READER REVIEW- Aer Lingus Business Class Manchester to Orlando

Today’s article is by reader contributor, Ryan.

Flying Aer Lingus from Manchester (MAN) to Orlando (MCO)

Aer Lingus check in at Manchester

Aer Lingus is currently operating from both Terminals 1 and 2 at Manchester Airport. All short-haul flights are from Terminal 1, whilst long-haul flights are operating from the brand-new Terminal 2. We arrived at our meet-and-greet car park in Terminal 2 for our flight to Orlando (MCO).

We arrived three hours before departure. The Aer Lingus check-in desks only had a few people in the main queue, but the business class queue was empty. Check-in was quick and efficient and it took less than 10 minutes from arriving to leaving. We booked a total of 2 cases per person, but business class lets you take a staggering 3 cases per person at 23kg each.

Security

After completing check-in, we walked through to security. The business class option gave you the fast-track option at Manchester. When we arrived at fast-track security we were through in around 10 minutes. The normal security queues were nonexistent so the fast-track wasn’t needed but it’s still a great benefit to have especially for Manchester which is known to be slow at the best of times. 

Airport Lounge – Manchester – Terminal 2

Aer Lingus does not have a dedicated lounge for business class passengers at Manchester Terminal 2. Instead, you are sent to the 1903 Lounge which is the most premium of the lounges operated by the airport.

I really like the 1903 Lounge – it has fantastic views of the airport and features self-pour drinks, including alcohol on an all-inclusive basis. We saw many options for alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks which we were impressed by. Who doesn’t love a Diet Coke out of a glass bottle?

Breakfast items included pastries, yoghurts and fruit in addition to the main selection of hot items for a full English. Although basic options, these were great options for a morning flight.

I want to add that we got to the airport lounge around 2 hours before our departure time of 11am to ensure we got 2 seats together. Throughout our time in the lounge, we noticed that it got incredibly busy and had very limited seating.

We would like to praise the staff members working in the 1903 lounge as they were very friendly and worked hard to keep the lounge clean and tidy throughout.

A suggestion would be to arrive at the airport lounge ahead of time so that you can enjoy the experience. If you arrive later than scheduled, then you may not guarantee a good seat or experience.

Prior to Boarding

We were called to board our flight ahead of time due to a long walk from the lounge to the gate. We can confirm this was around a 20-minute walk which went back past the security gates and then down a long corridor to the end gate for our Aer Lingus flight to Orlando. This was not ideal, but they are currently building a new part of Terminal 2 at Manchester, so this is understandable.

Not long after the walk, we settled briefly in the departure gate for around 5-10 minutes and then were called for boarding. They boarded the plane with anyone with special assistance first. They then called business class passengers and anyone who required extra time.

We scanned our passports and walked down towards the jetty however in typical fashion they weren’t ready for us which meant that business class passengers were waiting in the queue for around 10 minutes.

On board an Aer Lingus A330 from Manchester

My partner and I boarded the plane, we were greeted by the friendly airline cabin crew.

I sat in 2H and my partner is 2K. Aer Lingus has a staggered business class layout, which means the number of seats per row alternates between 2-2-1 and 1-2-1. 

The benefit of such a layout is that it has good seats for both those travelling solo and those travelling as a couple. All seats also face forward, with no angle.

I should point out that this Aer Lingus layout has seats 3K and 5K which are classed as throne seats. There is a huge amount of personal space if you get a throne seat so if you have the chance and you’re flying solo I would recommend these. 

In 2H and 2K there is a large amount of storage for you and your partner such as under your footrest for shoes and then above for bags etc. We had 1 large overhead compartment for ourselves on the flight.

Next to the cupboard, there was a bottle of water, a universal plug socket and seat controls that let you customise your leg rest, lumber support and recline.

The tray table also comes out of this section and then flips horizontally. It is a good size and also I would class the middle section as a drinks holder which we used before taking off and in-flight drinks storage.

A 16-inch touchscreen is directly in front of you. It did look a little small initially but when you recline your seat to relax it wasn’t a problem and proved an enjoyable experience.

Underneath the TV is the padded footrest area for relaxing and sleeping. This provided a great amount of space and comfort for me and my partner. Although we are only small-framed people, we would say that larger-sized people would have no problems either with space or comfort throughout the flight.

A quilted blanket and pillow are available from the overhead locker.

There are two dedicated toilets at the front of the cabin for business class passengers which are stocked with Voya toiletries. We used the closest one to us which was the right-hand toilet. Although basic, it was fine for our flight. 

Inflight entertainment on Aer Lingus

I tested the sound quality on the standard Aer Lingus headphones before I switched over to my own ‘Beats’ headphones. The quality wasn’t great, to be honest. However, they are noise cancellation which not all airlines offer.

The film selection was good. At first, I thought it was quite small, but Aer Lingus has categorised all the options so you need to flick through a couple to see the full selection. There was a good selection of recent releases including Bad Boys and Migration but generally, it was mostly older movies that were available in the entertainment section.

I ended up watching Migration which was a great PG comedy movie to make the journey to Orlando go quickly. 

With roughly an hour to fly, I decided to play Trivial Pursuit which I would definitely recommend to pass the time.

Inflight wifi on Aer Lingus

Aer Lingus offers free wifi for all business-class passengers which is becoming more and more common these days. You are given a small card with a redeemable code:

The code is valid for 400mb. If you run out or if you are sat in the economy, you have a choice of three packages:

• Aer Social (50mb) – €6.95
• Aer Surf (120mb) – €13.95
• Aer Max (270mb) – €29.95

A free 400mb of capacity is a valuable perk in my opinion. 

It was nice to be able to stay in contact and pick up a few emails in between watching films and having lunch. I also checked the football scores which was a great addition. Although I appreciate most people like to use flights to switch off from the world. 

Inflight Menu on Aer Lingus – Outbound

 Below are the menus for the full selection of outbound meals to Orlando. I have also included a picture of the drinks offering too.

Service on board Aer Lingus business class

Once in my seat, I was offered a welcome drink. I went for orange juice:

Shortly after takeoff, the crew offered a second round of drinks along with a few snacks plus they took our food order. We opted for a brandy and coke for myself and my partner just a coke.

During the flight, there were various options for starters, mains and desserts.

To start, we both had the soup.

The starter came with a salad and a pretzel bread roll. The bread and soup were very tasty. We didn’t rate the salad too much as it had quite a lot of strong cheese. I would recommend choosing something else if this type of cheese isn’t your thing.

For the main course, we both opted for the blade of beef. We can safely say that it’s the best meal that we’ve had on a plane, amazing.

Finally, for dessert, I didn’t have anything, but my partner had the apple and caramel domed mousse which was really tasty.

Midway through the flight, the crew passed through the cabin with a basket of snacks including chocolate bars and crisps. There was a large selection such as Walker crisps, Dairy Milk & KitKat chocolate bars etc.

About two hours before landing afternoon tea is served.

I had the cajun-spiced blackened chicken slider which tasted amazing. My partner also had this but said it was too spicy for her. It did have a little kick to it however was very nice and flavourful.

They also offered a small tray of sweet treats which consisted of a salted caramel cupcake, apple and custard crumble tartlet, and red velvet sponge cake.

Everything was very tasty and enjoyable for a treat before we arrived in Orlando.

I was very surprised by the food on Aer Lingus. The airline offers a choice of all courses and the presentation and taste were really good.

We had around a 30-minute delay whilst in the air due to a storm in the area of Orlando, but this soon passed with all the entertainment to choose from.

We came to land and it was a surreal experience. We could see a Southwest Airlines landing at the same time adjacent to the runway on which we were landing. 

Flight Smoothness

I want to point out that we have been to Florida on quite a few occasions, when crossing the Atlantic you do experience parts of turbulence throughout the flight. This is due to the jet streams and air pressure when in the sky.

We experienced around 45 minutes of turbulence just as we passed Ireland.

When the plane crossed into USA airspace, we experienced around 1 hour of turbulence while flying past New York. We both experienced turbulence around this area on a previous flight a few years ago so we expected around this area.

The turbulence experience was only mild and not too violent.  Maybe it was because we sat at the front of the plane the experience was stronger but please don’t let this put you off.

Price

We checked on the Aer Lingus website for buying business class both ways. This was working out at a total cost of £6200 for 2 people. (£3100 per person).

We first booked our flights in Economy Class in January 2024 for our September 2024 holiday which came to a cost of £1423 (£711 per person).

I kept a good lookout for any offers to upgrade to business class and sure enough, there was an offer that popped up at the end of July. The cost to upgrade both of us to business class was £880. (£220 each way per person).

Total costs for the flight – £2303 (£1151 per person).

Conclusion

Aer Lingus offers great seats in its business class cabin, the meal and drink service was excellent and we were really looked after on the flight.

Of course, a crew can make or break a flight. The cabin crew who looked after us were excellent to me and the other passengers. The cabin wasn’t very full with a total of 15 or so passengers.

Overall we really enjoyed the experience on our Aer Lingus flight to Orlando. I would recommend the business class experience but only if you can get a good deal at a discounted rate. Although I had a great flight, it probably isn’t worth the full original asking price. 

All things considered; I wouldn’t hesitate to fly Aer Lingus again on a long-haul flight. Whilst it doesn’t offer the level of luxury you find on some airlines it manages to nail everything you could want from a business-class flight.