
The Seat: JetBlue “Throne” Seat
Compared to the new Mint Suite, the old “Throne” seat cushion was on the stiffer side at first, but I got used to it and overall it was a comfortable seat. Even though the aircraft I was on was one of the first Mint planes for JetBlue 7 years ago; it was still in pretty good shape. I’m curious if the new Mint Suite that I flew on will age as well too.
There was a water bottle waiting at my seat, as well has plenty of charging ports for power plugs and for USB. There was a side cubby that you could throw a lot of stuff into, as well as little storage areas with nets to keep your objects in place.
In terms of seat controls, they were pretty easy to figure out. They even have a massage function, but it really didn’t feel that comfortable to me so I turned it off.
Lie-Flat Bed:
The lie-flat was pretty long, and I had a lot of room leftover for my feet. JetBlue advertises that the “Throne” Seat offers the longest fully lie-flat seat (6’8″) on a domestic premium flight.
A comforter and a pillow are provided by Tuft and Needle and it is of a pretty good quality. What’s a bit unique is that JetBlue has a non-traditional amenity kit from Wanderlust. Instead of coming in a nice bag and having the usual contents, it comes with supplements to boost your immune system, recovery cream, socks and lip balm. Pretty hip, but I wish the bag was nicer! On top of that on this flight I also got an eyemask, earplugs and a toothbrush from Tuft and Needle- which is something I didn’t get on my mid-day flight to New York. Perhaps because this flight was an 8am flight, and people might want to catch some shut-eye again.
Another fun feature of seat is the suite door. It’s nice to have the added privacy as I don’t have to see the passenger across the aisle, and helps to provide an office like experience on a plane.
In-Flight Entertainment:
The only negative I would say is that the seat back IFE is quite outdated, and due for a refresh with the resolution and navigation of the system. The current IFE is a 15 inch screen, compared to the larger 17 inch screen on the new Mint Suites. Headphones were provided by Master and Dynamic, and those were of decent quality. One thing that bugged me was that they picked up the headphones 30 minutes before landing, which would suck if you were right about to finish a movie. I just watched TV, so it wasn’t a big issue for me on this flight.
The IFE It had DIRECTV, movies on demand, games and SiriusXM radio, which are plenty to keep you entertained.
On the bright side, JetBlue offers free WiFi to all passengers through their Fly-Fi system by ViaSat. Why can’t every airline do this! It was pretty fast and I enjoyed being able to surf the web.
Meal Service:
The best part about the Mint experience is the dining and I was very much coming in with high expectations from my flight to New York.
Here’s the breakfast menu I had:
For my welcome drink, I tried a different take on the famous Mint Condition cocktail. Since it was early in the morning, I didn’t feel like having vodka, so I took the version with seltzer instead. I really liked it, and actually had a second. It is very refreshing. Our cabin was served by Patrizia and Katelyn, and they were great in checking in on everyone.
Breakfast:
Breakfast services started promptly after reaching cruising altitude. The meal started with a bread pastry.
The Mint service is tapas style from Pasquale Jones, and you get to choose 3 of the 5 small plates (6 for breakfast technically). I got the Farm Egg Tart with roasted red peppers and potatoes, Maple-Glazed bacon and Quinoa Pancakes with caramelized hazelnuts. Each of the 3 dishes was delicious. My absolute favorite was the bacon, as it was even better than many restaurants I’ve been to. With the lunch I had on the outbound, to this amazing breakfast, I’m amazed that JetBlue can make such great meals on planes.
After I had my breakfast, I opted to order another cappuccino as I loved the one I had on my flight to New York. The cappuccino was amazing on this flight as well.
Snacks were served later in the flight. There were chocolate chip cookies, Sea Salt Pop Corners and Cinnamon Seed Bar Thins. They were all pretty tasty!
On a side note, the menu, stated that the parting gift would be from NYC’s Hu with the Chocolate Covered Cashews like on my flight to New York, but I didn’t get any on this flight- I suppose they forgot.
In all, the great meal, really made the 5 hours go by in a blink of an eye!
The Verdict:
Overall, I was very excited to try the original JetBlue Mint product, and my experience did not disappoint. I really loved the JetBlue Mint throne seat, and even with the plane being 7 years old, it was still in very good Mint condition. Additionally, the food was stellar, and it had the best airplane bacon I’ve ever had! In all, you won’t be disappointed flying on the original Mint or the new Mint Suites, and I truly recommend it.
Have you flown on the JetBlue Mint Throne seat before? Comment below!
Cheers,
Ty
Have any questions? Comment below or email me at takeofftotravel@gmail.com. You can also view all my other posts here! Thanks for stopping by!
