Background and Booking
I recently flew roundtrip from Newark (EWR) to London (LHR) onboard United Polaris on the 767-300ER. My trip was a quick vacation where I visited London, Paris, and the Loire Valley in France. I stumbled on an amazing sale on this flight for 1.2k roundtrip and couldn’t say no. I was excited to try United Polaris on the 767 as it would be my first time on this aircraft type in Polaris. And, I’ve had enjoyable experiences in Polaris on the 777 and 787, so this would complete the Polaris experience on United’s current widebody fleet.
Schedule Change
I booked this flight about 6 months in advance, and just 2 weeks after booking, my originally booked outbound flight got canceled completely as United decreased the number of frequencies for the route. Since I booked with Lufthansa as a codeshare, they actually rebooked me on LH metal with a connection in Frankfurt. It was on a 747, which is cool, but sadly the business-class product is past its prime and lacks privacy. Not loving the product, nor the connection, I decided to call Lufthansa to see if I could hop back on to a nonstop United flight. I was helped by a very friendly associate from Lufthansa, and she quickly rebooked me on a United nonstop, which I appreciated very much.
Flight Details
United Airlines Flight 14
Newark (EWR) to London (LHR)
Departure: 6:45 PM
Arrival: 6:55 AM (+1 day)
Scheduled Duration: 7 hours 10 minutes
Aircraft: Boeing 767-300ER
Cabin: Business Class (Polaris)
Seat: 5L
At the Airport
Once I got to the airport, I headed to the United Polaris Lounge. I’d never been inside the one at Newark before, so I was excited to check it out. Overall, I was quite impressed as it was luxurious and had a la carte dining. I definitely recommend you have a meal in the lounge before boarding the flight. If you’d like, you can check out my full review of the Newark Polaris Lounge here.
The Aircraft
The United Boeing 767-300ER that I was on is quite premium heavy which is quite nice. It has 46 United Polaris Business Class seats set up in a 1-1-1 configuration.
For the rest of the plane, it has 22 seats in a Premium Plus Cabin in a 2-2-2 configuration. Lastly, there are 99 Economy and Economy Plus seats in a 2-3-2 configuration. Quite nice with so few middle seats!
My aircraft was 24 years old but was reconfigured in March 2020, so thankfully it did not feel that dated at all.
Boarding
I arrived at the gate right at the scheduled boarding time 50 minutes before our scheduled departure. Group 1, where I was in, was already boarding. We boarded from the front doors, and I found my way to my seat. One note, I liked how the flight attendants handed out sanitizing wipes.
Once I got to my seat, I was offered a pre-departure beverage of water, champagne, or juice.
The boarding door closed 15 minutes before our scheduled departure. I feel like boarding was quite quick because this Boeing 767 is very premium heavy, with the 42 United Polaris Business Class seats taking up half of the plane’s available space.
We left the gate 10 minutes before our scheduled departure. Meanwhile, the captain announced that our flight was going to be 6 hours and 34 minutes in the air.
The Seat
I was in seat 5L, on the right side of the aircraft. The 767 has a 1-1-1 configuration in United Polaris which is quite cool as you’ll never have a neighbor right beside you. But I suppose if you are a couple and want to talk to them it is a bit harder. Since I was flying alone, I loved this configuration.
Pillows and Blankets
Waiting at my seat were slippers, and two blankets (one duvet, one lighter blanket) with Saks Fifth branding. Additionally, there was a memory foam pillow as well as a full-sized pillow. I found the blankets and pillows to be quite comfortable.
The odd-numbered window seats (A and L) are the most private, as they are designed to have the seat closer to the window, so you have a table separating you from the aisle. I flew in 5A on my return, and prefer 5L as it’s a notch more private. In 5L, across the aisle is a wall, rather than in 5A, across the aisle you can see another person in their seat as it opens up to their entrance.
The seat offers 77″ (195 cm) of sleeping space, as well as 20.6″ (52.3 cm) in seat width.
There’s a power plug and USB outlet next to the storage cabinet, as well as another USB port next to the TV Screen. The storage cabinet had a mirror in it and also contained the headphones which worked fine.
As for the seat controls, they were located closer to the window, and I found them to be quite easy to use.
I noticed some other reviews recently that have complained about the lack of cleanliness on the aircraft, but thankfully they did a pretty decent job on this flight.
Amenity Kit
Waiting in the storage cubby was a water bottle, and a Therabody Crossbody Bag Amenity Kit. It came with standard items such as a pen, tissues, earplugs, an eye mask, a toothbrush, and toothpaste. Also, there was a TheraFace branded towelette, hydrating mist, lip balm, eye serum, and hand cream.
In-Flight Entertainment
The seatback screens are nice and crisp and feature the latest movies, plus a selection of TV shows and music. They seemed to not have the same software interface as my flights on the 777 and 787, which is a bit disappointing. I used to like the “Relax Mode” those aircraft had, but this plane had a different “Relaxation” feature that’s not the same.
Wi-Fi was also offered on the flight, and it was $27.99 for the full flight, $16.99 for 2 hours, or $12.99 for 1 hour. There was Free Messaging available for iMessage, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger. And, there was also free Wi-Fi on a mobile device for T-Mobile customers. The Wi-Fi worked pretty well on my phone during the flight.
The Flight and Meal
About 30 minutes after takeoff a warm towel was offered. Then 15 minutes later, drink orders were taken and nuts were offered. I love mixed nuts, but wish they were warm like on American.
For my main entree, I pre-ordered the Seared Flat Iron Steak. The steak wasn’t too chewy which was nice, and cooked to a nice medium. But, I just didn’t love the flavor of the steak. The entree came along with a Romaine Kale Salad and it came with a cold appetizer of either Sweet and Sour Chicken or a Burrata dish, of which I chose the former.
Other entree options included a Green Curry Chicken, Blackened Cod, and Orecchiette.
I liked the little noodle salad that came with the chicken appetizer, but I wish that the greens were a bit more flavorful. On the other hand, I did enjoy both breads offered, which were garlic bread and another bread type as well.
After I finished my meal, it was time for dessert. I tried the coffee cake and a sundae with fudge and sliced almonds. I always love a sundae, but I have to say that the ice cream used in American Airlines Flagship is much better both texture-wise and taste. The coffee cake was fine, but a bit too sugary.
Sleeping Time
After I had my dessert, the friendly purser handed me a mattress pad, and I made my bed to catch some shut-eye. At this point, there were only 4.5 hours left on the flight, so I needed to sleep ASAP. If you wanted snacks throughout the flight, there were snack baskets laid out at row 1 and included chips, cookies, fruit, and more.
I was able to doze off, and 1 hour and 30 minutes before landing, the cabin lights came on. I woke up and used the lavatory. There are 2 lavatories in the front of the cabin, which is a bit short given how large the cabin is. There is also 1 in the rear of the Polaris Cabin, but that’s kind of shared with Premium Plus. They had Therabody Hand creme, garment grooming, and hydrating mist which were nice touches. I used the hydrating mist to wake myself up. The lavatory was clean when I used it, but one thing I do wish is that they had automatic sinks.
Before Arrival
For breakfast, I chose the Vegetable Frittata. Sadly, I found the eggs to be too gooey. On the bright side, the fruit was sweet.
By the time breakfast was finished, it was time to prepare for arrival. On the flight overall, the service was very attentive and I couldn’t have asked for anything more. I just felt bad for the crew that the PA system was faulty and that it kept having feedback.
We landed 20 minutes before our scheduled arrival time and got to the gate 10 minutes early.
The Verdict
Overall, my experience on the United Polaris Boeing 767 was quite solid. I really liked the full experience from the Polaris Lounge, to the hard product, and the friendly service onboard. But, where room for improvement lies is with the on-board catering. If United could improve their catering, it would be a top-notch product for a US carrier.
Have you flown on the United Polaris Boeing 767? 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!
