It’s funny how some airlines leave a lasting impression on you. I have flown with Royal Jordanian a grand total of six times, yet I still look forward to the next time I get on board one of their flights. They are opening a bunch of new routes this year, so maybe this will be my time.
Business class is called Crown Class on the oneworld alliance carrier, and they still plate the food up at your seat. That, I have always thought, is ever so classy!
New Routes for Royal Jordanian
First cab off the rank will be services to Algiers (ALG) on 16 March. There are also three seasonal routes starting in April for the Summer season, those being Antalya (AYT) and Trabzon (TZX) in Turkey, and Sharm el Sheikh (SSH) in Egypt.
Starting on 19 April is a route from the airline’s home base in Amman to Aden (ADE), the temporary capital of Yemen. With the ongoing civil war there, I can’t see tourists clamouring to visit. Regardless, RJ will be the only major international airline serving the city, providing a safe option for those who need to go.
Finally, there will be new routes to Dusseldorf on 23 September, and Al-‘Ula (ULH) in Saudi Arabia the same month. Plenty going on, with many interesting places added to the network.
Overall Thoughts
According to Jordan News, Royal Jordanian plans to expand from 24 to 40 aircraft over the next three to five years. They desire to be the leading airline in the Levant.
Quite frankly, I love flying the airline and will probably look to head back to Jordan again soon. I thoroughly enjoyed my visit there many years ago and would rather like to go again.
What do you think of the new routes RJ will be operating? Are any places that you’ve been? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.
Like planes? See my “Does anyone remember” series.
Flight reviews your thing? Mine are all indexed here.
Follow me on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Featured image by Anna Zvereva via Wikimedia Commons.
Crown Class service images by Sam Chui.
It might be helpful if you could mention which point currencies can be used and what the cost are, perhaps with a couple of examples like NY or London to Jordan.
A good idea for a future article – thank you!
As someone who just got off a 13+ hour flight with RJ in Crown (Business) yesterday, I do recommend them as a good way to use AA miles. The AMM transfer experience is not great but ok. My experience with their 787 fleets has led me to believe that the best seats in that cabin are the middle pair on row 1. The outside pairs on row 1 are also good. Normally I’d shy away from those due to the proximity of the forward kitchen area, lights, etc. but I’ve noticed that they have much larger footwells than most of the other rows and it is a big factor in sleeping in these seats for most people over 5 foot tall. The major downside to RJ to me is that the cabin is 2-2-2 in business but it’s not as open or outdated as airlines like LOT in the 787.
I like that they are adding more routes but I would skip Yemen right now for ANY American. I like risky travel, but it’s not a good situation for Americans or most Westerners there AT ALL.
The Antayla (AYT) route is a big win. Most Westerners aren’t familiar with that airport but it’s a big beach vacation destination in that region. It’s not bad for a short visit but it is also somewhat of a ULCC hub for routes out of places like Israel and Europe. International transfers sometimes require a terminal change (by taxi) but it’s still not bad if you you are going to that region and with RJ there it might create a cheap backdoor into the Middle east on Avios or AA miles.
Glad to hear you had a great flight with Royal Jordanian. Thanks for the tips about the Crown Class seating in row one. These are the same seats as the AA A321 Transcontinental in business class, aren’t they? They are quite comfortable even if they are still 2-2-2 in layout.
I’m hoping to use some Avios to head to and from Amman, as I’d like to spend a few days relaxing at the Dead Sea. Last time I was there I was only there overnight and it wasn’t nearly long enough for me. Certainly looking forward to flying RJ again!