Review: United Polaris 787 Los Angeles to Tokyo

Background:

I booked this United Polaris 787-10 Business Class flight earlier this year, as I had been rescheduling this flight for almost 3 years now with the pandemic. Japan announced their border reopening for October without needing to be part of a scheduled tour and no testing needed, so it was good timing to keep this flight! I used 70,000 United MileagePlus miles to book this flight. United recently announced free changes/cancellations with award tickets, so it was flexible to change if needed.

Flight Details:

United Airlines Flight 32
Los Angeles (LAX) to Tokyo (NRT)
Departure: 10:35 AM
Arrival: 3:30 PM
Scheduled Duration: 11hrs 55mins
Aircraft: Boeing 787-10
Cabin: Business Class (Polaris)
Seat: 3L

At the Airport:

The TSA Pre Check line was super quick, and off I headed to the United Polaris Lounge. It was my first time ever visiting a Polaris Lounge, and I was quite impressed. It felt like a boutique lounge and it was quite nice. And, it also offered full restaurant a la carte style dining service. You can check out my full review of the LAX Polaris Lounge here.

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Boarding + United Polaris 787-10:

At LAX, they started boarding 55 minutes before departure, and used two boarding doors.

The cabin on the United Polaris 787-10 is one large cabin with no galleys separating the cabin. It has 11 rows (1-11) in a 1-2-1 configuration for a total of 44 seats. For window seats, the odd number window seats are closer to the window and offer more privacy. Similarly, for the two center seats, the odd numbers seats are closer together and further from the aisle, so it offers more privacy for couples traveling together. The Polaris seats are 20.5 inches wide and 6’6″ long (198 cm) when in the lie flat position.

My mom was in 5L, and she was missing a window, so just an FYI for you window lovers out there!

It’s been awhile since I’ve flown on a Dreamliner, and I really like not having window shades, and pressing the button to change the light/darkness. This particular aircraft had been delivered in 2019, and it still felt quite new and nice.

There are 4 lavatories serving the Polaris Cabin, with 2 in the front and 2 behind the last row of the Polaris Cabin.

The Seat:

When I got to my seat, slippers were waiting at the footrest, and two blankets (one duvet, one lighter blanket) with Saks Fifth branding were provided. Additionally, there was a small memory foam pillow as well as a full sized pillow.

The amenity kit was cute; it was a hard case from the luggage company Away. It came with standard items such as a pen, tissues, earplugs, eye mask, toothbrush and toothpaste. Also, there was Sunday Riley branded cleansing cloth, face cream, lip balm and hand cream.

IFE:

The IFE Screen was solid and all the controls were quite easy to use. There were plenty of movies to choose from. Also, WiFi was available for $1.99 for an hour or $21.99 for the whole flight. I just used the free messaging feature where we could use iMessage, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger for free. It worked generally, but the service would cut in and out throughout the flight. In particular, about halfway in the flight, the WiFi cut out completely for about a half hour or so.

There are quite a few places for storage; there is a cubby underneath the TV for smaller items, and then there’s a mini closable closet to the side where the headphones are stored.

The Flight:

Upon boarding, they served welcome drinks (water, champagne, orange juice). We then pushed back from the gate about 10 minutes after the scheduled departure time.

After reaching cruising altitude, they came with a beverage and nuts service.

They then proceeded with a lunch service, and the menu options were a Seared Beef Short Rib, Pan Seared Salmon and a Vegetarian Chili and Polenta Cake.

Normally, I don’t expect much from United catering, and I got the Pan Seared Salmon. I was pleasantly surprised, as it was quite tasty. I also enjoyed the Fresh Asian Salad as the starter.

I got the sundae for dessert, and sadly it wasn’t that good. The ones I had on American Flagship Business (and first), were a lot better.

They dimmed the cabin lights shortly after the meal service was concluded.

The FAs came around the cabin to check in, and brought a snack basket with Cheese-It’s, Chips, Almonds and Gummy Bears around.

I then tested my bed in the lie flat position. After watching a few movies, I decided to catch 2 hours of shut-eye. I like how the IFE has a relax mode where it can put on a screen of stars and play white noise music. I did find the foot cubby to be a tad on the smaller side, but was still able to find a comfortable position.

Two hours prior to landing, they turned on the cabin lights for breakfast service. The options were between a Monterey Jack and Red Pepper Egg White Bites or Oatmeal. I got the egg dish and it was strikingly similar to breakfast I’ve had on United Domestic First. This was a disappointing meal, with the sausage and eggs being quite bad. I already had low expectations for Polaris food, but when the LA to Tokyo route is also served by fellow Star Alliance partner ANA which is known for good food, they really need to step it up here.

The Verdict:

While the soft product and catering is probably better on the Japanese Airlines, United offers a solid hard product and lounge experience. Not a bad way to get from Los Angeles to Tokyo. I was pleasantly surprised by the better than average food on the lunch portion for this flight. For the right price, I wouldn’t hesitate to fly United Polaris again.

Have you flown on the United Polaris 787-10 before? How was your experience? Comment below!

Cheers,

Ty

Have any questions? Comment below or email me at takeofftotravel@gmail.com. I’ve also started working with a travel agency, Fora Travel, and can assist in booking hotel stays or planning trips. You can also view all my other posts here! Thanks for stopping by!